LUXE Serendipity magazine

By Donna Richardson

As a little girl, I dreamed of being a princess. Not simply of wearing a pretty dress and a sparkling tiara, but of actually living in a castle – waking beneath a grand four-poster bed, wandering through ancient corridors, climbing winding staircases and looking out from tall windows across acres of countryside. Those childhood fantasies may have seemed impossibly far away at the time, but sometimes life has a funny way of bringing you back to them. And so, many years later, I found myself standing outside the imposing walls of Lumley Castle in County Durham, about to spend the night inside a genuine medieval castle.

For one night, at least, the dream was real.

Arriving at Lumley Castle

Lumley Castle is the sort of building that makes an immediate impression. Dating back to 1389, this magnificent medieval castle has stood for more than six centuries.

To understand Lumley Castle, you have to go back to Sir Ralph Lumley, the powerful medieval knight after whom it is named. A soldier and landowner, Ralph fought at the Battle of Otterburn in 1388, where the Scots captured him. He was eventually released in 1389 after a ransom was raised and soon afterwards obtained permission to transform the family’s existing manor at Lumley into a fortified castle.

The result was the magnificent medieval stronghold we see today. With its imposing stone walls, towers and battlements, it was designed to provide both protection and an impressive home for the Lumley family.

Ralph’s own story was no less dramatic. He later became embroiled in a conspiracy against Henry IV and was executed in 1400, his lands forfeited.

Standing inside the castle more than six centuries later, it is remarkable to think that its story began with a medieval knight returning from captivity, determined to build a home that would endure.

And endure it certainly has.

Today, this Grade I listed building, owned by Richard Lumley the current Earl of Scarborough, has been carefully restored and transformed into a luxury hotel, but thankfully it has not lost the character that makes it so extraordinary.

There is still a sense of history everywhere you look.

The stone exterior is imposing, with its turrets and battlements giving it the unmistakable appearance of a storybook castle. It is easy to imagine knights arriving on horseback, banners flying from the towers and important guests being ushered through its ancient doors.

But our first welcome was rather less formal = and considerably furrier.

As we arrived, we were greeted by Lady Poppett, the castle’s resident cat.

She appeared entirely at ease with the attention, greeting us with a contented purr before rolling over onto her back, clearly expecting a stroke.

Our daughter was immediately captivated.

Lady Poppett is something of a character at Lumley. She has her own Instagram account and is known as the castle’s chief mouser, making her rather an important member of the household.

There was something wonderfully charming about being welcomed to a medieval castle by its resident cat. For our daughter, meeting Lady Poppett was an unexpected highlight, making our arrival feel personal and memorable from the very beginning.

Entering the Castle

Once inside, we were immediately taken aback by the grandeur of the entrance.

The reception area is far removed from the anonymous lobby of a modern hotel. The ornate check-in desk, historic details and imposing chairs, which looked remarkably like thrones, immediately set the tone.

It felt as though we had crossed a threshold between the modern world and something much older.

Everywhere we looked, there was something to admire: stonework, historic features, paintings and decorative details that seemed to tell their own stories.

Even checking in felt like part of the experience as it dawned on us that we were, in fact, staying the night in a castle.

Our Room: A Little Piece of History

Our room was historic Room 52, and as we opened the door and walked inside, the magnificent four-poster bed immediately caught my eye.

It was exactly the sort of bed I had imagined as a child when I thought about what it would be like to sleep in a castle.

The rich furnishings and historic paintings added to the sense of grandeur. Rather than feeling like a standard hotel room with a few period touches, it had genuine character and atmosphere.

There was something wonderfully evocative about the room.

I found myself looking at the paintings and furnishings and wondering about the people who had stayed here before us. How many conversations had taken place within these walls? How many celebrations, anniversaries and special occasions had been marked here?

The room seemed to invite you to slow down and appreciate its details.

And then there was the view.

Looking out from our window, we could see across towards Durham Cricket Club. It was an unexpected sight from such an ancient building, and the contrast was rather lovely.

Here we were, sitting inside a medieval castle, surrounded by centuries-old stone walls, while outside life continued in a thoroughly modern fashion on the cricket ground.

It was a perfect reminder that Lumley Castle is not a museum frozen in time. It is a living, breathing part of the local landscape. There’s other rooms as grand as this too, and others in the courtyard.

Dinner in the Knights Hall

By evening, we were ready to explore another of the castle’s most spectacular spaces.

Our evening meal was served in the Knights Hall, and the journey there felt like part of the experience. We made our way down the stairs and along a wonderfully draughty corridor, flanked by imposing marble statues of Greek and Roman heroes.

It was atmospheric in the truest sense — the sort of setting that immediately transports you away from the modern world and into another era.

The castle’s ancient stone walls, rich carpets and deep red velvet curtains added to the grandeur, creating an atmosphere that felt both theatrical and wonderfully authentic.

And then we entered the Great Hall.

The room was magnificent, with its imposing scale, ancient stone walls and statues standing guard around us. We settled down to enjoy a two-course feast in an alcove surrounded by centuries of history.

There was something rather magical about dining in such a setting. The grandeur of the hall made the meal feel less like an ordinary hotel dinner and more like a modern-day medieval banquet.

The atmosphere was perhaps the most memorable part. Dining within the ancient walls of a real medieval castle, surrounded by statues, rich carpets and deep red velvet curtains, felt wonderfully theatrical.

It was a suitably regal experience for a night spent sleeping in a castle — and for someone whose childhood dream involved a princess, a castle and a banquet, it was rather special.

Our daughter, meanwhile, was living that same fantasy.

But This Castle Has a Darker Side…

Lumley Castle’s history isn’t entirely romantic.

The castle is also famous for its ghost stories and is reputed to be one of the most haunted places in England.

Perhaps unsurprisingly for a building with more than 600 years of history, there are plenty of tales of unexplained happenings.

One of the best-known legends concerns Lady Lumley.

According to the story, Lady Lumley was murdered after refusing to convert to Catholicism and was thrown down a well. Her tragic tale has become deeply woven into the folklore of the castle, and some say her spirit remains.

Then there is Black Jack.

Unlike the tragic Lady Lumley, Black Jack is said to be a mischievous poltergeist, reputed to move objects and play tricks on guests.

We heard the stories with interest, but there is a difference between hearing about a ghost during the daytime and knowing that you are going to sleep in the castle overnight.

Suddenly, every creak becomes interesting.

Every unexplained noise makes you pause.

And every misplaced object becomes potentially significant.

The Mysterious Missing Key

As it turned out, we didn’t have to wait long for our own strange little story.

The next morning, as we locked up and checked out, our room key mysteriously vanished.

At first, there was nothing particularly supernatural about it. We assumed that one of us had simply put it down somewhere and forgotten where.

We searched for it.

We retraced our steps.

We tried to work out where we had last seen it.

And then, somehow, the key reappeared — hanging from my partner’s bag of all places.

It was one of those small incidents that could easily be dismissed as absent-mindedness and, realistically, that was probably exactly what it was.

But then we learned something that made the whole thing rather more intriguing.

Another guest, also called John, had apparently experienced something remarkably similar some time ago. He had taken the keys to a room and later posted them back to the hotel.

It was an extraordinary coincidence.

Had John simply misplaced our key?

Had someone played a prank?

Or had Black Jack decided to entertain himself at our expense?

We may never know.

And perhaps that uncertainty is part of the fun. John posted the key back, just like the John before him. History has a great way of repeating itself.

When you stay somewhere with a reputation for paranormal activity, you find yourself enjoying the possibility that there might be more to the story.

Life Inside a Medieval Castle

What makes Lumley Castle so enjoyable is that you don’t need to believe in ghosts to appreciate the experience.

The history alone is captivating, and there is something special about staying somewhere that has been standing for more than 600 years. The walls aren’t simply decorative; they are part of the experience.

You notice the texture of the stone, the age of the corridors and, most of all, how different the atmosphere feels once the daylight fades.

Once the day visitors leave, the castle becomes quieter and feels even more magical. You can enjoy dinner, wander back through the old corridors and then retire to your room for the night.

There is something special about closing your door and knowing you are sleeping inside a real medieval castle, surrounded by hundreds of years of history.

For one night, it really feels like the castle is yours.

A Childhood Dream Come True

For our daughter, the magic of the castle was obvious. There was Lady Poppett to meet, grand rooms to explore, a magnificent Great Hall in which to dine and a four-poster bed waiting for us at the end of the evening.

For me, however, there was something rather more nostalgic about it.

As a child, I had imagined what it would be like to live in a castle. I had pictured grand halls and beautiful bedrooms, mysterious corridors and magical stories.

Standing inside Room 52, surrounded by rich furnishings and historic paintings, I suddenly realised that perhaps those childhood dreams had never really gone away.

They had simply been waiting.

Waiting for the chance to come true, if only for one night.

And perhaps that is the greatest pleasure of staying at Lumley Castle.

It isn’t just a hotel; it is an experience – one that combines medieval history with modern hospitality, grandeur with comfort, romance with a touch of mystery.

There is the magnificent architecture, the atmospheric interiors, the wonderful sense of occasion at dinner, the resident cat who greets you at the door and, of course, the stories of the ghosts who are said to remain long after their earthly lives have ended.

There is something wonderfully addictive about staying somewhere with so much personality.

Lumley Castle isn’t polished to the point of losing its soul. Instead, its history is part of what makes it special.

You can feel it in the ancient walls, see it in the paintings and furnishings, and imagine it in the stories that have been passed down through generations.

For our family, it was a night of discovery, history, good food, and beautiful surroundings. But for our family, Lumley Castle was more than just a night away. It was a chance to step into a world of medieval grandeur, where we could dine in a Great Hall, sleep in a four-poster bed and wander corridors steeped in centuries of history.

But for me, it was something more.

It was a childhood dream, quietly brought to life.

As I lay in Room 52 that night, listening to the old castle settle around us, I thought about the little girl who once imagined what it would be like to sleep in a castle. She could never have imagined that one day she actually would.

And as for that missing room key?

Perhaps it was simply misplaced.

Or perhaps, somewhere in the shadows of Lumley Castle, Black Jack was having the last laugh.