The return of Rivals, where to find the UK’s largest Christmas tree and why the new Jaguar isn’t as bad as you think.
A literal theatre of dreams
Country Life the magazine and indeed Country Life the website are usually focused on things and people and events that occur in and on this North Atlantic archipelago. But not always. The bar to clear for international recognition is a high one, and it is rarely cleared.
Not even sure what this is, or what it does, but I like it. Answers on a postcard please.
However, 113 East 26th Street, Sea Island in Georgia, USA, flies over it. My goodness. Just have a look at this place. It is called Entelechy II.
The atrium. It was his thing.
It is the best house for sale in the world right now, for that I have no doubt. Built by the architect John Portman as his private home it is, according to the agents, ‘an embodiment of modernist philosophy and an exemplar of the “Entelechy: concept – a state in which potentiality reaches its fullest realisation.”’
Here’s some of the boring stuff. It is set over two beachfront acres, offers seven bedrooms and nine bathrooms. There’s also a private guest cottage with four further bedrooms. It costs $40 million dollars and is for sale with Chase Mizell of Atlanta Fine Homes & Sotheby’s International Realty and Susan Imhoff and Ann Harrell of DeLoach Sotheby’s International Realty. Anyone fancy splitting it with me?
Some more words from the agents: ‘Entelechy II transcends the conventional, standing as a harmonious interplay between architectural form and the natural grandeur of its oceanfront setting. Portman’s genius is evident in the meticulous orchestration of space, light, and materiality. Expansive glass façades blur the demarcations between interior and exterior, inviting the serene panorama of the Atlantic Ocean into every room.’
It is light. It is colour. It is nature. It is fantastic. It kept me awake when I saw it last night. It is for sale for the first time ever. Go check out the listing for all the pictures.
I suppose we must look inside the home.
So who was John Portman? He was a neo-Futuristic architect and real estate developer who lived and worked in Georgia. Have you ever been on a holiday in the US and stayed at a big hotel with a vast atrium and wondered who came up with that as an idea? It was Portman.
I think what’s perhaps most surprising about Portman’s work is that so much of it seems, well, bland in comparison to Entelechy II. Every now and then, without the hindrance of a client, real expression can shine through. It makes me wonder what else he could have achieved with the shackles off. At least we can be grateful for this one example.
Imagine if he’d built it in Dorset. The local planning meetings would have lasted half a decade.
Quiz of the day (answers at the bottom of the page)
1) In which county would you find Nunney Castle?
2) On which body part would you wear a sabot?
3) Cricket bats are traditionally made with which type of wood?
4) In which year were MOT tests introduced in the UK?
5) Which poet wrote The Divine Comedy?
Spanning new heights
Have you ever wondered where the UK’s biggest Christmas tree is? You haven’t? Well I’m going to tell you anyway. It’s in Cragside in Northumberland, where the National Trust have decorated a 130ft tall Giant Redwood in 2,000 lightbulbs to celebrate the property’s history of innovation.
Now, you might say: ‘hang on a minute, a Giant Redwood isn’t a Christmas tree, you can’t just stick lights on any old tree and call it a Christmas tree, that’s absurd.’ To which I would reply, ‘Yes you can.’ Donald Trump can be President. Jacob Rees-Mogg is a reality-tv star. Vinnie Jones is a farmer now. You can do whatever you like. The rulebook went through the window almost a decade ago.
The tree, with Cragside in the background. Credit: National Trust
How do you put one kilometre of lights on a 130ft tree? With very large cherry pickers. You’d be fuming if one wasn’t working when you switched them on wouldn’t you. George Clarke, from George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces, turned them on and said this: ‘Cragside is one of my favourite National Trust properties. It is spectacular inside and out, a real wonder of innovation, vision and creativity. So, it was an absolute honour to be asked to help open the Christmas festivities at Cragside.’
How tall is 130ft in double-decker buses? About 10 on top of each other, I am reliably told. 130ft is high enough that there’s every chance Santa Claus might actually hit it on his way past.
As mentioned, Cragside has a long history of innovation. It was here that William Armstrong, one of the creators of the property and gardens, created the first hydro-electric power plant, which was no mean feat in the 19th century.
Christmas at Cragside is open now. Click here for more information.
Why is everything so hard to recycle?
Credit: Getty
Sometimes, it takes someone like Agromenes to look past the headlines and see what democracy is really up to. The good news is that it’s currently forcing producers to pay for their own recycling, which we reckon is long overdue. Read more here
Rivals returns
Alex Hassell will return as Rupert Campbell-Black. Credit: Robert Viglasky/Disney+
I suppose it shouldn’t be a surprise, considering its success, but it’s always nice to have confirmation. Rivals is coming back for a second season folks, and I am thrilled. Have I ever read any of Jilly Cooper’s books? I have not. I even wrote a whole article about a house in which I proudly declared to have not done so. I was wrong. Rivals is great. I watched the whole series in two days. I do not know when Season 2 will be released. Sorry.
That’s all for today, we’ll be back tomorrow
Quiz answers
1) Somerset
2) Foot (it’s a clog)
3) Willow
4) 1960
5) Dante
