Ashby St Legers: A spectacular house where the Gunpowder Plot was hatched
A house associated with the Gunpowder Plot was splendidly enlarged by Lutyens and is now enjoying a new lease of life as a modern family home.
The most haunted houses that you can visit in England and Wales
County houses, castles and palaces almost always have stories of ghosts who have appeared over the years. We picked out 10 of the spookiest that you can visit.
Cobthorne: A home that stands out for its grace, even in the beautiful town of Oundle
This striking town house in Oundle serves as home to the head of the town's famous school – and is testimony to the zealous ambition and colourful career of its builder, an opportunist soldier and Parliamentarian in Cromwellian times.
Château de Lassay: The castle of Bluebeard’s widow
This magnificent French castle has a remarkably colourful history. Its present owners have made heroic strides in restoring its fabric and are determined to preserve it for the future.
Kedleston Hall: A National Trust gem restored to its extraordinary former glory
It's 30 years since the National Trust raised the money to buy Kedleston Hall in Derbyshire. The work done since then is nothing short of staggering
Torosay Castle: The Hebridean shooting lodge that stayed in one family for 150 years
Mary Miers tells the story of a Victorian shooting lodge owned by the same family for 147 years – with photographs by Simon Jauncey taken by Country Life shortly before the house and its contents were sold.
Upton House: A beautiful 1750 creation by Halfpenny, updated in a manner he’d have loved
Upton House, just outside Tetbury, is a beautiful Georgian house that has been brilliantly extended in a manner which is so sympathetic as to be scarcely noticeable.
Chitcombe House, Dorset: A modern Classical creation
An award-winning country house was completed in 2014 by Dorset-based architect Stuart Martin. We explored the themes of this clever and compact design in the Classical tradition.
Powderham: The Devonshire castle that’s been in the same family for 600 years
An ancestral West Country home that has passed through the hands of one family for the past 600 years has, since the 18th century, developed a dazzling succession of interiors.
Great Chalfield Manor: The magic of the Middle Ages
The serene beauty of this magnificent 15th-century manor house belies a complex and eventful history.
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Designer's Room: A solid oak French kitchen that's been cleverly engineered to lastKitchen and joinery specialist Artichoke had several clever tricks to deal with the fact that natural wood expands and contracts.
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Chocolate eggs, bunnies and the Resurrection: Country Life Quiz of the Day, April 18, 2025Friday's quiz is an Easter special.
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Seven of the UK’s best Arts and Crafts buildings — and you can stay in all of themThe Arts and Crafts movement was an international design trend with roots in the UK — and lots of buildings built and decorated in the style have since been turned into hotels.
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High Wardington House: A warm, characterful home that shows just what can be achieved with thought, invention and humourAt High Wardington House in Oxfordshire — the home of Mr and Mrs Norman Hudson — a pre-eminent country house adviser has created a home from a 300-year-old farmhouse and farmyard. Jeremy Musson explains; photography by Will Pryce for Country Life.
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Sir Edwin Lutyens and the architecture of the biggest bank in the worldSir Edwin Lutyens became the de facto architect of one of Britain's biggest financial institutions, Midland Bank — then the biggest bank in the world, and now part of the HSBC. Clive Aslet looks at how it came about through his connection with Reginald McKenna.
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'There are architects and architects, but only one ARCHITECT': Sir Edwin Lutyens and the wartime Chancellor who helped launch his stellar careerClive Aslet explores the relationship between Sir Edwin Lutyens and perhaps his most important private client, the politician and financier Reginald McKenna.
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Cath Harries — The photographer on a 15-year quest to find the most incredible doors in London -
The extraordinary Egyptian-style Leeds landmark hoping to become a second British Library — and they used to let sheep graze on the roofThe project has been awarded £10million from the Government, but will cost £70million in total.
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Art, architecture and plastic bricks at Lego House: 'It's as if the National Gallery set up easels and paints next to the masterpieces and invited you try your hand at creating a Van Gogh'The rural Danish town where Lego was created is dominated by the iconic toy — and at Lego House, it has a fittingly joyful site of pilgrimage. Toby Keel paid a visit.
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Restoration House: The house in the heart of historic Rochester that housed Charles II and inspired Charles DickensJohn Goodall looks at Restoration House in Rochester, Kent — home of Robert Tucker and Jonathan Wilmot — and tells the tale of its remarkable salvation.
