The Red Brick House Venue
The grounds of Red Brick House are the perfect location for a dream wedding.
Red Brick House itself is the Grade II* listed jewel in the crown of the Bruern Cottages estate, which is at the centre of a triangle formed by Chipping Norton, Burford and Stow-on-the-Wold, in the heart of the Oxfordshire Cotswolds.
Its barrel vaulted dining room is all that remains of the twelfth century Cistercian abbey that once stood at Bruern, although more of the house was added in the seventeenth century, and in every century since. From the front, overlooking the lawn, the lake and the island, the house is a blend of reddish burgundy from the brick, and white from the wisteria that cascades down its façade, forming the perfect picturesque backdrop for a drinks reception before or after any event or ceremony.
If Red Brick House itself is postcard pretty, its setting can only be described as stunning. Beyond the large terrace, there is an acre of sweeping lawn, behind which there is a lake with an island in the middle.
The rest of the grounds comprise wooded parkland, with moss covered classical statuary dotted here and there, and a sequoia (or redwood) forming the centrepiece, although being still young it is only a hundred feet high and eight feet across at the foot of the trunk. Amidst these romantic surroundings, The Mirror Pavilion itself strikes a note of opulence and grandeur to add to the mix.
Inside Red Brick House, there is ample accommodation for a bridal party of up to twelve in six bedrooms, and there is a private outdoor swimming pool for them in a private area of the garden, surrounded by Victorian statues. Directly over the road, Bruern Cottages (www.bruern.co.uk) has sleeping space for a further sixty-two guests, split across twelve cottages.
Also to be found there are a large indoor swimming pool, with a spa offering treatments for those in need of a bit of pampering, a gym for those in need of a bit of punishing, a playground to keep the youngest guests busy, a games room to entertain older ones, and dozens of bikes of all sizes, plus a few electric ones. There is also a tennis court, for anyone who feels up to it the next morning.
