Old castle ruins, as shown in Series 5 (1991).

Castle Ruins

By Keith McDonald

Knightmare's growing portfolio of real castles and forts yielded a number of striking ruins, from Britain and overseas.


As Knightmare progressed, the new environments included a number of ruins from medieval and renaissance structures.

Ruins were commonly used for clue rooms or for encounters with in-game characters. They also formed plenty of Eye Shield footage for transitions between areas.

Castle ruins, as seen in Series 5 of Knightmare (1991).
Castle ruins. Scene from Kidwelly Castle.

Examples are the former great hall from Kidwelly Castle in Carmarthenshire, which appears in Series 5.

One dungeoneer who gets turned into a goblin is threatened here by Brother Strange and must persuade him of the truth.

The former apartments of Caerphilly Castle feature in Series 5 and Series 6. One team stumble upon Elita the Cavern Elf's ritual and ask for help.

Ruins from Caerphilly Castle, as seen in Series 6 of Knightmare (1992).
Elita performing a ritual. Scene from Caerphilly Castle.

The former King's Chambers in Scarborough Castle, North Yorkshire, form the Level 3 clue room in Series 6.

The ruins in Series 7 include a number of Spanish castles.

Cuéllar Castle is used as a clue area in Level 1. The Castle of Peñaranda de Duero in Northern Spain dates back to the 10th century - the oldest structure seen in Knightmare.

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The Greenwood

An area of The Greenwood, as shown in Series 5 (1991).

A series of woodland clearings in the fifth series of Knightmare, which were overseen by the Greenwarden.

Casper the Key

Casper, Merlin's talking Key. Voiced by Lawrence Werber.

A talking key found in Level 2 could often help dungeoneers navigate their way to Merlin's chamber.

Behind the Scenes with David Rowe

A second variant of Merlin's chamber. A handpainted scene by David Rowe.

The Knightmare.com team went to visit David Rowe, the artist of the original hand-painted dungeon rooms.

See Also