It’s always important to have a favourite castle that you would like to buy, if you had the money. There are many reasons for this. It’s important to imagine having silly battles against your friends, should they ever arrive with siege engines. Castles are just quite cool. They are useful for throwing good parties. On the whole, considering the size of them, they are relatively cheap.
There are, of course, many downsides to having a castle. They are very big, so hoovering will take some time. They are usually very old, which means that things will break and be expensive to replace. They might be haunted. And so on. Is it possible to have a castle that looks old, with crenellations and all the rest, but with all the modern trimmings on the inside?
The answer is: yes it is, and it’s called Brankstone Grange in Fife. For sale with Strutt & Parker for £3,950,000, it’s something of a marvel. On the outside, large intimidating castle. On the inside, a very up-to-date family home. You even get decent signal for your phone, apparently.
Brankstone Grange is believed to date from about 1864 and was designed by David Bryce of Edinburgh, with later additions by R R Anderson. It is, from the outside, a very handsome stone-built baronial castle, with all the trimmings: castellated tower, big windows, sweeping drive and 11,000sq ft of space over five floors.
Where it really shines, however, is inside. The current owners have undertaken a staggering renovation of the interiors, with a new biomass heating system, roof work, wiring, plumbing and impressive design and decoration. New wooden floors, Italian porcelain tiles, Roger Oates runners, new carpets, and so on.
Plenty of the original period features have been left in situ and enhanced, creating a home that pays homage to its history while at the same time being eminently liveable. In total, the property offers eight bedrooms and comes with 34 acres, which include a walled garden.
As for its location, the property is only 27 miles from Edinburgh and the Gleneagles Hotel and golf club is only a 30-minute drive. So not only do you get a grand castle with functioning interiors, it’s also not in the middle of nowhere. Brankstone Grange has certainly shot up my list.
James Fisher is the deputy digital editor of countrylife.co.uk. He lives in London, but dreams of castles
Credit: Strutt & Parker
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