The Steeple Times

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

  • An unlucky mansion

    An unlucky mansion

    Unlucky mansion in Yorkshire with 13 bedrooms for sale for a lower sum than it was marketed for in 2007 – despite having been renovated internally in the time since

     

    Offered for sale for less than it was last marketed in a “dilapidated condition” in 2007, Whinburn Hall in the gritty West Yorkshire mill town of Keighley has now been largely restored internally but is still surrounded by neglected yet Historic Buildings and Ancient Monuments Act 1953 protected grounds.

     

    Described as a “fine country house… contrasting with the cramped rows of terraces in the streets behind them” according to Wikipeda, this Grade II listed Victorian Arts and Crafts mansion was built in 1897 for Prince Smith III (1869 – 1940), an exotically named gentleman who later renamed himself Prince Prince-Smith before becoming Sir Prince Prince-Smith on the death of his father in 1922.

     

    Constructed from wealth generated by the Prince-Smith family’s textile machinery manufacturing business, Prince Smith & Son, the house was redesigned and extended in 1912 – 1913 and became a training centre for the National Institute of Houseworkers in 1940. Sold again in 1950 to the City of Bradford Metropolitan District Council, the “modern manor house” was run as a residential school and special referral unit until 2008 and then, after a period of dilapidation and the rejection of plans to turn Whinburn Hall into flats, was bought by a 35-year old businessman named James Sheldon in 2008.

     

    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    An unlucky mansion – James Sheldon purchased Whinburn Hall at the age of 35 and died there aged just 42

     

    Sheldon, who worked as a lifeboat coxswain in Southport for 18 years, restored Whinburn Hall to use as a family home and also based his business Nav-comm, a specialist in the design of LED lighting systems for emergency vehicles, there.

     

    In the years that followed, Mr Sheldon developed what he claimed to be a new form of “anti-terror security equipment” to detect explosives and drugs from 50 metres and took a stand at a trade show in London in 2013 to showcase this. It was later described as being like “an experiment a first year university student would have tried, but which failed” and in due course West Yorkshire Police’s Economic Crime Unit placed Sheldon and his father, Anthony, under investigation.

     

    Both were arrested on allegations of fraud and on 23rd June 2015, after two police officers visited Whinburn Hall to inform the duo that they were to be rebailed for three months, 42-year old James Sheldon tragically jumped to his death from the fourth floor tower of the hall. It later transpired he had been served with an eviction order due his non-payment of the mortgage on the house and faced debts of some £1.25 million ($1.62 million or €1.45 million).

     

    The main property, which is now for sale through agents Dacre Son & Hartley for just £1.45 million ($1.87 million or €1.68 million), currently – rather unluckily, some might also argue – features 13 bedrooms and 7 reception rooms. It comes with a detached bungalow and a dilapidated gatehouse and stands in 7 acres of protected gardens that includes a folly designed by the renowned Lancastrian garden designer and landscape architect Thomas Mawson. Hopefully the next owner, aside from tackling this “overgrown jungle”, will also bring with them better luck.

     

    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    This ‘baronial hall’ is used as a dining room and is dominated a truly tasteless purple ceiling
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    The purple theme continues in this gallery
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    And there’s more of it in this corridor
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    A drawing room complete with ‘classy’ DFS style furniture and a huge television set could be somewhat improved
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    A striking fireplace in another room is surrounded by some pretty hideously coloured leather sofas
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    A staircase with a resemblance to something from a fun fair
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    Another staircase is a little more traditional
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    One of thirteen bedrooms
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    The house is surrounded by 7 acres of overgrown grounds
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    A somewhat amateur attempt at creating a helipad is located close to the house
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    The entrance gates
    An unlucky mansion – Whinburn Hall, Hollins Lane, Utley, Keighley, West Yorkshire, BD20 6LU – On the market for £1.45 million in 2016; marketed in 2007 for £1.5 million (or the equivalent of £1.88 million today)
    The roof of the adjoining gatehouse is literally caving in

     

     

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  • Room to swing a cat

    Room to swing a cat

    Tiny studio in London’s SW7 offered for sale for more than the average price calculated to buy enough space to swing a cat in that area

     

    It costs £119,965 or £1,527 per square foot to buy enough room to swing a cat – calculated at 78.54 square foot by the homeless charity Shelter – in the London postal code of SW7. For a sum 65.7% higher than that, a 183 square foot leasehold studio in Queen’s Gate can be had for £350,000 or £1,913 per square foot.

     

    For sale through Douglas & Gordon on a lease with 983 years remaining and newly refurbished, the ground floor flat comprises of one room with a kitchen, folding bed and study area and a shower room. It even has two windows and is described as “perfectly located”.

     

    Room to swing a cat – £350,000 studio flat in SW7 – Queen’s Gate, South Kensington, London – Douglas & Gordon – For sale
    The kitchen and a study area of the 183 square foot studio
    Room to swing a cat – £350,000 studio flat in SW7 – Queen’s Gate, South Kensington, London – Douglas & Gordon – For sale
    There is space for a single bed only
    Room to swing a cat – £350,000 studio flat in SW7 – Queen’s Gate, South Kensington, London – Douglas & Gordon – For sale
    The shower room is somewhat compact also
    Room to swing a cat – £350,000 studio flat in SW7 – Queen’s Gate, South Kensington, London – Douglas & Gordon – For sale
    The exterior
    Room to swing a cat – £350,000 studio flat in SW7 – Queen’s Gate, South Kensington, London – Douglas & Gordon – For sale
    A floor plan of the cupboard like apartment

     

     

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  • Moving a Metro

    Moving a Metro

    1990 MG Rover Metro with just 1,707 miles on the clock for sale for a pretty penny

     

    Offered by East Lancashire Classics at their garage and on eBay also, a 1990 MG Rover Metro comes in “showroom fresh” condition and just 1,707 miles on the clock.

     

    Moving a Metro – As new 1990 MG Rover Metro for sale for a pretty penny – East Lancashire Classics – 1,707 miles - £12,995
    The immaculate 1990 Rover MG Metro on offer
    Moving a Metro – As new 1990 MG Rover Metro for sale for a pretty penny – East Lancashire Classics – 1,707 miles - £12,995
    The car has covered just 1,707 miles in 26 years; that’s the equivalent of just 66 miles per year

     

    Described as “original and unmolested” and a relative bargain –compared to the 1989 Peugeot 205 GTi we recently featured (guide price: £18,000 to £22,000, sold for £31,000) – at just £12,995, the 26-year old MG Metro was purchased by an “avid car enthusiast and collector as a gift to his wife” on 1st May 1990. On sight, she is said to have remarked: “I’m not driving a Metro” and thus the vehicle was consigned to storage and occasional outings.

     

    After covering just 632 miles with its original owner, the MG Metro –which comes complete with its original exhaust and metric sized tyres – was loaned to the North Yorkshire Car Museum in Thornton-Le-Dale until 2012. It was sold on then and is offered again “un-messed with, unrestored, untouched and just as it left the dealership”.

     

    Moving a Metro – As new 1990 MG Rover Metro for sale for a pretty penny – East Lancashire Classics – 1,707 miles - £12,995
    The front seats are in “as new condition”
    Moving a Metro – As new 1990 MG Rover Metro for sale for a pretty penny – East Lancashire Classics – 1,707 miles - £12,995
    The rear seats look as if they’ve never been used also
    Moving a Metro – As new 1990 MG Rover Metro for sale for a pretty penny – East Lancashire Classics – 1,707 miles - £12,995
    Even the original MG mats remain in perfect condition
    Moving a Metro – As new 1990 MG Rover Metro for sale for a pretty penny – East Lancashire Classics – 1,707 miles - £12,995
    And there’s even a set of MG gloves in the boot
    Moving a Metro – As new 1990 MG Rover Metro for sale for a pretty penny – East Lancashire Classics – 1,707 miles - £12,995
    A Philips sticker is a reminder of something often seen on cars in the 1990s
    Moving a Metro – As new 1990 MG Rover Metro for sale for a pretty penny – East Lancashire Classics – 1,707 miles - £12,995
    From the front
    Moving a Metro – As new 1990 MG Rover Metro for sale for a pretty penny – East Lancashire Classics – 1,707 miles - £12,995
    And finally from the rear

     

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  • Forget flooding

    Forget flooding

    Thameside boat house that will no longer suffer from flooding for sale for £3.75 million

     

    A riverside home might be wonderful on a sunny summer’s day but when the water rises, they can be an absolute nightmare. The Boat House at Goring in Oxfordshire previously fell into that category, but thanks to a £200,000 food protection and waterproofing scheme, it’s now pretty much immune to the worst the Thames can throw at it and now it’s for sale.

     

    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    The house was semi-submerged under water in early 2014

     

    Offered by Savills, the 4,547 square foot two-storey house comes with not only a wet boathouse which has moorings suitable for a skiff but also a number of private mooring rings along its 245 foot frontage to the River Thames.

     

    Standing in more than an acre of land, the house– which has been renovated since it was subjected to serious flooding in early 2014 – features 4 reception rooms, 5 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms. It comes with a detached 1 bedroom cottage, a brightly coloured gypsy caravan and a garage block with a gym and workshop.

     

    Of the flooding prevention measures now installed at the property, Biocraft, the firm that carried out the work, commented:

     

    “We developed an innovative and comprehensive flood defence scheme in collaboration with our structural engineer and succeeded in exceeding the clients’ expectations, providing them with security and peace of mind against future flooding”.

     

    The selling agents seek £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million for the property.

     

    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    This room is described as “the river drawing room” and features a vaulted ceiling with exposed timbers, oak flooring and doors opening to a timber balcony overlooking the river
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    A dining area with doors that open onto the garden and overlooks the river beyond
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    It forms part of this kitchen with its vaulted ceiling
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    Another dining area
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    There are a total of four reception rooms
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    The master bedroom is one of five bedrooms in the main house
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    A view of the house from the garden
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    There is also a one bedroom cottage in the grounds
    Forget flooding – The Boat House, High Street, Goring, Reading, Oxfordshire, RG8 9AB – £3.75 million or $4.9 million or €4.42 million
    The garden has been professionally landscaped

     

     

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  • Locking up a constable

    Locking up a constable

    Midsomer Murders-esque cottage for sale – complete with something that would be most useful to Inspector Barnaby

     

    Midsomer Murders was filmed primarily in the Home Counties. A cottage – which could easily have served as a location in the popular television detective series – next to Chorleywood Common in Hertfordshire that is for sale there currently comes with just what the programme’s main character, Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby, would need – a lockup previously used by the village constable.

     

    Situated on an elevated plot with views over the village of Chorleywood itself, Grade II listed Constables Cottage – situated on a road with a name worthy of something out of Midsomer, Dog Kennel Lane – has been used as a public house and a policeman’s house. It includes a former cell that has been converted to what selling agents John Roberts & Co. call a “lockup or garden room” and in addition, the 2,643 square foot property also includes 4 reception rooms, a conservatory and 4 bedrooms.

     

    Dating to the mid-to-late 17th century and presented in a traditional style, Constables Cottage is in need of updating and “offers scope for enlargement”. The longsuffering Mrs Barnaby, a woman with a desire to live in a picturesque Midsomer village, would definitely find it appealing.

     

    Constables Cottage is on the market for £1.5 million ($2 million or €1.8 million).

    Locking up a constable – Cottage for sale with a cell – Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL – £1.5 million or $2 million or €1.8 million – John Roberts & Co.
    Locking up a constable – An aerial view of Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL
    Locking up a constable – Cottage for sale with a cell – Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL – £1.5 million or $2 million or €1.8 million – John Roberts & Co.
    Jane Wymark as Joyce Barnaby and John Nettles as Detective Chief Inspector Tom Barnaby
    Locking up a constable – Cottage for sale with a cell – Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL – £1.5 million or $2 million or €1.8 million – John Roberts & Co.
    A reception room that would not look out of place as a set in the television series
    Locking up a constable – Cottage for sale with a cell – Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL – £1.5 million or $2 million or €1.8 million – John Roberts & Co.
    The entrance hallway and staircase
    Locking up a constable – Cottage for sale with a cell – Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL – £1.5 million or $2 million or €1.8 million – John Roberts & Co.
    The kitchen is in need of replacement
    Locking up a constable – Cottage for sale with a cell – Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL – £1.5 million or $2 million or €1.8 million – John Roberts & Co.
    There is also a modern conservatory
    Locking up a constable – Cottage for sale with a cell – Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL – £1.5 million or $2 million or €1.8 million – John Roberts & Co.
    One of four bedrooms
    Locking up a constable – Cottage for sale with a cell – Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL – £1.5 million or $2 million or €1.8 million – John Roberts & Co.
    The rear of the house and the former police cell in the foreground
    Locking up a constable – Cottage for sale with a cell – Constables Cottage, Dog Kennel Lane, Chorleywood Common, Chorleywood, Rickmansworth, Hertfordshire, WD3 5EL – £1.5 million or $2 million or €1.8 million – John Roberts & Co.
    A true chocolate box cottage if ever there were one

     

     

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  • A beachside bargain

    A beachside bargain

    Weatherboarded beachside cottage in Whitstable, Kent offered for sale for a bargain sum (more…)

  • Famous!

    Famous!

    Famous! By John Stoddart – A unique exhibition of silkscreen prints produced from Stoddart’s photographic portraits (more…)

  • The Thin House

    The Thin House

    Studio for sale in weirdest building in South Kensington (more…)

  • An XJS Celebration

    An XJS Celebration

    Future classic Jaguar XJS Celebration convertible offered for sale (more…)

  • One family from new

    One family from new

    Grade I listed house in Northern Ireland offered for sale for the first time since it was built in 1620 (more…)