Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Wales Online
Wales Online
Lifestyle
Joanne Ridout

Huge Homes with Hugh Dennis: Presenter left gobsmacked by house with 'mini Tintern Abbey' in garden

The saying goes that a person's home is their castle and for Trevor Wynne-Jones this is literally the case. There's a castle section in the sunken basement of his property that combines a vaulted stone ceiling with suits of armour and two regal thrones.

But the incredible interior design and labyrinth of rooms inside this amazing home that used to be a standard bungalow doesn't stop at an underground castle, there's Venice in the sitting room, Gothic, manor house and Renaissance style in the bedrooms, and a mini Tintern Abbey in the garden that is even 'ruined' as part of its design to recreate the famous Welsh structure.

In 2017 Trevor made the connection to the ancient site, saying: "I visited Tintern Abbey a few years ago, I loved its monastic feel and I felt I could copy that. I am a romantic and I simply love beautiful things. This has been my chance to create something of beauty. It's as if I am an artist painting a picture."

READ MORE: Wales' Home of the Year: Inside former care home now a stunning dream house with surprise cocktail bar in the cellar

And the picture of Trevor's world continues in the enthralling grounds, which he has named Dutch Garden, where Tintern Abbey is joined by a folly, an enormous rockery, a moat and a series of waterfalls and, of course, a moat - every home that is your imaginary castle should have a moat.

There's also a sunken courtyard in the centre of the abbey ruins where live events have taken place with Trevor sitting elevated on a balcony above, enjoying the performance happening below that have included Chopin recitals and jazz concerts.

No wonder comedian and actor Hugh Dennis, presenter of More 4's property programme Huge Homes, was mesmerised as soon as he arrived to record the latest episode of his series. As Hugh and Trevor stood in the incredible garden by the bridge over the moat, Hugh was gobsmacked, saying: "And if the house wasn't enough you've also got this magnificent garden, of equal importance with the house. It's really relaxing, full of vistas! And most people would just be happy having a picture of a ruined abbey hanging on their wall but you've actually built it."

The house with the moat used to be a normal bungalow (SWNS)
Good view of some of the unique garden that comes with this unique home (Waterview / Dexters / SWNS.com)

It's not the first time Trevor's unique - and some might say bizarre - house has had major media attention. It hit the headlines in 2017 when the full extent of his weird and wonderful home, both inside and out, became apparent via visually mesmerising photos when it went on the market for £4m.

Clearly as Trevor is still living at his castle in Wraysbury near Windsor, most potential buyers could not quite fully engage with surely one of the UK's most unique homes.

Trevor says he bought a featureless bungalow for £600 in 1966 and demolished it, building a new home in its place. The property developer has spent the past 30 years transforming a home into his own personal palace.

Garden includes a folly (SWNS)
Lovely views from inside the Gothic inspired folly (SWNS)

But at 85 he hasn't even finished yet and is so absorbed in continuing his passion that he employs a full-time craftsman called Bartek working in a dedicated workshop to create Trevor's visions as they are usually so unique they have to be custom made on site. He even tells Huge he's thinking of adding an underground tunnel to connect two spaces within the house.

Trevor is well-aware that his home is unique to his personal taste and vivid imagination, regularly dropping self-deprecating comments into the conversation with Hugh, but don't underestimate him.

Eight bedrooms and all have a unique decor (SWNS)
Sixty years of hard work to add features and his own personality, and Trevor is still at it at 85 (SWNS)

The wealth that he has generated from working on large scale and complex property developments and construction sites over the past six decades has allowed him to indulge in his passion; his home, his castle.

Hugh says he has been briefed to expect his visit to be greeted by "a ground-breaking house that exists in the realms of fantasy, a hidden gem" and that it will be "one of the most extraordinary homes I'll ever visit".

The three-storey home that is thought to offer over 3,000 square feet of space has been constructed over a 60 year period by Trevor who admits he is totally obsessed with the property, but even he is surprised and how it has happened.

He laughs: "I had no idea it would turn out like this, it's now like a palace! If I saw it and I hadn't got it, I'd buy it!"

Venetian style living room (SWNS)

The house started as a single storey bungalow and now the house has eight bedrooms, an office and reception areas, guest accommodation leading to a roof terrace and then the biggest shock of the site - the vast and hidden basement.

Hugh is impressed with the space on the ground floor, the bedrooms - all uniquely themed, some opulent with polished plaster work and adorned with frescos, or panelled with warm, natural wood and lavished with Baroque style mirrors. The house offers a head spinning, eye-bulging mash-up of so many interior design styles Hugh reckons it can only really be described as eclectic.

Trevor says he is driven by the architecture of the past, saying: "It's the charm and atmospheric feeling that you get - I wanted to create pieces from the past when buildings, in my view, were very beautiful."

But it's not really until Hugh sees the "enormous and rather magnificent staircase" that his eyes really light up as he descends into a dug out basement that has created a subterranean warren of rooms positioned around that sunken abbey courtyard. And Hugh can't believe what he's seeing.

The basement is described by Hugh as ridiculous and like a Tardis (Waterview / Dexters / SWNS.com)
Gothic style in the kitchen (More 4)

He gasps: "Oh that is ridiculous, you would never, ever expect this to be here, this is amazing. It's four times the size of upstairs. It's amazing, it's like a Tardis. It's your breadth of imagination that's amazing to me, you've pushed the boundaries of what you can do with a bungalow to the extreme."

Hugh is side-tracked by so much to see in the basement, from the Gothic-style kitchen to the seating area looking out over the abbey courtyard, but there are two features he can't resist focusing on - the suits of armour and the throne room.

Sitting tenants in the castle basement (More 4)
The throne room - not the toilet but a place to relax and listen to music (Waterview / Dexters / SWNS.com)
Hugh Dennis and owner Trevor Wynne-Jones in the throne room (More 4)

In this cute little alcove the pair sit and Trevor explains its where he likes to relax smoking a cigar and listening to music, while Hugh is slightly worried by the possibility that his throne might actually be an electric chair - Trevor has such an imagination, it's not outside the realms of possibility.

But what is possible inside Trevor's fantastical realm is to create a home completely visualising his imagination and his love for past buildings, and it extends through the whole house including his rather palatial office where he still works and runs his property business.

But even in here, his place of work, his imagination and unique style and personality is strongly represented. Hugh spots a very bespoke portrait of a Napoleonic army, and yet again it was born out of Trevor's colourful ideas.

Office that has a bespoke painting (More 4)
People who helped Trevor build his dream home are painted into the artwork - this is the brick layer (More 4)

Trevor says: "I was delighted by the people who worked for me and all of these portraits are people who have worked with me painted into it - bricklayer, building manager, my sons and so on, so all of these are cameos of people who worked with me, and they love it (the painting), and why shouldn't they?!"

Hugh muses that it's clear this house is Trevor's life work, a never ending project that he's lost track of how much it has cost him. But for Trevor the money spent has never been the point, it's about creating a unique and personal home. But surely now the site is bursting at the boundaries with the huge home and huge garden Trevor has created, it can't possibly be expanded anymore?

Hugh and Trevor in the abbey courtyard where Hugh has an idea of what Trevor can do next at the property (More 4)

Hugh has an idea for Trevor to continue his obsession, he says: "Just promise me, don't ever stop! You may not be allowed to go up, but you can go down, there's literally thousands of miles down there."

Huge Homes with Hugh Dennis is on More 4 weekly at 9pm every Thursday and currently available on demand on My4. And don't miss the best dream homes in Wales, auction properties, renovation stories, and interiors - join the Amazing Welsh Homes newsletter, sent to your inbox twice a week.

READ NEXT:

  • The £2.5m dream home right on the beach with a private slipway to the sea
  • Huge abandoned barracks and fort on sale for the same price as a family home
  • The house on one of Cardiff's most sought after streets with views of Roath Park and its own tower
  • Homes Under The Hammer developer in Valleys forced to double budget after unwanted finds
  • Homes Under The Hammer transformation of rundown valleys terrace bought without a viewing has Martin Roberts gushing
  • Sign up to read this article
    Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
    Already a member? Sign in here
    Related Stories
    Top stories on inkl right now
    One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
    Already a member? Sign in here
    Our Picks
    Fourteen days free
    Download the app
    One app. One membership.
    100+ trusted global sources.