5 days ago
Look inside: Terry Wogan's £3.75m home with tennis court, swimming pool, croquet lawn and orchard
The former Buckinghamshire home of the late, renowned
BBC
broadcaster
Terry Wogan
and his late wife, Helen, has been put up for sale. Hitcham Close in the village of Taplow, near Maidenhead in England, is on the market through joint agents
Savills Residential & Country Agency
and Bovingdons at a guide price of €4.33 million (Stg£3.75 million).
Described by the selling agent as a 'prominent Edwardian home', the house's key features include seven bedrooms all of which have views of its gardens and grounds, five reception rooms, a kitchen/breakfastroom, pantry and utility/bootroom, a tennis court, heated swimming pool, walled garden, croquet lawn and an orchard. The property, which the radio and TV presenter acquired with his wife in 1975, sits on a substantial 2.84-acre site behind wrought-iron gates in a private setting with views to Windsor Castle.
Wogan, who was given an honorary knighthood for his services to broadcasting by Britain's late
Queen Elizabeth
in 2005, forged strong links to his adopted Buckinghamshire over the decades when he and his family lived there. From 2007, he served as deputy lieutenant of the county, a role which saw him assisting the lord lieutenant in their duties as the queen's official local representative.
Following Wogan's death
at the age of 77 in 2016, lord lieutenant Henry Aubrey-Fletcher spoke of the Irish broadcaster's work in the county.
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Entrance hall
Livingroom
Diningroom
Study
Kitchen
He said: 'He was true to his word. Despite his busy broadcasting schedule Terry frequently undertook citizenship ceremonies, welcoming people from other countries just as he, himself, had been welcomed to these shores from Ireland.'
In comments published in local newspaper, The Bucks Herald, Wogan's youngest son, Mark, remembered the family's time together in Hitcham Close.
'We're a close family, so the kitchen was central to everything,' Mark said.
'Mum was a fantastic cook. The welcome was always warm and the food plentiful.
'My parents were great hosts and had a close group of good friends that would regularly be over for dinners.
'We'd also have some lovely long lunches on the terrace overlooking mum's beloved garden. It's a thing of beauty.'
Landing
Bedroom
Bedroom
Bathroom
Bathroom
Lawn to rear
Lawn
Landscaped lawn area
Tennis court
Tennis court
According to Hugh Maconochie of selling agent Savills, Hitcham Close 'exudes charm and has clearly been a wonderful family home for many years'.
'The garden views are truly exceptional, with Windsor Castle beautifully framed by thoughtfully positioned planting, creating a picturesque and memorable outlook,' Maconochie said.
Terry Wogan was a regular presenter on BBC Radio from 1969 until his death in 2016. His Radio 2 breakfast show, Wake up to Wogan, was hugely successful, attracting an average audience of about eight million listeners between 1993 and his semi-retirement in 2009.
[
Terry Wogan interview: 'I'm a child of the Pale. I think I was born to succeed here'
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]
In terms of his television career, Wogan had a number of notable successes. These included Wogan, the thrice-weekly chatshow that he hosted on BBC One from 1984-1991, his time at the helm of the popular Blankety Blank quizshow, and Come Dancing, the original forerunner to today's ballroom dancing behemoth, Strictly Come Dancing.
He presented the BBC's coverage of the
Eurovision Song Contest
for many years. His proudest achievement, however, was Children in Need, the annual fundraising telethon he started in 1980, and which has raised hundreds of millions since.