Christmases spent beside roaring fires and summer days among the roses – Bullington End Farm has been heaven on earth for Brad and Tamlyn. They moved into the unique, part-thatched property nine years ago and have since savoured everything about it, from its unique character to its exceptional grounds and surroundings. “We are from Zimbabwe and were drawn to the space it offered us,” Brad explains. “We both love the countryside and being able to look out over fields and pastures was important to us – but we were also attracted to the beauty of the house itself, with its lovely old stonework, wooden beams, and inglenook fireplace. We loved the fact it felt like a country cottage but had the high ceilings and airy ambience of a more modern house.”

LABOUR OF LOVE

Dating back to Tudor times, the main cruck-frame thatched section of Grade II-listed Bullington End Farm was originally a hall house, likely to have been home to a tenant farmer and his livestock. An extension is thought to have been added in the 18th or 19th century and a sheep barn to have been converted into a lounge and dining room in the 1980s. Brad and Tamlyn have lavished love and attention on their home, carefully and sympathetically restoring it, while ensuring it has kept its character and has remained a homely place to live. “We have worked on the electrics; repainted throughout in breathable Earthborn paints and carried out extensive repairs, but we have also ensured that everything has been in keeping with the original building,” he says. “We fitted a range-style cooker in the kitchen inglenook, which gives it a wonderful country feel, and we have created a large wine cellar and walk-in pantry.”

ALL SEASONS

The ground floor of the house is arranged to encompass the kitchen-breakfast room, lounge, dining room, study and one of the bedrooms. There is also a downstairs cloakroom. “The study, which has space for two desks, is an amazing room. It has a huge, old inglenook with a traditional wood burner and the two east- and west-facing windows mean we can watch the sun rise and set across beautiful views of fields,” Brad says. “We have a very large, extended family who often descend on us at Christmas and in summer. This is when we tend to use the dining room and lounge the most: they are both spacious rooms and can absorb a lot of people.”

WOODLAND WONDER

Three more spacious double bedrooms can be found on the first floor, together with a family bathroom and a shower room. Two of the rooms have walk-in wardrobes and the master bedroom has extensive built-in storage space. “The master bedroom is above our study and also has a dual aspect,” he continues. “We have a low bed in there so we can wake up and look out over the fields towards the woods in the morning. This woodland is one of our favourite places to walk. In spring as it is filled with bluebells.” He adds: “The bedrooms are all a good size. We have had Christmases here where we have had up to 12 people staying for a couple of weeks and it has been very easy to accommodate everyone.”

GLORIOUS GARDENS

The 2.5-acre grounds encompass three beautiful garden areas, facing south, east and west, a 2-acre paddock and a large, well-stocked orchard and veg garden. Brad and Tamlyn have invested a lot of energy converting the gardens and land to organic which has encouraged great biodiversity and especially bird life. The orchard has 22 different fruit trees and fruit bushes including, apples, pears, apricots, damsons, plums and cherries. There is also a substantial stone barn and a workshop which, in the past, has had planning permission to be converted into a self-contained annexe. “On summer mornings, we have breakfast in the garden overlooking the orchard. Then we have an area we call the barbecue garden which is enclosed by a high stone giving us total privacy. We built two patios there, one of which is a circular stone patio that we call it the Bermuda Circle because you can lose hours of your life there! It’s where we sit and enjoy the last of the afternoon sun, lighting the fire pit in the evening".

COUNTRY AND CONVENIENCE

“Living here has been absolutely amazing,” Brad stresses. “We have all this beauty around us and yet we can cycle or drive into Milton Keynes if we need to catch the train into London; we are between two villages and we can walk to country pubs. There are good schools in the area for those who have children and, of course, so many beautiful places to walk. We will both miss everything about being here when we leave, including seeing the masses of spring bulbs we have planted explode into colour and harvesting buckets of our own fruit and veg over summer and autumn.”

SETTING THE SCENE

Bullington End Farm is set in 2.5 acres of scenic grounds. There are different sections of garden to enjoy throughout the day; these have been beautifully planted out and carefully maintained. The two-acre paddock now includes a kitchen garden and an orchard where Brad and Tamlyn harvest an abundance of apples, pears, cherries, damsons and apricots each year. They grow a variety of vegetables and have a chicken coop, which has not yet been used. There is a large stone barn within the grounds, plus a workshop. In the past, this has had planning permission to be converted into a self-contained annexe, but it could possibly have a variety of other potential uses.

Disclaimer

Chewton Rose Estate Agents is the seller's agent for this property. Your conveyancer is legally responsible for ensuring any purchase agreement fully protects your position. We make detailed enquiries of the seller to ensure the information provided is as accurate as possible. Please inform us if you become aware of any information being inaccurate.