A fairytale castle peeking above the treetops of Cumbria is for sale at just £2 million
Augill Castle has a wonderful backstory and a lifestyle business attached. .Annunciata Elwes tells more.

Britain is full of fabulous castles, and we at Country Life love them — particularly our Architectural Editor John Goodall, the man who literally wrote the book on castles (he even called it 'Castles').
Some are grand and impressive; some are crumbling ruins; and some look just like the sort of fantasy creations you saw in picture books about the Knights of the Round Table. Augill Castle is one of latter — and the good news is that it's looking for a new owner, with an asking price of a reasonable-sounding £2 million.
It's particularly reasonable-sounding because — as Cosmo Linzee Gordon explained a while ago — many castles have winds howling through the corridors and water pouring through the roof. Sometimes even when it's not raining.
Augill is different; it's a place that's in good nick. Very good nick indeed; in fact, it's currently an award-winning boutique hotel near Kirkby Stephen that can be hired out for weddings and other events. As you might have guessed, this isn't a medieval castle that was built for warfare or conquest, but rather a Victorian Gothic folly. The only boiling oil you'll find in this castle is carefully managed by the catering team in the well-equipped kitchens.
While it's currently a business, Augill Castle would absolutely make a dream country house, subject to the necessary permissions, as it's large, but not so big that you and your family would feel ridiculous kicking around in a 400-room palace.
Four-poster beds? Tick
There are seven en-suite bedrooms in the main house and a range of formal and informal reception rooms, including a Music Room — a space which, in its hospitality guise, is used as a 46-cover restaurant) with an Arts-and-Crafts fireplace.
There's a lovely mix of old and new throughout.
No rural castle hotel is complete without a well-stocked bar.
The library leads out onto a terrace and the hotel’s bar is located in the conservatory. Five separate garden suites and estate houses provide a further six bedrooms. Grounds, including a tennis court, parking for 30 cars and a playground, extend to 10 acres.
Sign up for the Country Life Newsletter
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
Augill Castle is for sale via Knight Frank at £2 million — see more details and pictures.
10 acres of grounds come with Augill Castle
Annunciata grew up in the wilds of Lancashire and now lives in Hampshire with a husband, two daughters and an awful pug called Parsley. She’s been floating round the Country Life office for more than a decade, her work winning the Property Magazine of the Year Award in 2022 (Property Press Awards). Before that, she had a two-year stint writing ‘all kinds of fiction’ for The Sunday Times Travel Magazine, worked in internal comms for Country Life’s publisher (which has had many names in recent years but was then called IPC Media), and spent another year researching for a historical biographer, whose then primary focus was Graham Greene and John Henry Newman and whose filing system was a collection of wardrobes and chests of drawers filled with torn scraps of paper. During this time, she regularly gave tours of 17th-century Milton Manor, Oxfordshire, which may or may not have been designed by Inigo Jones, and co-founded a literary, art and music festival, at which Johnny Flynn headlined. When not writing and editing for Country Life, Annunciata is also a director of TIN MAN ART, a contemporary art gallery founded in 2021 by her husband, James Elwes.
-
Vertigo at Victoria Falls, a sunset surrounded by lions and swimming in the Nile: A journey from Cape Town to Cairo
Why do we travel and who inspires us to do so? Chris Wallace went in search of answers on his own epic journey the length of Africa.
By Christopher Wallace Published
-
A gorgeous Scottish cottage with contemporary interiors on the bonny banks of the River Tay
Carnliath on the edge of Strathtay is a delightful family home set in sensational scenery.
By James Fisher Published
-
A gorgeous Scottish cottage with contemporary interiors on the bonny banks of the River Tay
Carnliath on the edge of Strathtay is a delightful family home set in sensational scenery.
By James Fisher Published
-
Six rural properties with space, charm and endless views, as seen in Country Life
We take a look at some of the best houses to come to the market via Country Life in the past week.
By Toby Keel Published
-
380 acres and 90 bedrooms on the £25m private island being sold by one of Britain's top music producers
Stormzy, Rihanna and the Rolling Stones are just a part of the story at Osea Island, a dot on the map in the seas off Essex.
By Lotte Brundle Published
-
A home cinema, tasteful interiors and 65 acres of private parkland hidden in an unassuming lodge in Kent
North Lodge near Tonbridge may seem relatively simple, but there is a lot more than what meets the eye.
By James Fisher Published
-
A rare opportunity to own a family home on Vanbrugh Terrace, one of London's finest streets
This six-bedroom Victorian home sits right on the start line of the London Marathon, with easy access to Blackheath and Greenwich Park.
By James Fisher Published
-
A tale of everyday life as lived on Britain's most expensive street
Winnington Road in Hampstead has an average house price of £11.9 million. But what's it really like? Lotte Brundle went to find out.
By Lotte Brundle Last updated
-
Damon Hill's former home in Marbella is the perfect place to slow down
The glorious Andalusian-style villa is found within the Lomas de Marbella Club and just a short walk from the beach.
By James Fisher Published
-
A 327-acre estate in the heart of 'England’s Côte d’Or', with a 26,000sq ft Georgian style home at its heart
Stokes Hall in the Crouch Valley is an inspiring property looking for a new owner.
By Penny Churchill Published