In horse racing, bloodlines are everything, and if a property can possess a pedigree, then Lodge Down House is a nailed-on classic winner.
The location couldn’t be better for horse lovers. Lodge Down sits on the edge of the “Vale of the Racehorse”, straddling the Berkshire and Wiltshire borders just outside the equine epicentre of Lambourn. There, cars give way to four-legged friends, and the concentration of jockeys, trainers and owners is equal to that of bankers in the Square Mile.
But it’s Lodge Down’s current owners who set it apart. The property is being sold by A. P. McCoy and his wife, Chanelle — as close to racing royalty as you can get, apart from actual royalty. Northern Irishman McCoy’s total dominance of National Hunt racing has brought him the jump jockeys’ title for the past 15 years, an unmatched 3,000 winners and, last December, the BBC’s Sports Personality of the Year award.
You might think that he would be ready to put his feet up and enjoy a few hearty meals with a record like that behind him, but McCoy is planning for a distant future that won’t entail frequent falls, broken bones and a permanently bruised body. So the McCoys are splitting the estate to build a house and racing stable complex and are selling Lodge Down House with what Chanelle describes as “the best 38 acres” of land.
The house is sizeable and solid but looks understatedly elegant on the approach down the long, double-gated drive. Given its origins, the elegance is surprising: it dates back to the 1950s and was built for the owner of the construction company responsible for Southampton port and much of the M4 motorway.
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“We’re only the third owners,” says Chanelle. “We bought Lodge Down House from people who were running it as a guest house, and A. P. had his eye on it for three years. The location’s perfect: between Lambourn and the M4. A. P. goes all over the place, so he needs to be near the motorway, and I travel to London frequently for my business interests. When we brought in builders to renovate, they couldn’t believe how solid the house was. There’s industrial brick throughout.”
The McCoys bought the house in 2006 and spent most of the first year in a rented property while the five bedroom suites, vast kitchen and a separate flat were created. “It’s a house suited to our needs,” Chanelle says. “A. P. spends plenty of time travelling to and from race meetings, but we have lots of friends nearby and like to have them round. So a big, open kitchen, large dining room and comfortable reception rooms were a must. We thought hard about the bedroom suites, too. Our bathroom has a built-in television; it gives A. P. something to do when he’s sweating in the bath for an hour every evening.”
The second bedroom also has a TV in the bathroom, not in case of conflicts over viewing habits, more because McCoy’s great friend and rival, Ruby Walsh, spends half his week at Lodge Down House and has the same weight-loss routine dictated by the hard life of a professional jockey.
Strip out the many trophies and awards that adorn the house and what’s left is a blank canvas. “We have more things hanging around than most people, and there are still plenty we can’t find space for,” Chanelle says. “But it makes it easy for someone to put their mark on the house.”
You’d need a big mark. There’s a games room, a family room, a study and a boot room, as well as that large flat, which has a separate entrance.
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There’s planning permission for a garage block and also for a swimming pool, and the old tennis court to the side of the house is salvageable. This being Lambourn, though, prospective buyers are likely to turn their thoughts to horses.
“The local council is always helpful with equestrian planning matters,” Chanelle says. “Horses are what Lambourn is all about, and the council recognises that.
“There’s plenty of room near the house for stabling for up to 60 horses and accommodation for staff. We might have developed that area ourselves, but A. P. isn’t sure of the scale of his plans yet, so we want more options.”
The house is protected to the east by a 12-acre broad-leafed wood (“Beautiful, especially in spring and summer, and great for walks and games with the children,” Chanelle says) and to the north, beyond a paddock, the land rolls away towards the downs.
The security is seriously impressive — gates, cameras, alarms and radar beams are all in place, though the feeling around the house is one of freedom and openness.
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So if it’s such a good place to live, why bother moving, even if it is only next door? McCoy explains: “I’m looking to the future, to develop a business, perhaps combining training and ownership.
“This is a lot of land and I’m not sure that I need that much. Splitting the property still leaves a massive plot to go with the house and it gives me enough space to train in. It’s a good place to be, though. We love it here.”
Quite an endorsement. You pay your £2.5 million and you take possession of an outstanding property in a stunning location and — as a bonus — a neighbour who is bound to have a good tip for the 2.45 at Kempton Park.
Lodge Down House is being marketed at £2.5 million by Knight Frank (01488 682726, knightfrank.com) and Strutt & Parker (01635 521707, struttandparker.com)