Best man caves in Britain: Finalists battle it out to win the title of UK’s Games Room of the Year

Taking a highly coveted finalist’s spot in the competition is this games room owned by Ben in Sussex, called the Hornet’s nest

With arcade games, pinballs, and pool tables, this lavishly decked out games room owned by  John and Annabel in Northamptonshire is sure to be a hit with voters

Retro games: Northamptonshire-based John and Annabel also have a healthy stash of pinball machines in their room

Ben has ploughed over 1,100 hours into his mammoth sports bar project: The Hornets Nest, sourcing hundreds of pieces of official football memorabilia

After putting in more than 1,000 hours of hard work and love, Ben has deemed the Hornets Nest complete… until he can spot some more black and yellow merch

Darren Young created their games room after moving – they had a games room before but created a bigger version in their new place. It was created over the course of a few weeks through a lot of blood, sweat and tears

In amongst this room of memories are some cool bits of tech. From old school gaming systems like a Sega Mega Drive and a ZX Spectrum Console, to the modern day Xbox and PS4

The centrepiece of Darren’s well-decked out games room is his prized Aberdeen Football Club pool table

Jim’s fully stocked home bar is conveniently located at the bottom of his garden, so his family can enjoy a full evening of socialising without needing to book a taxi home

The bar is designed to be a complete bar rather than a smaller home version, so Jim has kitted it out with a commercial ice machine, glass washers and freezers for the glasses

Next on the list of epic additions will be a secret door which leads into the kitchen area of the home, a GoldenTee golf game or a small 1Up arcade

John and Annabel’s love of classic arcade games inspired their games room, which has grown into an amazing space over the years.

Gamers will love their huge selection of machines, while those wanting to relax could put their feet up in the cinema

The room also boasts wine cellar, and pinball machines Star Wars, Star Trek, and the fan favourite Twilight Zone

Ambience and gaming are key focuses for Michael’s ‘lock down project’ games room, which is housed in his double garage

There is no shortage of neons and DC references in Michael’s games room – with imagery from Batman (including an epic ‘WHAM’ comic book strip), Elvis Presley’s Jailhouse Rock and a Hotel California themed painting

There is a vast array of games to choose from, including a Brunswick Andover 12ft Shuffleboard, an ArcadePro Saturn upright arcade machine, a Sega Bubble Hockey machine, three pinball machines and a Sound Leisure Rocket vinyl jukebox

Paul and partner Claire were determined to build the best home games room, so took to taking photos of all the inspirational spaces and pieces they could in every bar, pub and restaurant they went to, and saved every scrap of inspiration they could find

According to the couple, the games room provides a wonderful escape for everyone from their stresses and worries from the outside world

Next on the cards for the couple is potentially a jukebox and a neon sign – perhaps even with some more foliage to add a bit of greenery to the space

Peter’s games room was created more ‘on the go’, than fully planned ahead, sparked the full size snooker table in one of the rooms when he and his partner moved into their house, which he eventually swapped out for a pool table

He has added more to the room, including a ‘one more time’ jukebox, a rubix cube storage seat and a cocktail arcade cabinet that could play all of his retro game favourites

The room also comes with a fully-stocked bar. Peter’s next plans including adding a shuffleboard or some proper cinema chairs 

Philip’s games room grew out his desire to use his garage for something other than storing rubbish in

With mirrors, family photos and lighting all sorted, Philip added a pool table and a pinball machine to start off

As the years went by, he was able to buy more pinball machines. In the future, Philip can see himself investing in another pinball machine, or perhaps a sit down cocktail arcade cabinet

Richard’s Staffie and Frenchie were the inspiration for the name and artwork seen in his games room, which is called the Dog House

Richard’s favourite aspect of the room is that it’s possible to have a chill out area as well as more functional sections of the room

Looking to the future, he’s looking to add a retro arcade machine, a neon sign that displays the infamous name ‘The Dog House’

Steve used to play a lot of 9-ball when he was a teenager, and always wanted his own table, which he now has in his games room 

His mod cons include an American fridge freezer, a custom copper top bar, a halo-lit dartboard as well as an obligatory big television on the wall