Hampstead mansion featuring a full size tennis court, swimming pool and oval summer house inspired by Nelson Mandela’s South African retreat goes on sale for £15MILLION

A magnificent mansion in north London‘s affluent Hampstead boasting a swimming pool, tennis court and a striking summer house built in the style of a South African kraal has gone on the market for £15million.

The 9,194 sq ft eight bedroom home has belonged to the same family for 56 years and the current owners regularly hold large summer soirees on the lawn attended by famous acquaintances including actors Michael Caine and Diana Rigg, presenter Michael Parkinson, comedians Bob Monkhouse and Ronnie Corbett, human rights advocate Bianca Jagger and politicians Lord Carrington, Tom King and Lord Tebbit. 

The detached Neo-Georgian property on Greenaway Gardens, listed with Aston Chase and Knight Frank, is located on a unique T-shaped plot, meaning the main house is separated from the leisure facilities by the sweeping rear lawn. 

It was built in 1924, designed by renowned English architect Charles Henry Bourne Quennell and features an elegant red brick façade with pillared entrance portico, brick detailing and a tile hipped roof with dormers and tall feature brick chimneys.

Visitors are greeted by a reception hall with a grand staircase. Downstairs there are four reception rooms consisting of the living room, a reception room, dining room and drawing room, as well as a large family kitchen and breakfast room.

There are full glass sliding doors in the drawing room which open onto the immaculately kept rear lawn and substantial grounds.  

The master bedroom on the first floor spans the entire depth of the house and provides a generously sized bedroom lined with wardrobes, a walk-in dressing room with built in wardrobes and a principal bathroom.

The en suite boasts a freestanding bath and walk-in shower, and there are four further bedrooms – one with an en suite – on this floor as well as the family bathroom.

On the top floor of the house there are three bedrooms, one with an en suite bathroom, and a separate toilet with a wash basin. 

The luxurious home also boasts a sauna and a wine cellar, plus a garage that can house three cars and substantial storage space. 

The current owners built the swimming pool in 1965 and landscaped the gardens, planting fir trees sourced from the Windsor Castle and Park estate. 

In 1971 they commissioned acclaimed South African architect Ted Levy of Levy Benjamin & Partners to create the summer house to the rear of the property. 

The architectural practice, led by a trio of South African émigrés who had relocated to London due to their support for equal rights in apartheid South Africa, came to define contemporary architecture in Hampstead during the Seventies with clients including Peter Sellers, Anne Howe, Baroness Serota, Britt Ekland and Michael Sellers.

Levy based the design of the circular shaped summer house on a traditional South African kraal - famously associated with the late President Nelson Mandela.

Mandela was born into the Thembu Royal family in Mvezo and his Shambala retreat in Limpopo, with its oval kraals and thatched bungalows, is now an international centre for reconciliation and peace and a game reserve for the preservation of wildlife.

The summer house features a dramatic main reception room with curved walls exposing brickwork and a traditional African-style open plan feature fireplace with a sculptural hearth and dark floor tiles recalling crocodile skin.

It boasts a separate sitting room, a kitchen and changing rooms and shower facilities for the outdoor pool located in an interconnecting space which has curved walls and an oval shaped floorplan echoing kraal design. 

Only the traditional vaulted kraal roof was not installed as Levy feared local planners would reject it.

Instead a flat roof with dramatic large timber ceiling beams were installed, recalling a South African farmstead. 

The external terrace tiles are continued within to create a pleasing inside-outside building when the glass sliding doors are open, creating a perfect location for entertaining and relaxation.

Craig Draper, partner and office head of Knight Frank in Hampstead said: ‘The release of this important Hampstead instruction onto the market signals the restart of the housing market and that adroit vendors are hopeful that the early promotion of their properties will capture the type of spike in pent up interest we saw after the General Election. 

‘The return to physical viewings will assist buyers in appreciating the opportunities of this large romantic family house and its substantial grounds.’ 

Mark Pollack, co-founding director of Aston Chase added: ‘Located on one of the most sought after roads in Hampstead, this is the first time that this exceptional property has been brought to the market in 56 years.

‘The 0.77 acre plot is one of the largest in the local area, and the magnificent family house, leisure facilities and grounds provide amenities normally found in a country home only minutes from Hampstead Village and within 15 minutes of central London.’