Venue of the week: St Giles House, Dorset

Credit: Orange Photographie

If you're on the hunt for a one-of-a-kind backdrop for your big day, this ancestral home in the Dorset countryside is hard to beat. A labour of love, the historic landmark has been sensitively restored, breathing new life into the historic building. Be prepared for plenty of stop-stare moments from the instant you arrive and catch your first glimpse of the place.

Set in beautiful private parkland, surrounded by an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, the award-winning venue sits in perfect harmony with the natural landscape. Grand, yet intimate and inviting, think sumptuous interiors, marble fireplaces and ancient leather-bound books.

The house has been in the same family since the 15th century and has evolved over the generations to the treasure it is today. Licensed for ceremonies for up to 120 guests, you can take your pick from a number of fabulous rooms, all beautifully decorated or Wimborne St.Giles Church is just next door. Celebrate afterwards and enjoy the run of all the main rooms for the reception, spill out on to the terrace and make the most of the glorious garden.

The library, with velvet-lined walls and floor-to-ceiling bookshelves, is ideal for the wedding breakfast and, come the evening, you can party the night away with up to 200 friends and family in the venue's award-winning basement club, complete with state-of-the-art light and sound system.

There's luxury on-site accommodation in the 17th-century stables; perfect for staying the night before and after the wedding. What's more, as the icing on the cake, the family's 1947 DE36 Daimler car is available to hire too – how's that for a once-in-a-lifetime photo opportunity?