I'm A Celebrity: Gwrych castle granted £2m for repairs

The Grade I listed building dates back to the early 1800s

The castle which hosted ITV's I'm A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! is set to be saved from collapse thanks to a £2.2m grant.

It is hoped Gwrych Castle can be restored to its former glory with the cash from the National Heritage Memorial Fund (NHMF).

The Grade I listed venue in Abergele in Conwy county requires urgent repairs delayed by the pandemic.

The venue's trust said the work will reverse the "critical situation".

According to the NHMF: "The magnificent example of Gothic architecture was built and designed between 1812 and 1822 by Lloyd Hesketh Bamford-Hesketh as a memorial to his family, around an earlier house".

In 1946 the castle was sold, which ended nearly 1,000 years of ownership of the site by one family.

Its history includes providing a place of safety for about 200 Jewish children during World War Two and being used as the training ground of Randolph Turpin, the first black boxer to win a world championship title in 1951.

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But the castle shot to reality TV fame when it hosted the 2020 and 2021 series of I'm A Celebrity.

While it might be most recently known for creepy crawlies and daring challenges, the striking three-storey Gothic space is flanked by two lower wings and boasts a great entrance hall, library, drawing room, music room and an Italian marble staircase.

The castle is in "perilous condition" following the pandemic

Dr Mark Baker, head of Gwrych Castle Preservation Trust, said the castle's buildings are in "perilous condition following the pandemic".

"With this substantial funding award, we can reverse the critical situation that the site is currently in, allowing Gwrych Castle to be returned to its former glory," he said.

It is one of several Welsh heritage sites to secure NHMF Covid-19 recovery funding, with Gladstone's Library in Flintshire, Insole Court in Cardiff and two medieval churches also receiving money.

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