Whirligig House, Taunton, Somerset, TA1 1SA

“A Grade II-listed former vicarage with roots reaching back to the 13th century and a separately listed garden wall”

Whirligig House is an extraordinary five-bedroom home set in extensive walled gardens amid the picturesque Vale of Taunton Deane in Somerset. The foundations date to the 13th century, with interior architectural features dating to the 16th or early 17th centuries, including a full-height, hand-carved Jacobean-style mantelpiece, deep-set mullioned windows, and ornate, tessellated tiled flooring. The result is a spectacular home spanning over 5,200 sq ft, with deep connections to its heritage and surroundings. The home also has a two-bedroom annexe that lends itself well to intergenerational living. Taunton sits on the banks of the River Tone, and its station runs high-speed services to London Paddington, Bristol Temple Meads, and Exeter.

Setting the Scene

In 1609, cartographer John Norden famously described the Vale of Taunton Deane as the ‘great paradise of England’ due to its rich soils and abundant water. Whirligig House, originally St Mary’s Vicarage, sits in Church Square, which Pevsner praised for its collective architectural importance alongside the soaring St Mary Magdalene Church (Taunton Minster).

The current owners have sensitively renovated the interiors, preserving remarkable centuries-old features, while adding fresh coats of paint and comfortable contemporary touches. Externally, its red-brick and tiled façade has a handsome presence, with old oak doorframes, mullioned windows, and an arched brick porch with a pointed stone arch at the entry.

The Grand Tour

Set next to St Mary Magdalene Church, and capturing the lace-like tower from different perspectives, the home’s immediate setting is particularly atmospheric. Ancient trees frame a generous parking area and the home’s main entrance; a patio abuts the house and the ancillary building, filled with ornamental shrubs and flowering varieties of perennials.

The front door, previously a garden door, repaired and repurposed as the main access point when a new St Mary’s Vicarage was built next door, opens onto a bright entrance hall with classic checkerboard tiles underfoot. An arresting wooden arched architectural feature is built into the wall and cleverly frames bookshelves in the corridor behind. Preserved sightlines run the length of the house, with arched interior doorways above.

A door to the left leads to a first reception room, previously the vicar’s study, with dual-aspect deep-set windows that bathe the room in southerly light. A vibrant, rust-red carpet lines the floor and fitted shelving holds books and decorative pieces. Set in perhaps the oldest part of the house, the room’s centrepiece is a spectacular dark-oak overmantel, thought to be Jacobean, hand-carved and rising to the ceiling, that surrounds an open stone fireplace and blurs the lines between domestic decoration and ecclesiastical craftsmanship.

An additional reception room faces northwest, making it an intimate room with softer, more subdued light. Large, mullioned windows bring the garden into view and frame beautiful deciduous trees; in winter, the owners can watch the seasons change and curl up to the toasty open fireplace. The room has elegant proportions, pretty cornicing, and dark-stained floorboards underfoot.

Opposite, across the hall, is a formal dining room, where elaborate corning featuring decorative shield motifs traces the ceiling, sash windows draw in gentle northerly light, and a brick fireplace braces colder months with an open fire. Walls are washed in a deep burgundy, and the floorboards are also dark-stained.

In a pleasing circular layout, the kitchen connects to both the dining room and the entrance hall. The kitchen has been fully renovated, with a stainless-steel central island and handleless cabinets with quartz surfaces. The sink sits beneath wide mullioned windows overlooking the garden, and chequerboard tiles run beneath. Storage has been fitted inside the chimney breast, retaining its original bressummer beam, and appliances are integrated.

As part of the home’s restoration over the years, the house was extended in the 19th century to include a utility room, pantry, and boot room adjoining the kitchen, and a separate annexe with a bedroom and reception spaces on the first floor.

From the hall, the staircase opens to a central first-floor landing, with a storage cupboard set at the half-turn. At the front of the house, two spacious bedrooms face the grounds and are brightened by tall south-facing windows. Both share a Jack and Jill bathroom, with a striking freestanding copper bathtub, providing tranquil evenings of sumptuous soaking, and a large walk-in shower. The three remaining bedrooms are well-proportioned and share a bathroom.

The Great Outdoors

Although some of the garden was divided off when the new vicarage was to be built, Whirligig House retains substantial grounds, sheltered on two sides by high walls. The Grade II-listed wall between the church and the house (maintained by the Somerset Council) retains the churchyard gate the vicar would have used to and from the church.

The garden is an integral part of the house, home to ancient yew and mulberry trees, both with preservation orders. A south-facing terrace wraps the front of the house, with spectacular views of the church and providing ample space for outdoor dining. The grounds are well maintained, with an expansive lawn punctuated with tall grasses and flowering beds. As part of the ancillary building, a studio provides a creative space, currently used by the owners as a pottery studio.

Out and About

Taunton is framed by the beautiful Quantock Hills and the Tone Valley. The town centre is home to a growing independent food scene, featuring local favourites like Augustus, alongside a brilliant selection of cafes, bakeries, and weekly artisan markets.

The towpaths along the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal are peaceful for walking and cycling, while the dramatic landscape of the Quantock Hills, England’s very first Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, is just a short drive away.

Highly commended school options include North Town Academy and Richard Huish College for post-16 education, alongside independent schools such as Taunton School, Queen’s College, and King's College.

Taunton railway station is within easy reach, running direct mainline services to London Paddington in under two hours and fast connections down into Bristol and the South West. Access to the national motorway network is straightforward via junction 25 of the M5, and Exeter Airport is approximately a 40-minute drive south.

Council Tax Band: G