Date Published 24 February 2023
The nearly 7000 sqft central London townhouse is where the Tory politician launched his failed leadership against Margaret Thatcher.
T his grade II listed mansion in Belgravia, London, exudes a very modern kind of grandeur, betraying little of its history. A golden lift ensures its residents never have to walk more than a few paces, despite its six storeys. Its two basement floors are stocked with the now-obligatory gym,
mosaic-tiled pool, spa and wine cellar; there's a playroom big enough to house an entire nursery school class, and a service kitchen for your chef-in-residence - creature comforts that the present tenants regard as essential. Given their rent is set at £15,000 a week, or £780,000 a year, they probably have a point.
However, go back just over 30 years and the property on Chapel Street, a stone's throw from the grounds of Buckingham Palace, looked - and felt - very different. It was within the drawing room, decorated with mock Greek columns and a Grecian frieze, that the toppling of Margaret Thatcher, the longest-serving British prime minister in the 20th century, was decided over several months by
Michael Heseltine, the mansion's owner then, and his co-plotters. It was outside this very property on November 14, 1990, with his wife, Anne, by his side, that Heseltine declared his intention to stand against her for the Conservative leadership.
In the event the plot didn't quite succeed. Heseltine lost the leadership ballot, but the rebellion he triggered was enough to cause the tidal wave of chaos that forced Thatcher to quit later that year and to be replaced by John Major, who was prime minister until the election of Tony Blair and New Labour in 1997.
Heseltine sold the house in 2013 for £11.5 million to Terrace Development Agency Corp, a company registered in the British Virgin Islands, the true ownership of which has never been revealed. After securing planning permission in 2014 from Westminster council, it was lavishly refurbished by its new owners before being rented out for its present princely sum - it is now on the market for £28 million with Rokstone Properties.
The townhouse, which was built in the late 18th century, was already higher and wider than the surrounding buildings before its refurbishment. But the work done to the property since 2014 means it now has substantially more space than Heseltine had, with two new storeys below ground level adding 900 sq ft to the house and creating room for the inevitable pool, spa, gym and wine cellar, as well as a gigantic nursery.
In a departure from its old decor, which was described as being old-fashioned and "stuffed with mahogany and paintings", it is now filled with mod cons and bling, including chandeliers hanging in most rooms, although parts of the house are starting to look a little tired after years of tenancy.
The work to the six-bedroom house, completed by the construction company London Projects, also did away with Heseltine's enormous banqueting hall at the rear of the house where febrile plotting was said to have taken place, replacing it with a fairly modest back garden of 30ft by 20ft.
Plenty of period features remain despite the modernisation: the imposing grand entrance hall has been kept, as has the panelling that lines it, while the original staircase still winds its way up the property. The ground, second and third floors have deep sash windows, while cornicing and coving have been retained in many places. The black double front doors with window arch have also been preserved. In total the house now extends to nearly 7,000 sq ft.
"There are very few homes in Belgravia with both a garden and lift," says Becky Fatemi, founder of Rokstone. "We expect to sell to a high net worth individual who values exquisite attention to detail but wants to move straight into a fully furnished property."
£28 million; rokstone.com
