British Castle 'Academy Award' Nominations
Posted: 2013-01-11
The news of the recently announced Academy Award nominations got me thinking; what if there were a similar set of [fun] awards for British castles? This is obviously a gaping need that I decided to fill with immediate effect. So by the power invested in me by myself, I have founded the Academy of Castle Enthusiasts (ACE), named myself President of the Academy for Life, and come up with a list of nominations for the first ACE Awards.
Just like that 'other' nomination list, I'll list several nominees in each category, and the winners will be announced in late February at a star-studded gala in Hollywood - or from my home office in the Cotswolds. Whichever. Each winner will receive the Golden Garderobe, a highly coveted statuette of no discernable artistic merit.
Ready for the list of nominees? No matter, here they are anyway ...
The Most Atmospheric castle
Eilean Donan Castle, Highlands
Corgarff Castle, Aberdeenshire
Dunottar Castle, Aberdeenshire
Castell-y-Bere, Snowdonia
Berkeley Castle, Gloucestershire
The Best Moated Medieval Castle
Bodiam Castle, East Sussex
Hever Castle, Kent
Herstmonceux Castle, Sussex
Scotney Castle, Kent
Broughton Castle, Oxfordshire
The Don't Step too Near the Edge Award
Tantallon Castle, Lothian
Dunottar Castle, Aberdeenshire
Findlater Castle, Moray
Beeston Castle, Cheshire
Duntulm Castle, Isle of Skye
The Most Scenic location for a Castle in Britain
Bamburgh Castle, Northumberland
St Michael's Mount, Cornwall
Eilean Donan, Highlands
Dunottar Castle, Aberdeenshire
The Place you'd least like to be stuck on a dark and stormy night Award
Auchindoun Castle, Aberdeenshire
Corgarff Castle, Aberdeenshire
Finlarig Castle, Trossachs
Dunstanburgh Castle, Northumberland
The Most like a Disney Fairytale Castle Award
Craigievar, Aberdeenshire
Fyvie Castle, Aberdeenshire
Dunrobin Castle, Sutherland
Inveraray Castle, Argyll
The Best Causewayed Castle
St Michael's Mount, Cornwall
Eilean Donan, Highlands
Leeds Castle, Kent
Kilchurn Castle, Highlands
Tower of Power Award - a special category for castles with prominent towers
Tattershall, Lincolnshire
Sissinghurst, Kent
Orford Castle, Suffolk
Castle Stalker, Argyll
There you have the list of nominees. Stay tuned over the next month as the excitement builds to a fever pitch and the press begins to speculate wildly on the favourites for each award. Ooh, the tension ... can you feel it?
Right well, no matter, stay tuned anyway. And while you're waiting for the awards, why not visit a few of the nominees near you? Though the ACE Awards should not be taken seriously, each of the nominated castles are, in their own way, a special part of British history and well worth a visit.
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