Compact yet cosy, the main attraction here is a 22-foot length sitting room with an inglenook fireplace and bread oven at one end and a natural stone fireplace at the other. It also includes a kitchen with a Rangemaster oven, a study and would make an ideal Airbnb given its proximity to Glastonbury and its annual festival.
Another ‘chocolate box’ cottage comes in the form of Court Cottage – an 18th century detached property in a “highly regarded south Suffolk village” near Bury St Edmunds where one of Margaret Thatcher’s most trusted political advisers, David Hart, “lived-in-style” prior to his death in 2011.
Offered by Jackson-Stops, this 1,615 square foot thatched building includes 2 reception rooms, 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. It also has a “fabulous” dining kitchen, a garage with a room above, an electric car charging point and a lawned garden.
Curiously, the property has a “flying freehold” since the neighbour’s bathroom overhangs the property’s ground floor utility room and a “creeping freehold” since its cellar lies beneath the adjoining property’s living area.
Llangain, Dorstone, Herefordshire –£695,000 ($873,300, €800,500 or درهم3.2 million)
For the same sum, just 3.5 miles from the market town of Hay-on-Wye – famed as “the town of books” – this 18th century restored cottage on ½ acre is available freehold. It is situated close to the Golden Valley village of Dorstone – a settlement best known for its annual sloe gin competition where each year the winner is crowned the ‘Grand Master of the Sloes.’
Llangain, a farmhouse that was derelict from the First World War until 1995, itself has 4 bedrooms and in addition there is a 1-bedroom barn conversion. Agents Knight Frank laud the property as being in a “picturesque setting” and having “amazing views.”
Willow Cottage, Bethersden, Kent – £1.75 million ($2.20 million, €2.01 million or درهم8.07 million)
Situated in a village best known for producing rather ritzy rocking horses for everyone from the late Queen Elizabeth II to Sir Paul McCartney, Willow Cottage is being marketed by Strutt & Parker as having “evolved from the picturesque period cottage at its heart, and from which it derives its somewhat understated name” into an “elegant 4,800 square foot family house.”
Situated on a plot of 16.5 acres and last sold for £400,000 in July 1998, this 5-bedroomed residence comes with a separate 2-bedroomed ‘guest barn’ and also has a tennis court, a swimming pool, stabling, garaging, gardens and paddocks. A “picturesque pond” currently provides opportunity for Wind in the Willows-esque Messing About in a Boat, as our main photograph suggests.
With news that the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has found the force guilty of breaching their statutory duty by not referring 29 serious complaints to them about the case comes proof yet again of disgraceful incompetence at the very least and far worse potentially at the very worst.
“I think the report is strong enough to assist the Criminal Case Review Commission (CCRC) to get my case sent back to the Court of Appeal, I am hoping in the next six to eight weeks.”
“Essex Police has failed in its statutory duty in not investigating these complaints and not sending this matter to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.”
“These are serious complaints. I have sent this complaint to Essex Police, the Attorney General, the Home Office, the CPS but everyone has blanked me and has done nothing. I never expected the IOPC to come out so strongly and say Essex Police failed in their statutory duty.”
“They have dismissed me so many times. It has been 38 years but this is the endgame – I genuinely believe that.”
Going further, in comments shared in the Mirror this morning, Bamber added:
“I firmly expect that the freedom that was so unjustly taken from me will soon be restored.”
“After 36 years it can now be proven with absolute certainty I did not burn my dad with the rifle barrel or the rifle’s sound moderator, as my trial jury were misled into believing.”
Unsurprisingly asked for a response, “Essex Police declined to comment on the matter.” Shame on them for yet again trying to sweep this serious matter under the carpet. May Jeremy Bamber – a man who has never waivered in stating his claim that he is innocent of the 1985 slayings of his adoptive parents, his adoptive sister and her two sons at their familial home at White House Farm in Tolleshunt D’Arcy, Essex – now finally get the review of his case that he truly deserves.
Editor’s Note – Unlike as is the case in many publications, this article was NOT sponsored or supported by a third-party. Follow Matthew Steeples on Twitter at @M_Steeples.
This morning on Twitter, Matthew Steeples asked: “As the Independent Office for Police Conduct is found guilty of failing to refer 29 serious complaints about the Jeremy Bamber case, will he be cleared and freed?” By 11:30am on Wednesday 17th May, the majority of respondents favoured the answer: “Yes; about time too.”
Some questions Essex Police plainly need to answer regarding this case… Including some new ones that could lead to to the exoneration of jailed for 36 years and still protesting his innocence Jeremy Bamber
What happened to a suicide note allegedly left by Sheila Caffell that was initially referenced by police and then disappeared?
Why did Sheila Caffell not have rigor mortis when officers discovered her body?
Why was blood still gaping from Miss Caffell’s body when it was found?
Why was the bible found by the body of Miss Caffell not used in evidence and why was that bible destroyed by police also?
Why are there different accounts about how many bodies were discovered on the ground floor of the farmhouse?
How could Jeremy Bamber be the killer if police officers repeatedly detected movement inside White House Farmhouse whilst he was stood with them outside?
Why was the silencer supposedly used in the shootings not discovered immediately when police entered the residence?
Why did scratch marks supposedly made in the kitchen of the house by that silencer not appear in the first photographs taken at the crime scene? How were they actually made in order that they appeared in later imagery?
How could Jeremy Bamber be the killer if he made a phone call from his Goldhanger home 3.5 miles away moments after his father had called police from White House Farmhouse to say that his daughter had “gone berserk” with a gun?
Why did Essex Police hide hundreds of thousands of pages of key documentation including police logs and crime scene photographs from being shared during both the 1986 trial and the 2002 appeal?
Could the AGA be responsible for the burn marks on Nevill Bamber and if so, why did Essex Police move bodies at the crime scene?
Why did Essex Police so push the narrative of Jeremy Bamber’s former lover and known thief Julie Mugford given they knew shew had been sold her story for £25,000 to the now defunct News of the World with the payment to be received only if he was convicted?
Why did Essex Police not investigate why other relatives supported the narrative of Jeremy Bamber as killer given those very relatives only benefitted financially based on Jeremy Bamber’s ultimate conviction?
The scene of the murders during the night of 6th and 7th August 1985: White House Farm, Pages Lane, Tolleshunt D’Arcy, Maldon, Essex, CM9 8AA.Jeremy Bamber’s adoptive parents, Ralph and June Bamber, and the grave where they are buried. Could he finally be exonerated of their killings in 2023?In November 2022, Phillip Boyce – who has worked on high profile investigations as a forensic scientist for over 30 years –claimed that Essex Police could have “changed the evidence” in the case by moving the body of Nevill Bamber before official photographs of the scene were taken. If true, the three burn marks on Mr Bamber’s back would not have been inflicted by the hot end of a rifle but instead by his dead body being left lying against the AGA and its hot handles instead causing the burns. In photographs taken by police, shown to the trial jury at Chelmsford Crown Court in 1986, Nevill Bamber was instead seen slumped over an overturned chair in the kitchen.One of the bedrooms at the farm; a truly horrific scene that will go down in history as a murder most horrid. If it is proven that Jeremy Bamber was NOT the killer, this case will also go down in history as one of Britain’s worst miscarriages of justice.On 24th November 2022, the new True Crime Newsquest mini-series ‘White House Farm murders – Is Jeremy Bamber Innocent?’ featured in an article by Jody Doherty-Cove. In it, Tom Dalby, a reporter on the Colchester Gazette and Essex County Standard, is quoted to say: “The support Bamber gets in prison – in 2017 he told us he [got] about 100 letters per week from supporters, 500 Christmas cards. There is this level of support he still gets from people locally… There are people who are very clear he is innocent.” In the programme also, former detective Mark Williams-Thomas quotes Essex Police Acting Chief Detective Michael Ainsley as having written in 1985: “On my return from annual leave, I obviously enquired as to the situation with the murders… [I was assured] the evidence indicated that Sheila [Caffell] was responsible.”In April 2020, ‘The Steeple Times’ reported that “further questions about the conduct of Essex Police [were] raised as it [was] revealed they destroyed the bible, nightclothes and pillows that were found with the victims at White House Farm on the night of the 1985 murders. The 20th March 2000 letter from the Criminal Cases Review Commission to Glaisyers Solicitors LLP and Sheila Caffell is truly a shocking example of a bungling balls-up.The clearly left open bible next to the body of Sheila Caffell was photographed by Essex Police, but was then not submitted as evidence and destroyed. A supposed suicide note also disappeared and countless other evidence was clearly tampered with. “What motivation did those processing the scene have to do this?” is a question that Essex Police and prosecutors have repeatedly failed to answer.Veteran human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, a longtime supporter of Jeremy Bamber, tweeted about the case on 7th March 2021. He remarked: “Is this [the] greatest miscarriage of justice?” and previously in 2017, he wrote to the then chief constable of Essex Police, Stephen Kavanagh, to highlight the “grave injustice” of the force’s withholding and destroying evidence with regard to the White House Farm murders.Jeremy Bamber’s legal team have alleged that the senior investigating officer in the case, Michael Ainsley, took documents relating to the case to his home in 2010 and destroyed them in spite of “knowing there was an active appeal underway.” Surely, now, it is time for a reinvestigation of this case at the very least if faith in the British justice system is to be retained.
As the modest ‘An Irish Goodbye’ actor James Martin wins an Oscar, we join those celebrating his truly deserved success and his becoming the first star with Down’s Syndrome to win at the Academy Awards
Many readers of The Steeple Times are big fans of the North Yorkshire born television chef James Martin and one of our readers, Gary Hazell, is involved in distributing his eponymous gin. 50-year-old farmer’s son Mr Martin brings joy to many every Saturday on ITV1 and his “silky smooth, flavor rich gin” most definitely goes down a treat; his passion for cars both classic and modern is also clear and he is most certainly just the kind of role model the nation needs.
After winning a BAFTA in February for his role in the short film An Irish Goodbye and last night – on the very day of his 31st birthday – adding to that with an Oscar at the 95th Academy Awards, another James Martin is now also making waves. Here, indeed, is a Northern Irishman most definitely headed to becoming one of the best-loved and most deserved luminaries of 2023.
This particular James Martin is a rising star actor whose career began when he was a guest on his father Ivan Martin’s U105 radio show on Father’s Day and Christmas Day in his youth.
Of this in December 2014, the radio presenter remarked of his son: “I never look at my son James and think: ‘There’s James and he has Down’s Syndrome.’ I just think: ‘There’s James.’ It has always been that way… James is a remarkable young man and I admire him so much. He has never let his disability hold him back. He is an ambassador for Mencap and he has spoken at the European Parliament and to the Assembly at Stormont.”
Responding about his father in the same interview for the Belfast Telegraph, the undoubted star of last night’s ceremony in Los Angeles added: “My dad and I are very close… We have great craic and a lot of banter… Dad is also supportive of my acting… I love to act and want to be a good actor.”
The 23:29-minute film was the second collaboration between co-directors Tom Berkeley and Ross White. It was released on 4th March 2022 and of his son’s success winning an Oscar for it, Ivan Martin today told BBC Radio Ulster: “All I ever wanted was for James was that he’d be happy and, I tell you what, he’s happy now… It’s been a journey. You get to the Oscars and everybody keeps saying the prize is getting there, but, truth to tell, you want to win and I had my doubts about it because one of the opposition films was a Disney film and they had it in the last week… They had really been ramping up the promotion for it, but, calm heads win the end… A film we can all be proud of… It’s just crazy. There were a few tears shed, but what an achievement. Just delighted.”
Subsequently James Martin appeared in the BBC’s Ups and Downs and starred opposite Anna Friel in ITV’s Marcella and last night he was well and truly celebrated. Speaking ahead of An Irish Goodbye being named the Best Live Action Short, Martin shared:
“The timing of it has been just perfect. You know, you can’t plan somebody’s birthday to be on the Oscars. So, it’s a big day, [but] I just want to enjoy it really, just enjoy the experience.”
“I was just in the airport going down the escalator and [I heard some say:] ‘Well done An Irish Goodbye.’ ‘I’m just thinking to myself: My God this is amazing.’”
“I always say to people, never judge a book by its cover. Not just getting a BAFTA, but going to LA is a big deal… It’s just nice to be included.”
Later, after his win and having had the 3,000 audience sing Happy Birthday to him, the modest-to-his-core actor told BBC News: “We’re just so proud to be representing Northern Ireland. To be on that stage in front of all of our cinematic heroes – it was a special moment.”
An Irish Goodbye – which was written and directed by Tom Berkeley and Ross White and also stars Seamus O’Hara, Paddy Jenkins and Michelle Fairley – has been described as a “black comedy following the reunion of estranged brothers Turlough and Lorcan following the untimely death of their mother.”
“Under the watchful eye of odd-ball parish priest Father O’Shea, the brothers’ pained reunion is worsened by the fact Turlough must now make new care arrangements for Lorcan, who has Down Syndrome.”
“A robust and dedicated farmer, Lorcan’s dream of continuing to work the land he grew up on is thwarted when Turlough decides he’s sending him to live with their aunt on the other side of Ireland.”
“But when the brothers discover an unfulfilled bucket list belonging to their late mother, Lorcan senses an opportunity: he’ll only agree to leave the farm once he and Turlough have themselves completed every single wish on their mother’s list… All one-hundred of them.”
Today, we join all those saluting the actor James Martin and urge readers to join us in raising a glass to his latest award with a snifter or two of the chef of the same name’s London Dry Gin. Cheers!
The full film can be watched on BBC iPlayer by clicking here.
Editor’s Note – Unlike as is the case in many publications, this article was NOT sponsored or supported by a third-party.
‘An Irish Goodbye’ is a short film written, produced, and directed in 2022 by Tom Berkeley and Ross White. The film stars James Martin, Seamus O’Hara, Paddy Jenkins and Michelle Fairley and is set on a farm in Northern Ireland.The award-winning actor with his radio presenter father, Ivan.On-stage to collect their award; the team behind the film used their acceptance speech to sing ‘Happy Birthday’ to the star-of-the-show. Co-director Ross White also stated: “Deary me, thank you so much the Academy for this incredible, incredible honour. Thank you to our fellow nominees, all the nominees for your work, and your work it inspires us so very, very much. Thank you to everybody back home and Northern Ireland who helped us make this film. We wish we had the time to list you all here, but you know who you are.” He then continued: “There’s something very important we’d like to speak about as well. This award is actually the second most important thing about today, because it’s this man’s birthday. He’s out here in Hollywood, wearing a leopard print suit jacket. We’d love to use the rest of our time up here to sing for James.”The actor’s English namesake… ‘The Steeple Times’ reviewed ITV1 ‘Saturday Morning’ presenter James Martin’s London Dry Gin in January this year and lauded it as showcasing “tradition with a twist.” To purchase a bottle, click here and do join us in urging the pair to team up for a joint tellybox appearance; it’d make for great viewing.
Evidence suggesting Jeremy Bamber was OUTSIDE White House Farm with police whilst movement was seen inside on the night of the murders there could provide him with an alibi
After we highlighted that the legal team working for Jeremy Bamber – convicted of the murders of five members of his family on the night of 7th August 1985 – had sent new evidence to the Criminal Case Review Commission (CCRC) in March and discussed this also on Shaun Attwood’s True Crime Channel in April this year, interest in a case where so many issues point towards a potential miscarriage of justice has piqued.
Just as with the Menendez case in California – where two brothers were jailed for killing their parents in spite of being sexually abused by them for the majority of their lives – what is now making a difference to Jeremy Bamber in the public eye is the proliferation of podcasts and social media output about a case where Essex Police clearly messed up.
Featured first in the Essex County Standard and Daily Gazette yesterday, chief reporter Rebecca Jones remarked “new alibi evidence could see [Bamber] freed.”
Continuing of a meeting on Wednesday where 50 supporters gathered on Zoom to “discuss fresh evidence relating to his case,” Jones added:
“During the meeting Yvonne Hartley, co-administrator of the Jeremy Bamber Innocence Campaign (JBIC), told the dozens of supporters in attendance about Bamber’s ten alibis which were sent to the CCRC.”
“She said there were multiple grounds which prove Bamber’s sister Sheila Caffell was alive in the farmhouse until the raid team entered the house.”
Quoting Hartley directly, Jones continued:
“Bamber was standing outside the house in the company of police officers when activity was logged as occurring within the house, therefore, he cannot have been involved.”
“He was outside with an officer when he saw someone moving inside the house. He thought it was Sergeant Christopher Bewes who later denied seeing anyone in the house.”
“If this is true and proven, it means he has an alibi because he was outside with a police officer while Sheila was inside with a gun. When police entered the house they found her dead from gun wounds.”
In an email to The Steeple Times, Hartley added on Friday:
“[The article by Rebecca Jones] does have an error as it was Bews, Myall and Jeremy who saw the movement in the bedroom window and this led to firearms teams being called to the scene, however it was good that an article resulted from the meeting.”
“Next time we are presenting lots of information and facts you may not be aware of regarding the telephones in the house, and our guest speaker is Terry Mullins who conducted Jeremy’s lie detector test in 2007, which Jeremy passed with flying colours.”
In January 2020, Jeremy Bamber told the ‘Mirror’: “It is the ultimate alibi that I was in the company of dozens of police officers when it was clear that a person or persons were alive in the house.” The paper continued: “Bamber, who lived in nearby Goldhanger, met officers at the scene at 3.50am. He stayed with them until he was taken away at 9am. His legal team now say a rifle was spotted in an upstairs window by two separate gun police at around 7am, meaning someone in there was alive. Bamber’s lawyers said also in the new evidence are logs showing a firearms team as being ‘in conversation with a person from inside the farm’ at 5.25am. And that a 999 call was made inside at 6.09am. Documents seen by the ‘Mirror’ show a BT operator connected police to an open line at the farm at 05.50am, meaning the handset must have been put back on to make the 6.09am call. When officers eventually broke into the home, they heard a noise upstairs, believing it may have been a person. On inspection, everyone was dead. But Bamber’s team claim the noise could have been Sheila killing herself.”
Fresh hope for Jeremy Bamber 2021 –Some questions Essex Police plainly need to answer…
What happened to a suicide note allegedly left by Sheila Caffell that was initially referenced by police and then disappeared?
Why did Sheila Caffell not have rigor mortis when officers discovered her body?
Why was blood still gaping from Miss Caffell’s body when it was found?
Why are there different accounts about how many bodies were discovered on the ground floor of the farmhouse?
How could Jeremy Bamber be the killer if police officers repeatedly detected movement inside White House Farmhouse whilst he was stood with them outside?
Why was the silencer supposedly used in the shootings not discovered immediately when police entered the residence?
Why did scratch marks supposedly made in the kitchen of the house by that silencer not appear in the first photographs taken at the crime scene? How were they actually made in order that they appeared in later imagery?
How could Jeremy Bamber be the killer if he made a phone call from his Goldhanger home 3.5 miles away moments after his father had called police from White House Farmhouse to say that his daughter had “gone berserk” with a gun?
As our Change.org petition seeking to ban giraffe slayer Merelize van der Merwe tops 40,000 signatures, the psycho publicity addict shared a CBS documentary of another mental monster killing a giraffe
Elephant and giraffe murderer Merelize van der Merwe used to love the fact that 400 people she termed “snowflakes” signed a petition seeking to ban her from Facebook. Now, in less than a month, our new petition aiming to achieve the same has topped 40,000.
Now, aside from banning us from commenting on her Facebook “public figure” page, van der Merwe has attempted to justify her actions by sharing a video of another monster, an American named Tess Talley, bragging about killing a giraffe also.
In doing so, this deranged deviant has yet again proven she’s nothing but clinically insane and again today we urge those that haven’t already to help get our Change.org petition to ban her from the social media medium past 50,000 signatures. Please do so by clicking here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIlJ61wwWQY
40,000 turn on Mental Monster Merelize van der Merwe – The YouTube video shared by Merelize van der Merwe as part of her campaign to justify massacring a giraffe featured another wicked wench who’d done the same thing named Tess Talley.
Deranged deviant Merelize van der Merwe on…
Death threats
“So, after all these death threats from people sitting comfortably behind a computer 15,000 kilometers away, it made me realise one thing… I haven’t hunted enough! So, I’ll go hunt some more tonight!”
Mental disorders
“We have seen mental disorders grow especially with social media giving these people a voice and openly expressing unnatural hatred towards people they never met with Instagram and Facebook. We in the hunting industry I’m sure deals [sic] with more of these unstable people then the psychiatric ward itself.”
“So please next time if someone attacks you for hunting, just remind them they forgot their pills this morning and let’s get these people under control.”
Truth and poetry and hunting
“Truth is like poetry and most people f**king hate poetry… Same when it comes to hunting and conservation people only listen to what they want to hear and not the truth.”
Liberals
“It’s just these new age liberals who piss and moan and say hunting isn’t natural… You aren’t natural.”
Kenya
“Kenya has sold its soul to the devil, AKA animal rights activists.”
Prince Harry
“Soon he’ll be back in diapers.”
Donald Trump
“I love Trump because he pisses off all the people I can’t stand.”
“What a privilege it was to look up to a President and know how a President should run a country. Today many are heartbroken across the world.”
“I salute you President Trump. What a man you are and may God bless you on your next chapter in life.”
On those that opposed Trump
“Eat a bag of dicks you dirty f**king communists.”
Celebrating killing an elephant
“After the elephant was down I went to buy beer and gin for team motivation. The next day I looked like a red crab.”
Why she likes killing elephants
“Tell me how hunting [elephants] doesn’t benefit people and the ecosystem.”
How she feels after a “kill”
“I was like a child for two weeks, counting the days. Afterwards I was flooded with emotions.”
People who protect elephants
“Never underestimate the power of stupid.”
People who object to the vile images she shares on social media
“To the dumb f**k who tried to report my video, take this and shove it where the sun doesn’t shine.”
“If you’re looking for a safe space, my page ain’t it… Move along, snowflake.”
Charity and hunting
“Charity is not sustainable, hunting is.”
Killing endangered species and conservation
“The only people protecting these animals are trophy hunters.”
Why she massacres endangered species
“In the end I’m nothing but yet another slave to this trade and a willing one too. The only time I find peace is living life on the edge. I firmly believe one is born like this and not made.”
“We will keep on fighting the animal rights mafia propaganda as hunting has proven sustainable for wildlife.”
“A day without blood is like a day without sunshine… Nature is not a Disney fairytale.”
40,000 turn on Mental Monster Merelize van der Merwe – In recent days Merelize van der Merwe (left) has posted about how she got malaria in Africa from the water and posed with a picture of herself “sipping a pink gin and tonic in Zambia” after “6 months non-stop 7 days a week of hunting.” She also lauded fellow mentally unhinged giraffe murderer (right) Tess Talley.40,000 turn on Mental Monster Merelize van der Merwe – The disgraceful picture that made clinically crackers Merelize van der Merwe internationally infamous.40,000 turn on Mental Monster Merelize van der Merwe – This monster has also taken pleasure in killing elephants and leopards. She must be banned by Facebook and her slaying of endangered species must be forever stopped.
Detached cottage in nearly an acre of land, far from the madding crowd and 5 miles from the nearest village in Sutherland, Scotland for sale for just £95,000; it’s perfect for an isolationist whisky lover
‘Achastaile’ is said to mean ‘field of the whisky still’ and now someone looking for somewhere truly far from the madding crowd, could purchase a truly remote house of that name at the heart of the Highlands in the true wilderness that is Sutherland in Scotland.
Situated a mile up an access track described by its selling agents as “rough” and 5 miles from the small village of Rogart, the “semi-derelict” cottage offered sits on a plot of ¾ of an acre and currently includes a hall, a sitting room with cast iron fireplace, a kitchen with “basic” fittings and a stone inglenook fireplace, a “spacious” bedroom, a bathroom and an attic room.
Serviced by mains electricity in spite of its isolation, ‘Achastaile’ has a private water supply, a UV water treatment system and drainage is to a septic tank.
Described as an “ultimate hideaway” in the Sutherland Hills that offers “complete peace and tranquility,” the property “requires complete refurbishment and renovation.” Prior planning permission for such has now lapsed, but “the existing plans can be made available to prospective purchasers on request.”
Arthur & Carmichael estate agents market ‘Achastaile’ – also known more simply as ‘188 Muie’ – at a price of offers over £95,000 ($131,000, €110,000 or درهم483,000). They advise viewers that they will not “accept any liability for damage or injury caused as a result of visiting the property” and provide detailed directions for access that read:
“Take the A9 north over Dornoch Bridge and follow the road until you reach ‘The Mound’. Turn left at the sign for Rogart. Go through the village and after 2.2 miles from the last ‘30 mile’ sign at the end of the village, turn right into Blarich estate. Please close the gate.”
“Follow the driveway and bear to the right and you will see a fence line where the drive continues to a large farm building. Park at the fence line (please take care to not obstruct the lane) and walk up the hill following the track to the left for approximately 1 mile. There are 2 gates on the way up the track – please make sure that these are closed behind you.”
Far From The Madding Crowd (But Well-Near The Whisky) – Whilst ‘Achastaile’ at 188 Muie, Rogart, Sutherland, Highland, IV28 3UB might seem a bargain at just £95,000, a 41,433 square foot castle in Sutherland we featured in April 2016 could be considered even more of a steal. Carbisdale Castle was offered at a price of just £900,000 or £21.70 per square foot.Far From The Madding Crowd (But Well-Near The Whisky) – The cottage is situated at the heart of Britain’s “last true wilderness.”Far From The Madding Crowd (But Well-Near The Whisky) – A stone-building outbuilding without a roof currently within the grounds is described as “offering further potential.”Far From The Madding Crowd (But Well-Near The Whisky) – The cottage is situated at the heart of Britain’s “last true wilderness.”Far From The Madding Crowd (But Well-Near The Whisky) – The existing accommodation could be easily expanded.The Clynelish Distillery is situated in Brora, a small industrial village on Sutherland’s east coast.
Distilleries in Sutherland
Whilst ‘Achastaile’ itself is terribly isolated, its eventual purchaser will find not only nature as solace. In nearby Ross-Shire, there are well known distilleries such as Balbair, Glenmorangie and Glen Ord and in Sutherland itself, the “water of life” flows at amongst others:
Originally built in 1819, the Clynelish Distillery is now owned by Diageo. Around 95% of the spirit made there is used in Johnnie Walker blends, primarily for the Gold Label Reserve.
Founded in 2016 by Phil and Simon Thompson, this micro-distillery located in a ‘Fire House’ in the grounds of the Dornoch Castle Hotel produces “whisky styles of the 1960s” and gin also.
‘The Steeple Times’ discovers five properties that will appeal to serious sports fanatics with a desire to indulge their passions at home that are currently for sale
Whilst most would simply go to a racecourse to watch the horses or to a football ground to cheer on their heroes on the pitch, five homes follow where sports lovers can partake in their very own confines follow:
A vast 18,000 square foot house on 13.21 acres in Connecticut that is currently for sale cannot be described as a “looker,” but it comes with its own private, professional indoor hockey and skating rink (pictured top). There’s a Zamboni ice resurfacer “for perfect ice” and even heated team benches, a lighted scoreboard, home and visiting team locker rooms and a viewing ‘lounge.’ In addition, there are two guest houses and an outdoor swimming pool.
St. Clements Hall, Terrington St. Clement, Norfolk, UK
£240,000 ($316,000, €267,000 or درهم444,000) through Attik.
Most people looking for a “3-bedroom semi-detached house” are likely to be couples with 2.4 children, but for those in a somewhat different position, a 19th century, 1,873 square foot former youth hall might appeal. Primarily reconfigured to provide a 27-foot by 39-foot ‘skate bowl’ with 13-foot vertical wall, mini skate park and three 4-foot quarter pipes, the house also more conventionally has an open plan living space, 3 bedrooms and a shower room. Even the snobby girl in Avril Lavigne’s Sk8er Boi song might be impressed; the house has featured in The Sun, on the BBC and in Netflix’s Amazing Interiors.
Owned by the Kazakhstani phosphorus tycoon Nurlan Bizakov since 2010, Tourles Farm Stud has been part of Hesmonds Stud. Described in TDN Europe as “one of the best presented farms we have offered in recent years” by William Harford of Windsor Clive, the 113.78 acre property “has [only] become available due to the owner’s successful investment in France [at Monfort et Preaux in Normandy]” and comes with a 3-bedroom cottage, a stable barn with 26 boxes and a 4 furlong all-weather gallop.
On and off the market since 2018, this “one-of-a-kind” 41,000 square foot Bel Air house on 1.35 acres includes 8 bedrooms and an astounding 21 bathrooms. There are also 20 garage spaces in an “auto-gallery,” 8 bars, a 36-person screening room and not one, but two 75-foot swimming pools. The pièce de résistance for sports fanatics? A full-sized NBA basketball court.
Kinlochdamph Estate, Torridon, Scottish Highlands, UK
Extending to 4,085 acres, the Kinlochdamph Estate is perfect for those wishing to achieve a Macnab (and bag a salmon, a stag and a brace of grouse within one day). It has a recently refurbished 4-bedroom lodge, red deer stalking, trout fishing on its hill lochs and a small population of grouse, ptarmigan, woodcock and snipe. Income is provided by forestry and a hydro scheme, but any wannabe John Buchan will purely be buying this place for its sporting rights.
Cambridgeshire mansion used by Special Operations Executives in the Second World War and as a borstal subsequently for sale; Gaynes Hall is next to the prison that housed Max Clifford and was briefly a cannabis farm in 2019
Grade II* listed Georgian mansion in Cambridgeshire for sale for £2.65 million in spite of being in far from perfect condition and next door to a prison housing 1,220 convicted sex offenders.
The estate was owned by the aristocratic Duberly family from 1798 until 1940. An earlier house on the house had been home to Oliver Cromwell’s namesake and uncle.
It was requisitioned in the Second World War by the Special Operations Executive. Hitler was so annoyed by the operations at Gaynes Hall that he supposedly nicknamed the place “the hornet’s nest.”
After the war, the hall became a borstal and after that closed, part of the estate became HM Prison Littlehey – famous for housing PR ‘guru’ Max Clifford, victim of a miscarriage of justiceStephen Downing and Australian cricketer Alex Hepburn.
More recently, the estate came to public attention after being discovered to be the centre of operations for drug lords. £250,000 of cannabis were seized there in 2019.
In June 2019, once ritzy Gaynes Hall at Perry, near Huntingdon in Cambridgeshire came to public attention when a drugs baron who’d turned part of the building into a cannabis farm was jailed. For his troubles, Nebir Tahiraj was relieved of £250,000 of drugs and ‘gained’ a sentence of 13 months.
Grade II* listed and built circa 1800 for Sir James Duberly (1758 – 1832), the gault brick house was originally plaster rendered. Of three storeys plus cellars and seven bays, the 20,795 square foot building is currently being marketed by agents Wilson Peacock for £2.65 million – up from £2.2 million back in 2019.
Gaynes Hall (also known as ‘Gaines Hall’ occasionally) stands in 16 acres of grounds including lakes and a moat and comes with a three bedroom cottage “requiring full modernisation and refurbishment.” It was home to the Duberly family until 1940 when it was requisitioned by Special Operations Executives (SOE) on the instructions of Winston Churchill.
Supposedly, according to the local Parish Council’s website, Hitler was so exasperated by the activities at Gaynes Park that he referenced the house “the hornet’s nest.” It was known locally during this period as a “spy school” and its master, Wing Commander Thomas Odett, was nicknamed ‘The White Rabbit’ on the basis that “he was always popping up in unexpected places.”
After the war, the mansion became the governor’s residence and administrative offices of the newly created Her Majesty’s Borstal Gaynes Hall and remained in that use until 1983 when the borstal closed. Her Majesty’s Prison Littlehey, which is best known as the place of death of the public relations ‘guru’ paedophile Max Clifford, was subsequently opened next door and residents of Perry get to hear its sirens periodically if a prisoner escapes or there is a disturbance.
In 1985, AIM Cambridge (later AIM Technology) leased the hall and from the Ministry of Defence and converted it into offices. When their business failed, the building became empty and in 1990, Gaynes Hall was sold again. In the years since, it has been in mixed use.
In need of some attention – Gaynes Hall has variously been used as a grand residence by aristocracy, requisitioned for use by Special Services Executives (SOE), served as an administrative office and governor’s house for a borstal and been converted to offices. It is currently configured in ‘mixed-use’ format and includes 20,975 square foot of accommodation.An aristocratic drug farm – Nebir Tahiraj was imprisoned in 2019 after having turned part of Gaynes Hall into a cannabis farm. He was caught with over £250,000 of drugs on the premises after neighbours complained about the noxious smell.Proximity to a prison – An aerial view of Her Majesty’s Prison Littlehey. Gaynes Hall is situated just to the west.Rapists next door – Convicted rapist and ex-cricketer cricketer Alex Hepburn, Stephen Downing (whose conviction for murder was overturned in 2002 after he had served 27 years in prison) and paedophile Max Clifford (who died in the prison) are connected by having been imprisoned at the Category C male prison HM Prison Littlehey. It has a capacity for 1,200 male prisoners – who all have been convicted of sexual offences.A once grand gentleman’s residence – Gaynes Hall in an image taken circa 1913. An earlier house on the site was leased for 21 years by Sir Oliver Cromwell (1566 – 1655), the uncle and namesake of the lord protector, from 1599.
The Names & Numbers – Gaynes Hall, Perry, Great Staughton, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, PE28 0ST, United Kingdom
December 2019 – Listed for sale by Wilson Peacock Country Homes at the increased price of £2.65 million ($3.35 million, €2.96 million or درهم12.32 million).
14th June 2019 – 35-yeard old Nebir Tahiraj found guilty at Cambridge Crown Court of “being concerned in the production of cannabis” in his flat at Gaynes Hall and jailed for 13 months. When police raided the property, they “found more than 200 plants at varying stages of growth, growing equipment and two large bags of cannabis ready to be sold” worth circa £250,000 ($316,000, €279,000 or درهم1.2 million). He attempted to claim “he was being exploited and kept at the flat against his will,” but the National Crime Agency (NCA) discovered he had been willingly involved.
Mid 2019 – For Sale for £2.2 million ($2.8 million, €2.5 million or درهم10.2 million) through Michael Graham.
March 2019 – Fleet Assist announce they will be moving their business from Gaynes Hall to Ermine Business Park in Huntingdon.
2002 – Purchased by the Malik family (according to Wikipedia).
1994 – 2002 – Owned by the McCallion family (according to Wikipedia).
1985 – Converted to offices and used by firms including AIM Cambridge (AIM Technology) and Fleet Assist in the years subsequently. Part-let as apartments and by the room also for residential use.
1945 – 1983 – Used as the governor’s residence and administrative officers of the Her Majesty’s Borstal Gaynes Hall. ‘Boys’ who were detained there have recounted their experiences on this fascinating Facebook page; it plainly was not an especially pleasant place.
1940 – Requisitioned for use by Special Operations Executive (SOE). Gaynes Hall – under the codename ‘Station 61’ – became the headquarters for Air Liason Officers and used as a ‘hotel’ for them prior to their being dropped into occupied Europe.
1798 – 1940 – Owned by the Duberly family. The present house was constructed for them circa 1800 to the designs of architect George Byfield (circa 1756 – 1813).
Crumbling Northamptonshire estate Lilford Hall – where the little owl was introduced to Britain – for sale for £10 million, a sum £35 million lower than in 2014
Grade I listed Jacobean mansion with 13 chimney stacks for sale for £10 million; it was for sale last for £44.9 million in 2014 in spite of being listed on English Heritage’s ‘At Risk Register.’
Lilford Hall – parts of which have not been occupied since 1947 –is currently owned by a businessman who tried to sell burial plots in the grounds for £1,250 a pop and shares in a yacht loosely associated with Frank Sinatra for £23 each.
The 321-acre estate includes not only overgrown parkland, but also a zoo with cages that formerly housed bears and a lake for flamingos.
From 1711 until 1990, Lilford House was the seat of the Powys family – the 4th baron is credited with introducing the little owl to the UK.
More recently, in 1969, the “sexual mystic” artist Penny Slinger used the at-the-time derelict mansion in one of her best-known works.
A 32,406 square foot Grade I listed Jacobean mansion 82 miles from Central London has gone on sale for £10 million – or the equivalent of just £308 per square foot.
On this basis, Lilford Hall – set in 321 acres near Oundle – seems a comparative bargain when considered against the £4,786 per square foot sought for a Lennox Gardens, Knightsbridge triplex flatThe Steeple Times featured in May, but buyers need to remember this – parts of this crumbling building, most notably the major state rooms, have not been used since 1947.
Marketed last in 2014 for the even more punchy sum of £45 million, the “exceptional residential and amenity estate located on the River Nene,” is now offered by agents Savills. The “wonderfully proportioned” U-shaped mansion itself is constructed of grey limestone and includes over 100 rooms and amongst them are 7 “impressive” reception rooms, a ballroom, a ‘great chamber’ and 9 bedrooms. In addition, there are two Georgian pavilions that were formerly coach houses and stabling, three cottages, a former zoo, the oldest private softball court in the world, a former flamingo enclosure and a deer park.
“Impressiveness in the chief attribute of Lilford Hall as a specimen of architecture” claimed County Life in 1990 and as the seat of the Powys family from 1711 until 1990, it became not only a Downton Abbey-esque entertaining pad, but also housed nurses in the Second World War. Here, indeed, is an English country house that has seen lavishness and decline and thankfully here is an example that thankfully escaped the wrecking ball wrought so disgracefully on such houses in the 1950s and 1960s.
Fascinatingly in the 1880s, Thomas Powys, 4th Baron Lilford filled his aviaries on the estate with rheas, kiwis, pink-headed ducks, free-flying lammergeiers and it was from here that he also introduced the little owl into the UK. There are said to be around 5,700 breeding pairs today, but sadly, according to the RSPB, their numbers are now in decline.
More recently, in 1969, “sexually erotic” performance artist Penny Slinger took over the by then “derelict” mansion in conjunction with the filmmaker Peter Whitehead. Their resulting work, titled An Exorcism, was exhibited internationally and in 2004, after the current owners, Charles and Aziza Micklewright, acquired the house, they did something equally avant-garde; they attempted to sell burial plots in the grounds to Americans by citing the estate’s connections to the founder of the Brownists, Robert Browne – a man better known as ‘The Father of the Pilgrims’ and ‘The Grandfather of the Nation’ (of the United States of America).
Whilst Mr and Mrs Micklewright were lauded for their considerable efforts towards the “huge task” of restoring Lilford Hall, they came to the attention of Historic England in May 2019 when the building was listed on the At Risk Register. At that time, the Oundle Chronicle reported: “The roof covering is in poor condition leading to water ingress and distress to the upper storeys. The front bays require structural attention. A schedule of urgent repairs has been identified but not implemented, and no long-term solution has been agreed.”
Now, someone with very, very deep pockets is required to restore this gem. It would be helpful if they liked erotic art, bears, squash and owls also.
The Names & Numbers – The Lilford Hall Estate, Lilford, Oundle, Peterborough, Northamptonshire, PE8 5SG, United Kingdom
June 2020 – The estate is listed sale for £10 million ($12.5 million, €11.1 million or درهم46 million) through Savills. It includes 321.31 acres, of which 148.17 acres are pasture land whilst 157.48 acres are woodland. The majority of the estate is held on a freehold title, whilst the remaining 127.6 acres – known as ‘The Linches’ and ‘Lilford Woods’ – are held on a lease with 91 years remaining.
2015 – Promoted as ‘The National Memorial Gardens,’ burial plots in the gardens of the hall were offered “available to any UK resident or national for an outstanding price of only £1,250 ($1,568, €1,393 or درهم5,758)” by Mark Bailey of Harley Investments. Around the same time, a website dedicated to Lilford Hall marketed “a piece of the formal gardens” for sale for £299 ($375, €333 or درهم1,377) to include “an officially certified ‘Squire of Lilford’ [title] … with this little piece of history.”
March 2014 – The Irish Times reported that the asking price for the estate had been increased to £44.9 million ($56.3 million, €50 million or 206.8درهم million). They claimed the agents Coldwell Banker blamed “confusion over currency conversion rates and new instructions from the owner.”
April 2014 – The Lilford Hall Estate is listed for sale through Coldwell Banker on MyHome.ie for £33.7 million ($44.2 million, €37.5 million or درهم155 million) on behalf of “an English gentleman.”
2004 – The estate is acquired by the Micklewright family. Little information is available online about the Old Framlingham Charles Micklewright (born July 1958), but he is described as a “patent attorney” on Companies Houses pages. The businessman is mentioned also as a publisher and trustee of the Marsh Christian Trust elsewhere, whilst his Singaporean born wife, Aziza (born 1964), was a director of Lilford Properties Limited from 2013 to 2018.
A website operated by Sign of the Times Limited, a Hong Kong company of Lilford Hall, Lilford, Oundle, Northamptonshire, PE8 5SG, currently offers shares in a yacht named ‘Sinatra the Voice’ for £23.91 ($29.99, €26.64 or درهم110.14) per share. The boat was built in 1956 and is tenuously linked to Frank Sinatra by the fact that a one-time owner, Beale Poste, loaned it occasionally to the crooner between 1968 and 1974 in West Palm Beach, Florida.
1990 – The estate is closed to the public.
1980s – The house is used as a location in the BBC English Civil War inspired historical drama series By the Sword Divided.
1970s – Aviaries on the estate restocked by George Powys, 7th Baron Lilford (1931 – 2005). He “opened [the estate] to the public as a leisure park” and housed more than 350 birds of 110 species there. It remained thus for around 20 years and included a restaurant and shop. The aviaries and the 1,896 square foot restaurant building remain present still today.
1969 – 1970 – American British “sexual mystic” artist Penny Slinger (born 1947) and Liverpudlian filmmaker Peter Whitehead used the “derelict mansion” as the setting for their works An Exorcism and Lilford Hall. They are lauded as a “photo romance” and exhibited at the Blum and Poe Gallery in Los Angeles in 2014, at the Haywood Gallery in London in 2015 and at the Fortnight Institute in New York in 2019.
1949 – Stephen Powys, 6th Baron Lilford (1869 – 1949) died without having married or having had children. His properties aside from Lilford – a house in Mayfair, Bank Hall in Lancashire and the Bewsey Estate in Cheshire – passed to his second cousin twice removed.
1947 – The estate is sold to a company named Merchant Ventures by the Powys family (though they remain present on the estate until 1990).
1939 – 1945 – During the Second World War, the parkland of the estate was used as a military hospital for nearby airfields. From 1949 to 1954, some of the buildings constructed during this period were then used as a Polish school.
1923 – First-class Northamptonshire cricketer Major John Powys, 5th Baron Lilford (1863 – 1945) built the first private softball court in the world in the grounds of the hall. It is now in disrepair and the roof has fallen into the inner court.
1909 – 1910 – The hall was extended in the Edwardian manner including the provision of a new master bedroom with dressing room and bathroom by William Dunn and Robert Watson of Dunn & Watson.
1901 – The estate surrounding the hall reaches its largest size and totals a vast 8,000 acres of land. Around this time, Queen Mary, wife of King George V, is said to have visited the gardens.
1880s – Ornithologist and expert on the fauna of the Balearics Thomas Littleton Powys, 4th Baron Lilford (1833 – 1896) introduces the little owl into England on the estate. His aviaries were said to “feature exotic birds from all around the world” and a species of European lizard, the Lilford’s wall lizard (Podarcis lilfordi), is named in his honour. The 4th baron is repeatedly mentioned in the works of Charles Darwin for his contribution to the study of the science of evolution.
1840s – Further changes to the building are orchestrated by the architect William Gilbee Habershon (circa 1818 – 1891). The Campaign to Protect Rural England described these Victorian extensions as “sensitive” in 2006 – a rare accolade given most additions to English country houses during this period were simply brash and vulgar.
1740s – The Palladian architect Henry Flitcroft (1697 – 1769) adds “outstanding” Georgian interiors whilst “respecting the hall’s Jacobean exterior.” He “softened and brightened” the building as a result and also “constructed the Georgian pavilions and additional storeys to the east end of the two wings.” Other works by Flitcroft can be seen at Bower House in Essex, Wentworth Woodhouse in Yorkshire and Woburn Abbey in Bedfordshire.
1711 – Lilford Hall is sold to the judge and Tory politician Sir Thomas Powys (1649 – 1719), Attorney General to King James II. Powys is best remembered for conducting the prosecution of the Seven Bishops in 1699. He is buried at Lilford.
1630s – Construction of the main exterior of what to this day remains Lilford Hall as a “Jacobean-style gentry house” by William Elmes (the younger).
1473 – The land that forms the estate is acquired by William Browne (1410 – 1489), a wealthy wool merchant and landowner from Stamford, from the estate of Baron Welles (who was beheaded by King Edward IV for treason). In 1495, “in a Tudor style,” he built a hall on the site and it passed to Robert Browne (1550 – 1633), the founder of the Brownists, ‘The Father of the Pilgrims’ and ‘The Grandfather of the Nation’ (of the United States of America).
In spite of a judge rejecting evidence disclosure, Jeremy Bamber’s case now looks more likely to be reviewed by the Criminal Cases Review Commission; new podcast about the case begins Sunday
“If ever there was a case where the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) should be approached to make a decision on what is said to be new evidence, it is this one. This is a massively complex case which has been investigated and re-investigated by more than one police force over some 35 years.”
“The body of material is vast. After so many years, and so much litigation, the CCRC is the body undoubtedly best placed to consider the claimant’s arguments.”
We today urge readers to watch the YouTube video that follows. It examines the sequence of events on the night of 6th to the 7th August 1985 and for those interested in learning more, we also recommend listening to The White House Farm Murders: Is Jeremy Bamber Guilty? podcast by Kaiesha Page. It begins this evening and is available here.
