Tag: property

Cash Consuming Carbisdale Castle

Vast Scots Baronial mansion Carbisdale Castle – nicknamed ‘The Castle of Spite’ – goes on sale for sum 97% lower than it cost to build in the 1900s and 25% less than the sum spent on its 2010 renovation

A mega-mansion termed “the last grand castle built in Scotland” that cost £62 million to build between 1905 and 1917 has gone on sale for just £1.5 million in spite of developers having spent a small fortune on its renovation to date.

Extending to 41,433 square foot, category B-listed Carbisdale Castle in Sutherland is gargantuan in size compared to an average 818 square foot British home. Its construction began after the resolution of the then Dowager Duchess of Sutherland, Mary Caroline’s dispute with her late husband’s children from his first marriage, but ultimately the palatial pad was not completed until five years after her own demise.

Cash Consuming Carbisdale Castle – Mary Caroline, Dowager Duchess of Sutherland (1848 – 1912) and George Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, His Grace The 3rd Duke of Sutherland (1828 – 1892). According to one source, the “deviant duchess” enjoyed an astonishing income of £100,000 per year until her death and married her third husband, a politician and businessman, Sir Albert Rollit (1842 – 1922) in 1896.

Cash Consuming Carbisdale Castle – The castle was used as a youth hostel for 66 years from 1945 until 2011.

Cash Consuming Carbisdale Castle – Its vast size made it ideal for institutional usage.

Featured on these pages in August 2014 and April 2016 after it was placed for sale after being used for 70 years as a youth hostel, the allegedly haunted building was sold to a London based investment firm now known as Faro Capital after being reduced in price from £1.2 million to £900,000. At this stage, £2 million had already been spent on renovations due to extensive water damage in 2010.

In the years since, Faro Capital have cleared Carbisdale Castle of its institutional contents and put in place plans to return the structure to use as what they term a “world class single family residence.” Now, of its current condition, a surveyor recently remarked: “The building offers a superb blank canvas,” according to current selling agents Strutt & Parker.

Speaking to The Scotsman late last week, Robert McCulloch for Strutt & Parker remarked of the sale of Carbisdale Castle:

“Already there has been interest. The property is in a state of partial renovation so it lends itself to being either a private residence or a commercial venture.”

“There has been interest in it as a hotel and also those who are interested in its charitable use. With its proximity to the North Coast 500 driving route and the rise in domestic tourism, I am sure people will see a lot of opportunity in this property.”

Carbisdale Castle, however, is still not without problems. Aside from its vast size and the associated costs of maintaining such a white elephant, it comes with a mere 20 acres of land and that is split into various spread-apart parcels. Thus, for a likely oligarch or business titan buyer – who will have to be someone with very, very deep pockets – privacy and security will remain an obvious issue.

Given his alleged penchant for burning £50 notes in front of the homeless, perhaps ‘Costly Carrie’ Symonds could persuade Boris Johnson to put in a bid. There’d be plenty to keep her busy after all and acres of wall space for her chum Lulu Lytle to cover in gold and gaud.

The Names & Numbers – Carbisdale Castle, Culrain, Ardgay, Sutherland, IV24 3DP, Scotland, United Kingdom

May 2021 – Placed for sale with Strutt & Parker for £1.5 million ($2.1 million, €1.7 million or درهم7.6 million) or the equivalent of just £36.20 per square foot.

2017 onwards – Of progress since purchase by Faro Capital, Strutt & Parker remarked in 2021: “The current position is that, since 2017, significant works have been carried out to the castle pursuant with the approved consent but the works required to complete the project have been put on hold.”

“This provides the flexibility to purchasers to either complete the development of the castle as a private home, or seek to vary the Listed Building Consent to include the development of the building for commercial use or the subdivision of the building as residential apartments.”

“The intention of the project was to combine all of the decorative features and grandeur of the Dowager Duchess of Sutherland’s original creation with services, systems, fixtures, fittings and layout of the highest contemporary quality together with reorganisation of the existing accommodation to suit 21st Century living and the development of a spa and swimming pool as complementary features.”

Works to Carbisdale Castle have included the stripping down of the building, the removal of redundant items, the excavation of a proposed swimming pool and the replacement of heating systems and lighting circuits.

September 2016 – Sold to Sloane Street, London based Faro Capital Limited (formerly known as the FCFM Group), who planned to turn the building into a “world class residence.”

April 2016 – Reduced in price to just £900,000 ($1.2 million, €1 million or درهم4.6 million) or the equivalent of just £21.70 per square foot.

August 2014 – Offered for sale by Savills for £1.2 million ($1.7 million, €1.4 million or درهم6.1 million).

2010 onwards – After extensive water damage caused by frost, £2 million ($2.8 million, €2.3 million or درهم10.1 million) is spent on renovations.

1945 – 2011 – Used as a youth hostel.

1944 – Gifted to the Scottish Youth Hostel Association (SYHA) by Colonel Salvesen’s son, Captain Harold Salvesen.

22^nd June 1941 – Used as the location to host the Carbisdale Conference at which it was “agreed that that the Russian forces, should they enter Norwegian territory, would not stay there after the war.”

1933 – Sold to Norwegian shipping and whaling tycoon Colonel Theodore Salvesen and used during the Second World War as a “safe refuge” for King Haakon VII of Norway and Crown Prince Olav, later King Olav V, during the Nazi occupation of Norway.

1905 – 1917 – Carbisdale Castle is built for Mary Caroline, Dowager Duchess of Sutherland (1848 – 1912) at a supposed cost of £500,000 or the equivalent of £62 million ($86 million, €71 million or درهم315 million) following the death of her husband, George Sutherland-Leveson-Gower, His Grace The 3^rd Duke of Sutherland (1828 – 1892).

The Dowager Duchess (better known as ‘Duchess Blair’) had been jailed for 6 weeks after being found guilty of stealing documents during her divorce and when that was eventually finalised, it was agreed that a castle would be built for her just outside the Sutherland lands.

She intentionally chose – supposedly to spite them – a prominent hillside site visible from the very railway line the Sutherlands used to travel south and insisted that the clock tower of the house only had three clock faces. On the side facing Sutherland, the face is blank as “the Duchess did not wish to give the time of day to her former relatives.” As a result, Carbisdale Castle gained the nickname ‘The Castle of Spite.’

May 2, 2021
Bargaining Britain’s Northernmost Castle

Grade A listed freehold Scottish castle with cottages, barony title, gold and copper reserves and 240 acres of land goes to auction for just £130,000 just as plans for a space centre are announced in the vicinity

Our November 2018 article on an Irish castle on a private island that was for sale for just £80,000 ($111,000, €93,000 or درهم409,000) continues to attract numerous hits each week to this day and now we’ve found something equally ‘cheap’ in Scotland that we imagine will prove equally popular.

Situated on Unst, the northernmost of the inhabited isles of Great Britain, 15^th century Muness Castle is to be sold at auction on 23^rd April with a guide price of just £130,000 ($181,000, €151,000 or درهم665,000). It comes with 240 acres and thus comes in at an astonishingly low price equivalent of just £542 per acre ($755, €629 or درهم2,800 per acre).

Given farmland in Oxfordshire is currently valued at around £10,300 per acre ($14,400, €12,000 or درهم52,700 per acre), this apparent bargain does, however, come with a number of catches. The “number of crofter’s cottages” that come as part of the property are “mainly in derelict condition,” according to auctioneers Future Property Auctions of Glasgow, and the most definitely presently anything but inhabitable 73-foot by 26-foot, Grade A listed castle itself is currently “run as museum by Historic Scotland” on a “free of charge basis.”

Currently owned by one Gavin Farquhar of the Ecclesgreig Estate in Kincardineshire, the property offered was listed as having a “consideration” value of £65,000 ($91,000, €75,000 or درهم333,000) in August 2006 and aside from a number of “burdens” to various parties, includes part-diviso rights to “gold and copper reserves discovered in a recently commissioned geological survey.”

For a buyer wanting a barony title, seclusion and to own land on a “superb section of coastline” rich in flora, fauna and sea life where dolphins, otters, puffins, seals and whales are spotted regularly, here is a bargain piece of paradise. Unst covers an area of 46 square miles, has a population of 632 and is accessible primarily by ferry since its airport was mothballed in 1996.

The island of Unst is bizarrely internationally famous for a bus shelter known as ‘Bobby’s Bus Shelter.’ The stop and shelter was saved by a then 7-year-old boy named Bobby Macaulay in 1996 after he wrote to the local council asking them not to remove it because it was where he kept his bike whilst at school. The council relented and furnished it with a sofa and television and periodically give it themed additions which have included tributes to Nelson Mandela, sheep, puffins and women’s suffrage in the United Kingdom.

Another attraction on the island was the Valhalla Brewery, the northernmost brewery in the United Kingdom. Named after the Norse god Odin, Valhalla produced dark ales from malt, hops and bere barley, but after the owners fell ill, it ultimately closed permanently. In March this year, plans to reuse the brewery site for the construction of the Shetland Space Centre were announced and should they go ahead around 140 new jobs would be created on Unst as a result.

An aerial view of the castle shows how thick its walls are and thus provides evidence as to why it has lasted over 423 years in spite of the harsh climate of its situation.

The structure retains many original architectural details.

Though the building is currently simply a tourist attraction, perhaps – subject to any planning processes – it could be returned to residential usage. The cost and dealing with bureaucrats might, however, be prohibitive and request by ‘The Steeple Times’ to selling auctioneers Future Property Auctioneers about such had not been answered at time of publication.

The setting of the castle with views to the North Sea beyond and a cottage adjoining.

The original floor plan of the building (before French pirate enemies of the then owner burnt the place down in 1627). As a result, now, the castle now has only two of its original three stories remaining. The building was used from 1713 by the Dutch East India Company as a storage space for goods the Company managed to salvage from the wreck of one of their vessels, but was then recorded as roofless and abandoned in 1775.

This map shows the true isolation of the location.

The coastline of Unst is truly epically spectacular.

This 2018 video shows Muness Castle with scaffolding around it – indication that good care has been taken of what remains of the structure.

April 21, 2021
Basham-ing About

As Brian Basham peddles another puff piece for mucky madam Ghislaine Maxwell today, ‘The Steeple Times’ reminds him that we covered this news first on the 6^th March

PR peddler Brian Basham has friends in high and low places and today, yet again, his chums at The Telegraph gave him acreage in a puff piece where he tried to big up the currently incarcerated mucky madam he’s acting as “spokesman” for, Ghislaine Maxwell.

Of “breaking news” this morning (that we’d covered first on the 6^th March and later on 10^th March also) that Maxwell was selling her “showgirl-hooker-esque” Belgravia mews house, bombastic Basham – who’s also been prone to keeping his fingers busy retweeting the obnoxious oddity Owen Jones of late – told the Barclay family owned rightwing rag:

“She is selling the house in order to pay her lawyers. There is already £5 million ($7 million, €5.9 million or درهم25.7 million) set aside but this will take it to more than £7.2 million ($10 million, €8.4 million or درهم36.7 million).”

“Ghislaine will be sad to see the house sold. She is devastated by all this. She will have a lot of good memories. She will be terribly sad to sell the house. It was her refuge in London.”

Whether such “good memories” included Prince Andrew bonking in the romp pad’s supposedly tiny bathtub on 10^th March 2001 was unsurprisingly not discussed, but yet again Brian Basham’s obsequious spin that the ‘Bouncing Czech’s’ daughter is trying to cooperate with authorities as she seeks bail ought to be called out for what it truly is and that is “complete Barry bull.”

Elsewhere on Wednesday, our editor, Matthew Steeples, appeared on Shaun Attwood’s True Crime Channel to discuss Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein’s curious real estate shenanigans. A link to the half hour discussion will follow on YouTube in due course and will be published in The Steeple Times also.

Pictured top: PR peddler Brian Basham (left) and demanding deviant Ghislaine Maxwell with her one-time lover croaked paedophile and ‘ex-bestie’ of ‘Randy Andy,’ Jeffrey Epstein.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGnUxiOADzY&feature=emb_logo
Basham-ing About – Shaun Attwood visited 44 Kinnerton Street, Belgravia, London, SW1X 8ES in September 2019 and managed to film the white bannister that was also seen in the now infamous photograph of Ghislaine Maxwell lurking as the Duke of York wrapped his chubby fingers round the waist of Virginia Roberts (now married and known as Virginia Giuffre) on 10^th March 2001.

Basham-ing About – ‘That’ photograph that Prince Andrew has so desperately tried to claim to be a fake that nobody at all has managed to discredit yet. Of it, even ‘Grubby Ghislaine’s’ own brother, Ian Maxwell, told Radio 4 this week: “I recognise the setting.”

Bashaming About – Ghislaine Maxwell purchased 1,000 square foot 44 Kinnerton Street on 22nd January 1997 for £290,000 ($401,000, €337,000 or درهم5 million) and tried to flog it for £2.6 million ($3.6 million, €3 million or درهم3 million) in September 2020 through agents Aylesford. Of it, one leading property commentator remarked: “It’s the kind of house that could have featured in ‘Smiley’s People,’ in fact it’s the kind of house where the showgirl-hooker Mandy Rice-Davies could have cavorted with John Profumo.”

March 12, 2021
Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget)
‘Antebellum style’ residence in Tennessee that looks like a ‘bargain basement budget’ ‘Gone with the Wind’ house for sale for just £128,000

Slammed in the Facebook group ‘Vintage Houses For Sale – Pre 1940s’ as “looking like it’s wearing a giant sombrero,” an ‘antebellum style’ house in Ridgley, Tennessee has gone on sale for just £128,700 ($179,900).

Extending to 3,632 square foot in total and on a plot of just under an acre, 221 Poplar Street is marketed by agents Carousel Realty as “gorgeous” and built in 1910. It was last sold in 2008 for just £42,900 ($60,000) and this time comes with “all furniture and antique furniture.”

Very much having the appearance of a ‘bargain basement budget’ version of “frankly my dear” Rhett Butler’s mansion in the 1939 movie adaptation of Margaret Mitchell’s 1936 novel, 221 Poplar Street’s wrap-around-porch has most definitely got ‘Marmite-like’ qualities. Of it, on Facebook, one commentator remarked: “It looks like a house in a cage” whilst another concluded: “I just love it.”

Situated in the Lake County area, where the militant ‘Night Riders of Reelfoot Lake’ tobacco farmers took on the monopolistic American Tobacco Company in the early 1900s and where between 1877 and 1950 thirteen black people were tragically lynched, the population makeup of the locality according to the 2000 census was 67% white and 31% black or African American.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – ‘Gone with the Wind’ was written by Margaret Mitchell in 1936. The fictional plantation house it centred upon, ‘Tara’, was of the antebellum style and in the novel was not nearly as palatial as the one depicted in the 1939 movie of the same name.

The Public’s Take…
- “Is this the house from Dallas?”
- “Looks like a mortuary.”
- “Looks like a houseboat.”
- “Looks like the Flying Nun!”
- “Looks like a house in a cage.”
- “Looks like Amazon just delivered it.”
- “Reminds me of a ‘Tara’ recreation, circa 1960s-1970s.”
- “Is there an actual house in there somewhere or is it just a porch?”
- “What’s with the flat roof? You could land a helicopter on that thing.”
- “That veranda is a bit much.”
- “Does it come with the dog statue?”
- “Can they still advertise antebellum [in the new ‘woke’ age]?”
- “Poor photography. This is what happens when a realtor uses their phone for photos.”
The Numbers – 221 Poplar Street, Ridgely, Lake County, Tennessee, TN 38080, United States of America

March 2021 – For sale for £128,700 ($179,900, €150,100 or درهم660,700) or the equivalent of £36 per square foot ($50, €42 or درهم184 per square foot). Offered by realtor Karen Paschall of Carousel Realty of Dyer County at a sum 200% more than the December 2008 sale price.

December 2008 – Sold for £42,900 ($60,000, €50,000 or درهم220,400) or the equivalent of £12 per square foot ($17, €14 or درهم62 per square foot).

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – The entrance hall to the property is somewhat plain. It could be a dentist’s waiting room area, in fact, though the faux bulldog adds a comedy touch.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – This “formal living room” has the look of more like something from the 1980s BBC comedy series ‘Last of the Summer Wine’ than the elegance of ‘Gone with the Wind.’ The crappy coffee table, doily pelmeting and fake flower arrangements mixed with an oversized telly box are anything but classy.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – The dining room is somewhat plainer in its styling.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – A mural on the wall is surprisingly classy. It’s not quite de Gournay, but it’s certainly far from objectionable. The chandelier, on the other hand, most certainly belongs in a skip.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – Another entertaining area complete with yet more fake shrubbery.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – The kitchen is basic but functional.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – One of four bedrooms. This one’s curtains, cushions and accompaniments have been carefully coordinated.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – Another is a little more ‘Holiday Inn on an expense account-esque.’

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – A more flattering view of the building from the side. If only they’d watered the lawn.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – From the side, the setting looks somewhat neglected.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – There is a three car garage.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – In addition, the 0.96 acre plot features an outbuilding also.

Gone with the Wind (on a Bargain Basement Budget) – Two adjoining plots of land come as part of the property and the selling agents declare: “All furniture and antique furniture stays with the property.”
March 11, 2021
Far From The Madding Crowd (But Well-Near The Whisky)

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:

Clynelish, Brora

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.

Thompson Bros. at Dornoch Distillery, Dornoch

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.

March 7, 2021
Houses of Horror SOLD
Houses of Horror SOLD – As New York residence of croaked paedo Jeffrey Epstein goes into contract for 192% less than was asked for it, London home of mucky madam Ghislaine Maxwell supposedly nears sale for 400% more than she paid for it also

Plainly two sets of buyers in London and New York are prepared to set aside the horrors that went on in the respective residences of Ghislaine Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein given both are now “pending sale.”

In London’s ritzy Belgravia, the late ‘Bouncing Czech’ Robert Maxwell’s daughter’s somewhat tired, red and white painted mews house opposite Kevin Moran’s Nag’s Head pub is about to exchange contracts for circa £1.45 million, her lawyers announced this week. Miss Maxwell paid £290,000 for the property in 1997.

Meanwhile, in New York’s Lenox Hill, the 28,000 square foot, 7-floor pad where Jeffrey Epstein hosted grubby gatherings with the likes of the Duke of York and Woody Allen has gone into contract for “roughly” £36 million. Mr Epstein allegedly ‘bought’ the mansion for £14.5 million from his billionaire chum Leslie Wexner in 1998, though some claim the transfer to have been somewhat more of a gift than a purchase.

Whilst some real estate brokers claimed some “clients were absolutely appalled at the idea of buying a house owned by Epstein” – with one reporting: “I had clients hang up on me, angry that I even suggested it” – another concluded: “The deal is great for New York. It’s a low number, but that could be because of Covid and not Epstein. The buyer is a savvy person who got a good deal and will resell.” Going further, another broker concluded: “They could get it blessed by a rabbi and a priest.”

Meanwhile, elsewhere on Change.org, crusading author, sex abuse survivor and advocate Kirby Sommers’ petition seeking “no bail for Ghislaine Maxwell” reached 944 signatures this morning. Help it pass 1,000 and achieve a chance of success with Judge Alison J. Nathan by clicking here.

Houses of Horror SOLD – Ghislaine Maxwell leans on a doorway on the landing of her Kinnerton Street mews house as ‘Randy Andy’ the Duke of York poses next to the bannister with his chubby, grubby fingers around the waist of the then Virgina Roberts (now married and known as Virginia Giuffre) on 10th March 2001.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGnUxiOADzY

The Names & Numbers – 44 Kinnerton Street (AKA ‘Mucky Madam Ghislaine Maxwell’s Bathtub Bonk Pad’), Belgravia, London, SW1X 8ES, United Kingdom
- March 2021 – Ghislaine Maxwell’s lawyer offered cash from the “pending sale of her £1.45 million ($2 million, €1.68 million or درهم37 million)” home as part of a package when they sought bail for the mucky madam for a third time.
- December 2020 – Members of the Maxwell family attempted to raise finance on the property but are not successful.
- August 2019 – According to Insider, a woman with “long hair [who] appeared to be in her 60s” was seen entering the property. She “denied that the socialite owns or lived in the house, claiming instead that the elusive socialite lived elsewhere down the street.”
- 10^th March 2001 – Prince Andrew allegedly had sexual relations with 17-year-old Virginia Roberts in a bathroom in the property. He continues to deny this occurred whilst claiming that a photograph of himself with Miss Roberts and Ghislaine Maxwell on the first floor of building is a fake also.
- 22^nd January 1997 – Ghislaine Maxwell paid £290,000 ($401,000, €337,000 or درهم5 million) for the three-storey leasehold mews house. It is situated at the heart of the Duke of Westminster’s Grosvenor Estate.
Houses of Horror SOLD – Top: Jeffrey Epstein pictured on the telephone in his decidedly kitsch ‘Bet Lynch-esque’ mansion on date unknown. Bottom: Prince Andrew pictured at the door of the residence waving as two young ladies and Jeffrey Epstein depart in December 2010.

The Names & Numbers – Herbert Straus House (AKA ‘Jeffrey Epstein’s Paedo Palace’), 9 East 71^st Street, Lenox Hill, New York, NY 10021, United States of America
- March 2021 – “In contract to sell for roughly £36 million ($50 million, €42 million or درهم184 million)” according to The Times, a sum 192% lower than the 2020 asking price.
- February 2021 – Price reduced to £47 million ($65 million, €55 million or درهم239 million).
- September 2020 – Placed for sale for £69 million ($88 million, €74 million or درهم351 million) through the Modlin Group as the ‘Herbert N. Strauss Mansion’ in order to attempt to disassociate it from Jeffrey Esptein.
- August 2019 – Valued in Epstein’s will at £40 million ($56 million, €47 million or درهم206 million)
- 1998 – “Sold” to Jeffrey Epstein for £14.5 million ($20 million, €16.8 million or درهم5 million), according to the New York Post, by his associate Leslie Wexner.
Houses of Horror SOLD 2021 – If it hadn’t been owned by Jeffrey Epstein, the ‘Herbert Straus House’ would not have acquired the nickname ‘Paedo Palace.’ The 40-room mansion, with interiors by Albert Pinto, would otherwise have been quite desirable and likely would have sold for a much higher sum.

Houses of Horror SOLD 2021 – Prior to sale, Jeffrey Epstein’s initials were quite sensibly removed from the main entrance.

Houses of Horror SOLD 2021 – Images of the house shared by realtors showed the best of the property. They did not include the grubby rooms – complete with spy holes – where Epstein and Maxwell were able to secretly watch sexual abuse by famous people they supposedly wished to blackmail.
March 6, 2021
An English McMansion Monstrosity
Gargantuan Cheshire ‘McMansion’ once owned by a BBC Sports Personality turned tax fraudster for sale; it’s a monstrosity and beyond gaudy

Somewhat generously described as “Cheshire’s most flamboyant home” by the Manchester Evening News in December 2019 and as a place where BBC Wales Sports Personality 1980 turned VAT fraudster Duncan Evans for a time “lived the life of a country squire,” Deansgreen Hall in Lymm, Cheshire has been on the market for £6 million since 2019.

Described as “architecturally unsurpassed and with a lavish interior” and an “ambassadorial style Smallbone kitchen” by selling agents Jackson-Stops, this vast English attempt at a ‘McMansion’ is quite frankly one of the most ludicrously laughable houses we’ve ever featured.

Standing on a plot of just under 11 acres where a probably perfectly charming yet subsequently bastardised residence was constructed in 1864, the ‘hall’ itself extends to about 20,000 square foot. It includes 5 reception rooms, a cinema room, a games room, a music room, an orangery and 8 en-suite bedrooms.

In addition, there is a ‘leisure suite’ with an indoor swimming pool and gym, a staff flat, a 3-bedroom lodge, a 620 square foot ‘entertaining pavilion,’ garaging for 28 cars, a helicopter hangar, kenneling and stabling.

Plainly desperate to offload this gargantuan white elephant, Jackson-Stops declare: “Our clients are looking to downsize and would consider part exchange with either another residential property or commercial property, or possibly another asset class (for instance, prestige and collectible cars, art, etc.).”

An English McMansion Monstrosity – Amateur golf champion, BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year 1980 and tax fraudster Duncan Evans owned Deansgreen Hall from 2002 to 2003.

The entrance hall to Deansgreen Hall harks back to the past and currently features coats of armour and a model of an old sailing ship.

The dining room of the McMansion is equally “historic” in its inspiration, yet the white gloss paint scheme simply just doesn’t work.

Plainly aimed at a sale to a footballer, the cinema room – complete with its naff sparkling light ceiling and purple panels – could have been designed by the “prosecco gagging” disaster that is Dawn Ward.

The Names & Numbers – Deansgreen Hall, Crouchley Lane, Lymm, Cheshire, WA13 0TL, United Kingdom
- March 2021 – For sale for £6 million ($8.4 million, €7 million or درهم8 million) with Jackson-Stops. Listed first with the firm circa December 2019.
- June 2018 – A former policeman named Roderick Bond, whose current correspondence address for his active company Ravenstone UK Ltd., was jailed for 2 years and 8 months as a result of his involvement in a “Formula 1 film tax scam” in June 2018.
- 2006 – Purchased by the current owner and “remodeled and presented in its current condition.”
- 2003 – Sold by Duncan Evans for £3.5 million ($4.9 million, €4.1 million or درهم18 million). “Devious and accomplished fraudster” Evans subsequently received a jail sentence of 4 years in 2009 for his part in a £21 million ($29 million, €24 million or درهم108 million) VAT fraud. He was again arrested in July 2017 after going on the run to Portugal.
- 2002 – Sold to BBC Wales Sports Personality of the Year 1980 Duncan Evans for £1.2 million ($1.7 million, €1.4 million or درهم2 million) having reverted to private ownership in the 1990s.
- 1970s – Used as “commercial offices” by Fairclough Homes.
- 1864 – Original house built on the site. What remains of that, God only knows.
In November 2020, we featured what we termed “the world’s worst McMansion,” a £1.65 million horror in New Jersey. In Deansgreen Hall, we’ve definitely found something that could actually come a very close second.

The insipid white theme continues in this vaulted sitting room of the English McMansion.

A spokesperson for selling agents Jackson-Stops remarked of the McMansion’s kitchen: “The centre of the house has an ambassadorial-sized Smallbone fitted kitchen/breakfast room with large central island (with seating for 10) with sofas at one end.” Any serious chef would respond: “What a bloody impractical layout.”

The McMansion’s indoor swimming pool, surprisingly, seems relatively tame in its decorative styling.

A games room in “regal red.”

It’s back to the medieval mixed up with nautical heritage theme on the McMansion’s landing – complete with a chess board that looks like it came from Dungeons & Dragons.

The ‘master bedroom’ has an especially ghastly fireplace surround and it’s got some shagpile carpets that Jimmy Savile would have loved to have rolled around on.

The nautical touch continues in this bathroom area where also included is a tub where Prince Andrew might feel at home.

The rear elevation of the McMansion is frankly nothing but a hotchpotch and a design disaster. How many styles did the architect wish to combine?

A set of flags stands patriotically at the front of the building along with a very necessary pair of dragon statues.

Looking outwards, there’s a hint of classicism to enjoy.

The garage block and ‘lodge house’ of the McMansion resemble something found on a Barratt housing estate.

Yet more patriotism on display at England’s naffest McMansion. Nigel Farage and Ann Widdecombe would go potty.

There are two lakes that are supposedly “stuffed” with carp. Watch out, Eddie Grundy of BBC Radio 4’s ‘The Archers’ will be round to do a bit of poaching.

The entrance gates to the McMansion complete with a set of cobbles that wouldn’t look out of place on ITV1’s ‘Coronation Street.’
March 1, 2021
A Cut Cost Chapel
Detached partly converted Victorian chapel in quaint Hampshire village goes to auction for 25% less than it sold for in 2018; it seems like a bargain, but there is, of course, a “but”…

Vernham Dean – also known as Vernhams Dean – is a quaint village in the Test Valley in Hampshire. Nine miles south of Hungerford, Berkshire, it is best known for its well thought of pub, The George, and was the place name the controversial ex-Labour minister of state for the Middle East Elizabeth Symonds added to her name when she became Baroness Synmonds PC of Vernham Dean in October 1996.

Given its sought after situation, news that a detached, freehold 562 square foot Victorian chapel is to be auctioned this week by Savills for just £75,000 initially seems surprising, but, as is often the way with “auction bargains,” comes with a number of catches.

Opened originally as a chapel in October 1845 seating 108 with standing room for 12, the current structure served as a chapel from 1869 onwards. Closed for worship now for a number of years, the building was sold at auction in 2017 for an undisclosed sum and then for £99,000 a year later.

In the years that followed subsequent owners have attempted to convert the building into first a two-bedroom and then a one-bedroom dwelling whilst various villagers repeatedly objected. It is now described as being “in need of modernisation” but complete with “extensive plans and reports… for change of use to a residential dwelling.”

Curiously, during the Black Death in 1665, the village’s then pastor is said to have fled leaving his villagers to die. His “guilt ridden ghost” reportedly still to this day haunts the Chute Causeway, a Roman road that runs from Winchester to Cirencester, but whether the Primitive Methodist Chapel is haunted also is unknown.

The double height space inside the Victorian building has been stripped bare in preparation from conversion from D1 usage to residential. It sadly retains few original features.

The original mezzanine seating area of the chapel remains in situ.

The Names & Numbers – Vernham Dean Primitive Methodist Chapel, Back Lane, Vernham Dean, Andover, Test Valley District, Hampshire, SP11 0LE, United Kingdom
- 2^nd March 2021 – To be offered for sale at auction for £75,000 ($104,000, €87,000 or درهم384,000) by Savills, a sum 32% lower than the last asking price and 25% lower than the 2018 sale price.
- 10^th February 2021 – Offered for sale at auction for £110,000+ ($153,000, €127,000 or درهم563,000) by Auction House London.
- December 2019 – New plans were submitted to convert the building according to the Andover Advertiser. They reported that the application stated: “The property is in shell condition and requires a full programme of works. It has electricity and water supplies. The property is situated in the heart of the picturesque area of Vernham Dean in Andover close to local amenities. There is pedestrian access to the left-hand side of the property but it is possible to park at the front of the chapel.”
- August 2019 – Then owner Gurdarshan Mandan told the Andover Advertiser: “We want to live there peacefully and we really don’t want to upset anyone, after all we all are neighbours and want to create a peaceful environment” after many Vernham Dean residents objected to his and his wife’s plans to first turn the building into a two-bedroom and then a one-bedroom residence.
- 11^th April 2018 – Sold for £99,000 ($138,000, €114,000 or درهم506,000) by Auction House London.
- 13^th December 2017 – “Sold after auction for an undisclosed amount” by Auction House London.
The staircase and entrance area. The building has mains water and electricity, but no sewage system is currently in place.

The mezzanine includes the only original remaining pews from the chapel.

A floor plan shows the current configuration of the detached chapel building.
February 28, 2021
Lock Him Up 2021!

Ideal new ‘home’ for likely to be impeached Donald Trump for sale just as he prepares to leave office; it comes with its own jail – the perfect place to “lock him up!”

The “quaint” shire town of Guildhall (pronounced ‘Gilhall’), Vermont – whose population was estimated at just 255 in 2014 – is best known for having a large sign at its centre declaring it to be the “only town in the world so named.”

Now, just in time for Donald Trump’s departure from the White House and likely impeachment, the perfect pad for the 45^th President has become available in the town. It comes in the form of a 4-bedroom cottage complete with its own attached former jail – a “safe space” he could retreat to if tagged or subjected to home imprisonment perhaps.

Situated on just under an acre of land next to the village green, Jailer’s House at 43 Courthouse Drive is described as having “so much character” and having “been renovated in recent years.” The jail, which ceased to be used in 1969, itself is in somewhat more perilous condition, as is a detached barn known as Jailer’s Barn.

Sold last for £85,000 in May 2017 and then bizarrely marketed for the much lower sum of £55,000 in April 2018l, agents Lisa Hampton Real Estate now seek £110,000 for the property.

Converted jailhouses and courts previously featured in The Steeple Times include the £14.5 million The Court House in Old Chelsea, London, SW3. It was from there that “drunkards, highwaymen and tax dodgers” were tried and “sent in chains to prison ships on the River Thames for transportation to the colonies.”

Lock Him Up! The property comes with a jail complete with prison cells with barred windows. Of it, agents Lisa Hampton Real Estate remark: “Bring your own ideas on what this 28’ x 40’ wing could be!”

Lock Him Up! This cell could make the perfect new home for Donald Trump.

Lock Him Up! One couldn’t imagine Melania Trump liking the condition of this crapper, however.

Lock Him Up! One of the house’s more unusual features is a ‘witch window’ (also known as a ‘Vermont window’). Its presence might put off broomstick flying Ivanka Trump from visiting as this diagonal double-hung sash was conceived on the basis of the folk belief that “witches cannot fly their broomsticks through tilted windows.”

The Names & Numbers – Jailer’s House, Jailer’s Barn and former Essex County Jail, 43 Courthouse Drive, Guildhall, Essex County, Vermont, VT 05905, United States of America

October 2020 – Listed for sale by Lisa Hampton Real Estate for £110,000 ($149,000, €123,000 or درهم547,000), a sum 100% higher than its April 2018 asking price.

April 2018 – Listed for sale for £55,000 ($75,000, €62,000 or درهم275,000), a sum 35% lower than its May 2017 sale price.

May 2017 – Sold for £85,000 ($116,000, €95,000 or درهم426,000).

February 2012 – Sold for £51,000 ($69,000, €57,000 or درهم253,000).

April 1969 – Essex County Jail discontinued. According to The Burlington Free Press: “The Corrections Department assumed control of most jails in the state, and the sheriffs were to no longer live next to the jail, an amenity they received as part of the job (never fear – it was offset by a triple pay increase for sheriffs as well as a new office).”

July 1964 – A rapist and a man awaiting trial for breaking and entering escaped the jail. Of this, The Burlington Free Press remarked: “A deputy sheriff who lives next door to the jail discovered the break Wednesday morning when he brought breakfast to the jailhouse.”

June 1961 – The jail was supposedly condemned as “potentially dangerous for prisoners” by the state fire marshal.

1947 – According to The Burlington Free Press: “After Antonio Dubois, 47, stole 80 pounds of sugar from the Royal Cafe on Cross and Birch streets in Island Pond, he was held at the Essex County Jail. He couldn’t come up with the $2,000 he needed for bail, so he spent some time in the cells of what could be your home sweet home.”

April 1938 – According to The Burlington Free Press: “Two sheriffs were sued for allegedly assaulting two prisoners at the jail, the Essex County Herald reported in April 1938. The plaintiffs sued for $10,000 each, claiming they suffered broken ribs and fractured ear drums from the attack.”

1879 – 1880 – Jailer’s House, Essex County Jail and Jailer’s Barn are built on the site of an earlier facility burned to the ground by prisoners in 1878.

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‘The Donald’ would have to be careful on this wooden staircase given Melania might see it fit to grease it in the style of drunken coal miner’s long-suffering wives of the 19th century. One false move and the 45th POTUS would be toast.

The ugly painting of a prized cow in this sitting room might appeal to ‘The Donald’s’ dubious taste in artwork. He might “improve” the room with a bit more gilt.

One could imagine Mr Trump, his ‘likely trafficked by Jeffrey Epstein’ wife and dear, little Barron dining in this “homely space.”

Melania might actually finally get to enjoy herself cooking on this faux “antique stove.”

A bedroom suitable for someone (like Donald) who’s got the blues. The furnishings would also appeal to a skinflint pensioner like Victor Meldrew.

Lock Him Up! When things get really bad, Mr Trump might like to sit and reflect in a “safe space” in this shower. There’s even a seat ready for him.

Given she didn’t achieve much at the White House aside from playing decorator in the tennis pavilion, Melania Trump could perhaps hone her gardening skills here.

Lock Him Up! The bars of the jailhouse would need re-installing prior to ‘The Donald’s’ arrival.

Lock Him Up! This barn could be the perfect place for the Trumps to play their favourite game: “Lock him up!”

Mr Trump could fantasise about redeveloping the grounds of the property, though he’d more likely busy himself recreating the international joke that is the Trump Wall.

Guildhall, Vermont is “most famous” for this sign. If Donald Trump arrived, maybe things might change. New signs declaring: “Lock him up!” would appear throughout the town.

January 12, 2021
A Christmas Nightmare

“Mini castle” in Pennsylvania goes on sale in time for Christmas for 512% more than it sold for in 2000 in spite of its decoration being nightmare nasty

The most expensive property The Steeple Times featured in terms of price per square foot in 2020 was a 713 square foot one-bedroom pad in a development on the former Chelsea Barracks site in London, SW1.

Whilst that tiny and completely “lacking in room to swing a cat” space was ludicrously marketed at a sum of £3.5 million or £4,909 per square foot, for just £221,000 or £61 per square foot a buyer with the ability to see round a decorating disaster could bag themselves what agents Howard Hanna term a “mini castle” and “Victorian colonial” in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania.

Presented “Christmas ready” in spite of the fact it will likely languish on the market for months given how nightmare nasty it is inside, 26 Cloverdale Avenue (AKA ‘The Castle on Cloverdale Avenue’) was built in 1902. The 3,678 square foot house stands on a plot of 0.35 acres and includes 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms, but what gets Howard Hanna going is the Venetian portico and balcony that they boldly claim is “envied by Juliet herself” even.

We’ll let the pictures of 26 Cloverdale Avenue speak for themselves, but of its location there’s not much to note. David Bowie recorded his first live album in Upper Darby in July 1974, but beyond that there’s nothing to attract anyone to a horror of a house that’s being promoted for 512% more than it sold for in 2000.

A Christmas Nightmare – The Numbers – 26 Cloverdale Avenue, Upper Darby, Delaware County, Pennsylvania, PA 19082, United States of America

December 2020 – Listed for sale in time for Christmas for £221,000 ($300,000, €246,000 or درهم1.1 million), a sum 512% higher than the sale price twenty years prior, through Howard Hanna Real Estate Services.

April 2000 – Sold for £36,000 ($49,000, €40,000 or درهم180,000).

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The sitting room has been tiled in a clinical fashion and is filled with leather seating you’d expect to see in the waiting room area of a brothel. The fireplace surround is, quite frankly, dreadful.

Whoever fitted the kitchen decided to plonk a three-tier open shelf in an odd position above the fridge. Plainly, given it is bloody hard to reach, nobody has or will ever use it.

Described as a “bonus room” (though what’s a “bonus” about it we cannot fathom), this space is set up as a home cinema. The owner’s decision to stencil “Live Well, Laugh Often, Love Much” on the wall is equally curious.

The staging of the dining table with a Christmas cloth and tree won’t be of much help when the house is still on sale in July 2021.

That the agents decided that a metal device probably used for torture in a utility room was worth photographing speaks volumes.

The owners went to lengths to tuck in the sheets for this room’s photo session. The tiled flooring is especially welcoming, but any buyer will no doubt want to put in a bid for the tasteful bedroom set.

Another bedroom – with its nasty nets – looks like it could be in use by a hooker. The floors, after all, are easy to scrub.

Perhaps the internal front door with locks and a knocker is in place to ensure “clients” bang before entering.

Bizarrely in this room dedicated to Wonder Woman, somebody’s gone to town colouring in a few of the white tiles.

The rear decked area may appeal to rats and termites this Christmas, but it’s hardly an architectural triumph.

The agent belives this balcony is something “even Juliet would have envied,” but that’s about one of the only things about this train wreck of a house that she’d have got excited about in its current state.

There’s more chance of Chris Rea making it home for Christmas than someone buying this crib in the near future.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6M48CDuzfgg

December 25, 2020