Ceiling beams, stone floors and gorgeous gardens at an ivy-clad manor house in one of the most beautiful villages in the Cotswolds
Penny Churchill takes a look at The Manor House, Blockley.


The Cotswolds was one area of the UK that more than held its own in 2024, due in no small measure to the return of American buyers, who remain captivated by its history, heritage and cosmopolitan lifestyle. All three are encapsulated in the picture-postcard stone village of Blockley, 3½ miles equidistant from Moreton-in-Marsh and Chipping Campden, a large part of which is designated a conservation area.
How nice is this place? Well, the village was voted ‘the best place to live in the South-West’ by The Sunday Times in 2017. That said, it doesn’t even seem to be in the regional top five any more, nor indeed anywhere among the 72 places that get a nod across Britain. We’re going to go out on a limb and say that’s probably more to do with the caprices and arbitrary criteria which tend to shape such lists, rather than a vertiginous decline. And if you’re prepared to overlook the risk that it is the latter, then there’s great news: a beautiful house in Blockley has just come up on to the market.
Plum Fenton of Savills country department is overseeing the sale, for the first time in 30 years, of historic, Grade II*-listed The Manor House at a guide price of £4.25m for the main house set in almost an acre of enchanting gardens. If a measly almost-an-acre, doesn’t sound enough, you can buy a further four-fifths of an acre of lower garden — which has potential for residential development — for a very-reasonable sounding £250,000.
The Manor House stands on what was the site of the medieval summer palace of the Bishops of Worcester until the Dissolution of the Monasteries and, today, forms part of the boundary to the village churchyard.
Remodelled in the 18th century, it retains many period features, including gabled projections, sash and mullioned windows and a Tudor-arch doorway, and enjoys breathtaking views over the surrounding Cotswolds National Landscape.
Lovingly maintained by its long-term owners, the house offers 7,385sq ft of comfortable accommodation on three floors.
There are five charming reception rooms, a large kitchen/breakfast room, three bedroom suites, two further bedrooms, family bath and shower rooms. Most intriguingly of all, there are five attic rooms, which makes the whole place sound like the sort of delightful, quirky and rambling country house we’d all love to have grown up in.
Sign up for the Country Life Newsletter
Exquisite houses, the beauty of Nature, and how to get the most from your life, straight to your inbox.
Credit: Strutt and Parker
Best country houses for sale this week
An irresistible West Country cottage and a magnificent Cumbrian country house make our pick of the finest country houses for
-
LAPICIDA — Tile & Stone Specialist
Lapicida is a world-class specialist in luxury surfaces.
By Country Life Published
-
What lies beneath: The weird and wonderful things lurking in Britain's museum basements
From radioactive rocks to great white sharks, and a dolphin called Boris, the things stored in Britain's museum basements make the mind boggle — and now plans are afoot to improve visitor access.
By Deborah Nicholls-Lee Published
-
A converted bothy on the shores of Loch Tay from which to enjoy the fresh tastes of Spring
Waterfall Cottage offers four bedrooms and a garden that stretches right down to the lapping waters.
By James Fisher Published
-
An idyllic home in Hampshire that's perfect for the musical mind
Lyewood House sits in 3.5 acres and comes with a purpose built recording studio and an outdoor heated pool.
By Arabella Youens Published
-
A well-connected rural playground with 23 acres on the edge of the South Downs National Park
Old House Farm is an impressive family home with a wealth of amenities that would inspire any rural passion.
By Arabella Youens Published
-
18 magnificent homes for sale from £550k to £20 million, as seen in Country Life
From a charming thatched cottage to a 300-acre estate with its own vineyard, here's our pick of places to come to the market via Country Life of late.
By Toby Keel Published
-
If heaven is on earth, it might be in this home with a converted chapel that is now a swimming pool
5 Wood Barton Town House is part of an exclusive 80-acre development in Devon that also comes with fishing rights on the River Avon and four bedrooms.
By James Fisher Published
-
The sounds of spring and stained glass in an Arts-and-Crafts masterpiece in Dorset
With 35 acres, more than 10 bedrooms, a swimming pool and tennis court, Winterfield has it all.
By James Fisher Published
-
An eight-bedroom wonder in East Sussex where the outdoors are an adventure
The interiors of Old Middleton are pretty good too.
By Arabella Youens Published
-
A lakeside farmhouse on the market in the beautiful heart of Pembrokeshire
A lake, streams, 15 acres and five bedrooms. Rogershook might have it all.
By James Fisher Published