Eight years of planning and restoration have come to fruition with the re-opening of Belmont House, the Georgian dwelling in Lyme Regis, England that John Fowles called home for 37 years. The Landmark Trust, a charity that recues important buildings that might otherwise be lost, recently completed a £1.8m renovation of the building. Rooms are now being made available for short holiday rentals, although they are already fully-booked through 2016.
The upper windows of Belmont House offer an excellent view of The Cobb and adjacent harbor, the setting for the opening scenes of Fowles’ masterpiece The French Lieutenant’s Woman. He wrote it and his subsequent novels The Ebony Tower, Daniel Martin, Mantissa and A Maggot at the house.
The renovation has won two prestigious awards–see links below for details.
More information about the project can be found here:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/uk/11885860/Landmark-Trust-the-remarkable-remoulding-of-Belmont.html
And also here:
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-dorset-34338419
Here’s an update on Belmont House winning a 2015 Georgian Group Architectural Award:
http://www.midweekherald.co.uk/news/author_john_fowles_s_former_home_wins_uk_award_1_4352927
And on Belmont House winning the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors Building Conservation Award:
