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Plans by Great British Bake Off star Paul Hollywood to construct a walled kitchen garden at his Grade II-listed Kent home have been rejected.
The celebrity baker and his wife, who acquired the Ashford farmhouse for £810,000 in 2019, had intended the garden for “ad-hoc filming”.
Their proposal involved demolishing the property’s conservatory to make way for the open-plan space. However, Ashford Borough Council deemed the plans would not constitute a “sympathetic or appropriate addition” to the historic residence.
The refusal document said the “scale, bulk, design and massing” of the plans would “detract” from the current “special interest” of the property.
The extension was to be clad in Flemish bond brick with plain clay, housing a kitchen-diner, and the plans also included the removal of the existing kitchen.
Then externally, a kitchen-garden with patio, raised beds and a brick wall connected to the extension were proposed.
The initial proposal said: “The proposed extension is needed for ad-hoc filming for the house’s owner Paul Hollywood, who is a well-known television personality and celebrity chef.
“The existing kitchen is not large enough and is too narrow for filming purposes – the cameras cannot be set up to adequately to obtain the required shots.
“The proposed kitchen extension will, on the other hand, provide a suitable space for these purposes.
“The space will enable the filming of unique documentary of Paul Hollywood cooking from home.
“This would provide an engaging and enhanced experience for viewers, with the chef being in his own, familiar environment.”
They also argued that the plans were “necessary” to “meet the modern-day standards of a larger four-bedroomed house”.
To overturn the decision, Hollywood would have to go through the council appeal process.
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