A cafe and gift shop on the site of a grade II-listed mansion well known for its tasty food and drinks has announced it will be closing by the end of October.

The Coach House Cafe and Gift Shop, at Barnard Castle's Eggleston Hall, confirmed they will close on October 29 in an emotional social media post on Saturday (September 30).

The reason for the closure has not been confirmed, with workers simply stating it is "out of their control".

Read more: Eggleston Hall country house near Barnard Castle goes for sale

The Northern Echo: Eggleston Hall, Barnard Castle.Eggleston Hall, Barnard Castle.

The full statement, posted on Facebook to the cafe's 2,600 followers, reads: "It is with a heavy heart that we announce that we will close the doors for a final time at The Coach House cafe on Sunday, October 29.

"A number of circumstances some outside of our control have led us to this difficult decision.

"We would like to take this opportunity to thank all our dedicated staff both past and present who have helped on the journey to make The Coach house a great place.

"To our customers, it has been a pleasure to get to know you all and serve you over the past 10 years. We hope to get to see you personally before the doors close."

Disappointed locals flooded the comments expressing their devastation at the closure.

One said the venue was "so much more than a cafe" and was "the heart of a very happy community".

Another said the closure is "a real loss to us all".

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This news comes months after the 19th century Eggleston Hall was put on the market for the first time in 100 years, in June.

The 22,000 sqft former girls' school was described as a "magnificent country house" by agents, mentioning the Coach House Cafe as one of the "established and profitable businesses" that came with the sale.