Nevill Holt Hall

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Nevill Holt Hall
Leicestershire

The hall, church and stable block
Location
Grid reference: SP81609367
Location: 52°32’5"N, -0°47’54"W
History
Built 13th century
Country house
Information

Nevill Holt Hall is country house at Nevill Holt in Leicestershire, dating back to before 1300. Its name is derived from the Nevill family who owned it from the 15th century until 1876. The French abbess Ann Nevill was born here in 1605.[1]

The house a Grade I listed building.[2]

There have been many alterations and additions in the 14th,15th,17th,18th,19th and 20th (and now 21st) centuries.[3] The Cunard shipping family owned the estate from 1876 to 1912 and Nancy Cunard (1896–1965), writer, publisher and society hostess, was born here.[4][5][6]

In 1919 the hall became a preparatory school, run by the Phillips family from 1928, the school was z boarding school.[7][8] In 1998 the school closed due to falling rolls shortly after a child abuse scandal.

In 2000, the Hall was bought and restored by Carphone Warehouse co-founder David Ross who had visited the prep school which a friend of his at Uppingham School had attended.[9]

Ross has built a theatre to seat 350 within the 17th century stable courtyard which had formerly housed a science laboratory, games/common room, carpentry workshop, indoor swimming pool, boxing ring and classrooms.[10] In the summer, Nevill Holt hosts the Nevill Holt Opera festival.[11] A new 400-seat opera house in the stable block by architects Witherford Watson Mann opened 14 June 2018.[12] The 2021 festival was held in the open air. The two operas performed were La Traviata and Don Giovanni.[13]

Outside links

("Wikimedia Commons" has material
about Nevill Holt Hall)

References