FULL OF character

The tranquil location and beautiful period features are what drew Alison Elliott and her husband James sual Victo Sampson to their unusual Victorian townhouse

- MARISHA TAYLOR

Originally from County Monaghan, Alison Elliott, an architect, met her husband, James Sampson, a doctor, while they were both working in Belfast and a few years later they moved to the North of England for work. ‘We’d been living in a rented two-bedroom maisonette near the east coast but we were keen to start a family and buy our first property together,’ Alison recalls.

‘We both grew up in rural areas and wanted to raise our children in a similar way, surrounded by nature, in a characterful period property.’ The couple have a daughter, Nina, four, and one-year-old son Rory. A good connection to the city centre for work was also essential. The house they found was exactly what they were looking for – in a quiet hamlet, a short drive from Newcastle and surrounded by rolling countryside.

‘Our six-bedroom Victorian property was one of eight townhouses that made up a striking red-brick Victorian terrace which seemed quite out of place in its secluded woodland setting. We’ve since learnt that it was built by a wealthy Victorian lady, who’d been advised by doctors to move to the country for health reasons and didn’t want to lose out on the glamour of high-class society!’