
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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A castle for sale just down the road from Gleneagles, where everyone from George VI to a farmer and his pigs once roamed the grand hallsOrchil Castle has seen it all in a tumultuous century and a half — but it's getting back to its best, and now needs a brave new owner to take it on the next step of its journey.
By Toby Keel Published
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The lives, wild parties and country houses of the Guinness family: Adrian Tinniswood on the Country Life PodcastThe writer and historian Adrian Tinniswood joins James Fisher on the Country Life Podcast.
By Toby Keel Published
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Six homes with fantastic features, from pools and paddocks to waterside settings, as seen in Country LifeOur look at the best homes to come to the market via Country Life this week includes a Chipping Norton farm and a Cornish dream home
By Toby Keel Published
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The elegant 19th century townhouse where JFK and Jackie Kennedy dreamed of the presidency, and made their wish came trueThis beautiful five-bedroom house in Washington DC's Georgetown was once home to perhaps the most celebrated couple of the 20th century: John F. Kennedy and his wife, Jackie Kennedy.
By Toby Keel Published
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The abolition of Stamp Duty: Will it happen? Could it happen? What would replace it? And what would be the impact?The Conservative Party promises to abolish Stamp Duty on primary residences if it wins the next election. We canvassed property experts from across the housing industry to see what the impact would be.
By Toby Keel Last updated
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A home for sale in one of the most celebrated artists' enclaves in London, where David Hockney sketched and Isadora Duncan dancedThis apartment in Pembroke Studios doesn't prompt the lament 'if these walls could talk' so much as 'if these walls could dance, sing and paint.'
By Toby Keel Published
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Amanda Owen: The Yorkshire Shepherdess on farming, life, and having tea with her sheepLife can be beautiful for farmers, and often is — but it can also be hard and bleak. James Robinson joined the Country Life Podcast to talk about the extraordinary ups and downs of the job he loves, and how Nature helps out when things get tough.
By Toby Keel Published
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20 country homes for sale, from Somerset to Scotland, as seen in Country LifeA charming cottage in a village in Surrey at under £600,000 and a seven bedroom mansion north of the border for not much more than that make our round-up of the best homes to come up for sale via Country Life this week.
By Toby Keel Published
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This country estate is peaceful, spacious and elegant... just please don't ask us how to pronounce itIn the heart of Wales's beautiful Irfon Valley, The Cefnllysgwynne Estate is seeking a new owner.
By Penny Churchill Published
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A Dartmoor home with one rather unusual catch: King Charles III has the right to come along and fish in your streamThe Brimpstead Estate is a home in one of the most beautiful parts of Devon that has everything — including a very famous former owner. Toby Keel explains more.
By Toby Keel Published
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James Robinson: A fifth-generation farmer on the ups and downs of 'the most glorious job in the world'Life can be beautiful for farmers, and often is — but it can also be hard and bleak. James Robinson joined the Country Life Podcast to talk about the extraordinary ups and downs of the job he loves, and how Nature helps out when things get tough.
By Toby Keel Published
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A Georgian country house that's immaculate, unlisted and surrounded by 21 unspoilt acres of SomersetFinding a grand, 220-year-old home that's unlisted in a wonderful location is cause for celebration. Penny Churchill looks at Werescote, on the Devon-Somerset border.
By Penny Churchill Published
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A country house escape where 'legend has it that Shakespeare came to stay' while writing The TempestStanden House on the Isle of Wight isn't just a grand country home — it's a grand country home that has a claim to have hosted the most famous playwright in history. Could it really be true?
By Toby Keel Published
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Six superb country houses for sale, from an Italian-style palazzo in the Cotswolds to a dramatic home on a Cornish headlandWe take a look at the finest houses to come to the market via Country Life this week.
By Toby Keel Published
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A vicarage designed by one of Queen Victoria's favourite architects, exquisitely refurbished to keep every ounce of original character — and even a few cracks and crumblesJust down the road from Soho Farmhouse, and under 20 miles from central Oxford, this home designed by George Gilbert Scott is a joy.
By Toby Keel Published
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A spectacular green oasis that offers a slice of country life in the very heart of one of the busiest places in LondonAmong the roads, rail and conference centres of Earls Court, there's a charming terrace where you can find homes that offer wonderful surprises — and they don't get much more wonderful than this one.
By Toby Keel Published
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Flying helicopters, rampaging elephants and painting Ronnie Wood: Hannah Shergold on the Country Life PodcastThe artist — and former Army helicopter pilot — Hannah Shergold joins James Fisher on the Country Life Podcast.
By Toby Keel Published
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Five charming Cotswolds houses for sale, from a 92-acre mini-estate to an ancient townhouse in one of the most sought-after spotsWe take a look at some of the best homes to come to the market via Country Life this week.
By Toby Keel Published
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It's already a grey, damp autumn and all of a sudden I'm dreaming of living in one of these palaces in MoroccoAutumn hasn't even technically started yet, but it's already too much for Toby Keel as he investigates some of the most beautiful properties for sale in Morocco.
By Toby Keel Published
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This barn that's (probably) made from The Mayflower's salvaged timbers, for sale as part of a £15 million Buckinghamshire estateA fanciful claim about the building of this barn on a grand estate in Buckinghamshire
By Toby Keel Published
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A hopelessly idyllic 400-year-old cottage that inspired one of the great children's books of the 20th centuryThis pretty waterside house — the real-life setting for a classic children's book — has lovely period features and three distinct wings, all just four miles from Cambridge in the village of Great Shelford.
By Toby Keel Last updated
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Five years, 10,400 miles and a boatload of stories: Mark Ashley-Miller on the Country Life PodcastMark Ashley-Miller, the man who sailed to every harbour in Britain and Ireland, joins the Country Life Podcast.
By Toby Keel Published
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Six superb homes, from chocolate box cottages to grand Tudor mansions, as seen in Country LifeOur regular round-up includes charming home counties houses and superb grand country house in Ireland.
By Toby Keel Published
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A billionaire's thatched cottage is for sale in Surrey, once owned by the oil magnate J. Paul GettyChestnut Cottage is a joyous little home — albeit one with the most unusual bedrooms to acreage to price balances we've ever seen. Toby Keel takes a look inside.
By Toby Keel Published
