Bramall Hall

With roots stretching back to the Middle Ages, Bramall Hall near Stockport is one of the best examples of a Tudor Manor House the UK has to offer. Within its striking walls of black timber and white plaster, you’ll find 16th-century paintings, a trove of historical artefacts and an amazing decorative ceiling.

Tour guides show family and educational groups around the building, teaching about the history of the great families (and their servants). The ambience of the timber-framed building is unique. The wall-paintings date from 1538 and commemorate the dynastic marriage of William Davenport to Margaret Booth. They are some of the only such paintings left in the UK and an example of an artwork prone to being lost in the centuries-long process of renovation and refitting stately homes underwent.

With roots stretching back to the Middle Ages, Bramall Hall near Stockport is one of the best examples of a Tudor Manor House the UK has to offer

Cellular windows made before it was possible to use plain sheets of glass affect the light in a very particular way, and your progress through the building is via ornately carved doorways and lintels (adults may want to mind their heads).

The hall sits on a rise among seventy acres of parkland, arranged in the fashion of the 1890s by Sir Charles Nevill, building on designs by Capability Brown. This involved diverting the course of the River Ladybrook, to create several man-made ponds around which can be found beautiful rhododendrons and exotic trees. There are also formal gardens near the house and stands of ancient natural woodland. The gardens are a great pleasure to explore.