Property listings can transport us to all kinds of places: a fantasy future where we are rich enough to afford a swimming pool and sauna, say – or back into the past, with a perfectly preserved time capsule home.
Whether a modernist house from the sixties, filled with mid-century furniture, or a grand Georgian building carefully restored to its full glory, these properties offer a window into times, architecture and interior trends gone by.
From a brutalist restoration project to a preserved Huguenot townhouse, here are some of our favourite time capsule homes to hit the market this year.
The modernist architect’s house
The home of modernist architect John Graham, who was instrumental in the design of Harlow New Town, provided a glimpse back to the 1960s. His pre-fabricated Colt House, called Suncourt, was “replete with original features and almost entirely in its original condition,” according to selling agent The Modern House.
Inside, the house is a mid-century paradise, with wooden flooring, timber-clad walls and original features like the kitchen’s glazed serving hatch and pink 1960s cabinetry still in place.
Graham had lived at Suncourt, on the outskirts of Harlow, until his death in 2021. Having been a trustee for more than 30 years, Graham bequeathed his house, belongings, savings and modern art collection to Harlow Art Trust, who wrote in their annual report that “the bequest is hugely significant for the Trust as well as being completely unexpected.”
Graham and wife, Britt Båckstrom, who passed away in 2005, were collectors of 20th century art, Scandinavian furniture and ceramics – much of which is on display in photos of the property.
Many of Graham’s possessions were sold at auction in October, with proceeds to go to the Trust. A globe-like 1970s Harvey Guzzini light suspended from the living room ceiling sold for £350; a mustard-coloured three-seater leather sofa (£400); Graham’s Niels Otto Møller teak dining table and chairs (£550) and his teak desk, designed by Gunnar Nielsen Tibergaard (£380).
A spokesperson for Harlow Art Trust said it had “seriously considered taking the residential house on”, but found that updating it to modern public access requirements was not financially feasible. Instead, it was listed with The Modern House for £550,000, and is currently under offer.
The brutalist penthouse
In April, an eight-bedroom Kensington penthouse set within a 1970s brutalist-style brick building hit the market for £16 million.
Commissioned in the late 1970s under the supervision of the architect Igael Yarvitz, the fortress-like building been in the hands of its owners for almost 30 years.
Covering 9,000 sq ft, largely arranged over the two upper floors, there are two private street entrances, a passenger lift, wine cellar and a self-contained, two-bedroom flat-within-a-flat. There’s also a balcony, roof terrace and retro indoor swimming pool on the second floor.
Many of the property’s original features remain, including floor-to-ceiling windows in the reception room and a 1970s staircase.
The penthouse was listed with Berkshire Hathaway Home Services and remains on the market.
The restored Huguenot townhouse
Decorative antiques dealer and photographer Robert Shackleton bought his 18th century townhouse in 2016 and undertook a lengthy renovation.
As a result, it is now “one of London’s best-preserved Huguenot townhouses”, say listing agents The Unique Property Company.
Situated on Spitalfields’ Princelet Street, in the heart of London’s largest collection of early Georgian Huguenot houses, the property was built in 1720 for a wealthy merchant.
The attic space, known as the weavers’ loft, would originally have been used as a workspace, with its position at the top of the house allowing maximum light for weavers at their looms.
Shackleton preserved much of the house’s original layout, turning the loft into a self-contained bedroom and living space.
As well as uncovering many of the property’s original fittings, he repainted the house in its initial colour palette and re-did the rustic kitchen downstairs, adding the modern convenience of underfloor heating.
Historical details still remain inside, like the panelled walls, sash windows, floorboards and fireplaces – as well as the house’s creaky floorboards and wonky doorframes and staircase.
“[Shackleton] has completely immersed himself in the period of the property, and wanted to keep as much of the gentleness as he could,” said listing agent Simon Stone. “He said: ‘It’s just a very gentle house. It’s an easy house to own.’”
As well as living in the property, Shackleton used it as a successful photoshoot location. In September, though, he decided to put the house —and everything in it— up for sale for £4 million. It has now sold, subject to contract.
Art Deco paradise
Grant and Amanda Morrison bought their majestic 1920s Art Deco home near Brixham, Devon, in 2013 and embarked on a three-year restoration project to bring the building back to its former glory. They listed the property for £2.5 million with Savills in September this year.
When the Morrisons bought it, Penhill House had plastic Georgian-style windows and pink shagpile carpets. “It was very 80s. It was in a pretty bad state,” says Grant, who wanted to modernise the house while preserving its original charm. “We wanted to bring the Art Deco character back into it.”
Using nearby National Trust property Coleton Fishacre as a source of inspiration, the couple reworked the house’s rounded turrets and bay windows, adding Crittal windows, solid oak doors, period door handles and parquet flooring, as well as modern finishes like underfloor heating and double-glazing.
The house’s detailing was meticulously sourced, with the windows made by a specialist company, light fittings imported from America and period tables obtained from the Glasgow School of Art. “A lot of the stuff was authentic, so it took a long time to try to get that Art Deco feel,” explains Grant.
Other features were in the house already, like the original butler’s bell, which the couple reconnected, and the panelling, coving and Delft tiled fireplace in the dining room.
During the process, the Morrisons even found a time capsule, laid in the wall in 1935 and signed by two previous builders. The house itself was previously owned by Agatha Christie’s accountant.
“I love things like that,” says Amanda. “That’s the thing about this house – it has a sense that other people have lived their lives here before us.”
The Brutalist doer-upper
In September this year, one of Surrey’s famous “Elephant Houses” was put up for auction for the first time in 45 years.
One of 32 buildings on Apex Drive built in the 1960s by the renowned architect Lawrence Abbott, the properties earned their nickname from their structure, with each block divided by a trunk-like feature staircase.
Number 18 had remained in the same family since 1978, and was in “almost original condition” when it was sold, according to auctioneer Daniel Gale.
The three-bedroom, 1,033 sq ft house retained its distinctive curved and U-shaped windows in the main living spaces, as well as its original layout, with the kitchen located above the living room.
The owner had inherited the property from his mother after she died, and had grown up in the house – although it was vacant when it was auctioned.
It required “complete refurbishment”, according to First for Auctions, but, for fans of brutalist architecture, made for a perfect restoration project.
Despite its guide price of £220,000, the property sold for £275,000 at auction on 29 September, with seven interested bidders.
The "landmark" 16th century cottage
The Grade II-listed former home of essayist Charles Lamb, listed with Inigo in August for £1.595 million, was the subject of a comprehensive restoration by its current owners. “There is no other property like it in London,” they said.
Dating back to the 16th century, with later additions in the 18th and 19th centuries, Clarendon Cottage is part of a parade of historic homes on Gentleman’s Row, which once formed the boundary of Enfield Chase.
Behind its authentically wonky façade is almost 3,000 sq ft of living space, with four bedrooms and three reception rooms.
The owners, who used the house as a bed and breakfast, took on a full renovation in 2020, restoring period features and filling the property with antique furniture.
The kitchen was moved to the former school room, with a double height ceiling and large French doors, which open onto the garden.
Its borders were painted turquoise with gold detailing, and a cork floor was added in a rare hint of contemporary influence.
Elsewhere, walls painted in mustard, duck egg blue and vermillion reflect various chapters in the house’s history, while the property still contains its original Georgian fireplaces, shutters, panelling and centuries-old beams.
