Clift Hill, Longtown, Carlisle, Cumbria

With majestic views over the Solway Plain, Clift Hill is a grand building providing a captivating base from which to explore the Lake District, Hadrian’s Wall and Southern Scotland. Clift Hill is a generously proportioned Edwardian mansion sleeping 21 with a sofa bed for extras, designed for the last days of servants and built during the first years of the Great War.

The house is the perfect place to celebrate a birthday with children and grandchildren who’ll be delighted to see hares in the garden in the mornings and startled deer in the overgrown orchard…my children say the house is perfect for hide and seek. Younger parties may enjoy darts in the stable, table football in the cloakroom and watching movies on the big screen or the possibility of a hot tub after a barbecue at the fire-pit on the terrace.

The river is approached by deeply sunken steps that are almost tunnels through the undergrowth and you may find the eels and sea trout that my children loved. The cliffs here are particularly dramatic and totally unexpected.

For large parties, Clift Hill swallows children – you will get just occasional sightings. An old school bell sits on the front porch for you to summon them to supper. Houses like this are familiar to anyone who has ever watched a period drama and being here, in the spacious, elegant rooms, the Edwardian period comes alive.

For walkers, Hadrian’s Wall, a world UNESCO site, crosses 10 minutes from the house and we are a short drive from the Lake District National Park. There are maps and wetsuits for your use.

We have returned most of the house to an appearance that Mr Chance, the original owner, William Morris or Burne-Jones might have appreciated if alive in 1915: still lots of oak and proud metal work together with a smattering of stained glass. Many of the artworks on the walls of Clift Hill today are by family members, from portraits through to abstracts. It offers a unique chance to step into the world where servants were on the way out and central heating was on the way in. The original floorplan is retained and the numerous doors and two staircases often make you feel as if you’re participating in a West End farce.