Category Archives: Homes

English Country Homes: The Old Watermill In Clophill, Bedfordshire

The word ‘idyllic’ doesn’t seem quite enough for some properties — and the Old Watermill in Clophill, Bedfordshire, with water rights over the River Flit and waterfalls in the garden, is a prime example of just how magical a house can be.

Lydia Stangroom, August 6, 2021

The stunning property is thought to date from the 18th century, with many of the bricks transcribed with the date 1725. However, as expected, the bricks are just the beginning of the many period features retained in this property.

Within the house is ‘an undershot wheel which drove three pairs of stones, grinding both wheat for flour and grain for animal feed’. Although, perhaps the most obvious feature are the exposed ceiling timbers, which run throughout every room, and juxtapose effortlessly with the exposed red brick work.

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Front Covers: Country Life Magazine – August 4

Here’s a small selection of what you’ll find inside.

FLYING VISIT: Charles Harris takes glorious flight over the Lake District

ROCKPOOLS: Life in the rockpool can be cut-throat, says Adam Nicolson

INSECT APOCALYPSE: Dave Goulson on averting the impending insect apocalypse

MY FAVOURITE PAINTING: Sally Clarke, restauranteur, chooses a simple, restful study by Dürer

ELGAR: Jack Watkins examines Elgar’s ‘best of me’ oratorio

TURVEY HOUSE: Jeremy Musson details the refurbishment of neo-Classical Turvey House in Bedfordshire, by the seventh generation of the family that built it

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British Estates: St. Peter’s House, Island Of Jersey

A traditional country property with about 20 acres of grounds, St Peter’s House is ideal for a buyer looking for a private retreat. 

Holly Kirkwood, July 27, 2021

The interiors are full of charming features, including original panelling, moulded ceilings, stained glass and working fireplaces. The main residence has a striking reception hall with minstrel gallery, five elegant reception reception rooms, five main bedrooms and four secondary ones.

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English County Estates: Trafalgar Park, Salisbury

Writing in Country Life in 1997, the magazine’s then-Architectural Editor the late Giles Worsley referred to stately Grade I-listed Trafalgar Park, near Salisbury, Wiltshire, as ‘the Flying Dutchman of the property world, endlessly seeking an owner and being sold on while the fabric slowly decayed’.

Penny Churchill, July 22, 2021

The fine country house built by John James of Greenwich in 1733 for City grandee Sir Peter Vandeput was nevertheless described as ‘an estate agent’s dream, a house that always seemed to come back on the market’.

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Georgian Views: The Wick, Richmond Hill, London

On the gentle slope of Richmond Hill, Grade I-listed The Wick is a secret Georgian paradise that feels like a country house, albeit hopping distance from the heart of the capital, enjoying as it does the only view protected by an Act of Parliament. 

Annunciata Elwes, July 21, 2021

Lush terraced gardens meander down to an idyllic swimming pool and pool house, with the Thames elegantly curving in the distance.

Location: Richmond, or the London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames, is an affluent district that boarders the River Thames. It is approximately 10 miles from central London. It has both national and city rail links, with Richmond rail station and Richmond Underground station that offers District and Overground services.

Atmosphere: Richmond has a community feel, much similar to that of a village, rather than a borough on the outskirts of London. It benefits from a number of independent cafes, shops, restaurants, bars and pubs — many of which take advantage of the river-side setting.

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Tower Houses: Killberry Castle, Western Scotland

Kilberry Castle is the epitome of historic Scottish Baronial Tower Houses —  built in the 15th century, it has undergone everything from a pirate attack, being besieged during the 1643-1645 civil war, to almost being destroyed by a fire.

Lydia Stangroom, July 18, 2021

In 1550, the Campbell family acquired the Kilberry lands and the castle has, quite amazingly, stayed in the same family ever since.

Today, the property is a gateway for stepping back in time. Yes, there are original open fireplaces, decorative cornicing and galleried landings, but in one of the 10 bedrooms is a museum-like shrine to the era.

Read and see morehttps://www.countrylife.co.uk/property/a-15th-century-scottish-castle-for-sale-at-just-650000-thats-been-in-the-same-family-for-over-470-years-229540

Italian Villas: Camogli, Near Portofino, Liguria

In Camogli, an exclusive Ligurian town located just a few kilometers from the renowned Portofino, there is this majestic property in a fantastic position with a stunning view of the sea for sale. Located in one of the most enchanting areas of the Gulf of Tigullio, with panoramic views of Liguria’s crystal-blue sea and the mountains, this house is surrounded by a large terraced park that measures 4,000 square meters and features centuries-old trees, fruit trees, a romantic rose garden, and a fantastic, perfectly-equipped panoramic swimming pool offering views of the Riviera.

Camogli is a fishing village and tourist resort located on the west side of the peninsula of Portofino, on the Golfo Paradiso in the Riviera di Levante, in the Metropolitan City of Genoa, Liguria, northern Italy. As of 30 April 2017 its population was of 5,332.

English Country Estates: Aberdyfi, Western Wales

Owned by the vendors for 20 years or more, elegant, Edwardian Plas Penhelig, was built in 1908. It stands in just under 12½ acres of gardens, paddocks and woodland and boasts ‘six different views over the picturesque Dyfi estuary’.

Penny Churchill, July 14, 2021

Thanks to the waters of the Gulf Stream, rare plants and flowers flourish in Plas Penhelig’s sheltered valley, where the hillside is planted with a mass of shrubs, flowers and trees—from peonies and azaleas to camellias, magnolias, lavender, laburnum, lilac trees and a monkey puzzle.

Read and see more at Country Life Magazine

English Country Homes: Avon Court, Alveston

Everything about Avon Court has a opulent yet whimsical air about it — from the large wrought iron entrance gates, to the mature Willow tree in the garden that leads down to a mooring on a private stretch of river.

Annunciata Elwes, July 12, 2021

Avon Court’s glorious setting on a bend of the Avon — with private frontage, a mooring beside a lovely willow and dipping opportunities through the bull rushes on hot days — is hard to beat.

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