Guest Appearance
By Louise Carpenter
Published in the Saturday Telegraph: 8th January 2005
Since childhood I have been insatiably nosy, sticking my beak into everything and anything, poking in cupboards and picking through picture frames with my ears flapping for strains of overheard conversation. Imagine, then, the thrill of finding I could visit some of the loveliest, wildest locations in Britain while staying in a series of private houses, where visitors are encouraged to tip up and behave as house guests, rather like in Edward Gorey's The Doubtful Guest: 'When they answered the bell on that wild winter night/There was no one expected - and no one in sight/Then they saw something standing on top of an urn/ Whose peculiar appearance gave them quite a turn. 'Unique Home Stays is the brainchild of Sarah Stanley. Instead of yet another guide offering straight bed-and-breakfasts, Stanley saw a gap in the market - finding well-heeled people who'll throw open their comfortable homes; exactly the kind of places that make nosy parkers wonder what's up the driveway. 'People don't always want hotels,' she explains. 'They outgrow backpacking and want luxury and, increasingly, locally sourced organic food. That's what we provide. 'Stanley has on her books 90 properties across the world, 50 of which are in Britain. Caradoc of Tregardock, on the north coast of Cornwall, and Hurlditch Court, on the edge of Dartmoor, have to be among the closest to the call of the wild. Caradoc of Tregardock is a barn complex one field back from the cliff edge of Tregardock (nearest town Delabole, from which Caradoc could not differ more). The location is so remote that driving along the deserted roads towards the coastline you can hardly believe you will find anything at all, let alone the promise of a full book and video library, wood-burning fires and pressed Egyptian cotton bedding. The cliffs of Tregardock are dramatic and solitary, the ground a patchwork of running streams and gorse, much like the west coast of Scotland. Walk the cliffs, buffeted by the wind among the autumnal red of the bracken, and you feel like the last person on earth. Winter is the time to experience its full wonder: the air bites and dusk promises a carpet of stars in the night sky. At squeeze-points along the cliffs, the black rocks of the nearby beach rear into view and the waves crash and roar, reminding you of a place where pirates might have landed or wreckers lured ships to the shore. The wonder of Caradoc, apart from the creature comforts, is its views. A member of my family, sitting in an armchair looking out to sea, was moved to tears. Caradoc belongs to Janet Cant and remains part of the large family farm on which she grew up. The barn is split into two, top and bottom, each with a kitchen and plenty of bathrooms. The barn can be taken as half or whole - when opened up it is as if the halves are not separate at all - or simply on a bed-and-breakfast basis, making short winter stays perfectly possible (organic breakfasts are left in the fridge for those irritated by early-morning fussing). For those requiring privacy and discretion there is a self-contained cottage with two double bedrooms, and for those looking for relaxation and creative expression there's a large studio at Caradoc, now attracting yoga groups and painting courses. The fields surrounding Caradoc are heaven for children, green and flat and in view of the house, and the layout is good for two families who each want to retain an element of independence. And what's more, private cooks are available. Life at Hurlditch Court, at Lamerton on the edge of Dartmoor, is the perfect example of hotel-style luxury in the heart of the wilds. Arriving for a country weekend at this grand, oak-panelled country house set in 70 acres, owned by Tishy and Christopher Godfrey, one feels like a character in Cluedo. For the Godfreys, nothing is too much trouble, and the house is perfect for creating your own country weekend, though preferably with not too many children. Given the formality of the decor and the scale of the house, it's not for lovebirds either, particularly those who want to skulk in and out of the bedroom unnoticed. But apart from these caveats, Tishy is open to suggestion. Put down a ballroom floor for a big party? No sweat. Cook up a dinner for a large group of stressed execs on an away trip? Of course she can. She is a superb cook. The Godfrey house is split into sections, too. Annexes can be taken as a whole, or a selection of interconnecting rooms for one family. They also offer B&B, albeit rather grandly. Sarah Stanley has many more intriguing houses. One is the House in the Sea, owned by Lord and Lady Long, which sits on a tiny island at Newquay, accessible by the only privately owned suspension bridge in the country and often lashed by the sea. The potential for poking and nosing is endless. As Gorey says of the Doubtful Guest: 'It came seventeen years ago - and to this day - it has shown no intention of going away.
Caradoc of Tregardock: 01840-213300, £90-130 per room per night.
Hurlditch Court: 01822-870476, from £90 per room per night.
The House in the Sea: 01637-881942, £130-175 per night