A monumental W/18 marquee for an extraordinary estate celebration

Private wedding. Exceptional estate. Monumental marquee.

Back in 2025, we closed our 2025 season at one of Britain’s most remarkable private-event settings: Waddesdon Manor in Buckinghamshire, the Rothschild family’s extraordinary French Renaissance-style château and one of the UK’s most distinguished country house estates.

For this celebration, our 18m wide Wills W/18 twin pole marquee was installed within the historic grounds, creating an impressive yet considered setting for several hundred guests.

Careful positioning allowed the marquee to sit naturally within the landscape while framing uninterrupted views towards the Manor. The result was a structure with genuine architectural presence, designed to complement rather than compete with one of Britain’s most recognisable estates.

An outdoor ceremony in the French parterre

The day began with a breathtaking outdoor ceremony accompanied by classical pianist beneath a Wills Portico. Guests were seated within the estate’s French-inspired parterre gardens – one of the finest examples in Britain, renowned for its ribbon bedding and intricate carpet designs.

Following the ceremony, guests made their way to the estate’s famously ornate Aviary, once a must-see attraction for Baron Ferdinand’s guests in the 1890s. Now meticulously restored and home to important conservation projects, it provided an unforgettable backdrop for signature drinks served from a custom Land Rover Defender bar, overlooking the formal gardens.

The celebrations began beneath a Wills Portico, with an outdoor ceremony set within Waddesdon’s extraordinary French-inspired parterre gardens.

Guests were seated among the formal planting and intricate carpet designs, accompanied by a classical pianist, a setting that required very little embellishment of its own.

Following the ceremony, guests moved through the estate to the famous Aviary, originally created as an attraction for Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild’s guests in the 1890s and now home to important conservation work.

Here, signature drinks were served from a custom Land Rover Defender bar overlooking the gardens. An informal moment within an otherwise spectacular estate setting.

A large-format wedding marquee, precisely installed

As the afternoon moved into evening, guests were welcomed into the 18m W/18 marquee, installed on a Wills Platform. This precision-engineered, fully levelled flooring system creates a stable, seamless surface finished in polished wood, allowing a large marquee to be installed beautifully even where an estate presents challenging or uneven ground conditions. For planners and private estates, this is an important part of delivering a marquee event successfully. The finished structure needs to look effortless. Achieving this often requires considerable perfection behind the scenes.

Inside, long trestle tables were dressed in rich autumnal tones, with deep florals, pumpkins and layered textures beneath the soaring cotton canvas roof.

Exceptional catering by Lettice Events completed the dining experience, with the expansive space accommodating hundreds of seated guests while retaining the sense of intimacy expected of a private celebration.

A wedding inspired by art and architecture

Personal details were woven throughout the day, including the wedding cake, an artistic recreation of The Wedding Cake, Joana Vasconcelos’ extraordinary 12-metre ceramic pavilion at Waddesdon Dairy.

It was a fitting reference for a celebration taking place within an estate where art, architecture, landscape and hospitality are so closely intertwined.

From formal dining to late-night celebration

At the centre of the marquee, a large oval bar created a natural transition between dining and dancing.

As darkness fell, the character of the space changed completely.

Our signature festoon lighting illuminated the cotton canvas interior, creating a warm, almost lantern-like atmosphere beneath the soaring roof. Guests danced late into the evening to Alan Power & The Take Twos before the celebrations continued at The Dairy, transformed for the occasion into a private nightclub.

This ability to evolve throughout an event is central to the W/18. It provides the scale required for a significant guest list without sacrificing atmosphere, proportion or visual impact.

The W/18: one of the world’s largest marquees

At 18 metres wide, the Wills W/18 is among the largest marquees available for hire in the world. Designed for 200–500 seated guests, its modular construction allows the footprint and configuration to be tailored to each individual event. It is equally suited to a grand private wedding, an estate celebration or a large-scale event requiring exceptional capacity. But, its defining quality is not simply its size. It is the sense of occasion that scale creates.

By day, the W/18 is light-filled and elegant, with the natural texture and warmth of British cotton canvas. By night, it becomes architectural and atmospheric, illuminated by signature festoon lighting and Wills’ distinctive overhead flying lights.

With floating infinity walls and a soaring interior, it creates a remarkable environment without losing the character and craftsmanship of a traditional pole and canvas marquee.

Marquee hire for exceptional estates and private celebrations

Events of this scale demand more than a large structure. They require an understanding of the estate, the landscape, the guest experience and the practical demands of installing a substantial marquee within a prestigious setting. Every detail, from positioning and ground conditions to flooring, access, lighting and interior configuration, contributes to the finished result.

Wills marquees are created for private estates, country houses, distinguished venues and exceptional celebrations across the UK.

The W/18 is exclusively available from Wills Marquees and offers a rare combination of scale, craftsmanship, architectural presence and flexibility for those planning an event where ordinary simply will not do.

For private clients, estate teams, event planners and exclusive wedding professionals looking for a truly exceptional large wedding marquee, we would be delighted to discuss your plans. Please do get in touch.