One of the grandest townhouses on London’s Harley Street, whose history helped inspire characters and events in Charles Dickens acclaimed novel ‘Little Dorrit’, a seven-bedroom Grade II Listed 8,600 sq.ft. (799 sq.m.) Marylebone mansion with large reception rooms, passenger lift, private cinema and a health spa with swimming pool, plunge pool, sauna, steam room and gym is for sale via Beauchamp Estates.
Originally built in 1822-25 by architect and builder John White junior, the five storey Marylebone mansion has an elegant brick façade, three windows wide, with tall sash windows, a first floor ornamental balcony and a fanlight above the front door, with an attractive and private patio garden at the rear.
When it was completed in 1825 records held by the University College London show that the mansion’s first owner was the wealthy financier and merchant John Henry Deffell (1777-1847), a director of the East India Company and a plantation owner in Jamaica.
John and his wife Elizabeth were prominent socialites in Victorian London and acquaintances made investments in India and Jamaica based on his advice. In 1847 many of his investments were found to be scams and he fled Marylebone and committed suicide, an event reported in the London Gazette and Morning Chronicle newspapers.
Novelist Charles Dickens, who from 1834 had worked as a journalist for the Morning Chronicle, is believed to have used these events as inspiration for some of the characters in his acclaimed novel ‘Little Dorrit’, first published in 1855.
In Dicken’s novel, the brother-in-law of Amy Dorrit, known as Little Dorrit, is Edmund Sparkler (married to Amy’s sister Fanny). Edmund’s stepfather Mr Merdle is a wealthy
financier and merchant who lives with his socialite wife Mrs Merdle in a grand mansion on Harley Street.
In ‘Little Dorrit’ Mr Merdle is “the man of the age”, and when news of his success in commerce spreads across London many wealthy associates invest in his projects. When they fail and are exposed as scams, causing financial ruin to the Dorrit family, Mr Merdle commits suicide. The similarities between the events in the Dickens novel and the real life John Henry Deffell are striking.
Charles Dicken’s novels were read and enjoyed by both Queen Victoria and Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli and the publication of ‘Little Dorrit’ led Disraeli to criticise the wealthy merchants of Harley Street which he described as a “flat, spiritless street”. However Disraeli’s hostility towards Harley Street was also driven by the fact that his great political opponent Gladstone owned a house on Harley Street.
Now the Harley Street mansion that helped to inspire a Dickens novel is for sale. Offering substantial accommodation over lower ground, ground and four upper floors the mansion has a courtyard garden at lower ground level, a ground floor patio garden and a roof terrace garden on the first floor.
On the ground floor the house has a reception hall, inner hall with staircase and guest cloakroom, dining room and a family kitchen and sitting room, the latter two rooms have large bay windows overlooking the patio garden. The patio garden, kitchen and dining room create a large and unique entertainment space for social events or family gatherings.
The dining room and kitchen have Oak parquet flooring and the fully fitted designer kitchen has sleek white built-in cabinets and cupboards and a central island with breakfast bar. The sitting room has an adjoining shower room, allowing for use as a bedroom suite.
The lower ground floor provides the leisure amenities including the private cinema/media room, walk-in wine cellar and the health spa which has a spectacular pool room with mosaic lined swimming pool (one of just a few homes on Harley Street with their own private pool), plunge pool, polished plaster walls and feature lighting. The spa includes a changing room with WC, sauna, steam room and a mirrored and glass walled gymnasium, which opens onto a courtyard for outdoor fitness. Back-of-house facilities including a staff bedroom/sitting room with ensuite bathroom, a utility room and storage vaults complete the accommodation on this floor.
On the first floor the drawing room spans the entire width of floor with high ceiling, Regency fireplace and parquet flooring with three French windows opening onto the ornamental balcony. There is also a large study/reception room with the first floor landing providing access to a roof terrace.
The second floor is occupied by the principal bedroom suite on its own private floor with a bedroom, walk-in dressing room and main bathroom with sculptural freestanding bathtub and walk-in marble shower. There is a WC located off the second floor landing.
On the third floor there are two further bedrooms and bathrooms (one ensuite), both bedrooms lined with built-in wardrobes.
On the top floor of the house there is a penthouse suite, with vaulted ceilings providing a spacious living room/studio with fully fitted open plan kitchen, a bedroom with walk-in wardrobe and ensuite bathroom, and off the top floor landing a guest WC.
Jeremy Gee, Managing Director of Beauchamp Estates says: “This magnificent Victorian mansion on London’s Harley Street is one of the grandest townhouses in Marylebone and one of only a few houses on the street with a private swimming pool. The scandal surrounding mansion’s original owner, a wealthy East India Company merchant and investor, helped to inspire some of the characters and events in Charles Dickens acclaimed novel ‘Little Dorrit’. Now fully modernised and beautifully presented, with all the lifestyle and wellness amenities one would expect from an important London residence, this exceptional mansion is a world away from anything remotely Dickensian.”
Rosy Khalastchy, Director & Head of Beauchamp Estates (St John’s Wood & Marylebone) says: “This immaculately presented Marylebone mansion is located at the north end of Harley Street, which is highly sought after since it provides easy access to the wide open spaces of adjacent Regent’s Park and the shops, restaurants, cafes and other amenities of Marylebone High Street. The principal rooms have magnificent proportions and beautiful finishes and alongside the grand staircase there is a passenger lift running from lower ground to third floor. With extensive leisure amenities on the lower ground floor this wonderful mansion offers modern living in Marylebone at its very best.”
The mansion on Harley House is for sale for £18,500,000 (freehold) contact Beauchamp Estates on Tel: +44 (0)20 7722 9793 Email: [email protected] or visit: www.beauchamp.com
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