Oldway Mansion - Oldway Mansion Today

Oldway Mansion Today

Paignton Urban District Council purchased Oldway Mansion from the Singer family in 1946 for the sum of £45,000. It is estimated that around £200,000 was spent on building the mansion. Today the building is used mainly as council offices and for civil marriage ceremonies. There are also offices for the BBC local radio station Radio Devon in the building. The mansion and its grounds can be visited free of charge by members of the public, and it is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Torbay. The mansion has a small museum with exhibits linked to the building's history, including antique Singer sewing machines. Oldway Mansion is a Grade II* listed building.

In January 2007, Torbay Council announced that it was considering selling the mansion as it had become too expensive to maintain. The suggestion was controversial, since local residents argued that the mansion was sold at a reduced price on the understanding that it would be open to the public. On 30 April 2012, plans for Oldway Mansion to be converted into a luxury hotel and sheltered retirement flats were approved by Torbay Council. The deal was finalised in September 2012.

• Oldway Mansion has been used as a film location on several occasions. During the spring of 2004, it doubled as Buckingham Palace for the filming of Churchill: The Hollywood Years, starring Christian Slater and Neve Campbell. Pink gravel, guard houses and period vehicles were used to recreate the royal courtyard. The 1968 film Isadora starring Vanessa Redgrave and telling the life story of the dancer Isadora Duncan also used Oldway Mansion as one of its locations.
• On 21 December 2005, the ballroom at Oldway Mansion was the location for Devon's first civil partnership. The registration was officially witnessed by the Mayor of Torbay and his dignitaries.