Category: OPULENCE & SPLENDOUR

Luxury and the arts From houses to cars and from Hockney to van Dyck, a profile of the best and the worst

Anything Can Happen

5,000 acre Irish estate where “anything can happen” for sale for £24.1 million; its current owner would prefer a buyer who’ll allow him to use it for three months a year

Michael Jackson hid out at Luggala in County Wicklow, Ireland in 2006 for three months after being cleared of child molestation charges and other guests at this magical estate have included Francis Bacon, Orlando Bloom, Bono, John Paul Getty II, Mel Gibson, John Hurt, Mick Jagger, Patrick Leigh Fermor, Paul McCartney and Anita Pallenberg.

Encompassing a plot of some 5,000 acres, Luggala (meaning: “a hollow in a ridge”) is also known as ‘Fancy Mountain’ and has been used in films including Zardoz, Braveheart and Excalibur. It is located 28 miles south-west of Dublin, was described by the singer Marianne Faithfull as “the most beautiful place in the world” and the main house there has gradually morphed into what has been called “the most decorative honeypot in Ireland”.

Architecturally significant, Luggala Lodge (also known as Luggala Castle), was built in 1787 and is lauded as having “that special brand of 18^th century Gothick that rejoices in little battlements, crochets, trefoil and quatrefoil windows and ogee mantelpieces, Indeed, quite like the Gothick of pastry cooks and Rockingham china”. It “boasts all the appurtenances of a grand castle but on a miniature scale” and though standing on a modest footprint, extends to some 7,438 square foot in total.

In 1937, the estate was bought by the Hon. Ernest Guinness (1876 – 1949) and given to his daughter, Oonagh, on her marriage to Lord Oranmore and Browne – a peer with the rare distinction of managing to sit in the House of Lords without ever saying a single thing. It subsequently became a place where “nobody could stay away: Dublin intelligentsia, literati, painters, actors, scholars, hangers-on, toffs, punters, poets and social hang-gliders” and was even immortalised in poetry by Seamus Heaney.

Current owner of Luggala, the decidedly eccentric the Hon. Dr. Garech Browne (born 1939)

Luggala Lodge, Roundwood, Leinster, County Wicklow, Ireland

Luggala Lodge after a fire in 1956

Oonagh Guinness, Oonagh, Lady Oranmore and Browne (1910 – 1995)

On Oonagh, Lady Oranmore and Browne’s death in 1970, the estate passed into the “custody” of her son, the Hon. Dr. Garech Browne. He has spent considerable sums restoring the house and made it a “cultural hub for Irish music, art and literature”. A co-founder of the record label Claddagh Records and instrumental in the formation of the traditional Irish folk group, The Chieftans, Browne and his Indian princess wife, Purna Devi of Morvi, added an indoor swimming pool to Luggala Lodge as well as a Gothic library for his collection of 8,000 books.

Now for sale due to 77-year old Garlech Browne and his wife primarily choosing to be based in Singapore, it has been suggested that the Irish State should purchase the estate. Thus far no offer has been forthcoming and this week Jennifer O’Connell of The Irish Times even penned an article that suggested: “Opening the national chequebook is not the way to secure [Luggala’s] future”.

Luggala – which comes with 7 estate lodges and cottages – is offered jointly by Sotheby’s International Realty and Crawford’s with a guide price of £24.1 million ($30.1 million, €28 million or درهم110.7 million). The Guernsey based Guinness Trust that currently controls the actual ownership of the property has indicated that it “seeks a freehold sale and will entertain offers with both vacant possession and non-vacant possession”. Though such a deal seems as unlikely as that that Christian de Guigné IV proposed of his £81 million ($100 million, €94 million or درهم367 million) estate at Hillsborough in California, at the mythical delight that is Luggala, anything could indeed happen.

February 4, 2017
Viewing Auntie

“London’s best penthouse” for sale; it has a sad past

Reduced in price from £20 million ($25.3 million, €23.4 million or درهم93 million) to £17.95 million ($22.7 million, €21 million or درهم83.3 million), a flat for sale in Ambika House in Portland Place is described as “arguably one of the best penthouses in London”. Situated opposite the BBC, the 7,355 square foot apartment was the scene of the suicide of its then owner, businessman and film producer Angad Paul, on 8^th November 2015.

Featuring accommodation over three floors and situated opposite the BBC’s Broadcasting House headquarters, the flat offered includes 5 bedroom suites, 2 staff bedrooms and vast entertaining spaces. It also comes with a lap pool, a garden terrace, balconies, underground parking and an industrial refrigerator.

Ian Green Residential are the selling agents.

February 2, 2017
The Cherry on The Cake

1930s mansion in Surrey by eccentric master builder Oliver Hill offered for sale for a price 532% higher than it was marketed for in 2006

Offered for sale for £4.75 million in 2006 (the equivalent of £6.3 million, ($7.9million, €7.4 million or درهم28.9 million today), Cherry Hill – originally known as ‘Holthanger’ – on the fourth fairway of the Wentworth Club golf course is for sale again eleven years later for the much increased price of £30 million ($37.5 million, €35 million or درهم137.7 million).

Constructed to the designs of master builder Oliver Hill (1887 – 1968) – described as a man “having a childlike innocence rarely found in an architect” and the man responsible for iconic structures including the Midland Hotel in Morecambe, Lancashire – between 1933 and 1936, Cherry Hill was created for a Miss Newton but could just as easily have been home to fiction’s Hercule Poirot.

The entrance (north) front of the building when it was built

The entrance (north) front of the building prior to renovation

The terrace (south) front of Cherry Hill when it was built

The terrace (south) front of Cherry Hill prior to renovation

Architect and master builder Oliver Hill

A site plan showing the redevelopment of the site

Hill, known for driving a blue Rolls-Royce coupé with a pink trim and for “nudist frolics on the hilltops in high summer”, was a designer that cannot simply be put into a box. He variously designed Arts & Crafts cottages, Art Deco interiors and buildings that harked back to the 17^th century. He is said to have blamed Hitler for wrecking his career but at Cherry Hill and elsewhere, his foray into “international modernism” is something to be celebrated.

Somewhat bastardized from the 1960s to the early 2000s, Grade II listed Cherry Hill was “designed to take maximum use of sunlight and view” and is of a shallow curve in plan. A fully glazed staircase tower rising the full height of the building is undoubtedly the dominant original feature, but now, after a full-scale renovation, there is now also a basement cinema, an underground swimming pool, spa and stand-alone guest accommodation.

Marketed by Christie’s International Real Estate, Cherry Hill comes with 4.5 acres of land.

January 31, 2017
A Happy House

Berkshire country house named “Gays” for sale

Not connected with the LGBT community in any way, but in fact named after a man named John Gays, “Gays” at Holyport, near Maidenhead in Berkshire dates to around 1456 and is currently for sale for £5.95 million ($7.36 million, €6.88 million or درهم27.05 million).

Gays or John Gays House, Langworthy Lane, Holyport, Maidenhead, Berkshire, SL6 2HN, England, United Kingdom

Also referred to as “John Gays House” and offered to the market by Christie’s Real Estate, this 12,482 square foot “bijou old world residence” stands in 20.75 acres and is predominantly built of red brick elevations with attractive sash fenestration, under a tile roof. It is Grade II listed, dates to the Tudor period and also includes later Queen Anne, Georgian, Victorian and 20^th century additions.

Less than 30 miles from central London, Gays has been owned by a Swiss family for 20 years according to Country Life and includes 6 reception rooms, a conservatory, a master bedroom suite with 2 bedrooms, a bathroom and 2 dressing rooms, 6 further bedrooms and 5 further bathrooms. In addition, the property also comes with a 2-bedroom lodge cottage, a 2-bedroom staff cottage, an indoor swimming pool, wine store and 4-car garage.

Aside from a large lawned garden with an irrigation system, a lake adjoins the house and there is also an orchard with apple and pear trees. A stable block, a manège and paddocks stand beyond whilst a 1-kilometre long sand and rubber chip horse exercise track circles it. The Duke of York, it transpires, borrowed these facilities in the late 1990s for his own horses.

January 22, 2017
Britain’s Prettiest Council House

What could be Britain’s prettiest council house goes on sale for £750,000

When one thinks of council houses, one thinks utilitarian and not of beauty and roses around the door. An exception to this rule comes in the form of a Victorian house on the south bank of the River Cam in Cambridge that is currently for sale with a guide price of £750,000 ($923,000, €864,000 or درهم3.4 million) for its freehold.

Providing a total of 1,040 square foot of accommodation and including 2 reception rooms and 3 bedrooms, Ferry House on Midsummer Common is set back from the river behind a public footpath. It was used as a hostel by the Cambridge Cyrenians charity from 2002 to August 2016 and is now described as “requiring improvement” by selling agents Bidwells.

Of the property, Councillor Kevin of Cambridge’s Housing Scrutiny Committee, told The Mirror:

“This is a very unusual property which had been leased to a charity for more than a decade but is now empty”.

“The council always reviews properties like this to decide how best to use them after a tenant leaves, and we sell a handful of properties each year”.

“It has become even more important given the government’s High Value Levy which would require us to sell it off and give the capital receipt to the Treasury rather than reinvesting it in building new homes for Cambridge families on our waiting list”.

“At the moment that proposal seems to be on hold and I would hope that the money from the sale of 1 Ferry House will be used with our Right to Buy receipts to build new council homes for at least four families”.

Foodies and drinkers will be attracted by another bonus. Ferry Cottage is next door to The Fort St George pub and Daniel Clifford’s Michelin-starred Midsummer House restaurant.

January 18, 2017
Onslow & Campbell

South Kensington ground floor flat for sale for the same price as Sol Campbell’s Georgian country house in Northumberland

Near Corbridge in Northumberland, former footballer Sol Campbell has been trying to sell Hallington Hall, a 10,489 square foot country house he shares with his interior designer wife, for £4.95 million (reduced from £6 million when it was first put on the market in 2015).

In London’s South Kensington, a similar sum would instead buy a much smaller 1,760 square foot ground floor flat in an area named after the Onslow baronets. Featuring its own street level entrance, the 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom property offered comes with a large reception room with direct access to communal gardens and a separate dining room.

Knight Frank seek £4.75 million ($5.8 million, €5.4 million or درهم21.3 million) for the ground floor apartment at 80 Onslow Gardens.

January 17, 2017
Made From The Mayflower

So-called ‘super estate’ in Buckinghamshire – complete with a barn allegedly made from wood from The Mayflower and a museum with space for 25 cars – for sale for £15 million

Controversially sold to Rivercrest Developments for £1.85 million in 2006 (the equivalent of £2.4 million, $2.9 million, €2.7 million or درهم10.7 million today) after being offered for £2.5 million in 2005, what is now being turned a “super estate” by its selling agents is currently for sale for £15 million ($18.3 million, €17.2 million or درهم67.1 million).

Prior to renovation

After renovation

Previously run as a conference centre and hotel and owned by the Quaker Trust for 400 years, Grade II listed Old Jordans at Jordans, near Beaconsfield in Buckinghamshire now provides a total of 14,616 square foot of accommodation and includes a vast basement garage, with a car lift, which can accommodate 25 vehicles.

Standing in some 6 acres of landscaped grounds, Old Jordans served as a hiding place for Quakers – including the founder and first Governor of Pennsylvania William Penn – from Oliver Cromwell and was subsequently used as a training centre for the Friends’ Ambulance Unit in the First World War. Dating back to around 1624, the redevelopment of the property has created a 7 bedroom, 7 bathroom house that mixes both old and new along with two 2 bedroom apartments.

Somewhat soulless in terms of its décor and situated right next to the road, this pricey country property has been for sale since the summer of 2016. It comes complete with a barn named “The Mayflower” that allegedly was made with leftover timbers from the construction of the Pilgrims’ historic vessel and is offered by Knight Frank.

January 15, 2017
A Serpentine Summer House

Serpentine Galleries summerhouse originally installed in Kensington Gardens for sale – it’ll cost you a bit more than what you might find down at B&Q

Each summer, since the year 2000, the Serpentine Galleries have commissioned what they term a ‘pavilion’ to stand alongside their original gallery in Kensington Gardens. These have varied from the sublime to the ridiculous but whilst most have been thought provoking, in 2016 the project was extended to include four summer houses next to the nearby 18^th century Queen Caroline’s Temple.

One of these creations, designed by a Nigerian architect named Kunlé Adeyemi, is now for sale and available for delivery to a new location. It is described as a “one-off piece of art-meets-architecture” by selling agents The Modern House and by its designers as “an inverse replica [and] tribute to [Queen Caroline’s Temple’s] robust form, space and material, recomposed into a new architectural language”.

Constructed from prefabricated building blocks assembled from rough sandstone, Adeyemi’s design was conceived as a tea house that “might have grown out of the ground”. It is all about “eating, resting and playing” but at £95,000 ($116,000, €110,000 or درهم427,000) plus VAT at 20% it is quite the polar opposite of the kind of summer house most people might purchase down at B&Q.

January 12, 2017
A Village Ideal

Unlisted 18^th century Georgian residence near Badminton for sale; ideal for those looking to quit the rat race

City dwellers and commuters regularly dream of quitting the rat race for a life in the country and when they watch programmes like Escape to the Country and Downton Abbey, they see an idealised vision of rural life. Such people could do worse than take a look at Dauncey House at Tormarton, near Badminton in South Gloucestershire, a property that is currently for sale through Hamptons International.

Reduced in price from £1.3 million ($1.6 million, €1.5 million or درهم5.8 million) to £1.2 million ($1.5 million, €1.4 million or درهم5.4 million), this attractive Cotswold stone village house was also marketed for £1.3 million in 2009 according to Country Life magazine. It is situated within a village where you’ll count the ‘King of Hoovers’ Sir James Dyson and the Duke of Beaufort as neighbours and it is believed that “humans have been active in the area for more than 6,000 years”.

Surprisingly unlisted and providing 3,368 square foot of accommodation, Dauncey House includes 3 reception rooms, 6 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms. It stands in 2.5 acres of gardens and orchards and though perhaps a little blandly decorated currently, provides what the selling agents call “flexibility for the growing family”.

Situated just 10 miles north of Bath and 1 mile north-east of Junction 18 of the M4 motorway, this handsome 18^th century Georgian residence would make an ideal home for a commuter. Chippenham, just 12 miles away, provides a direct service to London Paddington.

January 11, 2017
Panic Over The Price

Vast New York triplex with three bullet-proof panic rooms at The Heritage at Trump Place reduced in price by 47%; Is the Trump connection a factor?

In 2012, a Saudi royal placed a fifth, sixth and seventh triplex he “rarely uses” on the market for £61.7 million ($75 million, €71 million or درهم275.5 million). It didn’t sell and now it’s back for sale for just £32.9 million ($40 million, €37.9 million or درهم147 million) through Elizabeth Mercedes Berk of Mercedes/Berk.

Featuring three bullet-proof panic rooms and extending to a total of 10,500 square foot over three levels, #6A at 240 Riverside Boulevard – alternatively known as The Heritage at Trump Place – is a combination of six units in what is described as “one of New York’s finest full-service condominiums”. It is currently configured to provide 3 bedrooms but comes with plans to turn it into a 5-bedroom home.

Enjoying 120 foot of “contiguous, unobstructed park and Hudson River views”, the Upper West Side property – which is within a building that was completed in 2005 – features three private terraces, a restaurant quality kitchen with a sushi bar, a billiards room, a hair salon, a ventilated cigar room, a six-person Jacuzzi and a saltwater aquarium. Two adjacent units that currently provide staff accommodation can be included in the sale for an additional sum.

The current owner, Prince Nawaf bin Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud, is 82 years old and said to be confined to a wheelchair. He was Director General of Saudi Intelligence from 2001 to 2005 and is described as “a close ally of the late King Abdullah”.

One has to ask: “With Donald Trump’s name associated with the building, will panic set in and will the price drop further?” We’re guessing the answer is “yes”.

January 10, 2017