A wisteria-clad Cotswolds home with a name that'll put a smile on your face
17th century architecture and early-Victorian design flair combine in the beautiful Pud Hill, in a village in the heart of the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire.
A couple of times a year, pretty much without fail, a story goes viral about the funniest place names in Britain. Those six month gaps are long enough to forget some of the funniest examples, and so, once again pretty much without fail, we end up clicking on those stories for a chuckle about the likes of Wetwang (Yorkshire), Shitterton (Dorset) and Twatt (Orkney).
The problem with such, er, overt vulgarity is that it misses the richer, gentler world of quietly quirky place names. Just today, for example, I discovered that Bignor and Littleton are villages just up the road from each other in Sussex; that Dull, in Scotland, is twinned with Boring, Oregon; and that there's a place called Pudding Pie Hill in Yorkshire. And that brings us to the quirkily-named house on this page: Pud Hill, in Inchbrook, Gloucestershire, which is for sale through Hamptons at £1.95 million.
It may not sound glamorous, but this is a very fine house indeed, a wisteria-clad beauty with a history going back to the 17th century, according to its Grade II listing at Historic England.
Pud Hill as it stands today is defined just as much — if not more — by the work which took place here in the 1840s addition, when its interiors took on grand Victorian proportions with exceptional historic detailing.
The Gothic-style windows, for example, not only allow unimpeded access to spectacular Nailsworth Valley views, but they let natural light flood in throughout the house, including through the showstopper in the stairwell, which illuminates the stone cantilevered staircase.
The property has four reception rooms, plus seven bedrooms over two floors, as well as an extra bedroom in a separate annexe.
The cellar alone is bigger than some houses: at 886 square feet, this could make an uncommonly good wine store for a true aficionado. Outside, the grounds run to just under two acres, with a 2¼-acre paddock and stable block available to buy by separate negotiation.
The setting, Inchbrook, is a small village, but the thriving market town of Nailsworth is only a 10-minute walk away along a quiet cycle path.
Stroud and Tetbury are also easily reached, though if you're looking for more funny place names than useful towns for shopping, you'll be delighted to hear that Balls Green and Box are close by, while Waterley Bottoms is about a 20 minute drive.
Pud Hill is for sale through Hamptons at £1.95 million — see more details.
