A six-bedroom home linked to a famous Eurovision winning rock band has come up for sale in one of north Norfolk’s most expensive villages.
Earlier this year, Burnham Overy Staithe was revealed to be the most expensive Norfolk village to buy a home in, and with properties like this gorgeous six-bedroom home on Gong Lane, it’s easy to see why.
The property is on the market with Sowerbys for £2,850,000 and sits at the top of a private lane, offering extraordinary panoramic views. From it, you can see Lady Ann’s Drive in Holkham to the east, south where rolling countryside leads to the rooftops of Burnham Market, the village’s iconic windmill and, finally, views of the calming north Norfolk coast.
But it’s not just its location that makes this property so magnificent – it’s also its eco-friendly credentials and hi-tech finish.
Known as Edgefield, the £2.85m home was designed, conceived and created by its current owners, Mr and Mrs Cooper – who also happen to be part of British rock royalty.
Mr Cooper founded British rock band The Waves, which later became Katrina and The Waves, famous for its smash hit song Walking On Sunshine. The band also won the Eurovision Song Contest in 1997 with Love Shine A Light – the UK’s last winning entry.
Mrs Cooper says that the couple designed the home “from scratch” in 2016, using a completely clear plot of land. This allowed them to create their own borehole and to heat the home using a ground source heat pump. While it is not strictly to Passivhaus standard, Edgefield’s design is based on similar technology, and uses a mechanical ventilation heat recovery system to circulate clean air into each of the rooms on a regular basis – about every 20 minutes.
“It was very important to us to build something sustainable,” says Mrs Cooper, “and to keep with the times. We did a lot of research beforehand. We had a look at Scandinavian builds and those in northern Europe and finally settled on a German build, using similar technology.”
The result, Mrs Cooper says, is a very healthy home. “It’s warm, calm, comfortable and ambient – it’s never stuffy and it feels fresh without feeling chilly.”
Technology was also key to the design, she says. “As much as one can, we’ve tried to future proof the property,” she says, referring to the adjustable lighting and blinds which help it to conserve energy and can be easily controlled, either automatically or at the touch of an iPad – even if you’re not at home.
Aesthetically, the property is also quite stunning, arranged in a ‘U’ shape around a central, south-facing courtyard. To one side, there is the guest accommodation which comprises two double bedrooms, a bathroom, and a large home office.
Elsewhere the central entrance hall doubles as a formal dining room, with triple heighted ceilings and a free-floating staircase which, in itself, almost acts as its own piece of art.
The sumptuous kitchen/family room can be found on the opposite side of the house, featuring a vaulted ceiling and cleverly arranged workspaces. A lot of storage has been included in the design, alongside a full size electric Aga. The use of steel units appear almost industrial in design, juxtaposed against the more traditional granite worktops and a V-shaped island/breakfast bar – it is, in fact, very much a chef’s kitchen.
At the other end of the room, the space is cleverly partitioned to reveal a more intimate dining area, and on the other side there is a snug area, with a TV set into the wall.
In the summer months this space really comes into its own as sliding doors on both sides open out into the garden, allowing immediate access to the outdoor space.
Upstairs, on the first floor, you will also find another reception room, allowing you to really make the most of the views from this property’s unique location. The master bedroom suite, also on this floor, also enjoys gorgeous floor-to-ceiling windows offering what Sowerbys describe as “the kind of vistas most only see in paintings.”
To the rear of the property there is a guest annex built with the same eco credentials in mind. The ground floor comprises two double bedrooms, a bathroom and a well-proportioned seating area, as well as space and plumbing for a kitchenette. At basement level, the annex also contains a full size and completely soundproof music room – although this would also make an ideal cinema room, home gym or games room.
Outside, the east-facing garden is mostly laid to lawn. The southern aspect offers more formal terraced planting and a lawn, while the paved courtyard is a south-facing sun trap.
There is also ample off-street parking, courtesy of a gravelled driveway, and an electricty unit also in place for an electric car – exactly as you’d expect from a property so eco-conscious.
For more information, contact Sowerbys on 01328 730340.
PROPERTY FACTS
Gong Lane, Burnham Overy Staithe
Price: £2,850,000
Sowerbys, 01328 730340, www.sowerbys.com
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