1. Iconic three-bedroom Cotswolds home, £1.6m
If places were people, then this home would be an A-list celebrity.
The Bridge House is located in the pretty South Cotswolds village of Castle Combe, a tourist destination and regular TV and film location, with War Horse and Dr Dolittle among its credits.
This house might look familiar but not just from the silver screen – it is one of the most-photographed houses in the UK, apparently.
Why? Because of its quintessentially English 1600s and Grade II Listed exterior.
Despite looking like a teensy chocolate box cottage from the road, it is 2,700 sq ft inside.
The ground floor is open plan and double-height with vaulted ceilings and an oil-fired Aga.
There are inglenook fireplaces throughout, but this modernised cottage is cosiness incarnate thanks to underfloor heating beneath the flagstones.
The gardens are simply stunning. Within the grounds there are a range of outbuildings too, including two studios and a colonial-style covered porch terrace.
Available via James Pyle & Co
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2. Four-bed California-style pavilion home in Cornwall, £2.25m
If a Bond villain was particularly into wellness and wild swimming, then this might be the perfect lair for them.
This fabulous four-bedroom cantilevered house of dreams near St Agnes in Cornwall is surrounded by three ponds, so it can bask in reflected glory.
One of the ponds is designed for swimming (chlorine-free obviously!), another is for wildlife, and the third is simply for reflection – whether aesthetic or mindful we’re not sure!
The spring-fed crystal clear ponds are intersected with walkways and blades, creating beautiful waterfall features. There’s also a hot tub and a sunken fire pit to enjoy.
As well as four bedrooms and a generous living area in the main house, there’s a separate work studio in the grounds.
Did we mention there’s parking for six cars and electric gates? This place is enough to turn us to an international life of crime worthy of one of Ian Fleming’s bad guys.
Available via Jackson Stops
3. Seven-bedroom converted mill in Bedfordshire last sold more than a century ago, £3.5m
You can understand why if you owned this converted water mill with adjacent windmill you might want to hang onto it.
Edlesborough Mill in Dunstable, Bedfordshire, was built in the early 19th century and was last known to have been sold in 1917.
Set right on the River Ouzel on one side, overlooking mill ponds on the other, and with the Chiltern Hills beyond, the position is, quite frankly, exceptional.
The former watermill, which has five bedrooms, is a lovely spacious house which retains the original working components of the mill in the living room. That’s quite an original feature!
A little to the west of the mill is the Old Windmill, which has two bedrooms and has been converted to provide unusual accommodation across five floors.
The two principal ponds at Edlesborough Mill are edged with graceful weeping willows and an avenue of pollarded poplars.
Whoever bags this place will want to stay for the next hundred years.
Available via Strutt & Parker
4. Six-bedroom Oast House with twin roundels in Kent, £1.5m
This family home is an iconic example of Britain’s beer brewing past, with two remaining roundels which would have served to kiln (dry) hops.
With some incredible round rooms, including a library, a study, a bedroom and a round bathroom with a free-standing bath slap bang in the middle, there’s plenty to recommend it.
Nouds Oast was originally constructed in 1850. The main building adjoins a two-bed cottage, offering versatile options for use as a single dwelling or granny annexe.
The library, situated in the second kiln, is a haven for book lovers with its fitted bookshelves.
The first floor has breathtaking views over the surrounding orchards and the Swale estuary,
A spacious sitting room, a formal dining room, a study, and a large kitchen/breakfast room all have direct access to a south-facing terrace, perfect for alfresco dining and entertaining.
The principal bedroom suite, complete with an ensuite bathroom and dressing room, occupies the second floor and is accessed via a staircase in the study and from the galleried landing.
It’s all very romantic indeed!
Available via Quealey & Co
5. Six-bedroom farmhouse in Leighton Buzzard with swimming ponds, £1.6m
This is another one for anyone with a penchant for plunging into cold water.
The house itself is pretty great, but what really clinches it is the large natural swimming pond set among 1.4 acres of gardens and grassland.
The current owners have a children’s slide directed at the pond, which you can imagine would be tremendous fun on a sunny day.
This modernised 19th century farmhouse is lovely on the inside too with shuttered windows, oak floors and a kitchen extension that would be perfect for parties.
It offers wonderful rural views over the surrounding Buckinghamshire countryside and Cheddington train station provides easy access to London Euston.
Available via Michael Anthony
6. Student bedroom in a former Victorian prison, Liverpool, £47,500
You’d hope that the students housed in The Main Bridewell don’t feel as if they’re living in a prison, but that’s exactly what it is.
The Victorian-era prison was built in 1867 and served as Liverool’s central lock-up.
Today the cells have been reimagined as student housing, with many of the original features maintained.
Each cell, I mean room, measures 7ft x 7ft, and features heavy wooden doors, stone floors, and a rich past. They’d make an interesting investment opportunity!
The prison closed in 1999 and the building now offers comfortable and modern amenities, providing a fascinating backdrop to any university life.
Available via The Agency UK
7. One-bedroom London apartment in converted warehouse on Mandela Street, £535,000
This beautiful flat in London’s Camden screams industrial chic and would be perfect for anyone who fancies a historic slice of the English capital.
Situated within a converted warehouse dating back to the 1890s, it is on a cobbled mews on the east side of Camden Town bordering King’s Cross.
The leasehold apartment has crittal windows and wood flooring throughout.
Better than its period features, though, are its links to an important part of the resistance to apartheid in South Africa in the 1980s.
Formerly called Selous Street, the street was home to the offices of the British Anti-Apartheid Movement in London.
Selous Street was renamed Mandela Street in 1983, seven years before Nelson Mandela was released from prison, in order to show support for him.
Available via Goldschmidt & Howland
8. Two-bedroom flat in a converted chapel with links to The Beatles, Liverpool, £270,000
This is a showstopper of a church conversion. Just check out the combination of original stained glass windows with modern fixtures and fittings.
This incredibly charming converted church is located in South Liverpool, just around the corner from where The Beatles’ George Harrison used to live.
Fun fact: Harrison was baptised in this very chapel. For all we know it may have even inspired “My Sweet Lord,” Harrison’s biggest post-Beatles single, which blends both Christian, Hindu and Hebrew words in a bid to end religious sectarianism.
The majestic stained glass windows serve as a constant reminder of the rich history and vibrant character of this former place of worship.
It retains many of its original features, from the ornate wooden carvings to stone pillars.
If you love, love it do, you’d better put an offer in.
Available via North Wall
9. The Duke of Gloucester’s home: 8-bed mansion, Peterborough £8.5m
Dating back to the 16th century, this quintessentially English, dreamy country mansion once boasted connections to Henry VIII.
And the regal links don’t end there. Today it is the former childhood home of His Royal Highness Prince Richard, the Duke of Gloucester.
Set within 27 acres of grounds, including a walled kitchen garden and offering plenty of privacy, Barnwell manor is just half a mile from the beautiful village of Barnwell itself.
With four reception rooms, eight principal bedrooms and five bathrooms, this graceful property has all the period features you might expect from a home of this calibre.
Corniced ceilings, solid oak beams and big old fireplaces can be found in abundance, while the room proportions are enormous.
There’s even an ancient castle on site, alongside an impressive gatehouse, three-bed ground floor annex, two cottages and two further staff flats.
Available from: Savills - Country Department
10. Tudor gatehouse, Hartfield, £2m
Fancy lording it up at your very own mini Hampton Court? Set within an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, this Tudor Gatehouse enjoys beautiful, far-reaching views.
It’s believed that Henry VIII once used it as a hunting lodge base for his Ashdown Forest expeditions, including those he made with Anne Boleyn from Hever Castle during their courtship.
The gatehouse itself was likely to have been designed for use as a viewing gallery for those wishing to follow the pursuit.
Today, the characterful accommodation extends to 3,068 square feet and is arranged mainly over one level, together with two large turret bedrooms, reached via a winding oak staircase.
Available from: Hamptons - Tunbridge Wells Sales
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