Pennod 8 04 Wal

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-Tonight, a 16th century home

-in the suburbs of Cardiff.

-We visit Sker House, one of Wales's

-most important historical building.

-First, a traditional terraced house

-which is blue, from top to bottom.

-An interesting mixture of people

-live in Tal-y-bont.

-It's a close-knit community.

-We looked at the community, at the

-school and at the local amenities...

-..before we even started

-the house-hunting process.

-We couldn't find a house.

-Buying a terraced house

-in Tal-y-bont was a compromise...

-..but Catrin Davies

-and Alun Elidyr...

-..have created a home for themselves

-and their daughter, Elan.

-The house was nothing like what we

-wanted it to be, when we bought it.

-That's why we gutted it!

-Three months later, I stood

-on this very spot and looked up...

-..to see we had no floors

-and no ceilings.

-I could see right up to the roof!

-We read

-every interior design magazine.

-We knew what we wanted by the time

-we talked to an architect.

-The house has turned out

-more or less as we'd imagined it.

-There's a lot of blue in this house.

-A heck of a lot of blue!

-A heck of a lot of blue!

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-LAUGHTER

-Is blue your favourite colour?

-I like blue and so does Alun.

-Where there is colour in this house,

-it's blue.

-We knew we could live with it

-and we could accessorise it.

-With blue accessories!

-Yes.

-Alun always tells people the carpet

-on the stairs was meant to be red.

-We wanted to have modern things

-in this house.

-We found it difficult to find those

-items in the Aberystwyth area.

-We flicked through magazines and

-saw pictures of fantastic items...

-..but they don't tell you

-where you can find them.

-We bought almost everything

-relatively locally.

-This is a very contemporary space.

-How did it look

-when you bought the house?

-It was nothing like this!

-There was a wall,

-where we're standing now.

-There was a heater

-on the other side.

-There was a door over here and

-a door at the foot of the stairs.

-The spindles had been blocked off

-with plasterboard.

-There was fake tongue and groove

-on the plasterboard.

-All we've really done

-is take this house back to basics.

-You even had to re-lay

-the floorboards.

-Yes. Brian, the builder,

-advised us to do this.

-This is a long, narrow house.

-If you lay the floorboards in

-the same direction as the house...

-..you'll end up with something

-that looks like a cricket pitch!

-It makes it feel narrower.

-The builder laid the floorboards

-across the room.

-If this room were empty...

-..you'd see that the floorboards

-make the room seem wider.

-The blue theme continues upstairs.

-There was once a window there

-but it's now a wall of glass bricks.

-There's another wall of glass bricks

-over here.

-The bathroom is behind this wall.

-This is a clever trick.

-Put all your laundry equipment in

-a cupboard, inches from the bedroom.

-This is the new bedroom.

-This was originally

-a single-storey extension...

-..to accommodate the kitchen.

-They decided to add this room,

-on top of the flat roof.

-This is Catrin and Alun's bedroom.

-There's a high ceiling here

-and the room is flooded with light.

-There's a balcony out here.

-You can stand here

-and look at your estate.

-I see the wildebeest

-are around today.

-The angle of the morning sun meant

-we couldn't have a square room...

-..because we'd block out

-our neighbours' light.

-We have an angular wall

-in our bedroom...

-..and it created a unique room.

-This is the bathroom.

-The back of the house

-is an extension...

-..so we had to have an

-internal room, which had no windows.

-We decided to use these glass bricks

-to let in some daylight.

-It's amazing how much sunlight

-comes in here, from the other room.

-We thought long and hard about it...

-..and we decided to have blue tiles!

-What a shock!

-I'm quite proud of these tiles.

-These mosaic tiles come in sheets.

-We bought a sheet of dark blue tiles

-and a sheet of light blue tiles...

-..and we removed

-some of the main tiles...

-..to create a pattern

-which isn't too symmetrical.

-You're clever!

-You're clever!

-

-Yes - occasionally!

-You plumped for a blue loo seat.

-It matches everything else!

-Blue and water go together,

-don't they?

-We leave that oasis of pink and

-find ourselves feeling blue again.

-This carpet was meant to be red

-but it turned out to be blue.

-The first of the two rooms

-on this floor is a study.

-There are lots of books in here.

-It's a lovely room

-and it's really light.

-That's front-facing and you get the

-afternoon sun through that window.

-The other window is south-facing,

-so you get the morning sun.

-There's a touch of the Mata Hari

-about this!

-It's almost

-like stepping into a boudoir.

-We're kitchen people.

-We enjoy hanging out in here.

-Someone calls around to the house

-and you can see them from here.

-They come in

-and we sit around and talk.

-Everything flows through the house.

-Moving here involved so much more

-than moving in to the house.

-This is a pleasant village

-in which to live...

-..and we've become

-part of a wonderful community.

-There's more to living here

-than the house.

-Sker House was established by

-Neath monks in the 12th century...

-..but it was transformed

-into a Tudor house in 1539.

-Sker House has been empty

-since the 1970s.

-It was in a state of disrepair when

-conservation bodies took it over...

-..and turned it back into a home.

-1.25 million and six years later...

-..and it's ready

-for the new owners to move in.

-This is a highly unusual

-executive home!

-This ancient building

-is equipped for modern living.

-This is the kitchen.

-There are lots of sockets

-on the walls.

-Why did it take six years

-and 1.25 million...

-..to restore this house?

-Because it was restored,

-not renovated.

-They've kept original features,

-where possible.

-Two men took a whole week to put

-an iron bar through this beam...

-..to reinforce it.

-The family that will live here

-will enjoy lots of modern comforts.

-There's underfloor heating

-throughout the house...

-..and plenty of electrical sockets.

-Where will they put the microwave?

-This could be a pantry.

-The wind howls through here, so

-the veg would definitely stay fresh!

-This is the great hall.

-I can see why they call it "great"

-because it's huge!

-What would you

-do with a room like this?

-It would make a good lounge.

-There's a fireplace there,

-which could be cosy.

-It's a light room.

-You could have this

-as a banqueting hall.

-You can't have a banquet every

-night of the week either, can you?

-Having said that, you could hardly

-sit here with a boiled egg!

-It demands grandeur.

-This is the main feature

-of the great hall.

-This is the west wall of the room.

-We tend to think graffiti was

-invented by football hooligans...

-..but here's a record of the house's

-residents of the past 200 years.

-GK lived here in 1799 and

-Thomas Butler lived here in 1813.

-John Williams also lived here.

-He was a member of the famous

-Williams family from Sker.

-Anne Williams wrote a poem here.

-"Anne Williams if my name

-and England is my nation.

-"Sker is my dwelling place

-and Christ is my salvation."

-This is the most recent addition

-to this section of graffiti.

-It was probably carved into

-the stone by Tony Evans, in 1975.

-Another feature of the hall is the

-frieze that goes around the room.

-There are some grapes on the frieze.

-The monks grew grapes, originally.

-You'll find friezes like this in

-houses of a similar age in Somerset.

-It suggests there was a link

-between Wales and England.

-There are three potential bedrooms

-on this floor...

-..and there are

-some more rooms, upstairs.

-For such a huge house, the bathrooms

-and toilets are piffling!

-There's hardly room for a shower

-in here, never mind a bath.

-Let's hope the new owners are short!

-Is that Port Talbot?

-It's said there was a secret church

-in the attic of this house.

-Several things

-lead people to believe that.

-This narrow, awkward staircase

-is one such thing.

-Navy blue!

-We're talking about a time

-when Catholics were persecuted.

-They needed safe churches

-in which they could worship.

-This is the second thing

-that suggests this was a church.

-A watchman could stand on this ledge

-and look out of this window.

-They'd be able to see

-the king's soldiers coming.

-Here's the third thing

-that suggests this was a church.

-There's a narrow room,

-next to the church...

-..offering an escape route,

-should the soldiers turn up.

-They could enjoy the view,

-as they scampered across the roof!

-I wonder what the new owners

-will make of it.

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-Many people are surprised

-this house is here.

-I'm not talking about local people,

-because they know about it.

-Local people keep telling me

-that Cromwell stayed here.

-There's no evidence.

-It's a local legend.

-The house was here at the time

-of the Battle of St Fagans.

-Eleri and Brian Rogers

-wanted a bigger house...

-..but they didn't expect to find one

-of the oldest houses in Glamorgan.

-Ty Mawr lies in the heart of Cardiff

-and it's a Grade II listed building.

-The house was built in 1583.

-They were selling this house and the

-cottage next door at the same time.

-We couldn't afford

-both properties...

-..and I asked if it would

-be possible to buy one of them.

-The vendors agreed.

-Suddenly, it became possible.

-We were worried we would

-bite off more than we could chew...

-..but we knew what it entailed,

-when we read the survey.

-The Matthews family

-built this house.

-We can date it from the fireplace

-that was in this house...

-..but is now in St Fagans.

-The Matthews

-were a high profile family.

-They sponsored poets.

-Where was the fireplace, originally?

-Where was the fireplace, originally?

-

-We think it was right here.

-There's another original fireplace

-above here, upstairs.

-We think the fireplace here

-used the same chimney.

-There's no trace of it now,

-of course.

-This is a picture of the fireplace.

-This is the one

-that belonged to this house.

-It has now been set into a wall

-at the castle, in St Fagans.

-There's a date in the middle.

-Have you made a bid

-to have it returned to you?

-The previous owners tried...

-..but we've been told

-they'll never give it back.

-It's a little bit

-like the Elgin Marbles!

-Yes. It's terribly unjust!

-We think the staircase was put in

-when the fireplace was taken out.

-It's around 100 years old.

-The makers tried to replicate

-the style of the house.

-Yes, but they failed!

-I like the steps themselves

-because they're so solid.

-I'm not keen on

-the fake element of the staircase.

-Is this the dining room?

-Is this the dining room?

-

-Yes. Some of it is original.

-There's an embarrassment of wood

-in here, too!

-The large beams are original.

-We haven't altered this room.

-You had to furnish the house...

-..with pieces that complement

-the house's style and age.

-Yes, we had to buy

-some antique furniture.

-My mother found several items

-in sales, in the Llanfyllin area.

-That was used as an

-animal feed storage unit on a farm!

-Do people realise

-how valuable they are?

-No, they didn't and neither did I,

-when I was young.

-I thought they were ugly.

-This wonderful dining table

-seats ten people.

-Yes, that's right.

-This isn't an old table

-but it fits in well with the room.

-We're not keen on the fireplaces.

-They're quite old

-and they have lots of character.

-I'd take them out

-if CADW gave us permission!

-I'll give you an idea

-of the geography of this house.

-We're leaving the dining room.

-The old fireplace stood here.

-The study is over here

-and the kitchen is over there.

-This is the Victorian staircase...

-..and we're now entering

-the main hall.

-All the timber in here

-was painted black, at one time.

-We witnessed

-the stripping work taking place.

-Some might say this wood

-was supposed to be black.

-No, painting everything black

-was a Victorian trend.

-The grain was visible on the stairs

-and we preferred it to black wood.

-We didn't think it would be possible

-to strip the wood.

-It worked well.

-How long did the work take?

-Two and sometimes three people...

-..worked here every day

-for five weeks.

-They succeeded.

-This room was depressing.

-It was transformed

-into a cheery room.

-Are the fireplaces listed, too?

-What about the tiles, in the middle?

-What about the tiles, in the middle?

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-The owner of Melin Gruffydd

-lived here.

-What about the tiles, in the middle?

-Part of the building was demolished

-and those are his old roof tiles.

-Part of the building was demolished

-and those are his old roof tiles.

-We're lucky because we can hold

-traditional, Welsh evenings here.

-I feel

-we actually use the house well.

-You leave the lounge

-and reach the back of the house.

-Walk under this Victorian arch

-and you see the stairs.

-They painted the walls

-with limewash.

-Limewash

-allows the walls to breathe.

-The bedrooms are up here.

-This is the bathroom.

-This is Brian's office.

-Brian is Eleri's husband.

-There's a more personal feel

-to this room.

-There are pictures on the walls,

-like this Native American Indian.

-Whatever floats your canoe!

-If we leave this corridor...

-..we'll find the remaining bedrooms.

-I'd say this cupboard was made

-in the 18th century.

-How do I know?

-It says so, right here!

-There are three bedrooms

-on this floor.

-This is an original fireplace.

-The fireplace that is in St Fagans

-stood directly below it.

-We find the main staircase,

-once again.

-We've had

-a circular tour of the bedrooms...

-..and we're back in the lounge.

-I wouldn't like to live here,

-without the conservatory.

-There's hardly a window to speak of

-in the main room.

-It gets very little natural light.

-You could live here

-and your health could suffer...

-..through a lack of daylight.

-You can sit in the conservatory

-and enjoy lots of sunlight.

-It's surprising permission

-was granted for building it.

-Was permission granted?

-Was permission granted?

-

-Who knows?

-We were lucky.

-We inherited the wisteria

-and the geraniums.

-Some of the plants in the garden

-are quite old.

-It was well-planted and

-well-designed, before we came here.

-The garden is wonderful.

-The children have moved out

-but we do use the whole house.

-We created this granny flat

-for my mother.

-This was the biggest job we took on.

-It was a huge task.

-It's still damp, to a degree,

-but the whole room was very damp.

-We removed all the old plaster.

-You can't keep out the damp -

-it will seep through, somehow.

-You may as well work with it

-rather than try to conceal it.

-We found a bowl made of bricks,

-when we were carrying out the work.

-They used it to boil clothes.

-Gerallt from St Fagans came here

-and verified it.

-St Fagans didn't nick that as well,

-did they?

-No and they weren't pleased with us

-for concealing it again...

-..but we didn't need

-a clothes boiler.

-Give us our fireplace back

-and we'll consider it!

-We'll do you a deal!

-I like to think we've improved

-the house's condition.

-We haven't neglected things

-or concealed problems.

-I take pleasure in the fact

-it isn't finished.

-There's always

-something that needs to be done.

-I look forward

-to making even more improvements.

-S4C subtitles by

-Eirlys A Jones