WELCOME HOME A pretty Manor

A BEAUTIFUL CLASSICAL MANOR HOUSE

Beautifully proportioned, with a huge amount of space, and the stunning backdrop of the 15th century church of St John the Baptist, Christine and Andrew say they’ll miss their pretty Manor House enormously, but a move closer to family means they’re looking for new custodians of this beautiful family home with its gorgeous gardens, five reception rooms and five bedrooms...

Words: Rob Davis. Twilight Images: Dean Fisher. Interior Images: Lee Jones.

CHRISTINE already has her Easter egg hunt planned. Even if she and husband Andrew have to wait a little while longer to sneak those little chocolate treats into the nooks and corners of the garden, they’re in the kitchen cupboard, ready to be hidden in the couple’s fiendish secret places... we get the feeling that the couple are especially pleased with their hiding places this year. “Our grandchildren love it and it’s a highlight of the year for us too,” says Christine. “It’s a very used house, and always has been. When we moved in we opted for wooden floors because we had two girls and two dogs so it was always busy.” The couple’s Manor House at East Markham is, technically, just over the Lincolnshire

border, but Lincolnshire Pride has always been ‘Newark-friendly’ and quite aside from that, we’ll note the property’s location, more or less equidistant between Lincoln, Newark, Gainsborough, Grantham and Worksop. It’s also four minutes from the A1; brilliantly positioned for those who work right across the country. “The transport links are really great,” says Christine. “My sister lives in London and we have relatives in Edinburgh too, so usefully, not only are we on the A1, we’re also right on the main rail line.” “And yet, the village is not a thoroughfare so the only people who really come into East Markham are residents. It’s really quiet and lovely, and the approach to the property is stunning. We come from Derbyshire. We’ve lived here since 2009 and when we first discovered the property we kept

“The property is arranged over three floors and offers 6,500ft2 living space plus five reception rooms and five bedrooms...”

popping back to see it. On one occasion, showing round a couple of friends, we happened across the 600th anniversary celebrations of St John the Baptist, next door. The church was hosting a flower festival so it was a lovely first impression for what life would be like in the village really pastoral and friendly!” The Manor is 612 years old and was home to eponymous villager Sir John Markham, Chief Justice under Edward VI. It was rebuilt or extended in the 1700s, and on several subsequent occasions transformed from a Long House into the Manor. Markham, incidentally, also commissioned the church of St John the Baptist adjacent to the property. The property is arranged over three floors and offers spectacular accommodation, totalling 6,500ft2 living space and providing five reception rooms. These are currently arranged as a drawing room, sitting room, dining room and breakfast room, plus the garden room adjoining the kitchen. There are five bedrooms too, three of which have en suite bathrooms. The house also has a separate and entirely self-contained annexe with two additional bedrooms.

It’s a practical home too with a kitchen installed by Wiltshire-based Smallbone of Devizes, and finished in warm white featuring a white two-oven Aga. >>

>> Other appliances integrated into the kitchen are from premium brands such as Miele, and there’s a very practical pantry, a separate laundry room for white goods and a dedicated boot room for boots, coats, clutter and dog leads. Need more space? Happily there are extensive cellars and a garage with a first floor storage area and a home office or studio for those who work from home. The property’s reception rooms include no fewer than four multi-fuel stoves, to ensure a cosy winter. But for the optimists who trust that April and May will bring bright sunshine – and Easter Egg hunts – the gardens are a spectacular sight, relandscaped by Christine and Andrew with an ornamental pond and adjacent terrace. >>

Above: The kitchen was created by Smallbone of Devizes and includes integrated appliances and classic in-frame shaker cabinetry.

>> With grounds totalling around 0.7 acres, there’s plenty of space for the couple’s three grandchildren, without being so extensive that The Manor’s next owners will spend all weekend on the lawnmower.

“The views of the church are absolutely lovely, and it really does provide a focal point for the village, not just architecturally, but to ensure we all look after one another.”

“The sight of the building lit up in the evening is lovely, and there’s a village shop, and plenty of great dog walks in the area.” “We’ve a huge amount of history on the property, with a box full of documents. You’re never really the owner of an old property, just its custodian for future generations, so we think it’s important to pass on as much of its history to its next owners.” “It’ll break our hearts to leave the house but a move nearer to our daughters and the need to downsize to a smaller property has caused us to make a ‘head over heart’ decision. We wish we could pick the house up and take it with us, but we can’t. So, it’s time for someone else to make the place their own and to enjoy it as much as we have!” n

THE MANOR, NEWARK

Location: Newark 26 minutes; Lincoln 35 minutes; Grantham 39 mins; Gainsborough 35 mins. Style: Seven bedroom Manor House adjacent to C15th church.

Guide Price: OIEO £1,295,000.

Find Out More: Fine & Country, Navenby, Lincoln LN5 0DZ. Tel: 01522 287008, or see www.fineandcountry.com.

BEARING FRUIT

Quirky, whimsical fruit prints can give your room a real impact with their swirls, pops of colour and bold designs...

This Page: One of William Morris’s most loved wallpapers, Lemon Trees with its branches and blossoms, £83/roll.

Above: Agrias fabric, Grapefruit colourway, £51/m from Clarke & Clarke.

Top: Tiger Grove jungle scene with citrus fruit, toucans and tigers, £230/3m x 2.1m, Matthew Williamson for Osborne & Little. Top: Fruit wallpaper by Morris & Co, slate and thyme colourway from the firm’s Archive Wallpapers collection, £88/roll.

Above: Allotment wallpaper by Sanderson, Fennel colourway, with vegetables, fruit and potting shed motif, £56/roll.

Clarke & Clarke Tobago wallpaper with pineapple motif, £47/roll. Ebony, colourway, indigo and silver available too.

Lincolnshire Suppliers: Aitch Interiors: 01522 810961, www.aitchinteriors.co.uk. Anelise Home: 01522 530400, www.anelisehome.co.uk. Delcor: 01780 762579, www.delcor.co.uk. Richard Sutton Interiors: 01472 268377, richardsuttondesigninteriors.com. Sack Store: 01205 310101, www.sackstore.co.uk. Stevensons: 01472 233111, www.stevensonsgroup.co.uk. n