Council puts stately home on market for £3 million

A historic stately home which hosted writers Charles Dickens and William Makepeace Thackeray went on sale today for offers of around £3 million.

Sherborne House, which also features a mural by court painter Sir James Thornhill, has a Tudor wing built some time after 1570 but the principal building dates from 1720.

The Grade I-listed house, in Sherborne, Dorset, lost a £3 million Heritage Lottery funding bid in 2006.

Owner Dorset County Council gave the Sherborne House Trust six months to develop proposals aimed at revitalising the dilapidated 18th century property.

But the plan to transform the building into a regional arts centre was turned down as being "over-ambitious and unlikely to succeed".

Sherborne Town Council, West Dorset District Council and community arts organisation Artslink backed the decision.

Dorset County Council is now inviting informal tender bids for the mansion and its 4.22 acre site with gardens and an area of land zoned for development.

Any buyer would be required to carry out restoration work in consultation with English Heritage and the local planning authority as part of the deal.

The new owner will follow a distinguished line of residents, with the most notable being William Charles Macready who took over the lease from 1850 to 1860.

He was the leading actor-manager of his day but decided at the peak of his career to leave the stage and retire to the country.

His close friends Dickens and Thackeray, best known for his satirical portrait of English society Vanity Fair, visited him at Sherborne House.

Dickens also gave public readings of his work, including A Christmas Carol, during his stays.

But the chief glory of the house is the hallway mural painted by Sir James, whose more notable work includes the dome of St Paul's Cathedral, in London.

He was at the pinnacle of his career when he painted the fresco secco at Sherborne House which tells the story of the Calydonian Hunt from the book Metamorphoses by Ovid.

Hilary Cox, cabinet member for the environment, said: "The county council cannot afford to keep pumping money into maintaining the property, but at the same time we are committed to securing its proper restoration and long-term future.

"We are keeping an open mind about possible future uses of the house and would welcome an arrangement which would provide some form of public access.

"Ultimately, we would like the whole town of Sherborne to take pride in, and benefit from, this exceptional property."

The building, which attracts 25,000 visitors a year, is being sold by Savills estate agent and Humberts Commercial for offers in the region of £3 million.