SAIL OF THE CENTURY
Five-bed country pad goes on sale for £5.5m complete with 200-year-old WINDMILL in back garden
A FIVE-bedroom country pad - complete with a 200-year-old windmill in the back garden - has gone on sale for £5.5 million.
The aptly-named Windmill House in Barnet, London has a four-storey Grade II* listed windmill with four sails in its back garden.
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As well as the main five-bedroom detached house, the new owner will also acquire a three-bedroom detached cottage on the five acres of land.
Barnet Gate Mill was built in 1823 and is one of the oldest windmills in England.
It worked for almost a century up until 1918 when it became part of the grounds of the house, which was built in the early 20th century.
The main house has exposed beams, period fireplaces, feature windows and a character kitchen.
It has 7,709 sq ft of living space with an entrance hall, kitchen, dining room, living room, study, drawing room, indoor swimming pool complex with a gym and jacuzzi, five bedrooms and three bathrooms and two dressing rooms.
Outside, the property has a terrace for entertaining, a tennis court and two picturesque lakes.
Debbie Sammut, from estate agents Hamptons, said: "The owners have been there since about the late 1970s so it is a rare opportunity to buy - it's not the kind of thing that comes along very often.
"The house itself needs a bit of work now on the layout, it's still got the servant staircase and everyone wants a big entertaining space these days which it doesn't have at the moment.
"The windmill was a working windmill for many years and when the house was built I think they carried on using the windmill."
WINDMILL ONE-OF-A-KIND
Ms Sammut said the windmill just needs new back sails for it to work.
She said: "All the workings and mechanics are still there. The back sails of the windmill have been taken off so it doesn't turn but they're still there in situ so with some work it would all work again.
"It's about four floors high and you can see for quite some distance from inside there.
"Personally I would turn it into a children's play room or a really cool home office. The current owners haven't used it much, it's basically been a very elaborate garden ornament.
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"There is also a detached gatekeeper's cottage and Grade II listed barn that could be converted with planning permission.
"The barn was used as a temporary fire station during the Second World War.
"The property is not overlooked at all and has two lakes, tennis court, indoor pool, it's just all very charming."
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