It’s Monday, the start of a new work week, and the weather at the weekend was bad. With that in mind, we are not going to get too clever with our property stuff today. We are going to, in the words of LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy, ‘shut up and play the hits’.
And what a hit it is. Mount Offham in West Malling, Kent. Almost 10,000sq ft of opulent splendour in 31.6 acres of the Garden of England. Yours for offers in excess of £5 million with Savills.
Originally constructed between 1840–70 by the Rhodes family, cousins of Queen Elizabeth II, the property wawa owned in the 1950s by Baron Plunkett, who was apparently something known as the ‘Master of the Queen’s Bedchamber’. More interestingly, he was also chairman of the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings and it is he who added many of the aesthetic features at Mount Offham, such as glazing bars, cornices and marble fireplaces.
Since then, the property has been in the care of its current owners since 1993, and has been lovingly maintained since then. Mount Offham is now a ‘charming and compact’ estate, with seven bedrooms in a primary residence, as well as a range of versatile commercial and leisure elements.
Arranged over four floors, the property is ideal for both family living and formal entertaining. There are all the usual hits of a grand house of this kind, namely high ceilings, exposed flooring, sash windows, dado rails, original shutters, fireplaces and bay windows.
We could go through it room-by-room, but best to just sit back and enjoy the pictures.
Outside, the excitement continues. Approached via a long, tree-lined driveway, the property and its park-like grounds are predominantly laid to lawn, with plenty of specimen trees and a lake beyond.
There is also an outdoor heated swimming pool, and an outdoor kitchen with Wolf appliances. A tennis court? Why yes of course.
For those interested in equestrian entertainment, a U-shaped stable block is on sight with 10 stalls, a barn, hay store and tack room, manege, lunging area and grazing paddocks.
But wait, there’s more. The property also features a grass air strip, authorised by the UK Border Force for international flights, and a helicopter hangar and apron. Further outbuildings, mostly for administrative use, make up the rest of the 31.6 acres.
Mount Offham is for sale with Savills for £5 million. For more information and pictures, click here
20 wonderful homes, from clifftop cottages to cosy medieval dwellings, as seen in Country Life
Take a look at some of the best homes to come to the market via Country Life in recent days.
A 400-year-old fantasy house with moat, four-poster beds and a 'magic' swimming pool that converts into a ballroom
The majestic Ludstone Hall is one of Shropshire's greatest privately-owned country estates — and it's now looking for a new owner.
Credit: Fine and Country
A gorgeous Elizabethan manor with all the modern trimmings that may have been home to Anne Boleyn
Wymondley Bury is a 10-bedroom home where history meets comfort in Hertfordshire.
Stability, confidence — and lots of new homes: Property experts on what Labour's General Election win mean for the housing market
Britain woke up on Friday to change of government. Plenty of change is expected across the board, but what will
-
17 outstanding homes for sale across Britain, from under £250k to £6.5 million, as seen in Country LifeSomething for every budget in this week's round up of homes across the country that have come to market via Country Life.
-
'We started thinking: if we were going to design a bike for Aston Martin, what would it look like? And then we simply couldn’t stop': Aston's new bike has everything you could ever dream of — except a price tagThe new Aston Martin .1R bicycle, a collaboration with manufacturer J.Laverack, leaves Paul Henderson stirred rather than shaken.
-
17 outstanding homes for sale across Britain, from under £250k to £6.5 million, as seen in Country Life
Something for every budget in this week's round up of homes across the country that have come to market via Country Life.
-
An utterly charming island home in Scotland with gardens so beautiful they made the cover of Country LifeAn Cala on the Isle of Seil has a fascinating history that is only enhanced by its amazing setting.
-
Soft tones and a sense of place: A Mayfair duplex that breaks the modern mouldA new designer-led residence at 60 Curzon in Mayfair reminds us that everything new doesn't necessarily have to look it.
-
'The very best North Yorkshire has to offer': The £25 million Kirkham EstateWith 1,103 acres and on the market for the first time in a century, we've got a new frontrunner for the sale of the year.
-
The reality of 20 years of house price rises in Britain, from the places that have had a charmed life to the spots where it's a struggle to move back homeAt first glance the ups and downs of the property market seem to even out over time — but dig in to the numbers and you'll see wild regional variations which paint a very difference picture. Annabel Dixon analyses new research which tells the story.
-
A historic Yorkshire hall, meticulously restored to its former 18th-century magnificenceWomersley Park is a masterpiece and one of Yorkshire's great historic houses. And it could be yours.
-
Rowing past dreams: An idyllic riverside home with a boathouse, croquet pitch and Olympic pedigreeThe Manor in Long Wittenham is a perfect Thames-side getaway. Comes with a free boat.
-
A bucolic Sussex home that's 'like stepping into a fairytale', yet just 30 minutes from central LondonFelmere House is a playground for nature and only 30 minutes from London.
