A Grand Designs home said to have some of the best views of Lake Windemere is set to close its doors as a B&B next month. Dome House, as the Lake District house is better known, first featured on the show in 2010, and the Channel 4 programme documented its transformation from a drab 1980s property to a modern paradise that perfectly blends into its picturesque surroundings. But the home, which was created with “overreaching ambition”, came at a huge price, threatening “everything” its creator architect Robert Gaukroger “held dear” – including his home and family’s security.
On the show, he explained that he wanted to fulfil his childhood dream of building a home and simultaneously create a property bearing his architectural stamp in the Lake District. However, the build was fraught with problems and the initial £600,000 mortgage was not enough to cover the grand design – leaving the family at one point with £100,000 left in the bank and an incomplete home. In the end, the property cost over £1m to build, the money for which was secured by another loan.
The house, which was described as “awe-inspiring” by Kevin McCloud, has seven bedrooms, a swimming pool, a sauna, and perhaps best of all an uninterrupted view of Lake Windemere. While Gaukroger hoped to live in the property and use it as a rentable holiday let business for the foreseeable future with his wife and two children, it was ultimately sold in 2016 to Yvonne Malley. The price the property sold.
