Changing of the guard at TV castle

Suzanne Hazeldine, a marketing executive for an outdoor events company based in Surrey, will move into Duncraig Castle, overlooking Plockton in Wester Ross, on Monday.

She fought off stiff competition from around the world to buy the landmark building, which she plans to upgrade and develop as a B&B business as well as a location for weddings and other events.

Ms Hazeldine's partner is Duncan Gass, who owns Delta Force Paintball, which has sites across the UK and counts celebrities such as Chelsea FC players, former racing driver Damon Hill, comedian Harry Hill and singer Mark Owen among its customers. However, Ms Hazeldine stressed the castle would not be used as a paintball centre.

Duncraig was put on the market at offers over 800,000 this year by Perlin and Sam Dobson, whose efforts to refurbish the 19th century property with members of their extended family featured in a TV reality show The Dobsons of Duncraig.

Inquiries about the property came from across the UK, the United States, Canada and South Africa, and it is believed eight firm offers were made for what was seen as a bargain.

The castle is set in 38 acres of grounds, has 29 bedrooms, ten bathrooms, a chapel, boathouse, two islands and its own train stop. A three-bedroom, semi- detached house in Plockton sold recently for 440,000.

Ms Hazeldine told The Scotsman: "We have been passionate about Plockton for a number of years. We followed the TV programme and stayed in the castle just prior to it going up for sale.

"At the time we thought 'they are so lucky'; it is wonderful. We are into developing ourselves, and we just felt 'wow, we've got to have it'. We want to improve it, bring it up to a high standard and eventually it will be our home.

"Living on the coast was one of our dreams, and so to have the castle on the west coast of Scotland is just incredible. It's a dream come true for us."

The castle was bought for 505,000 in 2003, after Mr and Mrs Dobson saw it in a property supplement while they were on honeymoon. Seventeen members of their family moved from Nottingham and Leicestershire to live there.

Latterly, only Perlin and Sam and their children remained, and they sold up so that Mrs Dobson could look after her elderly mother in Jamaica.

Before the Dobsons took it over, the castle had lain empty for five years following the closure of a domestic college owned by Highland Council.

Charlie McRae, chairman of Plockton Community Council, said: "We are pleased the castle has been bought. We were a bit concerned that with the recession it may not find a buyer."

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DUNCRAIG Castle was built in the 1860s by Sir James Matheson, a former MP for Ross and Cromarty and the son of an opium baron.

Sir James was instrumental in ensuring that the railway was extended to Kyle of Lochalsh.

It was sold in 1928 to shipping magnate Sir Daniel Hamilton, who owned the neighbouring estate of Balmacara.

During the Second World War the castle was used as a naval hospital and later, after the death of both Sir Daniel and Lady Hamilton, it was left to be administered for the good of the people of the Highlands.

From 1945 to 1989, Duncraig was run as a domestic science college for students across the Highlands and Islands. The names of some of the girls can still be seen scrawled on wooden window blinds.

The castle largely remained empty until the Dobson family took over, although it was used as a base for the cast of the BBC television series Hamish MacBeth from 1995 to 1999.