A village gem in Chobham

Bypassed by every new trend throughout its long history, the ancient village of Chobham, in Surrey's north-west corner, remains mercifully undeveloped to this day. The Romans hurried past it to fight their battles in the North and West.

The turnpike roads of the 17th and 18th centuries brought prosperity to Bagshot and Ripley, but missed out Chobham. The canals were built too far south and, although the railways brought massive growth to nearby Woking and Sunningdale, the planned line to Chobham was never built.

But it's all grist to the mill of 21st-century Chobham, where a clutch of glorious 17th century houses forms an exclusive conservation area at the heart of the village. Over the years, long-term residents Brian and Judy Leadsom have lived in nearly all the best houses in Chobham, where they are stalwarts of the local community.

For the past three decades, their home has been the charming, Grade II-listed Pear Tree House, which dates from Tudor times, but was gentrified in the early 1700s, twice extended in the 1800s and again in the 1930s and 1990s.

The house, which stands in an acre of enchanting private gardens, has four reception rooms, six bedrooms, four bath/shower rooms, a swimming pool and a tennis court.

It is now on the market at a guide price of £2.25m, through prime property consultants de Mallet Morgan Ltd (07500 662662).

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