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Surrey Homes | SH16 | February 2016 | Wedding supplement inside

The lifestyle magazine for Surrey - Inspiring Interiors, Fabulous Fashion, Delicious Dishes

The lifestyle magazine for Surrey - Inspiring Interiors, Fabulous Fashion, Delicious Dishes

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Above: Much of the furniture in Belvidere Place, such as this elegant pedestal dining table, came from Jilly’s former home in Peckham, south London. Jilly was<br />

inspired to paint the downstairs breakfast room in dark grey after using, and liking, the colour of a grey undercoat she had been using to paint woodwork<br />

As well as bringing many of her London friends with her, Jilly also brought the<br />

contents of her London home – items which fit perfectly with<br />

the pared-down rustic interior of Belvidere Place<br />

In the latest film adaptation of Alan Bennett’s<br />

The Lady in the Van, Miss Shepherd escapes her<br />

unconventional Camden existence to spend short<br />

spells by the sea in Broadstairs. Admittedly, she is far<br />

from your average holiday-maker but, nonetheless,<br />

her attraction to this unspoilt Victorian seaside<br />

town is something many of us can understand.<br />

In 2007, Jilly Sharpe was also an escapee from<br />

London, but from Peckham in her case and, rather than<br />

living in a van, her former home was a large London<br />

townhouse. “I already had a house in Broadstairs, so<br />

knew the town, but moving here was a matter of survival.<br />

I was a single mum who needed to make a living – so<br />

it wasn’t just a case of escaping to the seaside.”<br />

It should also be noted that the huge Georgian building<br />

she was about to buy, was not an entirely tempting<br />

holiday destination or home. “Nobody had repaired it<br />

in 200 years and it was rotten to the core,” says Jilly. “It<br />

had been run as a B&B, although initially I bought it<br />

simply as a home for my son Gus and me. It was horribly<br />

institutional, with fire doors and glass partitions everywhere<br />

and many of the original doorways were boarded up.” <br />

33 www.wealdentimes.co.uk

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