Banner unfurls as stately home rebranded as a major events venue

Sep 29 2007 by Alan Weston, Liverpool Daily Post

THE Earl and Countess of Derby unveiled plans this week for Merseyside’s premier stately home to become the centrepiece of a major events venue.

A pair of abseilers unfurled a giant banner across the front of the 18th-century Knowsley Hall, in Prescot, to launch the rebranding of the estate.

The interlocking double D monogram topped by a coronet will be seen on all of the estate’s facilities, which will be branded as just Knowsley.

These include the hall, now a leading conference, company away-day, wedding and film location, plus Knowsley Safari Park and outdoor activities such as the off-road adventure centre.

The hall’s parkland is also used for outdoor music concerts.

Lord and Lady Derby, who have built up the estate as an events venue over the past decade, were concerned people did not realise that all the facilities were part of the same estate.

“For example, once when there was a council strike, people phoned up asking if the Safari Park was open, thinking it was a council-run attraction,” said Lord Derby.

“We’re the third most- visited stately home in Britain, yet still don’t have a strong identity in people’s minds like Longleat or Chatsworth.

“By bringing everything under one banner, we hope to make sure anyone coming here realises the variety of facilities we offer.” Knowsley has been the ancestral seat of the Derby family since 1385, and the double D monogram was discovered in a Victorian book in the hall’s library.

“As soon as my wife and I saw it, we knew it was the perfect logo for what we were trying to do,” said Lord Derby.