An eccentric gun-toting aristocrat has put his 13-bedroom 2,000 acre Somerset country home up for rent for £20,000 a month. Sir Benjamin Slade, 74, has put 600-year-old Maunsel House, where Geoffrey Chaucer wrote part of The Canterbury Tales, up for rent – after putting it on the market last April for £2.2million and finding no … Read more
The South West, the Cotswolds and many staycation hotspots became fully booked this summer, with hardly a B&B room left unoccupied. Our writers dived off the UK’s tourist trail to visit places that might, at first, not sound much to boast about, but turned out to be nothing short of a revelation… WELSH WONDER WHERE KATE … Read more
An Inspector calls… at the family-run Combe House Hotel in Somerset, which has warm, cosy rooms and dazzling country views Combe House Hotel is a 17-room property in Somerset’s Quantock Hills The hotel is inside an old mill and the 26ft-diameter waterwheel is still in place The Inspector was impressed with his £89 room and the … Read more
Man, 33, is charged with terrorism and explosive offences after bomb squad searched house in Somerset village Dean Morrice, 33, of Somerset, was arrested by counter-terrorism officers Investigation led specialist officers to search a property in Paulton, Somerset Morrice is charged with transmitting a terrorist publication, possession of terrorist related material and making or possessing … Read more
From lockdown to lock-in: An entire 17th-century PUB with a fully operational bar is available to rent on Airbnb The 17th century Fitzhead Inn, in the tiny Somerset village of Fitzhead, has five en-suite rooms But the most eye-catching feature is the bar – where guests can pull their own pints of beer The pub … Read more
Plane-ly amazing! The 1950s nuclear strike aircraft that’s been converted into a boutique Airbnb lodge, with a double bed in the cockpit The converted 1950s English Electric Canberra bomber affords superb views over the Somerset countryside It has a double bed in the cockpit, where guests can gaze through the window at the night’s sky … Read more
A high-flying London couple have spent lockdown living in a treehouse in the Somerset countryside – and say they’re happier than ever. Rebecca Harper, 31, and Sam Harper, 32, from Fulham, London escaped to the woodland treehouse in the grounds of Sam’s father’s and step-mother’s house in East Harptree, Somerset in mid-March, just over a … Read more
Plain-clothed police are sent out on bikes with cameras to record unsuspecting motorists driving badly Plain-clothed officers use £500 cameras to catch out bad drivers in Somerset Police say it will be ‘sow the seeds’ of doubt in drivers so they take greater care Footage taken by cycling officers will be shared on social media, … Read more
An NHS hospital in a Somerset seaside hotspot has today been forced to stop taking new patients due to ‘a high number’ of coronavirus cases. Weston General Hospital, Weston-super-Mare, dramatically announced this morning that it could not take any more admissions, including into A&E. Health chiefs do not know why the hospital has had an … Read more
See Britain at its most enchanting: Photographer moved to the UK with his family – and took these incredible pictures as they explored their new home The stunning pictures have been taken by Romanian Aurel Paduraru, who moved to the UK last year The counties he’s explored so far include Gloucestershire, Somerset, Worcestershire and Pembrokeshire He … Read more