SURREY The artist who let her work do the talking What a hoot: wildlife’s cleverest mimics Shaggy sheep stories and dressing the Georgians ISSUE: 16 £4.75 PRINTED IN THE UK APRIL 19, 2023 EVERY WEEK APRIL 19, 2023 ‘Painting horses is the breath of life’ CLI403.cover.indd 1 12/04/2023 21:57
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Winners of the Best Customer Focus Award in 2023 knightfrank.co.uk 1 Wadswick, Wiltshire 10 bedroom manor house | Dower house|The Granary|The Old Toll House | Coach house | Staff flat | Indoor swimming pool Tennis court | Orchards | Outbuildings | Stabling | Pasture & woodland | Grade I listed | Freehold | Council Tax band H A spectacular renovated country estate with historic manor house in a parkland setting of about 183 acres. Available as a whole or in two lots. Bath 6.6 miles|Chippenham 7 miles (London Paddington from 68 minutes) Offers in excess of £9,750,000 Knight Frank London [email protected] 020 4502 7744 [email protected] 020 4502 7347 REF : C HO012200389 Your partners in property
Michael Graham Buckingham Luke Jackson 01280 821100 Michael Graham London Richard Banks 0208 092 1888 PADBURY, BUCKINGHAMSHIRE Price: £1,250,000 5 Bedrooms | 3 Reception Rooms | 3 Bathrooms | N/A EPC A Grade II listed 18th century thatched cottage in a private setting in a village conservation area. Living space is immaculately presented and arranged over four floors with the lower ground floor currently used as a cinema room. A gated driveway leads to 0.3 acres of professionally landscaped gardens which wrap around the property and include garaging and a self-contained annexe. michaelgraham.co.uk michaelgraham_living
Winners of the Best Customer Focus Award in 2023 knightfrank.co.uk 1 Englefield Green, Surrey 7 bedrooms |7bathrooms |4reception rooms | Swimming pool | Jacuzzi | Steam room | Sauna | Gym | Cinema | Wine cellar Gun room | Games room | Staff apartment | Stores|6bay secure underground garage | Approximately 5 acres|Freehold Adjacent to Windsor Great Park, a stunning opportunity to build a Robert Adam-designed architectural masterpiece with gardens by Randle Siddeley. Windsor 6 miles|Virginia Water 2.1 miles|Central London 22 miles Guide price £5,000,000 Knight Frank London and Ascot&Virginia Water [email protected] 020 4579 2552 [email protected] 01344 989436 REF : C HO0123897 1 8 Your partners in property The Computer Generated Image shown is for illustrative purposes only and not to be relied upon
Comporta, Portugal Melides: 6 miles, Comporta: 14 miles, Lisbon Airport: 83 miles Secluded retreat with all the amenities of a luxury hotel, 3-4 bedroom villas, open-plan living areas on vast plots, Gaggenau appliances, 5-star property management and rental service, private gardens, direct access to Pinheirinho beach, access to spa and wellness facilities, gym, yoga studio, indoor and outdoor pools, tennis courts, padel courts, access to Spatia club with a bar and3restaurants. Plots from about 5-14 acres|Guide prices from €3.79 - €6.85 million savills savills.com Idyllic Residences and Villas Harry Philpott Savills Global Residential Development 020 3930 8757 [email protected] Computer-generated imagery
Bledlow Ridge, Buckinghamshire High Wycombe: 5 miles (London Marylebone from 27 minutes) Charming family home situated in the popular and peaceful surrounding village of Bledlow Ridge. 5 reception rooms, 8 bedrooms, 4 bathrooms, indoor leisure suite including heated swimming pool, triple garage and lawned gardens. Freehold | Council Tax Band = H|EPC = E About 14.98 acres | Guide £4 million savills savills.co.uk Breathtaking Chiltern Views Hugh Maconochie Savills London Country Department 020 4571 4618 [email protected] Chris Moorhouse Savills Beaconsfield 01494 304 126 [email protected]
Surrey, Ripley Offers in Excess of £7,000,000 (Lot 1) Over 45 offices across England and Scotland, including prime Central London. An exquisite small Estate with fabulous formal gardens and an unbeatably convenient location Ripley: 300 yards across the common, Woking station: 4.7 miles, Guildford: 6.8 miles, Heathrow Airport: 16 miles, Farnborough Airport: 20 miles, Central London: 23 miles, Gatwick Airport: 28 miles Lot 1: Grade II listed country house with 8 bedrooms | 2 Cottages | Tennis court | Squash court/games hall | Swimming pool Traditional courtyard including offices and stables | Formal gardens and greenhouses | About 48 acres Further lots available including 4 Lodge cottages | 2 Further cottages | Equestrian facilities | Parkland | Watermeadows and woodland About 117 acres (47.34 ha) in all
Offers in Excess of £7,000,000 (Lot 1) /struttandparker @struttandparker struttandparker.com Mark McAndrew National Estates & Farm Agency 020 7591 2218 [email protected] Liza Howden National Estates & Farm Agency 020 7591 2214 [email protected]
Thames Ditton, Surrey Thames Ditton Station: 0.5 miles (London Waterloo from 35 minutes) Truly stunning period home withabeautiful walled garden located in the heart of Thames Ditton. 4 reception rooms, principal en suite bedroom with dressing room, further 3 bedrooms, family bathroom, tandem garage, greenhouse and south-facing walled garden. Freehold | Council Tax Band = H|EPC = D About 0.23 acres|Guide £1.995 million savills savills.co.uk Elegant Period Property Karl Matier Savills Esher 01372 898 302 [email protected] Trevor Rawlings Savills Esher 01372 674 151 [email protected]
Shepperton, Middlesex Shepperton Station: 0.8 miles, Walton Town Centre: 1 mile Set on the banks of the River Thames, this Grade II listed home has been carefully crafted and tastefully modernised to incorporateaperfect blend of modern family living whilst retaining beautiful period features. 5 reception rooms, kitchen/breakfast room,6bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, garage, off-street parking and a garden with a private mooring. Freehold | Council Tax Band=H 3,726 sq ft|Guide £2.95 million savills savills.co.uk Unique Riverside Home Olivia Perez Savills Weybridge 01932 911 529 [email protected] Samantha Di Mond Savills Weybridge 01932 911 503 [email protected]
Asuperb ring-fenced residential farm Somerset, Compton Dando Guide Price £7,500,000 Compton Dando: 1 mile, Bristol: 8 miles (Bristol Airport 10 miles), Bath: 10 miles (London Paddington 1 hour 15 minutes) Grade II listed Farmhouse | 3-Bedroom detached cottage | Traditional courtyard of former dairy buildings Extensive farm buildings | Productive arable land | Pasture land Beautiful valley and mature woodland About 420 acres (169 ha) in total For sale as a whole or in up to two lots Gabriella Placidi Central Southern Estates & Farm Agency 01722 344 023 [email protected] Will Whittaker National Estates & Farm Agency 020 7318 5166 [email protected] Over 45 offices across England and Scotland, including prime Central London.
An impressive country house in a beautiful parkland setting Surrey, Near Camberley Guide Price £5,750,000 Heathrow Airport: 20.5 miles, Basingstoke: 18.5 miles, Reading: 18 miles, Central London: 35 miles Reception hall | Drawing room | Dining room | Sitting room | Library | Orangery | Kitchen/breakfast room | Cinema room Home office | Ice well | Principal bedroom with bathroom and dressing room | 4 Further bedroom suites Coach House with two 2-bedroom apartments | Garaging | Swimming pool Treehouse | Mature gardens and grounds | Parkland About 17 acres Tom Shuttleworth Country Department 020 7591 2213 [email protected] Richard Banes-Walker Farnham Office 01252 821 102 [email protected] /struttandparker @struttandparker struttandparker.com
SOUTH CORNWALL – RESTRONGUET POINT, FAL ESTUARY In an idyllic location with mesmerising due south facing views and long direct deep waterfrontage to the Fal Estuary; an architect designed mid-Century modern single storey residence, with two storey extension. 2/3 reception roomed, 5 bedroomed accommodation extending to about 3,200sq.ft. Offered for sale for the first time since 1968. Exceptional landscaped gardens. Over 325’ direct waterfrontage with slipway and steps to foreshore. In all, about 1 acre. AndrewChilcott M: 07974 981378 O: 01872 273473 E: [email protected] www.lillicrapchilcott.com Truro 5 miles• Mylor Harbour 1.3 miles by boat• St Mawes 8 miles via Ferry Cornwall Airport Newquay 38 miles (LondonGatwick 75 minutes) – Distances and time approximate. Offers over £4,000,000 Freehold Sole Agent
Spacious and characterful country cottage Alcester, Warwickshire, Wooton Wawen Stn 5.2 mi., Stratford Pkwy Stn 7.7 mi, Evesham Stn 10.0 mi. 18th century row of merged farm cottages now with orangerie/party room, separate home office and workshop. Solid Oak doors and windows. Designer wallpaper throughout. Many original features. Flexible upstairs layout: 2 master suites or 3 bedrooms. Large modern kitchen/diner. Generous private garden with glorious brick wall. 2 minute walk to countryside or excellent range of shops and amenities including Waitrose. Excellent grammar, primary, and high schools within half a mile. Offers in excess of 625,000 Band D EE Rating D David Fisher AssocRICS Registered Valuer & Estate Agent John Earle and Son LLP DD - 01564 797 405 T - 01564 794 343 M-07713 475 485 [email protected] David CL WP.indd 1 Fisher Assoc.indd 1 12/04/2023 17:32 06/04/2023 16:57
Winners of the Best Customer Focus Award in 2023 knightfrank.co.uk 2 3 1 Wentworth, Surrey Over 9,000 sq ft of accommodation | Ability to influence finishes|Level south-facing gardens | High specification | Air conditioning Extensive AV & home automation | Structured purchase options A superb new home by Montrose Developments, currently under construction and with the opportunity for a bespoke finish and specification. Ascot4miles|M3 5 miles|M4 9 miles|London 28 miles Guide price £5,950,000 Knight Frank London and Ascot&Virginia Water [email protected] 020 4579 2552 [email protected] 01344 989436 REF : C HO012296376 Your partners in property The Computer Generated Image shown is for illustrative purposes only and not to be relied upon
84 | Country Life | April 19, 2023 Property market Penny Churchill GRADE I-listed Linton Park, with its Grade II*-listed gardens, woods and parkland overlooking the Weald, four miles south of Maidstone, promises to be one of the country-house sales of the year— if not of the century to date. Described by Mark McAndrew of selling agents Strutt & Parker (020–7591 2214) as ‘a jewel in the heart of the Garden of England’, the Linton Park estate comprises the impeccably restored, 28,824sq ft main house, which boasts 12 bedrooms, six principal reception rooms, garden rooms, a catering kitchen and extensive domestic offices; 20 acres of magnificent gardens, historic parkland, a lake and a cricket pitch, some 440 acres in all; and a coach house with a flat above and 16 further residential properties, all in excellent order and producing a considerable income. He quotes a guide price of ‘excess £32 million’ for the estate as a whole. Alternatively, offers of more than £17.5m are invited for Lot 1, comprising the striking, stucco-fronted main house, the coach house, gate lodge, gardens, grounds, parkland, lake and cricket pitch—some 316 acres in all; Lot 2, the residential portfolio of 13 houses and cottages let on assured shorthold tenancies or service occupancies, calls for ‘offers in excess of £13.5m’, with ‘offers over £1m’ sought for Ranters Land, a 96-acre parcel of good arable and woodland to the south of the property, separated from the parkland by Butt Green Lane. In the first of two COUNTRY LIFE articles by the magazine’s long-time Architectural Editor Christopher Hussey (March 29 and April 5, 1946), the setting of Linton Park is laid out in all its glory: ‘Looking over the Kentish Weald, the white front of Linton shining on the ridge forming its northern edge, is a familiar landmark visible for 20 miles. Once in a generation Today’s Property Market previews the launch onto the market, for the first time since 1985, of one of Kent’s most important country houses Imposing Linton Park stands at the heart of a magnificent 440-acre estate overlooking the Weald near Maidstone in Kent. Excess £32m CLI403.prop_market.indd 84 13/04/2023 16:18
April 19, 2023 | Country Life | 85 Find the best properties at countrylife.co.uk Approached over the crest by a wide and magnificent beech avenue, suddenly the ground drops, the beeches give way to tall elms, and you see the house below you with the blue expanse of the Weald stretching, for a moment, beyond and above it. It is a breath-taking glimpse that you do not see again till you come out on the Terrace along the south front…’ The site, naturally favoured by its full southern exposure, protection from the north and sufficient height to be above the spring frost level, had, for two centuries, been further protected by plantings to the flanks, so that the terraces and adjoining slopes enjoyed horticultural advantages in addition to the rich soil long famed for fruit and crops. It was these conditions, Hussey reveals, that attracted Olaf Hambro of the eponymous banking family, when, in 1937, he acquired Linton from Lord Cornwallis. Hussey himself was already familiar with the magnificent planting on the estate carried out by successive generations of the Cornwallis family, which was originally described in COUNTRY LIFE in an article in February 1899. From the late 14th century until the early 1700s, the site on which Linton Park stands was occupied by a house called Capell’s Court. In about 1730, that house was demolished by the estate’s then owner, Sir Robert Mann, who built the first part of the present house. On his death in 1751, the house passed to his son, Edward, and in turn to Edward’s brother, the diplomat Sir Horace Mann, who was permanently resident in Florence. Sir Horace was a friend and long-time correspondent of Horace Walpole, who, following a visit to Edward Mann at Linton in 1757, wrote to Sir Horace saying that ‘the house is fine and stands like the citadel of Kent; the whole county is its garden’. Large additions were made by the 5th Earl Cornwallis in about 1825, when the architectural remodelling of the garden and south front was also undertaken. The building work was carried out by Thomas Cubitt, who added a third storey to the original house with twostorey wings to either side, possibly to the Above and below: Linton Park’s grand 18th-century rooms have been restored to glory, with a series of original Hambro family portraits sourced for the dining-room walls CLI403.prop_market.indd 85 13/04/2023 16:18
86 | Country Life | April 19, 2023 Property market designs of George Basevi. The layout of the gardens was greatly influenced by the Scottish garden designer John Claudius Loudon, an early exponent of the ‘Gardenesque’ theory of garden design, who visited Linton in 1825. On the eve of the Second World War, Hambro’s main task was to reduce the Victorian sprawl of the house to manageable proportions and, in the process, bring back to the interior something of its original Georgian character. Outside, the walled service yard to the north-east survives from the extensive servants’ court built in about 1825 and demolished by Hambro after 1938. Following Hambro’s death in 1961, Linton Park was acquired by the Daubeny family. Thirteen years later, in 1974, the house and its nearest surrounding lands were sold to the Freemasons and were briefly operated as a school before being acquired in 1985 by its current owners, Camellia Group PLC, a UK-based group of agricultural companies with subsidiaries in 10 countries producing core crops, including macadamia, avocados and tea, as well as more specialised crops, such as wine grapes and blueberries. Having established its headquarters at Linton Park, the company embarked on a long-term project to restore the estate, which by then was in a state of dire neglect. Having established the company headquarters on the upper floors of the main house, the grand 18th-century rooms were painstakingly restored to their historic splendour, even to the extent of sourcing original Hambro family portraits to hang on the dining-room walls. When, in 2015, the previously owned adjoining Linton Park land, cottages and parkland came back on the market, Camellia moved in to buy it, thereby restoring the estate to its original size and configuration, to the delight of company chairman Malcolm Perkins, for whom it was ‘job done’. ‘With planning consent now in place to restore Linton Park to residential use, all that remains for a new owner to do is to reinstate half-a-dozen bathrooms that have been used as offices,’ says an enthusiastic Mr McAndrew who, even in these unreadable times, expects to see enquiries flowing in from all over the world. A Georgian gem in east Kent Ed Church of Strutt & Parker in Canterbury (01227 473700) quotes a guide price of £1.95m for elegant, Grade II-listed Elmstone Court, which overlooks unspoilt open countryside on the fringes of the pretty village of Preston, fewer than three miles from Wingham on the ancient coastal road to London and just over 10 miles from Canterbury. According to its listing, Elmstone Court is a classic four-square Georgian house with a 19th-century front elevation to a slightly earlier core and some late-19th-century alterations. It offers 4,152sq ft of light-filled accommodation on three floors, including a reception hall, four reception rooms, a conservatory, kitchen/breakfast room, six-to-eight bedrooms and three bathrooms, and stands in four acres of delightful gardens that include a Monet-style bridge and a Pulham grotto built in 1909. A large, brick-built Victorian barn, previously used as a cold store, has potential for a variety of uses, subject to planning. CLI403.prop_market.indd 86 13/04/2023 16:18
Alamy; Getty; Courtesy of Stuart Cole/Knight Frank 88 | Country Life | April 19, 2023 Property comment edited by James Fisher The estate sale Surrey’s private estates are now more than 100 years old, but are still as popular as ever with UK and international buyers T HERE is a certain irony about St George’s Hill, that 964-acre swathe of land in Weybridge, north Surrey. Some 100 years after it was transformed into one of the country’s first private estates by Walter George Tarrant in 1911, it is arguably one of the most exclusive addresses in the nation. One wonders if Tarrant knew that, back in April 1649, it was the site of a ‘Digger’ colony, now recognised as one of the first small-scale experiments of socialism in the world. What Tarrant certainly did know was that the burgeoning middle classes of Edwardian England would soon be drawn to this picturesque part of the Home Counties, take advantage of its beauty and utilise the technological advances of transportation to become some of the first suburbanites to enjoy the pleasures of rural living with the ease of access to central London. It’s a rich tradition that continues to this day, as Stuart Cole, a partner in Knight Frank’s country department, points out. ‘The area is great,’ he says. ‘You’re close to the airports, you’re close to an amazing array of private schools and London is just up the road—on the right day, it’s 45 minutes to drive to Harrods.’ These private estates, to which you can add Wentworth, Burwood Park and Ashley Park, among others, were created for the ‘uppermiddle classes, that needed to work every day and get into London, but still wanted a big country house,’ adds Simon Ashwell, Savills’s regional director for Surrey and east Berkshire. After buying and building St George’s Hill, Tarrant wasn’t finished, acquiring the development rights to Wentworth in 1922. Much like St George’s Hill, Wentworth, in Virginia Water, was to be private and centred around a golf course designed and built by Harry Colt. As much as he was an entrepreneur catering to the nation’s new elites, so, too, was Tarrant a builder and many of the Arts-and-Crafts homes he built across both estates are still standing (and, indeed, very desirable) to this day. That being said, the key to Surrey’s estates was, and still is, the land. ‘On both estates, Above: The Wentworth estate, the creation of Walter George Tarrant, is centred around the world-famous championship golf course CLI403.props_week.indd 88 13/04/2023 15:25
Alamy; Getty; Courtesy of Stuart Cole/Knight Frank April 19, 2023 | Country Life | 89 The majority of modern buyers may no longer be the middle classes, but rather high-net-worth internationals, but privacy is still key. ‘It’s a place where they can safely have their family and children, it’s secure, there are facilities and when you are travelling you don’t have to worry about your family,’ says Mr Cole. ‘It’s a global thing—you get different nationalities at different times, but now it’s the Chinese, people from the Middle East, Brits and Americans. It’s a really good blend.’ Mr Shuttleworth points out that ‘unless you have your own private security, you’re unlikely to find a “safer” place to buy a home’. The UK’s exceptional private schools are also a driver for international buyers —‘more recently, there has been an increase in demand from Chinese buyers who want to educate their children in England and we have an extensive choice of the best private school options nearby, as well as several international schools,’ says Martin Burrow, associate director for prime country sales at Hamptons. As much as security is an attraction, so, too, is the lifestyle on offer at Surrey’s estates. Golf is extremely popular and, at St George’s Hill and Wentworth, you will find two of the finest the land holds more value than the bricks and mortar themselves,’ says Tom Shuttleworth, senior associate director at Strutt & Parker’s national country-house department. ‘Buyers typically prioritise modern design and technology, so it’s not unusual to see a house that was built 10 years ago be knocked down and rebuilt. The original houses that remain are highly sought after. They typically sit on larger plots of 10 acres or so—compared with newer houses that often have an acre or two—and they therefore offer a lot of potential to a buyer.’ Mr Shuttleworth’s comments are echoed by Mr Cole, who says that ‘there is currently a big run of people who haven’t found exactly what home they want, so they buy plots and build what they want’. Although building the ‘dream home’ is a lure for potential buyers, any development must be carried out sensitively, with many estates having strict covenants on plot sizes and home sizes. St George’s Hill is a prime example. ‘It is the only private estate in the UK where a Government white paper has been passed on the terms of planning, meaning that any prospective buyer knows exactly what they can and cannot build on the land,’ comments Tim Firth, director of Jackson-Stops Weybridge. ‘As part of this covenant, the minimum land able to be purchased is one acre; however, purchasers can only build on 20% of the landholding, in order to preserve the estate’s spacious and serene feel.’ ‘Really, it’s about protecting the environment,’ adds Mr Ashwell. ‘The covenant means you can’t put up a block of flats, so the environment is maintained and your plot is protected.’ These estates are ‘private’, so, of course, privacy is also a big draw for potential residents —the list of celebrities who own or owned properties on these estates is far too long to list here. courses in the country. ‘In Wentworth, if you live on the main island, you can step out of the house with your golf clubs and be on the course in seconds,’ says Mr Shuttleworth. ‘The clubhouse is the heart of the estate and, as a resident, you’re likely to spend a lot of time there —dining and drinking, socialising, exercising or in the spa. The estates are notably incredibly quiet, which is increasingly rare—no road traffic or train noise and no school noise when they finish for the day.’ As Mr Shuttleworth suggests, life on these estates is as much about the company you keep as the home you live in. Mr Cole adds that ‘it’s a community of people who are used to mixing internationally’. ‘Private estates aren’t anything out of the ordinary, they are simply a slightly more controlled style of housing,’ concludes Mr Ashwell. ‘They are quiet, you can control what you can and can’t build and they are greener.’ Are there any downsides to private-estate living? ‘There used to be more empty houses, as people would buy and then not occupy,’ says Mr Cole. ‘There was anxiety around whether they would become ghost towns, but it doesn’t happen much any more, as covid has made more people realise that they enjoy spending time at these estates.’ With privacy, security, Nature and everything else, it’s not surprising to discover that there is a premium on estate living (‘about 40% –50% compared with the local area,’ according to Mr Shuttleworth). But, as Mr Firth says, ‘living here is the pinnacle of prime country real estate and the true scarcity of when a property does come up for sale means it will always find a buyer fast’. Living here is the pinnacle of prime country real estate The St George’s Hill house bought in 1965 by The Beatles drummer Ringo Starr Good plan: Surrey’s Wentworth estate is laid out with privacy, leisure and Nature in mind CLI403.props_week.indd 89 13/04/2023 15:25 9000