URPoint Details
Free parking; homemade teas in the house; shop in the stableyard. Dogs in grounds only, on leads and not on the main lawns near the house.
Disabled passengers may be set down at the house (please collect pass at ticket office), wheelchair access to garden via compacted gravel paths; stairclimber makes house fully accessible; toilets in car park; wheelchairs available; tearoom accessible.
A classical Palladian house in a beautiful setting overlooking the Thames Valley, built by John Carr of York, 1776-83 for Francis Sykes, who had made a fortune in service with the East India Company.
J B Papworth, completed the interiors for the Liberal MP James Morrison, who bought Basildon in 1838.
The house stood empty and neglected from 1910 to 1952, when it was bought and carefully restored by Lord and Lady Iliffe.
They gave the house to the National Trust in 1978, and continue to live in the south pavilion.
The 2 storey main block raised on a rusticated basement with central portico and the side lower pavilions are linked to the centre by single story screen walls.
The focal point of the interior is an unusual octagonal drawing room and a richly decorated Neo-classical hall,
- Type:
- Landmark