We love a new wedding venue and this one is right up our street quite literally in terms of both appeal and location! Haddon Copse Farm occupies a breathtaking setting in the rolling valleys of the Blackmore Vale framed by beautiful unspoilt views that stretch for miles towards Bulbarrow Hill. It's the perfect spot for a festival theme or country wedding experience.

But it's not just the location that Haddon Copse Farm has going for it. Camping is permitted and a complete bell tent glamping village can be installed at your request which enables wedding celebrations to take place all weekend. Haddon Copse Farm also offers its own organic Dorset hog and lamb roasts, welcome meals on Friday evening, hearty breakfasts, use of a shepherd's hut and an area called the 'Magic Circle' which is ideal for natural blessings. ​

If you're looking for a classic romantic English wedding we can think of no better venue in Dorset. The croquet lawn is perfectly flat for marquees and we've provided all styles of structure there in the past: traditional pole marquees for country style, clearspan frame marquees for elegant chic and tipis for a warm and cosy ambience.

Photo opportunities are vast with views everywhere you look plus topiary, archways tangled with flowers, water features, mature trees and secret grottoes. 

Civil marriages can take place either in the Garden Pavilion overlooking the croquet lawn (for which we can supply canopies and chairs) or in the nearby Sawmill. The medieval All Saints Church is within the grounds and suited to intimate blessings for up to 90. Marquees on the croquet lawn can accommodate up to 400 seated guest and there is ample parking available. 

Mapperton is located 15 minutes from Crewkerne and 20 minutes from Dorchester Stations, with direct links to London. There is tasteful accommodation nearby too with the Acorn Inn and Summer Lodge in Evershot and The Bridge House Hotel at Prout Bridge. 

Recommended caterers are Jo Killin of Oxbridge Farm and Victoria Blashford-Snell. The recommended florist is The Real Cut Flower Garden and photographers Allister Freeman and Helen Lisk. 

For more information on weddings at Mapperton click here or to get in touch call the Wedding Office on 01308 800114 or email [email protected]

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How about making a weekend of it and hiring some bell tents or small tipis for your guests to stay in? Festival themes are all the rage with marquee weddings at the moment and it's not difficult to see why. Organising hotels for everyone is a tiresome business, particularly out in the sticks where accommodation is scarce. Even the celebrities are at it - Guy Ritchie had a glamping village built for his wedding last year!

But the main attraction is that you can keep the party going all weekend and enjoy meals together, fires in the evening and some serious quality time with your nearest and dearest. Weddings are generally over in a flash (particularly when you're the bride or groom) and I often leave feeling I should have partied harder or talked to great aunt Mary for longer or not disgraced myself on the dance floor without apologising the next day. It's nice for as many guests as possible to enjoy a few drinkies and not worry about driving, taxis, travelling, finding their hotel in the dark etc.

We've partnered with Acorn Marquees who are based in Bournemouth but supply groovy tents throughout Dorset and further afield. They offer stunning bell tents in various sizes and a wide range of furnishings which allow your guests to choose from authentic camping spec to seriously plush. Jon and Julie offer an outstanding service and we cannot recommend them highly enough.

So book your marquee with Oakleaf, assemble your glamping village with Acorn, order your festival flags and make your wedding weekend one to remember!

With Lorton House not doing weddings anymore (boo hoo) we've been looking for a new favourite venue in the Weymouth area. We're due to provide a wedding marquee at Westbrook House in Upwey this weekend having been there a few times already so I'm pleased to announce that Westbrook is now our favourite marquee venue in the Weymouth area! It's a private house but there is accommodation available on site too and the setting is exquisite with a lovely lake, gardens and house providing an ideal backdrop to any marquee. Bookings are handled by the lovely Oonagh (The English Event Company and The English Florist) - click here for the contact page of her website.