![Bourne to run](https://cdn.magzter.com/1387284093/1718713852/articles/qDepfNjWf1718787214574/BOURNE-TO-RUN.jpg)
MEANDERING streams and rivers form an irregular web, carrying water down and away from the woods and heaths of the Surrey Hills, eventually flowing into the Thames. In days long ago, the banks of those waterways were peppered with many mills, used for a variety of local industries, such as leather dressing, paper production, fulling wool and grinding grain. Some of them even created a far more volatile substance-gunpowder-a commodity much in demand in the warring 18th and 19th centuries, although, occasionally, it had the unfortunate result of exploding the mill during the process of manufacture.
Many of the mills have perished in the past 130 years, but a few still survive, including Emmetts Mill, once used for grinding cereals and now part of an elegant home. Its current owner understands there has been milling on the site since the 1570s, with the present three-storey mill, attached to the south end of the house, having been built in 1701. It is a matter of interest that the mill's splendid, bladed wheel is still intact, although it has long been in retirement.
The stream that powered it, known as the Mill Bourne, cuts through the land along an east/west axis, its lively flow being a wondrous addition to the garden. It also conveniently separates the 3½-acre, wedge-shaped property lengthways, into roughly two halves, like side-by-side blocks of Parmesan cheese, each with a different character. North of the Mill Bourne lies the house and its elongated stretch of designed and cultivated garden, ending in a wood; the south side consists of mixed woodland, including some naturalised rhododendrons and a water meadow, which reliably floods during extended winter rains.
Esta historia es de la edición June 19, 2024 de Country Life UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición June 19, 2024 de Country Life UK.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
![Full steam ahead](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/_1mDoVc331718787652188/FULL-STEAM-AHEAD.jpg)
Full steam ahead
The railway may have started its artistic life as a fire-breathing monster that devoured the countryside, but it soon became an emblem of advancing modernity, a cherished memento of the past and even, in the case of one station, the centre of the universe
![Stars in the East](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/L4ce-EqXu1718786942099/STARS-IN-THE-EAST.jpg)
Stars in the East
Continuing from last week, further East Anglian properties include a moat beloved by wildlife, a Georgian hunting lodge on the site of a Civil War battlefield and a well-restored manor with a Tudor-hall wedding venue
!['The oldest Old Thing in England'](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/7ptf95Wvq1718788623883/THE-OLDEST-OLD-THING-IN-ENGLAND.jpg)
'The oldest Old Thing in England'
Shakespeare was by no means the first to portray the mischievous Puck, a sprite of ancient lineage, with his ass's head, discovers Ian Morton
![Coward on a mission](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/1gHkiFcfT1718788356039/COWARD-ON-A-MISSION.jpg)
Coward on a mission
A revival of Noël Coward's final work reminds one of the emotional depth behind the laughs
![Having the last laugh](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/jVNG7HoEU1718788077620/HAVING-THE-LAST-LAUGH.jpg)
Having the last laugh
Rotting teeth, modelling woes and an appreciation for solemnity have historically conspired to make painted grins a rarity, but beaming faces never fail to beguile, finds Claudia Pritchard
![Mother of herbs](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/6vIwLBYlx1718787487440/MOTHER-OF-HERBS.jpg)
Mother of herbs
Enjoying a strange association with childbirth, mugwort is of more use in the kitchen and may even induce 'lucid dreams', finds John Wright
![Bourne to run](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/qDepfNjWf1718787214574/BOURNE-TO-RUN.jpg)
Bourne to run
The garden at Emmetts Mill, Chobham, Surrey A flat waterside site has been transformed into a garden full of drama with plenty of delightful places to stop and enjoy the view, writes Kathryn Bradley-Hole
![Design brought to life](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/9528MQvjF1718786765396/DESIGN-BROUGHT-TO-LIFE.jpg)
Design brought to life
The 2024 WOW!house is a delightful parallel universe of creativity, finds Giles Kime
![Bend it like Beckham](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/GMtGFFxC71718786461992/BEND-IT-LIKE-BECKHAM.jpg)
Bend it like Beckham
Chippendale, Scotland's only independent furniture school, bears a huge name to live up to, but with courses in wood-bending, marquetry, upholstery, restoration and more, it is flourishing under a new generation, finds Mary Miers
!['Makes Buckingham Palace seem rather dull'](https://reseuro.magzter.com/100x125/articles/5168/1737134/OnMvYKa4B1718786130432/MAKES-BUCKINGHAM-PALACE-SEEM-RATHER-DULL.jpg)
'Makes Buckingham Palace seem rather dull'
The London homes of the British aristocracy were often grander than their country counterparts, palatial without ever being called palaces, says Lucien de Guise