A new life together in the Dales
Austwick Hall has been transformed into a five-star establishment. Sharon Dale reports
When Eric Culley and Michael Pearson first viewed Austwick Hall, they knew it was something special, but they didn't imagine it would change their lives.
When they bought it as a holiday property nine years ago, the couple weren't even living together. Eric was a pattern technologist living in Saltaire, and Michael worked in local government in Lincolnshire.
Now Michael, 49, is an antiquarian bookseller, Eric, 41, is a part-time property developer and together they have turned the hall into a five-star bed and breakfast.
"If you'd told me 10 years ago that I would be running a B&B in the Dales, I would've laughed," says Eric.
The hall, in the village of Austwick, near Settle, was intended as a second home, but after buying the property, they set about planning how to live there full-time. "I had a farmhouse in Hawes and I was looking for something bigger. The estate agent mailed us the brochure for this place, which had been on the market for two years," says Michael. "We thought we might as well take a look and when we saw it, we knew we had to have it."
They hadn't planned on buying anything quite as big. Austwick Hall has five en-suite bedrooms, a separate coach house and a large garden and woodland.
It was also in need of some TLC – not surprising given its age.
It is said to be a former Peel tower dating back to 1180, though all that is left of the original structure are the six foot thick walls between the grand entrance hall and the drawing room.
In 1551, it was sold to Sir John Yorke, a former Master of the Royal Mint, and stayed in his family for another two generations until it was sold to pay fines imposed by Elizabeth 1 for practising the Catholic faith. The Ingleby family bought the hall in the late 16th century and lived there until the late 19th century, when it was extended and altered, before being bought by William King, who Georgianised it.
It was then bought by naturalist Richard Clapham, who planted the woodland in 1846 and stayed in his family until the 20th century when it was sold off and was briefly used as a nursing home.
The grade two listed building has features ranging from its medieval past and from Georgian, Victorian and Edwardian makeovers. The Tudor roof structure can be seen in the attic and a secret passage dating from the Reformation is said to lead from behind the 16th century fireplace to the woods. At least one famous person has visited – Winston Churchill stayed there on a painting holiday.
"When we bought, it needed some work and the dcor wasn't to our taste. It was very 1980s with William Morris style wallpaper and borders," says Eric. One of the first things he and Michael did was convert the coach house into a holiday let. Then they set to work on the main house doing much of the renovation themselves.
Eric is adept at DIY and can tackle everything from plumbing and building garden walls to joinery and painting. All the rooms have been redecorated and furnished in stunning period style. "The house is big and it just swallowed furniture," says Michael.
He and Eric have spent the past eight years filling it with antiques from auctions at Tennants in Leyburn and Andrew Hartley's in Ilkley. They have a good eye for a bargain, too and the blue sofa and chairs in the sitting room came from the Sue Ryder shop in Bingley and cost 300.
A coronet above one of the guest beds was created with Ikea fabric bought for 99p, which was then padded and lined.
The couple also commissioned Judi Stark, of the London Stained Glass Company, to create a stunning stained glass window for the stairway window.
It depicts Ingleborough and features a cuckoo to commemorate village history. Austwick is known as Cuckoo Town because centuries ago villagers noticed that cuckoos arrived with the sunny weather. They thought if they could capture one, they would enjoy eternal summer. They found a cuckoo roosting in a tree and proceeded to build a wall around it that night. The cuckoo flew off as the sun rose, just before the last stone was laid.
Eric, a Scottish College of Textiles graduate, has also gone down in recent history. He has used his tailoring skills and his eye for design and detail to create beautiful and detailed drapes, and other soft furnishings for the hall.
The work is much admired, so he decided to enter it in the local show, beating seasoned entrants to first prize in the crafts section. His lampshade also won best in show, but says Eric: "The trophy came back inscribed as Mrs E Culley, which gave us a laugh. Needless to say it went back to be corrected."
Both he and Michael now spend most of their time in the village, as they both changed careers so they could work from home. Eric does part-time property renovation and organises the B&B and Michael sells antiquarian books via the internet.
The idea for the B&B came a year ago and they opened in July.
"It was a way of allowing Eric to work at home and we had no idea whether we'd enjoy it or not. We decided to aim at the top end of the market and we were thrilled to be awarded five-star rating just two months after we opened," says Michael, who is a keen cook and prepares evening meals for guests.
The B&B's success lies in the beautiful house, the idyllic setting and the garden, which Eric and Michael have redesigned.
"We weren't sure what would happen, but it turns out we enjoy doing B&B," says Eric.
"It is far harder than we imagined though.
"You're up early to get breakfasts and I can be up ironing sheets until one o'clock in the morning, but I wouldn't swap it for a nine-to-five job.
"You meet some fascinating people and working
from home is great when you live somewhere like this."
Austwick Hall Tel: 015242 51794. www.austwickhall.co.uk
London Stained Glass Company, www.londonstainedglass.co.uk
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Tuesday 07 February 2012
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