8 Northumberland Avenue is the perfect London wedding venue for a celebrity-style, large-scale, all-out wedding reception. This stunning and imposing building is right in the heart of the city, just a minute’s walk away from Trafalgar Square, and was designed to entertain London’s Victorian elite for lavish parties and royal occasions. Now, it regularly sees fashion shows, exhibitions and high-end corporate events, but weddings are the area in which this Grade II listed venue really shines.
The most impressive and luxurious space in this stunning building, and described by English Heritage to be ‘the grandest example of a Victorian ballroom in existence’, is The Ballroom. Having undergone an extensive, multi-million pound refurbishment and restoration, this space is large enough for a standing reception for up to 700 people, while 525 can be seated for dinner. The room is breath-taking, with a 10.3 metre-high ceiling which features coves laden in gold leaf, huge columns, tall and dramatic stained glass windows, 14 exquisite iron chandeliers and a beautiful patterned carpet. Once the wooden dance floor in in place and the party’s ready to get started, the room can be lit up in neon colours – creating a truly theatrical effect and highlighting the beauty in the interior design.
The Old Billiard Room & Annex provides a smaller, slightly more understated but nevertheless spectacular alternative to The Ballroom. A wonderfully versatile space, you have two adjoining rooms here that can be either be hired together or separately. Again, these spaces have intelligent lighting systems which are used to implement colour scheme and achieve a real party atmosphere. The carpets are made up of a simple and elegant black and white pattern and the dance floor is checkered, and the walls in these spaces are bright white. The rooms look altogether more contemporary than the rest of this historic building, but many of the original features remain such as detailed plasterwork and tall, domed windows. This provides you with a fantastic blank canvas for standing receptions of up to 500, or to seat 325 for dinner.
This venue has seen celebrity weddings, royal functions and exclusive private events for generations, and has managed to keep very much in tune with the modern world, while still maintaining its aristocratic Victorian charm. Call Best Venues London to arrange a tour of this fabulous building.
