ONE of the Fylde's most romantic stately homes is taking a step back in time to create a modern version of its original medieval banqueting hall.

Work is already under way on the brand new 'Great Hall' at Mains Hall, Singleton, which promises to replace the old Royal Garden Room with a purpose-built wedding facilities designed to hold around 200 guests.

As part of the development, the hall's grounds will also be re-landscaped to include a Tudor-style 'Knot Garden' and topiary.

The hall -- which is believed to date back to the 1200s -- has spent the last twenty years in use first as a Bed and Breakfast and then as an exclusive Hotel.

But current owners, Adele and Roger Yeoman (pictured), have decided to turn the hall back into a private residence with on-site function facilities for special occasions.

The couple -- who have been in residence at the hall for 14 years -- first began planning to specialise in weddings after becoming the first place in the area to hold ceremonies under the Marriage Act, 1995.

Mains Hall has since become one of the most popular venues for civil weddings on the Fylde coast.

Roger said: "We've spent a lot of time tracing the history of the hall and are now even considering carbon dating some of the old beams to establish just how far back it goes. But one of the things we uncovered during our research was that the Royal Garden Room stood on the site of an old Tudor banqueting hall which formed a quadrangle with the barns, the now extinct chapel and main house.

"We've already earned a solid reputation for providing beautiful wedding facilities and we hope this will add to that."