
Toby Keel
Toby Keel is Country Life's Digital Director, and has been running the website and social media channels since 2016. A former sports journalist, he writes about property, cars, lifestyle, travel, nature and more.
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Why don't more of us live in brightly coloured homes?
It's not often that you see a home sporting the colour palette that you'd get if you hired a four-year old as your interior designer. But why not? The Blue House in Bethnal Green asks this and many more questions.
By Toby Keel Published
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Five magnificent mansions, from a former monastery to an Art Deco wonder in the South Downs, as seen in Country Life
Wonderful homes, including a superb beach home in Cornwall, all fresh on the market via Country Life.
By Toby Keel Published
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A 14-bedroom 'miniature Downton Abbey' to call your own — and there's not a penny of Mansion Tax to be paid
Norton Manor is an incredible period home that's on the market for £1.3 million.
By Toby Keel Published
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A country home that comes with a perfect lifestyle business: one of Britain's oldest vineyards
Astley Vineyard in Worcestershire, and the lovely house that it comes with, are looking for a new owner.
By Toby Keel Published
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Magna Carta Island for sale on the Thames, complete with the stone tablet on which Magna Carta itself is said to have been sealed
This beautiful house on a private island on the River Thames isn't just a charming home — it's one with an extraordinary tale to tell.
By Toby Keel Published
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The Mansion Tax is here: Who will be hit, when and for how much
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves has announced that the mansion tax will come into force in England and Wales from April 2028.
By Toby Keel Published
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Jane Austen's greatest scoundrel: Being Mr Wickham, with Adrian Lukis
The actor Adrian Lukis, who played the role of Mr Wickham in the iconic 1995 BBC adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, joins the Country Life Podcast.
By Toby Keel Published
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A wreck's renaissance: The 150-year-old mill that was falling apart stone by stone, now a beautiful Highland home ready for the next century and a half
Bogbain Mill's award-winning transformation was a labour of love for the owner, but it's now time for them to move on.
By Toby Keel Published
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Old rectories are the second most sought-after homes in Britain, and this idyllic £2.45 million home is a perfect example of why
Penny Churchill looks at the wonderfully pretty Oakley House in Hampshire.
By Penny Churchill Published
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12 fabulous rural homes, from £650,000 to £4 million, as seen in Country Life
Our look includes a magnificently-situated home in Devon, a village home in Somerset and a historic Welsh farmhouse.
By Toby Keel Published
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The pink granite chateau that the Cointreau family built in the Loire Valley is for sale at £3.5 million
The great country seats of the Guinness family have an equivalent over the Channel, where the chateau built by the Cointreau family is on the market.
By Toby Keel Published
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The thatched cottage dream at these five beautiful country homes, from £425,000 to £1.2 million
Julie Harding and Toby Keel pick out some of the prettiest thatched cottages and houses for sale today across England.
By Toby Keel Last updated
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Storrs Hall: A glimpse of what a trip to Lake Windermere ought to be
Lake Windermere — the largest stretch of water in the Lake District — is a tourist mecca that can often feel crowded, but head to places like Storrs Hall and you can still find the beauty and seclusion that first drew people here. Toby Keel takes a look.
By Toby Keel Published
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A home where medieval, Georgian and modern come together in rare style
Set in a couple of acres in the leafy outskirts of Essex, Rochfords is a family house that blends old and new with charm and a sense of fun.
By Penny Churchill Published
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The dogs of Country Life, with Agnes Stamp
Country Life's deputy features editor Agnes Stamp joins the Country Life Podcast to talk all things dogs.
By Toby Keel Published
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A private island in the Thames Estuary is up for sale at £50,000, complete with its own Victorian fort
Darnet Fort is seeking a new owner — but it's going to need someone of great vision and spirit.
By Toby Keel Published
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Utterly wonderful country homes for sale across Britain, from a 10-bedroom mansion to a Devon hideaway, as seen in Country Life
From an irresistibly charming house in Devon to a 400-year-old commutable home in Hertfordshire, here's our pick of some of the best homes to come to market via Country Life in the past week.
By Toby Keel Published
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A vineyard for sale on the slopes above 'the best beach in Britain' is for sale at just £650,000
In the beautifully unspoilt Devon village of Bantham, an award-winning vineyard is for sale. Toby Keel takes a look.
By Toby Keel Published
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Five home offices so good that every work day will feel like a holiday (well, probably)
Five years on from the Pandemic, millions of us are still working from home much of the time — and thus the appeal of a home office is as strong as ever. They don't much nicer than these.
By Julie Harding Published
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Saltmoore hotel review: The place to stay that's woodland retreat, seaside hotel and spa sanctuary all in one
Saltmoore, on the North Yorkshire coast, has barely been open a year but is already earning recognition as one of the finest places to stay in Yorkshire. Toby Keel checked in.
By Toby Keel Published
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The Falconer's Tale: Tommy Durcan on how an ancient art lives on in 21st century Ireland
Tommy Durcan of Ireland's School of Falcony joins the Country Life podcast.
By Toby Keel Published
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18 grand country homes, from £600k to £6 million, as seen in Country Life
Our regular look at the best homes to come to the market via Country Life this week include a house in a charming seaside village and a 17th century farmhouse.
By Toby Keel Published
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Caveat renovator: The TV star, the writer and the salvation of a crumbling farmhouse
The actor, writer and comedian Robert Webb and his comedy writer wife Abigail Burdess embarked on a renovation project in 2019 which became far more than they imagined — and just as the job is at last complete, they've decided that it's the right time to put house on the market.
By Toby Keel Published
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An Alpine hideaway on a Swiss mountaintop that's like something from the pages of a Gothic novel
A wonderful Baroque castle set amid gardens and woodland is for sale in one of Switzerland's most beautiful areas.
By Toby Keel Published
