The Prince of Wales has put the ruined Trematon Castle in Corwall on the market, with a guide price of ?150,000 to ?200,000. Prince Charles owns the 1,000 year-old building as the current Duke of Cornwall. The nine-acre estate overlooking Plymouth harbour comes complete with its own nine-bedroom Regency mansion built in 1808, nestled within the castle walls. However, on top of the purchase price, the buyer will be asked to pay an annual rent of ?24,000 to the Duke. What is more, the lease runs out in 14 years time, when the castle reverts to the ownership of the Duke of Cornwall. Trematon Castle was originally built on the site of a Roman fort by a Norman Lord, Reginald de Valletort, before the Dukes of Cornwall took possession in 1337. It was later used in 1580 by Sir Francis Drake as a holding depot for treasure looted from the New World.
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The thrillingly bleak Devon house that inspired The Hound of the Baskervilles is now part of a peaceful farmyard retreatFowlescombe Farm near Ivybridge, in Devon, is a ‘complete retreat from everyday life’ — and the rumoured inspiration for one of the best known and loved Sherlock Holmes stories.
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One puffin, two puffin, three puffin, four: The National Trust’s puffin count gets underway on the Farne IslandsThough the islands' shags and terns are in decline, its puffin population has been growing — and the trust is streaming a live recording of their burrows.
