If you wish to live near London, but not in London, you are spoilt for choice. There are all manner of different places you could choose and still be within, say, an hour of the capital. You could have a beautiful home in a picturesque village in Sussex, buy a converted barn — complete with oast house — in Kent, settle in to one of the absurdly pretty riverside towns in Berkshire or otherwise pick out any number of other places in the Home Counties.
But for the wealthy and well-heeled who seek opulence and privacy, two places to the south-west of the city will always creep towards the top of the list: Wentworth and St George's Hill. These two spots sit a few miles apart and either side of the M25 in Surrey, with Wentworth just outside and St George's Hill just within. And they are rarities, offering a British take on the American country club lifestyle: both boast at their heart clubs with famous golf courses and other magnificent facilities among the secure, tree-lined roads that lead to grand homes among the manicured lawns.
Houses come up for sale in both communities fairly regularly, of course — but they're not often quite so spectacular as the two we look at today.
First up there is Woodshore House, in one of the most secluded spots in the entire Wentworth Estate. It sits at the end of its own private lane, adjacent to the 17th hole of the club's East course, and it is on sale via Knight Frank at £15 million.
That money buys a newly-built house with five bedrooms, six reception rooms and a garage big enough to take a fleet of supercars, all set within an acre and a half of gardens.
From the moment you walk in this is a place which feels more Beverley Hills 90210 than Virginia Water GU25, with a grand entrance hall complete with stone staircase that spirals up to a galleried landing.
Every effort has been made to put together a place that has the feel of a top-end hotel rather: there's a swimming pool complex and spa along with cinema, bar and a wine cellar.
And to say that there are five 'bedrooms' seems a bit of a misnomer: the agents describe them as 'bedroom suites', which seems a bit fairer given the size of the rooms and their associated dressing rooms and en-suite bathrooms.
A few miles away in St George's Hill, Woodlawn is on sale for £22,490,000, and there are a lot of parallels between the two. The house — described by Knight Frank as an 'ambassadorial residence' — is not on the open market, is similarly specified inside: an impeccably-finished place designed by period architect Julian Bicknell and built by the highly regarded Royalton company.
Though you won't find Woodlawn on the property search portals, Mr Bicknell's own website has a few more details (and a video) about the design process.
The heart of the living areas is the enormous drawing room, with a bay opening out onto the gardens; there's a similarly-proportioned master bedroom occupying the same footprint on the first floor, with doors that open onto a balcony.
There is also a separate library, TV room and study among other spaces, while the copper-roofed pool complex also includes a gym and a treatment room.
Woodshore House and Woodlawn are for sale via Knight Frank's country houses department at £15m and £22.49m respectively — and you can follow these links to find more property in Wentworth or St George's Hill.
The spectacular new houses at Wentworth that have entranced the world's super-rich
The world's super-rich are shrugging off the uncertainty that permeates the world and heading to the Wentworth Estate. Penny Churchill
For sale: The last of Wentworth's original houses, and the latest of its new breed
Penny Churchill uncovers two gorgeous family homes for sale in this exclusive area.
The only listed house on the Wentworth estate is up for sale after a decade-long rebuild saga
Cherry Hill is barely 80 years old, but boasts a rich history involving royalty, American presidents and a very, very
Credit: Knight Frank
A new mansion in the coveted Wentworth Estate that has it all... including state-of-the-art spa facilities and a car museum
Westbourn is the kind of place for someone who has everything – family and friends to fill the large bedrooms,
-
Game, set, match: 12 of the world’s most beautiful tennis courtsFrom Italy to Indonesia, when it comes to hotel amenities, a picturesque tennis court will always trump a 24-hour gym. So, before you book your next holiday, take a look at our pick of the 12 best.
-
Five frankly enormous mansions, including one with its own private swimming lake, as seen in Country LifeSometimes bigger really is better.
-
Five frankly enormous mansions, including one with its own private swimming lake, as seen in Country Life
Sometimes bigger really is better.
-
Gaze over Cap Ferrat in this four-bedroom French villaIgnore the wind and the rain. Imagine yourself in this hillside home with some of the best views the Mediterranean can offer.
-
Classical style meets fun and flair in a seven-bedroom manor in CornwallAt Polstrong Manor, the current owners have combined period charm and elegant modern interiors to create a flamboyant country home 10-minutes from the beach.
-
Two halves make a sublime four-bedroom home in Kent's North DownsA contemporary extension to a traditional clapboard house brings light and life to Lavington House.
-
The week in property statistics: Service charges reach record highPlus, how first-time buyers prop up the mortgage market, why you need to move north if you want to live by yourself, and house-price growth slows
-
A seven-bedroom oast house for sale in East Sussex, where your dreams can run riotUnlisted, yet full of character, this property in the High Weald National Landscape is an eccentrically furnished family home that screams fun.
-
Character, history and comfort combine in a four-bedroom farmhouse in NorfolkWillow Farm near Southburgh is that rarest of things — a perfect combination of period charm and modern elegance in some of England's best countryside.
-
A Grade I-listed Georgian townhouse that's part of the fabric of Bath's historyWith 5,500sq ft set over six floors in the centre of Britain's most architecturally rich city, there is much to love here.
