3
United Kingdom
FULL OF ARCHITECTURAL BRAVURA, HISTORICAL DETAIL AND AN INTRIGUING CAST LIST.
This Grade ll-listed Arts and Crafts building was once one of Newcastle’s most celebrated addresses. Bought in 1871 by Captain (later, Sir) Andrew Noble, a partner in Lord William Armstrong’s mighty shipping and armaments company, the house was enlarged several times as Noble’s wealth and fame increased. Royalty and celebrities stayed here and were lavishly entertained.
After Noble’s widow died, the house had a chequered history – including time as a WW2 Civil Defence establishment (tunnels still exist under the house) – before it was converted into Newcastle’s first, independently owned, boutique hotel in 2005.
A HOUSE WELL LIVED-IN.
The original Georgian house, designed by John Dobson – responsible for many of Newcastle’s handsome streets – was bought in 1871 by Captain Andrew Noble, a partner in Lord Armstrong’s Tyneside-based shipbuilding and armaments business.
As the business grew, and Armstrong took a back seat, Noble needed a grander house for business entertaining. He commissioned leading Arts and Crafts architect Norman Shaw, and local architect Frank Rich, to double the size of the house adding a west wing, billiard room, Gothic porch, Great Hall and a fleet of bedrooms, all in typically grand and eclectic Arts and Crafts style. The panelling, plasterwork, stone carvings, exuberant chimneys and stained glass date from this time.
Knighted in 1902, Sir Andrew Noble moved in high society. Chinese minsters and Japanese princes, admirals and ambassadors, Rudyard Kipling and Arthur Conan Doyle have all stayed or dined here. After Sir Andrew’s widow died, in 1929, the house was variously used as a college, Civil Defence establishment (tunnels still exist under the house), seminary and, most recently, as a residential school. It took 18 months to convert the empty building, Grade ll-listed, to a hotel which opened in 2005 becoming Newcastle’s first, independently owned, boutique hotel.
3* Hotel
4* Hotel
5* Hotel
Red Starred Hotel
Restaurant with Rooms
With a Spa
With a Golf Course
Swimming Pool
City Centre Hotel
Countryside Hotel
Historic Building
Coastal
EV Charge Points
LBGTQ Welcoming
Boutique
Dog Friendly
GARDENS TO PLEASE THE SENSES – SIGHT, SMELL, TASTE.
Not large but they’re certainly big on colour and surprises. They catch your eye whatever time of year you visit. It might be the palms, eucalyptus and banana trees by the terrace or the spring cherry blossom in the Japanese-themed section beside the Dene.In early summer, vibrant tulips and big-headed alliums start to clamour for attention. Or you could be dazzled by the fiery, look-at-me colours of dahlias, roses and Oriental poppies.Look carefully between the plants and you’ll discover herbs happily minding their business: lemon balm, salad burnet, borage, mint, chives, oregano… Wild strawberries, too. Apple trees flourish in the car park, blackberries along a fence, quince by the front door. Plus there’s a small kitchen garden beside the New House.Alongside the hotel, there’s the grander, wilder garden of Jesmond Dene. A wooded valley of native and exotic trees, criss-crossed with paths and dotted with waterfalls and rustic bridges, the Dene is a quiet place to unwind with a walk or recharge the batteries with a jog.