Where the Middle Ages Begin
As Warwick Castle Hotel prepares to open, they have unveiled an impressive 14-foot-tall animatronic knight and horse. This spectacle is part of the hotel’s new experience, aiming to offer guests a unique and immersive stay at England’s historic Warwick Castle. Dinosaur Puppet
The spectacular figure took the team 11 hours to install and designers six months to create – it weighs a hefty 300kg, the same as around 12 suits of steel armour, and is made from steel and iron. The horse sits proudly with a gallery of talking portraits, including Richard Neville, the 16th Earl of Warwick better-known as The Kingmaker.
“It’s a truly magnificent sight to see this knight and his noble steed make their grand entrance into the Warwick Castle Hotel after so many months of hard work designing and creating this one-of-a-kind figure,” said Edward Neville, Merlin Magic Making Senior Creative at the Warwick Castle Hotel. “It’s positioning in the foyer with the talking portraits – including the 16th Earl of Warwick, my great ancestor – is an honour, as they will proudly greet families every day as they enter the hotel’s foyer.”
The 60-room Warwick Castle Hotel officially opens on 22 July 2024. Blending beautifully into the castle’s surroundings, the exterior of the hotel resembles a medieval long hall, with a rough cast render, timber cladding and shingle roof tiles. Each room, sleeping two adults and up to three children, gives a nod to the Wars of the Roses, with rose motifs, chambers draped in rich coloured fabrics, bespoke tapestries and shields – fit for any little king or queen! Princesses and knights will be on hand for an array of evening entertainment before venturing through the treetop walkway to the Knight’s Village, where guests can dine like royalty in a medieval banquet hall.
Warwick Castle, dating back to the 11th century, is one of England’s top tourist attractions. Operated by Merlin Entertainments, the castle offers a variety of family-friendly experiences and events.
A stay at the Warwick Castle Hotel is from £159 for bed and breakfast for a family of four, or from £199 for a family of four which includes bed and breakfast and a one-day ticket. Book online at warwick-castle.com.
Become a member to get ad-free access to our website and our articles. Thank you for supporting our website!
We've created a Patreon for Medievalists.net as we want to transition to a more community-funded model.
Animatronic Model We aim to be the leading content provider about all things medieval. Our website, podcast and Youtube page offers news and resources about the Middle Ages. We hope that are our audience wants to support us so that we can further develop our podcast, hire more writers, build more content, and remove the advertising on our platforms. This will also allow our fans to get more involved in what content we do produce.