Latest news with #Asthall
Times
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- Times
Ellen DeGeneres lists renovated Cotswolds farmhouse for £22.5m
She is arguably America's most famous Trump exile. Ellen DeGeneres, the 67-year-old chat show host who has an estimated net worth of about £360 million, resolved to settle in Britain the day after the president's re-election, moving into a vast converted barn in the Cotswolds that she had bought as a part-time bolthole months earlier. She has, however, already decided to move on. A video released by Sotheby's International Realty revealed that DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi, her wife, had put their 43-acre Kitesbridge Farm estate on the market for £22.5 million — up from the £15 million they paid last June after an extensive renovation. The 18th-century house, which also includes a gym, pool, games room and 'party barn' with its own pub, has 16,600 square feet of living space and is in the village of Asthall, at the heart of the Chipping Norton set. Yet according to DeGeneres, the house didn't have the one thing de Rossi really wanted: space for her horses. 'When we decided to live here full time, we knew that Portia couldn't live without her horses,' she said in a statement issued through Sotheby's. 'We needed a home that had a horse facility and pastures for them.' The couple, it has emerged, have already moved onto a larger and more modern estate near by. DeGeneres and de Rossi's renovation was extensive. Andrew Barnes, of Sotheby's, said Kitesbridge Farm had great bones but was 'quite tired' when the couple bought it but that it was transformed by an army of 70 workers in four and a half months. Among other upgrades, they created a single-storey extension and landscaped the garden. He said the house now looks like it belongs in Malibu, and is among the few in the area to be finished to the standard of London, Los Angeles or Montecito, California, where the couple previously lived in a £24 million house. DeGeneres and de Rossi have become known as serial flippers — buying and quickly renovating properties across the US. The latest upgrade did not, however, come without tribulations. In February, local councillors expressed concern that the works could disturb Roman remains and raise the risk of flooding. Agents said that, despite a dramatic property market slowdown thanks in part to tax and non-dom rule changes, liberal Americans have continued to express an interest in the Cotswolds. Experts suggest they prefer the area to London because of the perceived crime risk in the capital, as well as the creature comforts and celebrity residents on offer. 'Overseas and particularly American buyers are increasingly tying in their holidays with property searches, drawn by the good weather, the lifestyle and the favourable dollar-pound exchange rate,' said Harry Gladwin, head of the Cotswolds market for the high-end property agency The Buying Solution. 'American accents seem to be around every corner this summer — it feels that many make the Cotswolds their first stop rather than going to London first.'
Daily Mail
07-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Is Ellen DeGeneres swimming pool behind Jeremy Clarkson's disastrous Farmer's Dog pub opening? ALISON BOSHOFF reveals all
The disastrous opening of Jeremy Clarkson 's Cotswolds pub is the climax of season four of the global hit series Clarkson's Farm. And now locals are claiming that one of the reasons why it was such a nightmare is down to his new neighbour, US TV star Ellen DeGeneres, filling the swimming pool at her new house. As viewers of the show may recall, mains water failed on the second day of opening at The Farmer's Dog in August 2024. Both the pub toilets and kitchen had to close, and customers were turned away in their droves. In an exchange seen on-screen Clarkson's plumber claimed the problem was due to villagers in the nearby hamlet of Asthall using up all the water in the mains system - not leaving any for the pub, a mile away and also up a hill. Clarkson said on episode eight of the show: 'I was hoping the problem was something trivial, but the plumber quickly realised it was being caused by the village down the hill.' Clarkson's plumber then explained: 'As far as I know, the water pipe comes all the way up the hill from Asthall village. 'When everyone in the village is turning their water supply on, showers, filling up pots and pans and kettles, it doesn't then have the oomph to push it up the hill [to the pub].' A local from Asthall, who did not wish to be named, reveals: 'It was around the August Bank Holiday weekend [2024] that the swimming pool at the Ellen's farmhouse was being refilled. 'Pools of that size filled with normal mains water can take a week to nine days to fill - sometimes even longer depending on the local mains water pressure. 'If you can imagine having all the taps on to fill the pool, that has to take a lot of water out of the system and Asthall really is just a very small hamlet with a handful of houses. 'Then perhaps it is no surprise that Clarkson, with all the water a business like that uses, ran out of water.' The local believes that Ellen's 56ft-long pool was emptied, cleaned and refilled around August Bank Holiday last year for the former chat show host and her wife, actress Portia De Rossi. Ellen bought a £15million farmhouse in Asthall, a hamlet with only a handful of other houses, in June of last year. She had decided to quit her home in Montecito, California, in an apparent protest at US President Donald Trump's second election win. Ellen and Portia did not move in until last October, with various building works and landscaping being done in the period in between. The pool itself measures 56ft by 12ft, with an average depth of 6ft, which means it holds 112,896 litres of water. Filling it with mains water will have taken anywhere between seven to nine days. It is thought that the only other pool in the village is at Asthall Manor, which is owned by the aristocrat and local Green Party district councillor Rosie Pearson. That has a natural swimming pond and a fish pond - however, it is not thought either were being refilled at that time. Ellen and Portia's move to the Cotswolds came to light after they were videoed attending a live music night at The Farmer's Dog in December. It subsequently emerged that Ellen and Portia had fallen in love with the only other pub in Asthall, The Three Horseshoes, just a short stroll from their house. Sources said they loved the Three Horseshoes so much they had a version of the pub's bar built at their own farmhouse later. In November last year, the 43 acres of land surrounding Ellen's farmhouse was badly flooded when a tributary of the Thames, which runs through the farm, broke its banks. This spring, Ellen and Portia moved again – this time to a stunning £15million modern house in a hilltop location, near Chipping Norton. Clarkson's Farm, now in its fourth season, is a huge global hit. But the star and his girlfriend Lisa Hogan say they cannot bear to watch the last two episodes because it brings back the stress and trauma of those pub-opening days so vividly. The Grand Tour host Clarkson bought The Windmill in Asthall near Burford for about £1million and, after renovating it, he renamed the watering hole The Farmer's Dog in recognition of his pets and his nearby farm, Diddly Squat.
Yahoo
28-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Jeremy Clarkson says 'I'm done' and he makes huge business decision
Jeremy Clarkson has declared he is 'done' with business and admitted: "I don't understand it." The TV star, who bought a pub in Asthall last year, said he 'just wants a good craic' as he shut down the possibility of taking on any more entrepreneurial ventures. He opened The Farmer's Dog on the back of his success with his 1000-acre Diddly Squat farm and shop. READ MORE: 'Armageddon' alert to hit every UK phone - everything you need to know before 10-second siren sounds However getting the pub ready for opening wasn't an easy task - as fans of his Clarkson's Farm show will know - and he doesn't plan on doing it again. Speaking to The Times, Jeremy said: "I'm done with business now. "I am not starting another business as long as I live. I don't understand it and am not motivated by money. I just want a good craic." While Jeremy's pub has attracted punters from far and wide, some may not be familiar with the funny reason behind the name. In the fourth episode of the Amazon Prime Video show, Jeremy reads through documentation about handling the pub's purchase and discovers the surrounding area is regularly visited by people who enjoy having sex in public spaces. He also learns that the pub's garden area is designated by the council as a picnic site, the Mirror reports. The former Top Gear host put a call in to his lawyer to explain the situation and he was told the site previously attracted some "unwanted and anti-social behaviour" that "might put you off eating your picnic". Jeremy was told by the lawyer: "We have happened upon some quite interesting photographs which capture certain graffiti and certain goings-on." Upon visiting for himself, Jeremy found the x-rated behaviour was still going on as he found underwear thrown in trees. Jeremy later shared a snap on Instagram, which showed him stood outside of the pub holding stick with a pair of black and pink knickers hanging off the end. He captioned the picture: "Tell me you bought a pub on a dogging site without telling me you bought a pub on a dogging site."
Daily Mail
17-06-2025
- Climate
- Daily Mail
Moment Jeremy Clarkson's controversial £40,000 pub umbrellas SOAK the decking at The Farmer's Dog pub
This is the moment water collected in Jeremy Clarkson 's controversial £40,000 gazebo soaked the decking at The Farmer's Dog pub. Punters drinking outside his famous watering hole in Asthall, Oxfordshire, watched as staff struggled to drain huge pools of rain water in the umbrella system. The former Top Gear host, 65, clashed with pub experts Sue and Rachel Hawkins over the pricey outdoor addition on the Amazon Prime series Clarkson's Farm. He was originally against the umbrellas for his decking area over worries they would block the view for guests, but eventually agreed to have them. However, they seem to be creating issues as rain water collects in the material with no system in place to drain it out. Footage shows workers scrambling to drain some of the water as they got splashed in the process. They then attempted to contain and redirect some of the liquid away from the heads of people nearby. Customers can be seen standing awkwardly holding their pints after their visit was interrupted by the fiasco, apart from one man who seemed unphased as he tucked into his meal. They then attempted to contain and redirect some of the liquid away from the heads of people nearby A couple then jumped up out of their seats and ran to the other side of the garden to dodge the splash zone. Wez Marlow, 41, visited The Farmer's Dog in Asthall, Oxfordshire, last Thursday for his birthday. He captured footage of a torrential downpour which created the huge pools of water in the gazebo. 'Once the channels between them are sorted then yes they will be worth the investment. They the make the decking area usable all year round,' Mr Marlow said. 'Fortunately, it didn't ruin our experience there, we found the food was really good.'
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The Independent
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
This is the Cotswolds pub Jeremy Clarkson bought in Burford
Fans have flocked to Jeremy Clarkson 's Cotswolds pub following a behind-the-scenes look at what it took to buy the boozer in season four of his hit TV show. The Farmer's Dog opened its doors last August following the success of his Diddy Squat farm and accompanying farm shop at the centre of his Amazon Prime farming series Clarkson's Farm. Hundreds were seen queuing outside the presenter's new watering hole in Asthall on opening day last summer. In May, the fourth series aired for viewers to watch Clarkson navigate the difficulties of becoming a pub landlord during a peak in pub closures across the UK. The 65-year-old took over rural country pub The Windmill in Asthall – a 'village boozer' on five acres of countryside near Burford last June. Clarkson bought the pub near his 1,000-acre Diddly Squat Farm and Hawkestone Lager brewery for less than £1 million after a lengthy search seen on screen in season four of Clarkson's Farm. Described on its former Facebook page as a 'stunning 15th-century vaulted barn venue with breathtaking panoramic views across rolling Costwolds' the Oxfordshire pub announced it was under new ownership on 4 June 2024. Formerly a wedding and banqueting venue, the space held a four-star rating on TripAdvisor. Now, a £20,000 chrome tractor is suspended from the ceiling of the new pub – courtesy of Richard Hammond. Clarkson's aim was that everything served on his pub's plates be kept strictly locally sourced and produced by British farmers. According to the pub's website, The Farmer's Dog is a 'whole day out' with a one-stop butcher and bottle shop, bar and 'outpost to grab a meaty snack when you need a refuel'. It adds: 'The pork, the beef, the lamb and the venison are all British. And so is pretty much everything else. The milk, the butter, the eggs, the vegetables and the fruit. We even cook in British oils.' On The Farmer's Dog menu, mains, including sausage and mash and steak pie, range from £20 to £24 and pints are poured from £5.75. The pub also sells merchandise themed around Clarkson's popular Hawkstone brewery. Clarkson was surprised when Oxfordshire County Council approved plans to transform the 'dogging site' that was 'full of dead rats' into the 'fun' village watering hole.
