TIME TEAM TOWERS: UNIQUE HOME THAT STARRED ON TV HAS REMARKABLE 1,800-YEAR HISTORY

Mail on sunday 25 may 2015

As a jewellery designer, Stuart Moore knows a gem when he spots one. He says of his home, Whitestaunton Manor, that it is as ‘rare as a red diamond’. 

He explains: ‘I call it a red diamond because, as a jeweller, I know most diamonds are white. You might find a red diamond every 50 years, and there is no way to assess its value; it is like finding a new Picasso.’

He has a point: Whitestaunton is a Grade I listed 15th Century manor house that contains a probably unique juxtaposition of modern and ancient elements. In the kitchen alone there are 3rd Century Roman walls, a 15th Century doorway and 21st Century fittings, including underfloor heating.

Moore, 70, and his partner Sylvie Masson, 67, a French-born retired entrepreneur, spent ten years painstakingly restoring the property with the guidance of English Heritage. The seven-bedroom house, which stands on the edge of Whitestaunton, near Chard in Somerset, is now on sale for £6.25 million.

Perhaps its most striking feature is the hammerbeam ceiling in the Great Hall – thought to be the only one of its kind in a private British residence. When the couple set about having the ceiling restored, the wood for the job was chosen carefully not to match the existing ceiling, so that – in accordance with English Heritage regulations – future generations will be able to tell which parts have been restored.

‘Someone else might want to use the Great Hall as their main living space but, for us, it feels a little bit noble, almost like a church,’ Stuart says. Instead, the couple hold concerts, meetings and large dinners there.

Sylvie adds: ‘Whitestaunton is not a museum, it is a family house. And there is not a room that does not work. The house is so friendly – it has such good vibrations. We decided to buy it before we hit the front door. The gardens were so beautiful, the trees so amazing. We made an offer on it the day before it went on the market. The owner was in the gardens and we made an offer there and then.’

She is certainly right about the gardens, which surround the house on three sides and are dominated by a variety of beech and willow trees. There are also Roman remains – this time of baths – in the grounds. These were uncovered by Channel 4’s Time Team in 2003.

Beyond the Roman ruins lies a Japanese garden, which was installed by the current owners. There is also a swimming pool and a Jacuzzi, a croquet lawn, a vegetable garden with a greenhouse, and an orchard with apple, apricot and pear trees.

Archaeological and historical research commissioned by the vendors during their ten years of structural and cosmetic refurbishment shows that the house lies directly over a Roman villa. And next to the property, which is in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, is the 13th Century St Nicholas Church.

The couple bought the property because they wanted to embark on a project together. ‘This was a larger project than we could ever have imagined,’ Stuart says. ‘We got stuck into it, though, and we camped in different bits of the house for eight years while it was being rebuilt. For two years, the house had the roof off with a big plastic box over the top of it. I was like a kid in a sandbox, it was absolutely great.’

He adds: ‘When we discovered the foundations of the Roman floor in the kitchen, that shut the room down for a year while an archaeological group from South Somerset Council came to look at it.’

The property also includes a lodge at the start of the drive, which has three bedrooms and a bathroom, sitting room, dining room, kitchen/breakfast room, utility room and cloakroom. 

There are also outbuildings constructed of stone from Whitestaunton Manor’s own quarry. They comprise six stables, two garages and a gardener’s WC, as well as a workshop.

The couple are selling up as they hope to retire to Paris together. Stuart says of Whitestaunton: ‘It will take the right kind of person to understand it.’

Edward Sugden, director of Savills’ country house department, says: ‘When one arrives at Whitestaunton one is not only struck by the presence of the manor house but the serenity of the setting, with its beautiful lake and stunning mature beech trees. The gardens and land are particularly special.’