The Highland getaway of Elizabeth II's personal florist is for sale at £750,000 — and if there's house in Britain with a better view than this one, we'd love to see it
Ard Daraich was the Scottish bolthole of the utterly remarkable Constance Spry. Today, it's seeking a new owner.
Over here, you'll see Ben Nevis; across there, Glencoe. Look along the Loch one way, and you'll come to Fort William; head down the other side, and you'll hit Duart Castle. Wander over the hills behind you, and you'll see the Isle of Mull. If ever a house was a microcosm of the glorious pleasures of the Highlands and Islands, it's Ard Daraich. And it's currently on the market, with Knight Frank asking for offers over £750,000.
The breathtaking views speak for themselves — we make no apologies for going a bit mad with the photographs.
But the house itself is just as lovely: this is a charmingly traditional four-bedroom lodge that retains the same look and feel that it's probably had since it was built in 1919, with floors of stone and timber, Chesterfield sofas, four-poster beds and wood-panelled walls.
Yet don't be deceived: the house has been very carefully updated, and thus you'll find modern kitchen units, central heating and various other touches which mean this is much more than a museum piece.
If you have already fallen in love with the place you're in good company, for this was once the Highland home of one of the most remarkable women of the 20th century: Constance Spry.
13th June 1953: Eric Bedford, Chief Architect of the Ministry of Works and floral arranger Constance Spry discuss the placement of six tubs of poppies arranged by disabled servicemen for the coronation route of Queen Elizabeth II.
After a conventional start to her adult life, Spry left her (abusive) first husband during the First World War, taking her two young children with her to start a new life in Barrow-in-Furness. She joined the civil service, working as head of women's welfare in the Ministry of Aircraft Production, though after the war she moved into education, becoming headmistress of a school in London.
Part of her remit at the Homerton and South Hackney Day Continuation School was teaching flower arranging to the girls in her charge, something which started her on a road to becoming one of Britain's most influential florists. She was enormously successful, doing the flowers for Elizabeth II — first for her wedding, and then six years later for the Coronation itself.
A kitchen ideal for whipping up some coronation chicken.
Even more remarkably, her role in the Coronation went beyond the flowers. Spry and her Cordon Bleu-trained friend Rosemary Hume were asked to create a special dish to be served to the foreign delegates attending the event. The dish they created? Coronation chicken.
At this point, you won't even be vaguely surprised that when David Austin created his very first rose, he named it Constance Spry. Nor will you be surprised to hear that the six and a half acres of gardens and grounds included with the purchase price are as beautiful as anything you'll find at these latitudes. Just wonderful.
A Constance Spry rose.
Ard Daraich is for sale through Knight Frank — see more details.
