Viva Lewes Issue #135 December 2017

WATTLE AND DAUB
used to be three times as high as it now is,
with an open fire sending its smoke through
unglazed windows and the roof. “That is,
until a better way of getting rid of smoke was
invented,” says Peter.
William and Alice Coppard, who lived here
in the late 16th-century, had a chimney
installed and the bay floored over to create
two storeys. That couple – who come up in
the interview so much I can almost feel their
presence – were responsible for many of the
extensions and improvements that turned the
original house into something resembling
what we have today.
Another such ‘ghost’ in the house is Marjorie
Davies. In 1700 the house was incorporated
into a local estate, and split into two cottages.
When the Varlows moved in to one of these
cottages in 1982, Marjorie was living in the
other. They became great friends until her
death in 2007; in her will she gave them first
option to buy her half of the house, which
they did. Their investigations about the place
really started gathering pace once Sally had
finished writing a book about Marjorie, an
illustrator famous for her association with
Enid Blyton.
The couple have published 250 copies of In
an Old House, which have nearly sold out.
They are hoping that a history publishing
house will take up the option of printing
more copies in the future, though it’s clear
that making any money out of the project is
way down their list of priorities. “Such a lot
of people live in old houses,” says Peter. “We
want to encourage others to do similar investigations.”
And have they learnt everything
there is to know about their place? “There’s
much more to learn… but now the book is
out… we’ll leave that to future owners.”
Alex Leith
In an Old House is on sale at Barbican Bookshop
(at Lewes Castle) and from pomegranatepress.co.uk/sussex
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