‘These castles have seen so much’: Rick Edwards on Great British Castle Rescue
Castles across the UK are falling apart. Why do we need to save them? Rick Edwards, the host of Sky HISTORY’s Great British Castle Rescue, has his say.
Image: Great British Castle Rescue
Since graduating from the University of Cambridge with a Natural Sciences degree, Rick Edwards has built up an impressive broadcasting career. You might remember his early years with Channel 4, where he presented reality show Tool Academy and breakfast programme Freshly Squeezed.
With much of his media output, Rick has developed a reputation for discussing serious subjects in a respectful but accessible manner. In the 2010s, Rick co-hosted the political discussion show Free Speech alongside Tina Daheley and the podcast Science(ish) with Dr Michael Brooks.
More recently, Rick has moved into history programming, making him the ideal choice to present Sky HISTORY’s Great British Castle Rescue. It’s a fascinating insight into how teams across the UK are fighting to restore long-neglected castles. In a recent chat with Sky HISTORY, the man himself went into detail about what to expect from the series.
What is Great British Castle Rescue about?
No doubt many of our viewers have enjoyed exploring castles. There’s no shortage of them in this country! The best-known, like Windsor Castle, are kept in good shape. Others, though, have fallen into ruin despite their intriguing, eventful histories.
So, how would Rick describe Great British Castle Rescue? ‘It’s about how you preserve the incredible history on the British Isles in an economically viable way so that people can still enjoy it.’ However, by his own admission, breathing new life into a dilapidated castle is much easier said than done.
Walking into a castle can feel like time-travelling to a distant era. Still, Rick concedes that perfectly preserving every castle in its original, centuries-old form is ‘just not realistic’. It’s ’often too great an undertaking,’ and ‘doesn’t necessarily work in the modern age.’
As a result, ‘you end up having to make quite, I think, difficult and interesting decisions about exactly the best way to showcase a castle.’ This was a big surprise to Rick when filming Great British Castle Rescue – but he sees a method to the madness. He says of these castles: ‘You just want them to be appealing to people. You want people to come and see them, and learn about them.’
Why did Rick join Great British Castle Rescue?
Rick has long harboured a keen interest in history. ‘One of my best friends is a historian and so it just felt like his thing, really. But whenever he talks about it, he’s incredibly engaging. I guess I get most of my history from him.’
Rick’s own interest goes back to his time at school, where history was his favourite subject. ‘I started doing it at A level and then had to drop it because I was trying to do five A levels, which is not realistic.’
Despite struggling with the huge amount of essay writing his history lessons entailed, Rick now regrets turning his back on them. Looking back, he fondly remembers his younger self finding history ‘absolutely fascinating’. It’s no wonder he has recently jumped at the chance to reconnect with it.
Longtime Sky HISTORY viewers likely remember Rick Edwards fronting River Hunters. It followed Rick and river detectorist Beau Ouimette as they painstakingly unearthed archaeological treasures from British waterways. Despite this premise, Rick found himself exploring fascinating historical sites inland, too.
‘Fascinating’ is certainly the word that sprung to Rick’s mind when he ‘ended up going to a lot of castles and talking to people about them’. For Rick, the experience ‘spawned a hitherto undiscovered interest’ in castles, leading him to wonder why he hadn’t checked out more of them. Great British Castle Rescue offered him the irresistible opportunity to right that wrong.
Image: Rick Edwards was shown around Gwyrch Castle by Mark Baker, the castle's current custodian | Great British Castle Rescue
Which castles feature in Great British Castle Rescue?
It’s fair to say that many castles across the UK are in need of some TLC. So, it can’t have been easy for the Great British Castle Rescue crew to decide which of them to feature on the show. Rick explains how the selection process went.
‘I guess you’re looking for different stories, different states of repair, different styles, and also just very different approaches that they are taking. You want variety.’ The team eventually whittled down the options to just three – Fyvie Castle, Gwyrch Castle and Lowther Castle.
When you’re trying to restore a castle, you really want to know how other castles like it have been brought back to their former glory. The show, therefore, highlights ‘completed projects that could provide a bit of inspiration or a bit of a helpful guide as to what is possible.’ These include Lincoln Castle, Hay Castle, Muncaster Castle, Lewes Castle and Astley Castle.
Is Fyvie Castle on the brink of collapse?
Construction of Fyvie Castle – located in the Aberdeenshire village of Fyvie – began in the 13th century. The estate has since been owned by many prestigious families, including the British royals.
In 1984, Fyvie Castle fell into the hands of the National Trust for Scotland. Rick points out that ‘at Fyvie, there are people working there, visitors are coming, and it’s still functional’. However, ‘when you get closer, you see bulging bits of wall being held together by iron corsetry’. It’s a sign, Rick admits, that ‘they have got serious problems here’.
While ‘Fyvie is just about holding together, it doesn’t feel like that’s going to carry on for very long unless they sort some stuff out. So they’ve got some very smart engineers and architects and stonemasons trying to figure out the best way of protecting it. It’s quite daunting, but I think they’ve got a plan!’
Gwrych Castle – a celebrity magnet
What were Rick’s first impressions of Gwyrch Castle? He confesses to thinking: ‘Oh my God, this is just a sprawling shell, barely even the external structures of a castle.’
Gwyrch Castle, near the northern Welsh town of Abergele, took a while to come together. The construction work began in the early 19th century and lasted until the early 20th. This ‘Gothic revival’ castle later fell on hard times until the young (very young) history buff Mark Baker took action to rescue it.
Rick had the privilege of hearing the story straight from the horse’s mouth. Rick reveals that Mark ‘lived in the area and became obsessed with the castle when he was a kid. He set up a trust that owns the castle when he was 12! And he just drops that in casually like it’s quite a normal thing to do.’
You might have seen Gwyrch Castle on your TV screen before. I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! was filmed here during the COVID-19 pandemic. Rick acknowledges that this publicity ‘has been really good for the castle purely in terms of getting people coming in to look at it. That does help tick things over.’
Lowther Castle – a former retreat for royals
Though William Lowther, 1st Earl of Lonsdale built Lowther Castle in the Regency era, this Gothic-style structure did not find favour with later earls. The 5th Earl moved out of it, while the 7th Earl went as far as almost entirely demolishing it.
Rick reveals that Lowther Castle ‘was taken over by the British Army to do testing during World War II of a top secret weapon. And that in itself trashed the castle a bit, you can see lots of evidence of that.’ The 7th Earl later ‘took the roof off and started pulling it down. He turned bits of the castle into a pig farm and chicken coop.’
Jim Lowther, the 7th Earl’s son, grew up at the castle and even remembers having barbecues with Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip there. Not that Jim is willing to share many anecdotes. Rick laughs: ‘He didn’t give me an answer on whether the Queen liked a hot dog or a burger!’
Rick observes: ‘There’s a balance for him as to what he can do with this place.’ Rather than try to turn back the clock, Jim is eager to turn Lowther Castle into ‘something new that serves the landscape. He wants to do this incredible re-wilding project in the area. His vision for it is really expansive and exciting.’
What will viewers get out of Great British Castle Rescue?
Cynics are bound to insist that the huge cost (in both time and money) of restoring these imperilled castles is simply not worthwhile. Rick recollects: ‘I did worry before going to these castles that you might turn up and find a weird vanity project. But I didn’t feel that with any of them. There was a real social purpose to the projects all in quite unique ways, but that was a definite linking thread, I felt.’
Besides, castles have amazing stories to tell from their centuries of history. Rick points out that ‘because these castles have been around for long, they’ve just seen so much. And the stuff that has happened is mental — huge battles, massively significant events in our history.’
The show combines expert commentary from heritage experts, engineers and stonemasons with vivid reconstructions of how the castles would have looked in their heyday. It’s about discerning not only how these fortresses shaped Britain but also whether they can be saved for future generations to enjoy.
What’s next in the pipeline for Rick?
Could a second series of Great British Castle Rescue be in the offing? Rick says he would be up for it, as ‘it would be really interesting to go and check in with these castles for sure.’ As Rick found out during his research for the show, there are also many other castles in need of ‘attention, money and thought. Meaning I don’t think there’s a lack of material, so who knows?’
In the meantime, don’t expect to see Rick hitting the Strictly dance floor any time soon. ‘I am not a mover and I suspect that might fit into the category of things that my son would find embarrassing later on. It’s definitely in the category of things I know I would find embarrassing.’
Given Rick’s love of castles, wouldn’t he be a much better candidate for Celebrity Traitors? ‘I don’t think I know anyone who would say no to Traitors, frankly. It’s so good. I love that show.’ Of course, that also means a lot of competition for a place on it. ‘I think there’s a very long list of people who want to be in that castle, understandably.’
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