A Wiltshire castle has been named as one of the top hidden gems to visit in the run-up to the coronation of King Charles III.

Old Waldour Castle in Tisbury was named eighth in a list created by digital marketing agency Tank.

The 14th century castle was once one of the "most daring and innovative homes in Britain", according to English Heritage, built as a "lightly fortified luxury residence for comfortable living and lavish entertainment".

It was also the inspiration for the castle featured in the Kevin Costner film 'Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves'.

Elizabeth Rhodes, founding director of Swain Architecture, said: “Castles always bring various stages of history to life.

“Almost all have been changed or added to at various times, which gives them differing styles of architecture across the same building or the same site, as their purpose and fate evolved. 

“The most famous castles are often busy on bank holiday weekends but, by deliberately seeking out ones that most people are unaware of, you then have a chance to explore them properly and soak up their history.”

The castles in the list range from pristine and intact buildings to ruins. Many are owned by organisations like English Heritage or the National Trust, some are private homes that the public can visit and others are completely free and accessible to everyone. 

Tank’s founder and director Trevor Palmer, said: “As an agency, we’re fascinated by heritage and old buildings in particular, the history behind them and their architectural details.

“The coronation weekend is the perfect time to visit those that are less well-known, as well as the usual choices.”

The agency analysed 155 castles across the country, ranking them according to visitor reviews and how often they appeared in social media posts, prioritising the less well-known.

To create the list, Tank cross-referenced castles that have been tagged the fewest number of times on Instagram with how many of each historic sites’ visitor reviews on Tripadvisor and Google have five-star ratings. 

The top 10 hidden gems of English castles to visit for the coronation weekend are:

1.    Hever Castle, Edenbridge, Kent

2.    Arundel Castle, Arundel, West Sussex

3.    Bewcastle Castle, Bewcastle, Cumbria

4.    Berkeley Castle, Berkeley, Gloucestershire 

5.    Elsdon Castle, Elsdon, Northumberland

6.    Goodrich Castle, Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire

7.    Walmer Castle, Deal, Kent

8.    Old Wardour Castle, Tisbury, Wiltshire

9.    Raby Castle, Darlington, County Durham

10.  Leeds Castle, Maidstone, Kent