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In the last scene of Shane Meadows’ 2004 cult classic Dead Man’s Shoes, a derelict Riber Castle looms over a grisly face off between Paddy Considine’s Richard and the final gang member he has vowed to dispatch.
Then the Derbyshire castle was a storybook ruin, equal parts striking and sad, with tumbledown walls and a presumed terminal entry on the ‘At Risk’ register.
Today it houses 26 box-fresh apartments, all tasteful herringbone parquet and duck eggs walls, slowly coaxed from a site that not so long ago lacked foundations or a roof.
Savills has been instructed to sell the luxury flats, with a one-bedroom starting at £575,000.
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Technically grand Victorian folly rather than bona fide castle, the Grade II-listed building enjoys a lofty position overlooking the town of Matlock on the edge of the Peak District National Park, some 11 miles from Chatsworth House.
It was built in the 1860s by local industrialist John Smedley to his own castellated design, before being turned into a boarding school a few decades later. The building itself had been derelict since the Second World War, though a hilltop wildlife park with several European lynx was run from the grounds until 2000.
The Wright family bought the gritstone shell a year later, thus initiating a protracted development period that has sparked significant local interest.
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Jamie Adam, who heads up new development in the north for Savills, says it’s the most impressive conversion of a listed building he’s seen in over 20 years “without question”.
“Alan [Wright]’s words to me, which I know he’s repeated to countless other people, were that it was a childhood dream of his to own the castle, having been born and brought up in the area. It’s been a real labour of love for the family.”
Wright bought the ruins without planning consent, with works only cleared to start in 2008. It has been under construction ever since.
“There was a length planning period to get the various approvals needed to undertake the works, and since those were secured it’s been an ongoing job to bring the building back to life,” says Adam.
“If you take away the façade of the building, everything else is completely brand new.”
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New residents of the one, two and three-bedroom flats will enjoy a raft of modern comforts, including double glazing, underfloor heating and thick internal insulation, as well as solid wood floors and bespoke plaster coving designed to evoke its Victorian heyday.
Each apartment also includes a tablet that controls everything from electric access gates to the curtains via an Alexa-enabled building management system.
Three of the ground floor flats have private gardens, while six on the top floor have access to their own roof terraces. All have access to the wider grounds, which include a restored formal garden.
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Communal spaces include a state-of-the-art gym, eight-person thermal spa, sauna and steam room for an estimated service charge of £290 a month.
Renders suggest a members’ club mood in the orangery, a 200 square metre wood-panelled lounge with views over the walled garden, and a reading room decked out in deep-filled olive green sofas.
There’s also a dedicated office area for remote work, and a “multi-functional room” that residents can snag for entertaining duties.
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“In the first few days we’ve had a huge amount of interest from people looking to downsize from houses in the area. I’m sure we’ll also have our fair share of second homeowners from London, perhaps with ties to the area,” says Adam.
“There really aren’t many opportunities like this around the country. It’s a shining example of what can be done with buildings that are at risk.”
