Hold court at historic Welsh mansion: former courthouse is now a huge eight-bedroom home with prison cells, Roman columns and a surprising price tag

A 34ft quadruple-height living room and three police cells are highlights of this vast building right next door to a castle...
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Becky Davies15 February 2017

A palatial former crown court - complete with prison cells - could be yours for just £525,000, £100,000 less than the average home in London.

The imposing entrance to The Old Court House - just across the road from Caernarfon Castle in north Wales - has four huge Roman Doric columns.

Inside, the centrepiece is the 34ft square living room featuring a quadruple-height vaulted ceiling and spectacular glazed dome.

Intriguingly, the raised viewing galleries, from where members of the public overlooked trials, have been retained and could perhaps be used as the ultimate minstrels' gallery.

The building in Caernarfon, was constructed in 1863 and was originally the seat of the historic county of Caernarfonshire before it was abolished in 1974.

The building was later used as the town's crown court and magistrates' court before the court moved to new offices in 2009.

Since then, the Grade I-listed building has been partially converted into an eight-bedroom mansion.

The living room a vast glazed dome and the original court viewing gallery 
Beresford Adams

Although everyone dreams of having more space in their home, the scale of the rooms in this property could prove quite daunting and the agents say that it could easily be converted into a boutique hotel or sub-divided into apartments.

As well as the vast living room, there is a dining room stretching to 32ft, providing plenty of room for the largest of dinners, while even the first-floor kitchen is 26ft long.

A so-called snug is not the box room most of us would associate with the term, and is 20ft long complete with ornate fireplace.

Three of the bedrooms are on the ground floor, one on the first floor - along with three former cells, an interview room and prison guard room - while the second and third floor house two bedrooms each.

The master bedroom measures 20ft by 15ft and has a fireplace and a walk-in cupboard.

A rear patio garden provides outdoor privacy in this town-centre palace and, should you ever wish to leave your vast home for the capital, Llanfairpwll station is six miles away and trains to Euston take around three and a half hours, with a change at Chester.

The Old Court House is for sale through Beresford Adams for £525,000