'Secret' nightclub and disco unearthed in 600 year old manor house

Hopwood Hall's fate remains unclear at the centre of a row between a Hollywood actor and Rochdale Council. Until November 2024, the future of the Grade II* listed manor house in Middleton, which dates back to the 1420s, had finally started to look up.

In 2017, Hollywood actor and producer Hopwood DePree sold his home in Los Angeles, vowing to restore his ancestral home in Rochdale to its former glory. The council entered into an 'exclusivity agreement' with the American actor, writer, and filmmaker, who instigated a community effort to restore the hall.

As many community members bought into his vision, Mr DePree was granted planning permission to carry out work in 2022. The hall had fallen into ruin following the closure of De La Salle College in 1989, which had occupied the building as a teacher training college since the 1940s.

After the estate was bought by Rochdale Council in the 1990s, Hopwood Community College was built on the grounds in 1992. However, the hall itself was left abandoned and fenced off under the watch of a caretaker.

Over the years, neglect and vandalism had exposed the historic manor house to the elements. Hopwood DePree's intervention had seen work being done to fix the hall's crumbling interior and develop a master plan for the building's future use.

However, the town hall believes progress on restoring the hall has been too slow. At the same time, the contract with Mr DePree stopped them from speaking to other potential investors. The 'exclusivity agreement' came to an end on October 31.

Once the agreement ended, the site was locked off to the volunteers, which sparked anger and local confusion over what was happening. And while the rift between both parties rumbles on, the hall remains an asset