The clash between an American actor and a Rochdale Council that’s stoked anger in the community

A spat between a Hollywood actor and Rochdale council is heating up over ownership of the Grade II listed building at Hopwood Hall. 

The council said it has decided to cut ties with Hopwood DePree amid the restoration of Hopwood Hall.
 

Read more: Council announces plans for Hopwood Hall Estate, - as angry Hopwood DePree holds "urgent" public meetingPublished: 20 November 2024

Back in 2017, excitement was building as the council entered into an ‘exclusivity agreement’ with American actor, writer and filmmaker Hopwood DePree – who vowed to restore the 1420s hall.  

Having decided to ditch Hollywood for Middleton and the Grade-II* listed hall, Mr DePree instigated a community effort to restore it, powered by volunteers.

Many members of the community bought into his vision to transform the hall as Mr DePree was granted planning permission to carry out work in 2022.

As well as fixing the deteriorating interior of the hall, which had been left to rack and ruin, there was a masterplan for the building’s future use.

 

 

The plan included an outdoor cinema screen; space for education workshops; a gift shop; a heritage trail; a wedding and events space; and a 25-bedroom hotel. That was in addition to structural restoration; a new access road; and a car park. 

The US-born adopted Middletonian has been sprucing up the gardens around the hall as well as maintaining the building itself. 

But the council believes there has not been sufficient progress made and the contract with Mr DePree is stopping them speaking to other potential investors. 

The ‘exclusivity agreement’ came to an end on 31 October.

The decision by the council took Mr DePree by surprise, he said. He believes he has a ‘legally binding agreement to purchase Hopwood Hall’.

He added that all the work over the last seven years has come at ‘significant personal cost’ to him – an estimated £581,000.

The relationship between both parties was harmonious for seven years – but things have now turned sour.

Once the agreement came to an end, the site was locked off to the volunteers – which sparked anger and confusion locally over what was going on. 

Middleton residents were reportedly left ‘appalled’ when they were told they couldn’t access the site. Hundreds of locals flocked to Smalley Memorial Hall for a public meeting on 20 November that saw a number of the ‘Friends of Hopwood Hall’ group deliver passionate speeches on the situation.

Boyd Taylor, one of the many volunteers who has put thousands of hours into the project, told the crowd: “I want to express my personal feelings about the initiator of this effort, Hopwood DePree, whom I now consider a good friend.

"How many people would be willing to up sticks and relocate to a foreign country to undertake such a momentous task as he has done.  

“Now they (the council) have disgustingly pulled the rug from under him and want to take over themselves. We are all appalled.”

The campaigners have even started a petition urging the council to reverse their decision.

In response, the council said a number of health and safety breaches led them to close off the site. As the owners of the building, any issues on the site is its responsibility.

The residents and volunteers also took aim at the Hopwood Hall College, which surrounds the stately home. The only access to the hall is through the college grounds, and Mr DePree claims they’ve been obstructive in their plan to get a different access route to the hall which would change the situation.

Responding to this claim, a college spokesperson said: “Hopwood Hall College is a Further Education College providing learning opportunities to over 10,000 students each year across both our Middleton and Rochdale campuses. 

“The hall is owned by the council and landlocked within the Middleton college campus. The college has statutory duties for health and safety, as well as comprehensive safeguarding procedures and policies, which aim to ensure the safety of our children and young people, college community and visitors at all times.

“Within our statutory requirements for health and safety as well as safeguarding, the college has supported the project for over 10 years. This has included a licence to access the hall over college grounds for approved visitors, including volunteers, as well as provision of access to main utilities.”

At the public meeting, the volunteers made their case that they wouldn’t continue their efforts at the hall without Mr DePree at the helm, despite the council saying they want to keep them in the loop. 

The public gathering ended with Mr DePree being asked whether he would work with the council in the future and be open to a conversation about his plans for the hall. He said he would.
 

Read more: Actor’s restoration dream shattered as council plans to take back ancestral home - without him knowingPublished: 04 November 2024

When asked the same question about Mr DePree, Councillor Neil Emmott, leader of Rochdale Borough Council, said: “Yes, we’re happy to speak to Hopwood DePree about the future of Hopwood Hall.” 

But the two parties are still in disagreement over the future of the hall.

What happens next

Due to the ‘exclusivity agreement’ ending, the council is now free to speak to any potential investor for the hall’s restoration – including Mr DePree himself.

The council has announced a £100,000 feasibility study which will explore how the historic asset can be brought back into use for the benefit of the community. Some £600,000 has already been earmarked for vital roof repairs due to take place early next year.

The feasibility study is set to be commissioned within the next few months, while the council is already in the process of procuring a specialist contractor, who will carry out the roof repairs in spring next year.

As for Hopwood DePree, he is currently weighing up a legal challenge, believing he has a contractual option to purchase the hall which he claims to have exercised.

Hopwood DePree said: “For years I have personally funded many efforts that have enabled the Hopwood Hall Estate rescue project to progress. 

“The funds I have spent do not include any of the thousands of hours of my time. Rescuing a derelict building is expensive and requires a huge commitment but I was willing to take on that role as a partner with Rochdale Council. 

“’Invest in Rochdale’ is their slogan. That is exactly what I did, moving over to Rochdale Borough from the USA, because I trusted the council and believed in the community with all my heart. It is now hard to believe that any council would then turn around and treat us in this way. Wow, what a life lesson this shocking experience has been.

“In my opinion, Rochdale Borough Council is not capable of taking care of Hopwood Hall Estate as evidenced by the complete dereliction they allowed the historic hall to fall into under their ownership. 

“At this point, I cannot commit to working with Rochdale Council, Rochdale Development Agency or Hopwood Hall College until there is a full investigation into what led us into this situation.”

A spokesperson for Rochdale Borough Council, said: “Hopwood Hall is a Grade II listed manorial hall which is owned by the council and has been out of use for a number of years.

“In 2017, the council entered into an options agreement with Hopwood DePree which gave him the option to buy the building for a nominal fee if he could produce a commercially viable business model to secure the long term future of the hall, alongside a detailed planning permission.

“Although this agreement has been renewed a number of times since 2017, a viable business case and funding strategy has not been forthcoming, and so the council’s cabinet has made the decision to not renew the options agreement.

“The council sees Hopwood Hall as a very important part of Middleton’s heritage and wants it to play a key role in the area’s future.

"Over the last seven years, to support the restoration of the hall and protect its long term future, the council has funded and commissioned a series of repairs to the building and, alongside other public bodies like Historic England, has invested almost £1.7m into the building.

“As a council, we have a duty to protect public money and important, council-owned assets like Hopwood Hall, and ensure they have a viable future which will benefit the wider community.

“For that reason, we have commissioned independent financial consultants to assess the business model proposed by Hopwood Productions and they concluded that these proposals would be loss making and unlikely to be able to secure future public or private funding.

 

 

“As Hopwood Depree has not been able to produce a viable proposal, despite having had seven years to do so, and having been given advice and support from the council and Rochdale Development Agency throughout that period, in order to protect the public monies invested to date, we now have a responsibility to explore alternative options.”

Leader of Rochdale Borough Council, Councillor Neil Emmott, added: “Hopwood Hall is a local historic asset which means a great deal to the people of Middleton and indeed the wider borough.

“Something as important as this is about much more than one person, however well-intentioned they may be. Public assets are owned by our residents and we cannot allow them to transfer to a private individual without a great deal of care.

“Mr DePree was asked to meet a number of conditions when we entered into our agreement with him. We would be failing in our duty to protect our historic assets if we didn’t hold Mr DePree to the terms of this agreement.

“We know that many local residents have put their heart and soul into Hopwood Hall’s restoration as volunteers on the project. We’re very clear that we will continue to involve those volunteers and the wider community in any future plans.”