12th century castle opens as wedding and events venue offering activities such as blindfold off road driving

Wedderlie House has opened as an exclusive use wedding and events venue.
Wedderlie House is now open for weddings and exclusive use events.Wedderlie House is now open for weddings and exclusive use events.
Wedderlie House is now open for weddings and exclusive use events.

Located between Duns and Lauder in the Scottish Borders, this historic house is now open for celebrations, and can offer a range of activities for those who book.

 

Originally a castle dating back to the 12th Century, and with parts of the present eleven bedroom Mansion House dating from the 17th Century, Wedderlie house was gifted by King Robert the Bruce to his loyal liege, Sir Richard Edgar, in 1327, and remained in the Edgar family for 400 years.

 

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The house is set on a private sixty acre estate with multiple outbuildings, including cottages and stables, which offer bridal parties or groups of friends flexible accommodation for celebrations that last a few days.

New owners Jamie Raine-Fraser and his wife Connie acquired Wedderlie House last year, with a plan to transform the venue.

 

Completely, Wedderlie House is now a luxurious, modern venue, which still retains its country mansion heart. With the help of local tradesmen, Jamie has brought the historic house back to life, also carrying out extensive groundworks around the estate.

 

Weddings at Wedderlie House

 

The estate can now accommodate around 44 people, with 22 sleeping in the 11 well appointed bedrooms in the main House. Added to the portfolio is a comfortable cottage with four double bedrooms.

 

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Brides can enjoy a luxurious dressing room in Wedderlie House, in which to get ready, then spend their wedding night in the stylish bridal suite with views out over the surrounding countryside.

 

A choice of marquee locations outside mean that Wedderlie can cater for any wedding, large or small. A large secure area directly in front of the House is the perfect location in which to stage an impressive firework celebration, or site Fairground Rides.  A quirky touch is the Doocot, complete with doves, which can play their part in the wedding.

 

Events, including blindfold off road driving

 

When it comes to the corporate sector, Wedderlie is setting out its stall with an impressive selection of on site activities, from archery, to croquet, and even blindfold off road driving around the estate, pastimes which hens and stags can also enjoy. A versatile all weather sports court has recently been installed.     

 

Commenting on the launch of Wedderlie House, Jamie Raine-Fraser said: “After a great deal of very hard work around this beautiful estate, and in the House itself, we are delighted to officially open for bookings here at Wedderlie House.  We are extremely excited about what we have on offer here, and can’t wait to start welcoming guests. This is an amazing opportunity for my wife and I to diversify into a second business in a vibrant sector. We fully intend to embrace it, feeling privileged to have acquired what is a very unique property in a superb location, just thirty five miles from the Capital.”

 

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“We are perfectly placed to capitalise on weddings and events from customers in both Scotland and the North East of England, together with the US and Canada, attracted by our history and ambience,” added Jamie.

 

To celebrate the opening of the house, Jamie and Connie have designed their own flag, which taps into the House and Estate’s long and noble history.

 

“The Edgar family had a heraldic crest which would have been flown on a flag above the Castle. One of the first things we did on taking possession of the estate was to site our own flagpole to fly a flag featuring a new Wedderlie House logo, specially designed for us, and based on the initials W and H,” Jamie explains.

 

“All wedding couples getting married here at Wedderlie can now have their very own specially designed flag, based on their initials, which we will fly for them throughout their entire celebrations, and is theirs to keep afterwards as a special memento. We will also give them this crest as a digital logo which they can use on stationery, place cards, and thank you notes if they wish,” he said.

 

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“It’s not every day you are the Laird and Lady of a place like this, so we want to make it as special as possible, as well as setting the scene for guests who are bound to be impressed by this attention to detail.”

 

With Wedderlie’s slogan being “Your Day, Your Stay, Your Way”, the Raine-Frasers want to ensure that bridal couples put their own stamp on the whole experience.

 

“We have set a deliberately simple and straightforward pricing policy for both bridal and corporate markets,” said Jamie. “We also felt it was very important that all our customers were not tied into any suppliers, although we can certainly pass on our recommendations. But in effect every single wedding here at Wedderlie will be different.”

 

“Wedderlie is to be enjoyed over several days ideally – come and embrace it to make it a truly memorable event! The sky truly is the limit with a place like this!”

 

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