Elisabeth Beresford’s home for sale on Alderney
Elisabeth Beresford’s children, Kate and Marcus, have decided to sell her house on Alderney following the author’s death in December 2010, and they thought it might be of interest to Wombles fans.
The large four-bedroom house at 22 Little Street (Petite Rue) is on the outskirts of Saint Anne, the island’s main town. It’s on the market for £625,000.
Estate agent Bridget Postlethwaite said: “I’d love a Wombles fan to buy the house; it’s so full of Liza and her welcome still. It’s a wonderful town house, in need of some updating but with some magnificent details, such as the sitting room. The garden is lovely and all the more unusual for being in town. It’s easy walking distance from the countryside and an excellent dog walking area. Alderney is a lovely place to live; like an English country village 50 years ago.”
The main house was built in 1727 and extended around 30 years ago. On the ground floor are the entrance hall, the garage and utility room, the kitchen and the study or “parlour” where Elisabeth Beresford wrote her books on an old typewriter. Among the reference books still on the desk is The Penguin World Atlas, from which perhaps some of the Wombles got their names.
As the pictures show, there are currently still many personal items in the house, with shelves full of books, and Wombles toys even lining up in the kitchen windows to greet visitors.
Upstairs, there’s a large sitting room on the first floor, leading out to the upper level of the garden, along with two bedrooms, a bathroom and a shower room. On the top floor are two more bedrooms, one of which has been used as a games room, and another bathroom.
The family started taking their summer holidays on Alderney in the early 1960s, and loved it so much that they returned every year. Elisabeth Beresford and her husband Max Robertson eventually moved to the island in 1978, once their children had grown up. You can see some parts of the house in Marcus Robertson’s film about his mother for The One Show.
If you’re truly interested in buying the house, contact Bridget Postlethwaite at Mitchell & Partners, on 01481 823277 or 07781 100175. You can find out more about island life on the Visit Alderney website and the Alderney government website.