Sarah Beeny began renovations on Rise Hall in 2001 (Image: Channel 4)
’s Restoration Nightmare premiered on in 2010 and gave viewers an insight into the monumental challenge of transforming Rise Hall and saving it from dereliction.
The property expert and her husband Graham Swift purchased the neglected Georgian mansion in 2001 for £441,101 and showed the 97-room mansion being turned into a wedding venue, despite its seemingly inevitable decline.
The couple were forced to overcome major issues with the property on their journey of making it watertight, including a new roof and guttering system.
The gutters had created substantial problems after overflowing into the house and causing outbreaks of both wet and dry rot.
They also had to remove many of the fixtures that existed only to serve the former convent school, such as lavatory and shower cubicles, and hardboard walls.
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Sarah and Graham aired the renovation for Channel 4 (Image: Channel 4)
Today, Rise Hall proudly sits in Yorkshire, England, fully renovated and operating as a wedding and events venue.
It is Yorkshire’s largest privately owned Grade-II stately country house venue.
According to Dine, Sarah and Graham transformed 31 rooms, installing modern boilers and eco-friendly wool insulation after removing rotten timber, replastering and re-wiring, and gallons of fresh paint.
The couple also retained many of the Hall’s original features, including the cantilevered staircase, regency library, original plasterwork ceilings, and servants’ bells.
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Sarah and Graham transformed the property (Image: Dine.co.uk)
Although they were also living in Rise Hall with their four sons, in 2010 the local council became aware of their renovation work they raised objections that the work did not comply with planning regulations and listed building consent had not been obtained.
As a result, Sarah and Graham were forced to apply for retrospective planning permission and listed building consent, and make fire safety improvements.
They also had to spend £12,000 applying to obtain a certificate of lawful development which recognised that the property was primarily being used as a domestic dwelling.
Sarah and Graham’s hard work paid off as Rise Hall became a wedding and events venue in 2013 and has seen many weddings, parties and other events over the years.
Rise Hall now operates as a wedding and events venue (Image: Dine.co.uk)
In 2019, the couple sold Rise Hall to Dan, and Helen Gill, the owners of the catering company, Dine, for £1.4 million.
At the time, Sarah told : “It wasn’t an investment, we didn’t buy it as a business. We bought it because it was something we really passionately wanted to do.
“We were there for 18 years. It wasn’t something we were adding up along the way, it certainly wasn’t a deal. We certainly wouldn’t have bought it if we thought it was a clever business plan. It was a home and a passion project.”
The TV star explained: “We understood what we were doing. It was an amazing journey we wanted to go on. It was never the intention to do it as a quick turnaround for a profit. We bought it ourselves.
“It was in an area that everybody felt would mean it would have no future. But when it’s standing in 200 years time it will be because of Graham and I and our 18 years at Rise Hall. That’s an amazing thing.”