A Grand Designs Cruciform House

Open plan living with exceptional design

Designed by Roderick James Architects the house has four wings with living areas on the ground floor and four bedrooms on the first floor. The drawing room contains a vaulted ceiling and there is an impressive triple aspect master suite. The hearty fireplace and vaulted oak ceiling in the drawing room create impressive reception space, and the extensive glazing ensures the owners can really appreciate the stunning views. Sitting high up on the Berkshire Downs the house commands a 360-degree view of the Lambourn valley.

“This really is a friendly house that reaches out into the landscape and the world outside grabs it and brings it indoors. It doesn’t just live in its natural surroundings it lives up to it”.

Kevin McCloud, Grand Designs

A collaboration of expertise brings success

On a Friday at the end of August 2000 the frame made a grand arrival via articulated lorry, by the following Monday the Carpenter Oak team arrived, and within seven days the frame was raised.
Timber framing is a highly complex and skilled process, each piece of timber is marked during the carpentry process to enable the frame to be erected in place on site. Up until this point, the frame will never have been erected as a complete structure.

One of the biggest challenges was aligning the cruciform wings precisely with the octagonal ring at the house’s core. Each was connected with a series of oak pegged mortice and tenon joints. The critical point came in fitting the roof, this stage locked the whole frame together.

The frame was then sandblasted to remove any stains. The internally exposed floor joist and rafters create a real statement. The build was completed with weatherboarding and floor to ceiling glazing using a total of 190 panels in the main living area and underfloor heating.

The oak was coveted for practical and straightforward aesthetic reasons.

“I like its longevity. And the way it looks aged and has a sense of history – even though the woods just been sawn.”

Rupert Upton, Client

One of the highlights of the second series of Grand Designs, this distinctive home is familiar to many.
Featured in: Grand Designs, (Second series), Grand Designs Magazine (July 2004), Homebuilding & Renovating (March 2002), Build It (October 2002)

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