The following article appeared in the "Western Morning News" newspaper on December 17, 2002
LIVE LIKE A STAR IN VICARAGE TOP STAR KNOWS SO WELL
Royal patronage and celebrity status are firmly stamped on the heritage of a fine country residence in the Wolds with one very famous owner. In short, if you desire a magnificent period hideaway with all the contemporary twists added by a world-famous rock star, The Old Vicarage at Tathwell, near Louth, may well be for you.
With change out of £1 million, you could soon be living in the home of one well-loved Lincolnshire lady, the Scottish-born singer and actress Barbara Dickson, OBE. Rest assured she is not leaving the county where she has enjoyed its quiet, rural charms for more than two decades. She is believed to be looking for a new home in the Louth area - Lincolnshire has been a bolt hole during a lengthy career featuring many hits, musicals and television series.
Remember "Love Hurts" from the TV series "Band Of Gold"? The ever-popular musical "Chess"? Think back, and you know it all so well.
But first, more about this rather splendid Grade II listed residence which stands grandly within grounds and paddocks of around 10 acres. Take your approach up the lime-tree lined drive and you can admire at once the Gothic-style pad built in 1849 in its elevated position on the edge of the pretty village. It was designed by the renowned Victorian architect SS Teulon, who enjoyed favour at different times with both Prince Albert and Prince Edward. Most of his work was based in London and the home counties, but he also had a thing going on with vicarages in Lincolnshire.
The property was, in part, paid for by the Vicar of Tathwell, one John Waite, who also happeened to be headmaster of Louth Grammar School and who taught one of our famous Lincolnshire sons, The Poet Laureate Alfred, Lord Tennyson.
Teulon, an architect ahead of his time, incorporated some of the striking internal and external eatures which were his hallmark to the property, such as working shutters on the ground floor rooms and an unusual fireplace windown in the dining room. The visual feast inside continues once through the original front door, with cast iron radiators, period fireplaces and, in the entrance hall, a staircase with original banister rail and a very impressive stone mullion window.
Barbara has shaped the house into a very desirable and much-loved family home. The singer, renowned for hits such as "The Caravan Song" and "Another Suitcase In Another Hall", settled here in 1992. She told the Journal of her fondness for the house: "I knew Lincolnshire quite well because my personal manager Bernard Theobald, hails from Tealby and very proudly showed me around the county in the early Seventies. I briefly lived in Navenby, near Lincoln.
"When I was in London in the late Eighties with my young family, we were looking for a country house. The whole process took a very long time. We started looking when we only had one child and by the time we arrived here we had three! We viewed properties all over the country, from farmhouses in Kent and Wiltshire, to Devon and Herefordshire, but I was interested to come and see The Old Vicarage because it had 11 acres and secondary accomodation.
"The most important feature for us, however was that nobody had built a bungalow in the garden! We were convinced when we saw it, that this was the house for us. It has huge character and integrity as a building whih is very important to me, and it has been a labour of love restoring it to its former glory. It now has the feel and character of a Victorian vicarage with the comfort of a 21st century home." The three-floor property includes an attached self-contained two-bedroom cottage, which attracted Barbara initially. There are also outbuildings including a stable block with garaging and a loft room.
And, if you want to disappear off to pen your own hit numbers, there is a refurbished field shelter, suitable for an office or studio. Upstairs in the main house, the elegant master bedroom has an en-suite bathroom where you can soak in the fashionable roll-top cast-iron bath while your guests in another bedroom can enjoy south facing views over the Wolds countryside.
For the rest of your family or guests, take your pick from three other equally smart bedrooms, all featuring stripped beams and fireplaces. Recline in the conservatory with its Gothic doors, or the breakfast room with Gothic-style French doors.
Rustle up supper on the traditional Aga, and store your vintage collection in the stone wine bins in the cellar. When you want to entertain your friends in style, the elegant dining room is the place to be, complete with a cast iron fireplace featuring an original marble surround.
The decor is as you might expect - beautifully mellow and subtle with shades of terracotta, cream and soft hues adding suitable ambience to the house. Wander outside on the lawn among sycamore, pine and yew trees and you will find a vegetable garden, an orchard and a terrace.
Barbara's career continues to soar after success in many stage productions and national tours. Three years ago, she took the lead role in the new musical "Spend Spend Spend" in London, about the life of Viv Nicholson, to huge critical acclaim.
You will have to do the same if you want to live the dream in a rock chick's country des res. The asking price is £750,000.
