If I had a country estate at my disposal and were a duke or a lord, the first thing I would do would be to recruit a visionary entrepreneur with strong leadership skills.

He or she would have to have a realistic understanding of the business and be able to think out of the box. But the trouble with dukes and lords can be that they really want a valet. Will they hire someone to take a risk?

Clearly, the owner has to buy into the strategy but the only way it will work is for the owner to give away the keys of the property. No one can operate if someone is interfering daily.

Of course, there has to be a solid financial structure and business model. There must also be a unique selling proposal. The day out needs one big anchor. Once you have that you can then work out how to market it. You also need to decide if you have the right people or if you can get them.

But when I look at some ventures in country estates they are often half-baked as visitor attractions. They do not have a vision. They put a toe in the water but are not really trying to be a destination.

Hiring out estates as film locations is just a side income, like concerts and corporate hospitality. What they should do is set up a business that makes people come, stay a long time, spend money and come back.

You have to trap people and get strong repeat visits. The challenge for all estates is to create a brand.

There is no halfway house — and that is the dilemma for these owners. You have to decide to make money or to be a museum. You have to decide to be a commercial destination or just to raise some cash to mend the roof.

In terms of Alnwick I think the jewel is the link with Harry Potter. It seems logical to me to build on Hogwarts but I think it should be a joint venture with Warner Bros.

This has to be a high-quality attraction, a big show. It should not be a bunch of lookalikes doing a son et lumière on a Friday night. It has to be an attraction that will work for five to ten years, and with Harry Potter it has the potential to be not just a national attraction but a worldwide one.

The author is chief executive of X-Leisure and former chief executive of the New Millennium Experience Company, which operated the Millennium Dome, and was previously a vice-president of Disneyland Paris.

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