A family business needed a headquarters, and Australian builder Ray Hollingsworth had an unconventional solution: build a castle.
asserted
Hollingsworth → need → castle
The result is a three-storey, castle-style home in Warrnambool, Victoria, featuring a moat, a keep, a dungeon-themed games room and gargoyles that release water when it rains.
asserted
it → feature → water
Hollingsworth, who has worked as a builder for more than five decades, built the castle for his eldest son, Richard.
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who → work → son
It serves as a home for Richard and his wife and as a base for the brothers’ tabletop war-gaming business.
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It → serve → business
ABC News reported on the project in December 2025, noting the family’s shared interest in medieval stories and fantasy.
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News → report → stories
Why an Australian builder turned a family business headquarters into a medieval castle for his son
The idea grew out of a practical need.
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idea → turn → need
Richard and his brothers run a tabletop war-gaming business, and Hollingsworth thought they needed an appropriate headquarters.
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they → run → headquarters
He proposed building a castle.
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He → propose → castle
Richard’s wedding in 2025 also had a medieval theme.
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wedding → have → theme
Hollingsworth built the property for Richard, his eldest son.
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Hollingsworth → build → Richard
The family’s connection to the building extends beyond its construction: the brothers use the basement for their business, while Richard and his wife have made the castle their home.
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castle → extend → business
Richard told ABC that the property was a dream come true, both as a place to live and as a base for their work.
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property → tell → work
Reclaimed church doors, cemetery fencing and an English Axminster carpet add character to the castle
The project took shape over several years, with the design evolving as construction progressed.
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construction → add → years
Some of its features came from reclaimed materials rather than purpose-made fittings.
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Some → come → fittings
The entrance incorporates doors sourced from an old church in a nearby town.
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entrance → incorporate → town
Wrought-iron fencing recovered from a cemetery was also put to use, while the Axminster carpet had to be brought over from England after a wait of several months.
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carpet → work → months
Hollingsworth also received a full suit of armour as a birthday present.
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Hollingsworth → receive → present
The design evolved as the project progressed.
asserted
project → evolve → ?
Richard told ABC that the keep was a later addition that made the building feel more like a real castle.
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building → tell → castle
Hollingsworth said that, because there were no regulations in Australia specifically for a keep, the family had to call the space an attic.
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family → say → space
This was his explanation, rather than an independently verified statement about Australian building regulations.
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This → verify → regulations
Fake skeletons hang inside in leg irons and chains from Pentridge Prison, according to ABC.
uncertain
skeletons → hang → ABC
Hollingsworth told ABC that he had never built a moat before and had to learn as he went.
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he → tell → moat
3D-printed gargoyles that release water when it rains complete the unusual castle-style home
Richard’s brother Nicholas designed and 3D-printed the gargoyles, which release water from their mouths when it rains.
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it → print → mouths
Hollingsworth, who had worked as a builder for more than five decades, told ABC that this was his first castle.
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this → work → ABC
Hollingsworth and Richard are neighbours, reflecting the family’s close ties.
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Hollingsworth → reflect → ties
Richard and his wife moved into the property a few months before ABC published its report in December 2025.
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ABC → move → December
The building’s unusual appearance has the potential to make it a minor tourist attraction, ABC reported, although the article did not establish that it had become a visitor destination.
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it → have → potential
The castle provides Richard and his wife with a home, gives the brothers a place to run their tabletop war-gaming business and brings their shared enthusiasm for medieval fantasy into their everyday surroundings.
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castle → provide → surroundings
What began as a proposal for a business headquarters became a distinctive castle-style home for Richard and his wife, while also providing space for the brothers’ tabletop war-gaming business.
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began → begin → business
The Aporia
