Celebrity homes: Clare Balding
Hot Oast
This lovely converted oast house in Chiddingly has certainly got that wow factor. Lovingly restored 14 years ago by the current owners, it has style and charm by the bucketload, which is quite appropriate when you see that large paddock outside.
A property with genuine heritage and facilities for a horse-person, who better to live here the BBC’s very own Clare Balding. Daughter of racehorse trainer Ian Balding, Clare has had a glittering career: head girl at school, President of the Cambridge Union Society, sports journalist and now TV and radio presenter with string of successful programmes to her name.
A property like this charming Sussex home would surely be ideal for her, close as it is to so many great racecourses and with easy links to London, plus there are plenty of nice rambles along the South Downs.
Currently there are no stables to go with that paddock but plenty of garages that could, given permission, be converted. Inside, the house boasts a lovely master bedroom with en-suite shower room and large dressing room, plus two further bedrooms and two more bathrooms. Downstairs the most striking feature is the fabulous circular kitchen in the converted oast house. We did think that such a great kitchen might suit Nigel Slater, but he would probably dig up that paddock and plant potatoes which would be such a sin, so Clare, if you’re looking, this house is for you.
For full details of this property call Winkworths
Tel: 01273 471471. www.winkworth.co.uk
For more properties like this go to www.latesthomes.co.uk/brighton
Clare Balding is currently appearing on BBC1’s Britain’s Hidden Heritage
