The Times Magazine 81created with designer Thomas Heatherwick.
The plans include using modern architecture
within the historic fabric to create a working
estate that respects the past but takes
Parnham forwards sensitively. Unconcerned
by the controversy their plans have attracted,
the pair are forging ahead. Their designs
include a walled garden restaurant and
accommodation in treehouses and follies
to blend with the estate grounds.
The process of restoring a grade I structure
is complex. Felled trees are kiln-dried, ready
to lay as flooring. There are plans to use
preserved 17th-century stained glass in the
Great Hall, which was gutted by the blaze. In
place of the hall’s west elevation, a “hanging”
garden has been designed. Heatherwick’s
miniature architectural model reveals winding
stairs that connect the various levels and a
domed glass observatory that will offer clear
views of the Dorset skies.
The stellar ideas may still be on the desk of
the planning office, but the project continues
apace. Specialist stone masons and builders
have been recruited and, where possible,
Home!
Luna in the formal gardens designed by
Inigo Thomas. Below: copper roll-top bath
and stuffed cheetah in the master bedroom