Barnsley House revisited
Posted by Tamara on August 12th, 2008More news on the inn front: last weekend, James and I had an all-too-rare weekend off - no reviewing, researching or meeting with hoteliers to tell them all about Smith - this one was purely pleasure. We went to Barn
sley House (one of the very first boutique hotels to come into our collection). Now, I remember walking round Barnsley House when it was still a building site. The owners, Tim and Rupert, showed us round, telling us their plans for double baths, huge beds, crisp linens and, of course, their love of the gardens (famously created by Rosemary Verey). Amazing to think that was five years ago…
On Friday night we had dinner with Tim and, as you’d expect from a natural entrepreneur, he was buzzing with new projects and ideas. With the success of Barnsley House and the Village Pub (the watering hole they own nearby), Tim and Rupert have literally just completed (as in, on Friday) the purchase of the Catherine Wheel in the next door village of Bibury - a very traditional English pub complete with black beams and tons of copper hangings. They shut the doors this weekend and aim to have the entire interior reinvented by the bank holiday weekend. High hopes indeed, but if anyone can pull it off, Tim and Rupert can. Needless to say, they’re dreading what they’ll find when they strip off all the wood chip that covers all the walls and they’re crossing their fingers that when the carpet is ripped out, the old flagstone floor will be intact. Good luck, guys!
As for plans for the future, well, Tim told us he’d love to go up against the likes of Daylesford Organic and open an organic farm shop either in Barnsley village or Bibury, which would promote all the local farmers. They’re already sniffing out several possible venues. If our dinner at Barnsley House is anything to go by, we’re sure that both the Catherine Wheel and Tim’s farm shop will be huge successes…
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