Speke Hall’s historic Billiard Room reopens to the public after ‘authentic’ restoration

After months of renovations, Speke Hall’s spectacular Billiard Room has been restored to its former glory, and is now open to the public.

Created by former owners, the Leyland family, the Billiard Room was once used as a cowshed and transformed into a place of entertainment in the 1860s.

Now, after much-needed restorative work, visitors can explore the unique games room, which hosted an array of wonderful artists between 1867 and 1877. Speke Hall was built in 1530.

Katie Taylor, Cultural Heritage Curator, said ‘great care’ was taken to ‘understand, document, record and sympathetically repair the room’ while retaining as much historic evidence as possible. “The project started a long time ago, triggered by the failing carpet and old repairs to the stone floor that needed improvement,” she explained.

“To redecorate authentically, we commissioned a decorative analysis and pigment analysis of the paint layers to identify the correct 1860s paint scheme and guide our colour choices. We worked closely with a specialist decorator to get the right tones in the room; some paints he had to mix by hand to get the colour perfect.”

Restoration: Other restored features include curtains, made from a silk damask inspired by photographs of Frederick Leyland’s London home, by a highly skilled volunteer. New lampshades were also commissioned for the billiard table light and the paintings were checked by a conservator before being gently cleaned.

The Billiard Room’s walls and ceiling were painted, the woodwork and benches have been treated and protective wax will be applied.

Visiting the Billiard Room: The room will be open to visitors Wednesdays to Sundays inclusive until mid-December.