Page 23 - C.A.L.L. #40 - Winter 2015

state rooms,’ Routledge remembers.
‘Concealing the entire central-
heating system took a year.’

Last month, after two years of
cleaning and lead-roof repair, the
scaffolding came off to reveal a
creamy Bath-stone facade. For the
internal building work, Routledge

employed two experienced builders
and four apprentices, and one of the latter, Heidi Tremlett, ended up becoming
the lead interior designer. This summer she will be getting married at the house
– one of 30 weddings booked for the season. The commissioning of a Blenheim-
inspired mural in the Vanbrugh room resulted from a fortuitous meeting with
Karen van Hoey Smith in the local
pub. ‘Turned out she was an art
broker and knew more about my
house than I did,’ Routledge says.
Their future plans include the ongoing
restoration of the Southwell family
portraits.

The new residents include a doctor, a
film editor, a solicitor, a property developer and a landscape architect. The
Rambert-trained dancers Josh and Rosie came to a party at the house and

asked to use a room as a rehearsal space. Before long, they, too, moved in, with
their four-year-old son, Solomon.

Potential housemates are chosen carefully and there is a three-month trial.

They eat together once a week and there is even a dinner gong but, given the
scale of the place, mobile phones are more practical. One resident, who
previously had her own harbourside
flat, admits, ‘It has completely
changed my attitude to shared
living. I initially thought that was a
strange thing to do because I was
an adult. Now I love it. I don’t think
humans are designed to live by
themselves.’ Routledge agrees. ‘You

see so many people growing old on
their own. That’s no fun.’ His eyes light up as he contemplates ending his days in
style. ‘We’ve got a doctor. We ought to get a nurse too I suppose.’

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