Down in south-west Gloucestershire, the launch onto the market of picturesque, 95-acre Boldridge Farm brings to an end more than 100 years of farming by the Witchell family in the parish of Long Newnton, near Tetbury. It’s for sale through Savills Cotswold Farms at a guide price of £2.6m.
The farm was once part of a larger holding, Newnton Farm, on the Estcourt estate, the core of which is now Prince Khalid Abdullah’s Juddmonte Farms Thoroughbred breeding operation, best known for the peerless Frankel and Enable, among others.
The provenance of Boldridge Farm is well documented. On November 6, 1907, Arthur Witchell, the son of Henry Witchell of Street Farm, Nympsfield, took on the tenancy of Newnton Farm from the then Lord Estcourt, and after the Earl’s death, bought the freehold from Capt T. E. Southern Estcourt for £6,000 on December 9, 1924.
Henry Gough Witchell succeeded his father and after he died in August 1965, two-thirds of Newnton Farm was sold by public auction in 1970. The remaining one-third was farmed by his wife, Noel, and their three sons, until Noel’s death in 2018 at the age of 101.
Today, the farm is an organic producer of cereals and venison from a red-deer herd established in 1989 with foundation stock from Badminton, where Boldridge’s joint owner, Arthur Witchell, was formerly land agent.
Estcourt estate farms can often be identified from the scalloped red tiles on the roofs of their farm buildings and Boldridge Farm is no exception, focal points being the scalloped tiled roofs of the Victorian main farmhouse and its long stone barn.
A range of modern farm buildings has been added by the present owners. The traditional Cotswold-stone farmhouse, which is unlisted, is currently arranged as a three-bedroom house with a separate one-bedroom annexe, but could easily be reconfigured as a comfortable four-bedroom family home.
Further accommodation is provided by a four-bedroom stone cottage and a three-bedroom farm bungalow, the latter subject to an agricultural occupancy restriction.
Boldridge Farm is for sale via Savills at £2.6m — see more details and pictures.
Credit: Strutt and Parker
Best country houses for sale this week
An irresistible West Country cottage and a magnificent Cumbrian country house make our pick of the finest country houses for
-
The century-old enamelling technique used to create Van Cleef's lucky ladybird brooch — which has something in common with Country LifeThe technique used in the jeweller's Geneva workshop has been put to good use in its latest creation.
-
‘The best sleep in the sky’: What it’s like to fly in United’s Polaris cabin, approved by American icon Martha StewartUnited’s Business Class cabin goes by the name Polaris and Martha Stewart is a fan. So, how does it fare?
-
18 magnificent homes for sale from £550k to £20 million, as seen in Country LifeFrom a charming thatched cottage to a 300-acre estate with its own vineyard, here's our pick of places to come to the market via Country Life of late.
-
If heaven is on earth, it might be in this home with a converted chapel that is now a swimming pool5 Wood Barton Town House is part of an exclusive 80-acre development in Devon that also comes with fishing rights on the River Avon and four bedrooms.
-
The sounds of spring and stained glass in an Arts-and-Crafts masterpiece in DorsetWith 35 acres, more than 10 bedrooms, a swimming pool and tennis court, Winterfield has it all.
-
An eight-bedroom wonder in East Sussex where the outdoors are an adventureThe interiors of Old Middleton are pretty good too.
-
A lakeside farmhouse on the market in the beautiful heart of PembrokeshireA lake, streams, 15 acres and five bedrooms. Rogershook might have it all.
-
An idyllic countryside home that's light, spacious and comes with a Grade II-listed follyHagg House is a gorgeous family home that just happens to have a miniature castle in the gardens. Annabel Dixon explains more.
-
A historic villa for sale on the Via Nomentana worthy of Rome's rich historyThree floors, lots of balconies, and a private garden in one of Rome's loveliest neighbourhoods.
-
Eight bedrooms of unlisted Edwardian elegance with sweeping views of SomersetAshton House sits near the market town of Chard and comes with a wealth of amenities both inside and out.
