CELEBRITIES have gone there to marry and notable personages have
chosen it as a place to relax in indulgent surroundings. But Gleddoch
House Hotel has no pretensions to being in a hotel super-league of
high-rise levels and laminated lifts. Its discerning patrons have been
attracted by other, but equally impressive, credentials.
These attractions include a stunning location, an intimate ambiance,
and food which sings its own love songs. As a setting it offers a
beautiful backdrop for personal events from marriage proposals in its
cocktail bar to wedding receptions and ceremonies in its restaurant.
Visitors can sample the romance of Gleddoch House on Sunday, when the
hotel plays host to a wedding exhibition and offers a vista on a world
decades away in stress levels but only minutes from the metropolis. Set
on a gently rolling Renfrewshire slope, Gleddoch has 33 bedrooms and
combines a spectacular view over the Clyde estuary together with almost
''homey'' but decidedly luxurious interiors.
On a clear day, the eye can see beyond the green slope, the wooded
patches, and the far bank to the Seven Sisters, yet Gleddoch House Hotel
is a mere 20 minutes away from the bustle of Glasgow's city centre and
10 minutes from Glasgow Airport.
Langbank is the nearest landmark and Gleddoch sits snugly in its own
360 acres of estate with an overall outlook uncluttered by vestiges of
civilisation. After coming off the M8 at Langbank, it is only a few
twists on a narrow road before motorists are arriving up its welcoming
driveway.
Whitewashed with stone edges, Gleddoch House is attractively smart but
resolutely Scottish. Parties out shooting on the hills might be hidden
by the trees and the distance, but are not hard to imagine in this
setting.
A gentler pursuit will be offered to ladies on Sunday, who will not be
faced with a trek to find the wedding exhibition. The reception area is
being given over to the event as is the Morning Room and a landing at
the top of the stairs on the first floor, with stands for exhibitors
such as Style Video, Flower Vogue, Art Culinaire, SDS Financial Services
for advice on mortgages, and photographer Graham Wilson. Forrest
Jewellers, who have a permanent display case discreetly sited at the
hotel, are also taking part as are Ivory Choice, who supply bridal cars
and limousines, and entertainment specialists Nat Sanderson Sound.
Bridal creations from MacBee's of Paisley -- renowned for for their
individual designs -- will be paraded at a fashion show in the
restaurant together with outfits for the mother-of-the bride from
Looking Class, and accessories from Shoes International. Gentlemens'
wear will be represented by kiltmakers MacDonald MacKay of Glasgow.
Over and above all this, of course, is Gleddoch House and its
undeniable beauty as a location for a wedding reception and even on
occasion a wedding ceremony. Besides the splendour of the view, which is
spectacular in the sunshine and dewily dazzling even in a downpour,
Gleddoch House has beautiful backdrops for photographs closer to the
hotel. The original terrace with red-flowered vines clambering over its
white walls is pretty enough, but brides can also choose from two formal
gardens.
The Rose Garden, on the left from the terrace path, is -- as its name
suggests -- full of roses while its counterpart on the right is more
oriental with a lily pond and plant arrangements, reminiscent of old
Cathay. Both provide lovely settings for wedding-day photographs, as
does the front of the hotel which has a special place in television
hostess Carol Smillie's wedding album.
Immediately inside the hotel is the reception area and morning room
and off to the right is the cocktail bar, with leather upholstery and a
log fire. It was formerly the billiards room when Gleddoch was the
family home of shipping magnate Sir James Lithgow, who had it built in
the twenties.
Gleddoch has been a hotel for more than two decades but still has the
atmosphere of a family home. All the bedrooms, which are offered at
special rates for weddings, are named after birds. The Capercaillie was
the Lithgows' master bedroom. Kept fresh with floral furnishings, it has
a major link to the past in its en-suite bathroom -- the family safe
which has not been opened in many a year.
The Ptarmigan is the honeymoon suite. Like the Capercaillie, it has a
little corner section with windows on three sides and a telescope for
those who need a close-up of the view.
It boasts a four-poster bed amid its dusky pink decorations. Most of
the rooms have open fires but each and every room, according to general
manager Patrick Hedderman, is different from the other.
He said: ''Gleddoch still feels like a family home. We often find
families will take over the entire 33 bedrooms for a wedding. The
atmosphere is then exactly like a country house wedding -- an atmosphere
to which Gleddoch lends itself very well.''
The conservatory at the back of the cocktail bar is a modern addition,
but perfectly in harmony with the building. It leads out to the terrace
where summer wedding guests can cool off and enjoy the air. Small
wedding parties, up to around 30, can be catered for in the drawing room
and the restaurant, which is also a modern addition designed in stone
with wooden ceiling beams, can seat up to 110.
Accolades for the food as well as the view have wafted the way of
Gleddoch's restaurant like feathers on the breeze. Chef Brian Graham is
a member of the Scottish culinary Olympic team, which has achieved
international success, and he is held in some esteem in his own right.
Banquet starters and main courses include such taste-bud tempters as
crayfish and crab bisque enhanced wth brandy and medallions of prime
Scottish beef topped with a burgundy and truffle essence. Desserts on
the banqueting and private menu selector can range from white and dark
chocolate terrines garnished with strawberries, to apple pie with rum
and raisin ice-cream.
On the day of the wedding exhibition and bridal fayre, visitors will
be given a note of the extent of the Gleddoch wedding package, which
includes personalised scroll menus, table plans, place cards, and floral
decorations, and changing rooms for the bride and groom.
One lucky visitor might get more than a ''taster'' of Gleddoch House
at the exhibition. Ladies at the bridal fayre on Sunday, which will run
from noon until 4pm, are being asked to write the date of their wedding
on a competition form. A raffle will then be held with a lucky wedding
date being picked out. Its owner will of course win a night at Gleddoch
House.
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