Ilminster

The trouble with staying in rural Dorset is that you are in rural Dorset.

The Fox was a good price in a picturesque rural setting with absolutely shitty roads in and out.

The road rules are:
Tractors win, you move for them, they just keep going,
All Audis are driven by women with a death wish and focussed vision
Any blind corner will have a white van in the middle of the road
Semi drivers are knights of the road and very patient with obvious tourists

It was miles and miles of 0.5 lane hedged lanes, tractors, cars, JOGGERS and of course white vans.

Having asked for best way out of Ansty and the way to Yeovil,the barman's reply was "I don't really really know north Dorset. "
We were travelling about 12km form where he lives!!!!

Eventually got to Barrington Court itself which of course was up a 4 mile lane.

Amazing place. (Getting sick of that description yet?)

Built as a great Tudor House built in thr 15502 with a stable block built in 1675. As these it was in very poor state by 1775 and went down from there as a tenanted farm.

Chickens in the Great Hall, cider barrels stored in the main room and hay in master bedroom, rain and owls on the top floor.

The newly formed National Trust were asked if the wanted it and they said yes in 1907.

Then they got the builders report and the roof repair was more that their total assets.

Enter Colonel Lyle.

In 1917 he offerd to lease it for 99 years, pay 400 pound a year rent and undertake all repairs.
It appears we was a multimillion site and spent the equivalent of 5 million pounds on the project.
His problem was he collected architectural salvage particularly wood panelling and had ton as of the stuff in storage. A few present persons come to mind.
First he built a house to live in, then he converted stables, then he renovated the Tudor house.
Then he moved in with all his wall panelling.

Glad he took it on.

In 1991 his grandson called it a day and handed it all back to the Trust.Read more