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Telegraph
an hour ago
- General
- Telegraph
Before and after: How we modernised a Grade II-listed family home
When a blended family of five found themselves living somewhat unhappily in an open-plan barn conversion during lockdown, it became apparent that space alone doesn't necessarily create the perfect sanctuary. With three growing boys and competing demands for family life – quiet and privacy, workspaces and entertaining areas – they began the search for a home that could offer more than just square footage. That led them to a large historic house on the banks of the Thames in Berkshire, a property said to have been seized by Elizabeth I from the Bishop of Winchester and gifted to the courtier and politician Henry Neville, and which then belonged to the same family for centuries. 'It was a beautiful house from the outside,' recalls designer Nicky Mudie, founder of interiors studio Violet & George, who was brought in by the owners on the recommendation of a friend. 'The core of the house is medieval, with Arts and Crafts and Victorian additions, but inside it was completely unmodernised. It hadn't been touched in 40 or 50 years.' The Grade II-listed, six-bedroom house, situated on a floodplain, presented both opportunity and limitations. 'While there was a need to strip things back for refurbishment, we couldn't, or didn't, want to just rip things out,' says Mudie, who collaborated with architectural practice CSK Architects and specialist contractors Tenon on the project. 'Everything had to be done with care and respect for the history and structure of the building. We worked closely with English Heritage on aspects of the renovation.' The brief The owners wanted to preserve the soul of the building, but make it modern and usable. Along with necessary upgrades such as insulation, new wiring, repairs to the windows and flood protection, Mudie also took on the restoration of a set of Victorian tapestries in the entrance hall – a somewhat dominant feature the clients had initially loathed. 'The tapestries were quite moth-eaten, but they are listed, so they had to stay,' says Mudie. 'We cleaned them, reframed them more simply, and rebalanced the entire scheme of the room so that they could sing.' Additionally, some fireplaces were replaced with versions by Chesney's and Jamb, which were acceptable to the conservation officers, and the roof was repaired with handmade tiles. The flooring, too, required careful consideration – the engineered oak herringbone chosen for the entrance hall was tanked for underfloor heating and to protect against possible flooding. The layout The architects designed a large, contemporary, timber-framed extension to house a new, larger and lighter kitchen on the ground floor, and a large main bedroom directly above it. Elsewhere in the house, the family's brief defied the trend for knocking down walls. 'They definitely didn't want open plan,' says Mudie. 'They'd had that in their previous home, and it was a bit of a disaster with everyone on top of each other.' So, while the new extension introduced the large kitchen, dining and living room, the rest of the house was kept as separate rooms tailored to each family member's needs – although the functions of several rooms were changed to fit the way they wanted to live. The previous kitchen for example, a relatively dark room with low ceilings, has become a cosy cinema room; the former dining room became a study; and the former sitting room is now a serene drawing room, reading room and workspace. Upstairs, a new main bedroom suite was added on the first floor, above the kitchen extension. The look Another of Mudie's design challenges was reconciling the couple's differing aesthetic tastes. 'She would have gone far more traditional — antiques, vintage, colourful and layered,' says Mudie, 'while he loves very contemporary design: clean lines, sleek finishes, little colour, very John Pawson.' The compromise? A quiet, natural palette, a mix of hand-crafted pieces, and a luxurious feel throughout that nods to the home's Arts and Crafts heritage. Built-in storage, designed by Mudie and made by Tenon Construction, was also key to enable an uncluttered, streamlined look: 'The husband is precise and neat and was adamant everything should have its place,' she says. 'We even designed a designated place for storing parcel boxes.' The entrance hall Mudie's first hurdle here, after replacing the front door, was to convince the clients to trust her vision for the listed Victorian tapestries. After being restored, they were recontextualised in contemporary frames, which chime with the contemporary furniture in the room. Once the herringbone floor was down, Mudie played with textures, colours and just a few showstopping pieces. 'I think the juxtaposition of the mirror over the fireplace and that amazing table by Barber Osgerby for B&B Italia – that mix of contemporary furniture, the strength of the paint colours, the warmth of the floor – meant all of a sudden, the tapestries looked cool,' she says. 'I could picture how it would look straight away, but we did have to get the clients on board with it.' The upholstered bench is from Soho Home, the pendant plaster light is by Paolo Moschino and the black armchairs are by B&B Italia. The kitchen/dining room This was the major structural change of the two-year renovation: a full-width rear extension designed to create what Mudie calls 'a modern beast'. Mudie, along with the architects and the kitchen company Roundhouse, created a kitchen-dining space that feels open, airy and sociable. To work with the Benchmark dining table and chairs, which the clients already owned, Mudie added a large chandelier by Giopato & Coombes. The light, bright kitchen offers a lot of practical storage, while decoratively, the natural materials create a homely, cosy and liveable feel. In the sitting area of the room, microcement walls by Clayworks are the perfect backdrop to stoneware wall lights by Mariza Galani and a custom-made sofa by Violet & George, upholstered in a Marvic fabric, and the big fluffy armchairs from SCP contrast perfectly with the smooth surfaces of the walls and floors. The cinema room The former kitchen, a low-ceilinged room at the back of the house, has been transformed into a dark and quiet cocoon with a large modular sofa, moody walls, and a carpeted floor. It has become a favourite spot for family film nights. The study What was the dining room is now a serene study for the husband, who has a tech business that handles auction-house platforms. 'He'd bought a lot of the artworks that you see in the house, and particularly in his study,' says Mudie. He wanted a room geared towards work, with a decorative scheme that would complement the desk, which he already owned. Mudie set about adding plenty of built-in storage, along with sumptuous soft furnishings including a B&B Italia sofa and linen curtains in a fabric by Elitis. A pendant light from Pinch completes the look. The drawing room This room was designed specifically for the wife, who used to work in HR and gave up her job during the project to give the house her full attention. Her brief was for a soft, comfortable place to escape to with friends for a quiet glass of wine, but where she could also work, so Mudie added a foldaway desk from Another Country. The palette is light: sofas by DePadova and Paul Smith and a Tacchini marble coffee table are combined with a patterned wool and jute rug by Coral & Hive. Main bedroom and dressing room Upstairs, in the extension, the new main bedroom was kept modern, pared-back and light-filled, an effect that is enhanced by its vaulted ceilings, clad in tongue-and-groove panelling. To contrast with the raw look of the microcement walls by ClayWorks, Mudie added warmth with light oak floorboards and softness with simple soft furnishings. The bed and headboard were made in the Violet & George workshop and upholstered in a fabric by Yarn Creative, while the Benchmark bench, which already belonged to the clients, was reupholstered in a Kirkby Design fabric. The ash and stainless-steel floor-lamp is by Joe Armitage. The bedroom leads into an en-suite bathroom with a free-standing bath and walk-in shower, and on the other side of the bathroom, Mudie turned a former bedroom into a dressing room with built-in cabinetry and a leather-topped dressing table by Porro. The curtains here, as throughout the house, were made at the Violet & George workshop.
Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Business
- Telegraph
‘I was ridiculed for buying a London flat, but it's already gained £100k'
As a single woman in her 20s, owning my flat gives me a level of independence and security that would be impossible otherwise. Dodgy landlords are no longer a concern of mine and I don't have a looming eviction date. I don't even have to worry about finding a suitable partner with the means to escape the pressured rental market, as the cost of renting a room in the capital continues to surge. Before I bought my flat last year, I'd been a student, sleeping on sofas for weeks at a time while taking on summer jobs. After that I became a renter, living for two years with university friends. But once the keys were in my hand, I suddenly had something I'd not had since I'd left my family home for university – a permanent base. My colleague, Josh Kirby, writes that he does not 'believe a flat in London is a good investment for me at this moment in time'. But I decided to buy because I wanted a proper home. And while some like Josh have cast doubt on the wisdom of buying a flat in the capital, I think it is still a sensible option. And if it is located in the right area and well looked after, there is little concern about it holding its value. Some worry about the uncertainty around the current housing market, but I took a gamble on a nice flat in a popular location. I now live near the Thames, a 30-minute commute from work, and near a number of friends. And so far, I've had no reason to worry about it. In fact, Zoopla has estimated that in the year since I bought it my flat has increased in value by £100,000 – which, frankly, does seem ridiculous. But I don't place much weight on the value growth: I have no plans to sell my flat in the near or even mid-term and, without sounding too much like an estate agent, looking at your home as only an investment is a mistake. That's not to say that money was not on my mind. I have been up front with friends, and in my previous column, that my parents gave me a very sizeable deposit to help me buy. But I am far from the only one. My mortgage is entirely my responsibility, as are the ground rent, service charges, utilities and upkeep. I was paying over £1,080 a month in rent; now, my mortgage payments are £650. Even when service charges (mine went down this year) and ground rent (peppercorn) are taken into account, I am still better off. And I've got a fixed rate of 3.99pc for the next four years, so I don't have to endlessly stress about the latest inflation figures. Currently, I overpay by roughly half, because if I spent the full 40 years paying off my mortgage, I'd pay close to £500,000 in interest. That's more than £3 for every £1 I borrowed. And because I bought last year, I benefited from lower stamp duty – saving me £4,000. I also have lodgers. They get a good deal, with below-market rent, and I get help saving towards some of the renovations I want to do. Being a landlord – even in a relatively informal way – has been eye-opening. I feel confident I haven't lost any future opportunities by being tied down: if I wanted to move away for a period, it would be pretty easy. Flats in my postcode are currently being let for as much as £2,700 a month, and charging a monthly rent of £2,000 would more than cover my costs. Even with the upcoming changes in the Renters' Rights Bill, I'd still be able to regain the flat within four months if I wanted to move back in (assuming tenants moved out as asked). Making my flat my own One of the joys of being a homeowner is that you get to decide what the place you live in looks like. No more 'landlord specials' for me – I can decorate to my heart's content. Considered renovations can also add significant value to a home. I increased the size of the second bedroom by moving a wall, and have replaced some flooring. I also plan to have a new bathroom – all of which should help to keep the value of my flat level. While these are not insignificant investments, increasing the value of the flat isn't my only driver. Improvements make the flat a nicer place to live. It's a different priority, but one that is just as important. It should also make it easier to sell. Before I bought it, the flat had been let to social housing tenants and had not been that well looked after. I made the decision to buy it based on its good bones. Now it's being looked after – and with no stars in my eyes as to what I could sell it for – I am confident it would go quickly if I wanted it to. Now is a good time to buy a flat There are a lot of numbers floating around which make the London market look less than healthy. The price of flats has not significantly increased since 2016, with buyers put off by concerns around high service charges, cladding issues and incomplete leasehold reform. But one thing this meant for me was I could negotiate a significant discount. My flat was initially listed for tens of thousands of pounds more than I paid for it. The sellers, who the estate agent told me were living abroad, had already been almost the whole way through the sale process once before, but the buyers had dropped out. With weakened interest in flats generally, even my two-bed, within walking distance of Canary Wharf, was struggling to sell at its original price. The average home sale at the moment is being agreed at 3pc – £16,000 – lower than the average asking price, Zoopla has found. I used this knowledge, and my position as a chain-free buyer with a mortgage already approved, to promise a swift and easy sale, and secured a larger discount as a result. Obviously, not every flat on the market will turn out to be a bargain. But as sellers move away, buyers who can be flexible and move quickly will reap the rewards. Mortgage lenders are rapidly relaxing affordability rules and stress tests in order to lend more to first-time buyers, and are lobbying hard for regulators to go further. This means that homes which could have been out of budget may now be within reach. Maybe I only strongly support buying because, for now, it has worked very well for me. But the fact remains that it works very well for most, providing a level of housing and financial security you can't get through renting. That's why people want it so badly.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
NEW glass floor cabin opens at London cable car costing twice a regular ticket
Thrill-seekers can now book a glass floor cabin at London's cable car between Greenwich and the Royal Docks. Transport for London (TfL) has said that from today (June 20), it is possible to book the 'unique' glass floor experience at IFS Cloud Cable Car. Initially opened in 2012, the cable car has attracted a steady stream of visitors, hitting a record 1.5 million passengers last year. This is despite the fact it has failed to entice commuters to use the route. READ MORE - Earlier this year, TfL pushed back its opening hours, claiming only 20 customers a day used the cable car in its first hour of operation. Two of the 34 cabins have been fitted with the glass floor, offering enhanced views of the River Thames and landmarks such as the O2 arena. The cable car offers views of the O2 arena in Greenwich (Image: TfL) Josh Crompton, TfL's head of the IFS Cloud Cable Car, said: 'The cable car has been one of London's leading attractions for more than a decade and is a much-loved landmark in the city's skyline. 'We're excited to offer this new experience to customers, extending the incredible views from the cabin even further thanks to the panoramic glass floor.' TfL has recommended that, 'to avoid disappointment', passengers should book in advance if they want to ride in the glass floor cabin. It will still be possible to buy a ticket at one of the two terminals, depending on availability. Ticket prices are substantially more than the £13 for a trip in a regular cabin. READ MORE - Off-peak tickets cost £25 for an adult, increasing to £35 at peak times, which covers weekends and school holidays. All glass floor cabin tickets come with 'fast track' perks. For those booking online for trips between June 23 and August 31, the code 'GFE20' will provide 20 per cent off the ticket price. In the financial year 2023/24, TfL's revenue from the cable car hit £10 million, which was £1 million higher than the previous 12 months. Freedom of Information (FoI) data suggests that the cable car had an operating surplus of £2.6 million over the same time period.
Times
14 hours ago
- Times
The UK's most glorious riverside pubs where you can stay the night
You can't beat sitting riverside on a sunny day, soothed by the sound of the water and the occasional quack or splosh of a paddle from a passing kayaker, with a cool fizz or local ale in hand. These inns have delightful outdoor spaces and lovely rooms to make a weekend of visiting them, so there is more time to stroll riverside paths or perhaps even get on the water. I've spent a couple of years visiting as many inns such as these as I can to find the best for my new book, Paddle and Pub, covering more than 100 of the best hostelries that you can reach by kayak or paddleboard. Even if you want to stay on dry land they make for gorgeous escapes. This article contains affiliate links, which can earn us revenue Londoners and visitors to the capital looking for an outdoor space along the Thames to enjoy a Pimm's or three en plein air are spoilt for choice, with dozens of inns having existed to lubricate boaters on the river for centuries. One — dating from 1665 and with great, colourful rooms attached — is the Mitre, which once housed guests to Hampton Court Palace, its neighbour. Sit on the waterside Aix Terrace with a rosé, sip a cocktail in the Boathouse or dine on tomato gazpacho and chicken Milanese in the riverside 1665 Brasserie (mains from £20).Details B&B doubles from £200 ( On the banks of the mighty River Thames, the Compleat Angler is a longstanding riverside boozer, although it has morphed from the simple inn it once was into a luxurious hotel with fine dining. It was one of the earliest guesthouses in the country, yet was at risk of overtourism even in Dickens' day — the writer commented in his Dictionary of the Thames that it was often booked out by boating parties. These days there are Sindhu, Atul Kochhar's upmarket Indian restaurant (mains from £19), the Riverside Restaurant fordishes such as chargrilled monkfish (mains from £20) and rooms that are pretty if slightly chintzy — really you're here for the food and the history. Details B&B doubles from £150 ( Ten of the 25 rooms here offer views of an idyllic bend in the River Hodder as it curves around the grounds, with the fells of the Forest of Bowland beyond. Heavy wooden bedheads, unusual framed fabrics and antiques bring country house character to all, and the food — under the chef Jamie Cadman for two decades — has helped to put this quiet corner of Lancashire on the map. Try the fish pie or slow-cooked shoulder of pork with ham hock fritter alongside any one of the 400 wines sourced by the pub's vintners. The pub has four rods for trout and salmon fishing along seven miles of the Hodder, as well as yoga and spa treatments on offer. The Piggeries, its stylish self-catering cottage, has three double bedrooms and a garden leading to the water. Details B&B doubles from£160; three nights' self-catering for six from £1,940 ( • 15 of the most beautiful places in England In a prime spot on the River Tay, known for its salmon fishing, this boutique pub with rooms dating from 1820 has fishing rights and fly-fishing courses, so it's hugely popular with anglers. Even if you're not so inclined, though, it's well worth visiting for the watery views and the food, made with a touch of 'Gallic zest', they say, with ingredients supplied by gillies, farmers and gardeners, plus the in-house butcher. Try a tomato and Crowdie cheese mousse, then a Meikleour venison saddle (mains from £17). Its 11 bedrooms are decked out in floral fabrics and an array of colours, with Arran Aromatics toiletries and sherry decanters on the nightstands. There are also 18 holiday cottages nearby — some with river views in the walled garden of Meikleour House, less than a mile away, another in the local village. Part of the Meikleour Estate, the pub is within reach of Perth, Scone and B&B doubles from £120 ( • Revealed: 100 Best Places to Stay in the UK for 2025 This 18th-century inn on the Harbourne River, a tributary of the Dart three miles south of Totnes, was owned by the flamboyant TV chef Keith Floyd between 1989 and 1996. He spent millions of pounds doing it up, adding eccentrically decorated bedrooms and anchoring fake crocodiles in the water to scare tourists. Now somewhat less wacky, but still with a dining room named for its former owner, the pub is in a lovely spot where the riverbanks are lined with tall trees. The present chef, Anton Piotrowski, jointly won MasterChef: The Professionals in 2012. The six bedrooms, in an adjoining building, are simple, but the owners are planning a renovation. Hire kayaks from Paddle Devon in Totnes and go all the way to Dartmouth, Stoke Gabriel or the Dartington Estate, before finishing with a beer back on the sundeck of the inn (half-day guided kayak trip £47pp; B&B doubles from £80 ( • 19 of the best UK pubs with rooms The idyllic village of Grantchester, south of Cambridge, is on the River Cam, which used to tempt Byron in for a dip, leaving in his memory an adjacent spot named Byron's Pool, now part of a nature reserve. There are a gaggle of pubs here too, including the Blue Ball, a 250-year-old coaching inn with river views, local ales, home-cooked food and a two-bedroom holiday apartment in creamy colours overlooking Grantchester Meadows. Walk a couple of miles north along the river — perhaps joining the wild swimmers for a dip — and you'll reach St John's College and the intricate Bridge of Sighs, which has an arched base similar to its Venetian namesake, as well as the Backs university fields and Mathematical Bridge. Nearby, the Mill Pond is lined with pubs and you can hire a punt here — look out for the Pimm's Punt floating bar. Details One night's self-catering for four from £200 ( • 20 top pubs in the UK to visit by paddleboard, kayak or canoe There are excellent waterside pubs along the River Wye that are perfect stop-offs for boaters and paddlers. One of the smarter options is the Hope & Anchor, near the Welsh border, with a large, busy beer garden on the riverbank and the nearby town full of bookshops and quirky cafés. The pub hosts live music at its bandstand, while the Hut, in its garden, serves wood-fired pizzas and cakes alongside drinks. The food in the main restaurant runs from Wye Valley beer-battered cod and chips and Herefordshire steak burgers to not-so-typical poke bowls (mains from £16). Many of the 12 neat bedrooms have river B&B doubles from £81 ( Gemma Bowes is the author of Paddle and Pub: The Best British Pubs to Get to By Kayak, Canoe or Paddleboard (Bloomsbury, £19.99, pp240). To order a copy go to Free UK standard P&P on online orders over £25. Special discount available for Times+ members Have we missed your favourite? Share your recommendations in the comments
The Guardian
17 hours ago
- Business
- The Guardian
Ministers set out plans to spend £725bn on UK infrastructure over 10 years
Ministers have pledged to spend £9bn a year on fixing crumbling schools, hospitals, courts and prisons over the next decade as part of the government's infrastructure strategy. Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the Treasury, set out plans on Thursday to spend a minimum of £725bn over 10 years to boost UK-wide infrastructure and achieve a 'national renewal'. Jones announced that £6bn a year would go to repairing hospitals in England, £3bn to fixing and upgrading schools and colleges in England and £600m to courts and prisons in England and Wales. The money will fund building improvements including removing crumbling reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (Raac) in hospitals and strengthening safety and security in prisons. Jones told MPs: 'Done properly it will result in tangible improvements to the fabric of our country, our local roads and high streets renewed so communities are even better places to live.' The strategy also includes £1bn to fix roads, bridges and flyovers across the UK and £590m to start work on the Lower Thames Crossing project. Some £16bn will go towards building 500,000 new homes through a new publicly owned National Housing Bank. Richard Fuller, the Conservative shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, urged ministers to set out which major projects are being abandoned and explain why. Business and industry groups, who have long argued the need for a long-term vision to provide certainty and encourage investment, broadly welcomed the strategy – although the government portal of actual projects will not now be launched online for another month. This project 'pipeline' will be updated every six months. Alex Vaughan, the CEO of construction and engineering firm Costain, said the launch was 'a crucial step towards ending the short-termism that has held our sector back'. The Railway Industry Association chief executive, Darren Caplan, said a 10-year strategy and the commitment to publish a pipeline in July was extremely welcome, adding: 'We look forward to seeing the full details of the pipeline, which will need to give businesses sufficient clarity to plan ahead.' Henri Murison, chief executive of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, said: 'A government operating within the spending rules it has set for itself demonstrates real commitment – one that can unlock private investment and finance, which will take confidence from this stability.' John Dickie, chief executive at BusinessLDN, said it showed welcome government recognition 'that Britain needs a clear, committed, long-term pipeline of future public investment to give the private sector the confidence to invest'. Sam Gould, director of policy at the Institution of Civil Engineer, said it was 'a significant moment' with lots of positives, but added: 'The sector will need more information on private finance models, and on how [it] will meet the demands of our changing climate.' The strategy does not cover so-called megaprojects, which cost more than £10bn and take more than 10 years to deliver. These include the HS2 railway, Sizewell C nuclear plant and the Dreadnought submarine programme.
