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‘Queen of Romance’ Dame Barbara Cartland’s former home for sale ahead of blue plaque installation

Best-selling romance author Dame Barbara Cartland lived at River Cottage in the 1940s with her family  (ES Composite)
Best-selling romance author Dame Barbara Cartland lived at River Cottage in the 1940s with her family (ES Composite)

The former home of “The Queen of Romance” writer Dame Barbara Cartland is currently on sale for £1,000,000.

The property, called River Cottage and located in Great Barford, Bedfordshire, served as the novelist’s family home between 1941 and 1949.

As it goes on sale, the home will receive a heritage blue plaque to acknowledge Cartland’s contribution to literature.

In her lifetime, Cartland wrote 723 books, and gained the moniker “The Queen of Romance” from her 675 romance novels, set in the Edwardian and Victorian periods and sold around the world – making her one of the world’s best-selling romance authors to date.

One of the living rooms at River Cottage (Lane & Holmes)
One of the living rooms at River Cottage (Lane & Holmes)

Cartland (1901 – 2000) lived in the house with her three children, Ian McCorquodale, Glen McCorquodale and Countess Raine Spencer, who would become Diana, Princess of Wales’ stepmother.

In a letter to the Old Barfordian Association dated 25 February 2018, Ian McCorquodale, Cartland’s son, wrote of the house: “Indeed I do remember the very happy times we spent as a family at River Cottage and how sad we were to leave our lovely home. I loved Great Barford and so did my mother.”

The thatched cottage is Grade II listed, and dates back to the 18th century. Spread over 3017 sq ft, the property includes both the riverside cottage, private mooring and a self-contained annex, complete with an additional three bedrooms and an open-plan kitchen and living room.

Pink decoration in one of the house’s bedrooms (Lane & Holmes)
Pink decoration in one of the house’s bedrooms (Lane & Holmes)

The cottage itself has four bedrooms, two reception rooms, two bathrooms, a snug and a small conservatory.

Cartland was known for her “Cartlandese Pink” clothes and pastel pink homewares - fittingly, there is pink detailing in the bedroom, garden planting and three external doors, which the listing describes as “a mark of respect to her”.

Due to the building’s age, it has a traditional construction, with many of its original features, like its wooden beams and fireplaces, still intact.

River Cottage and its annex sit on a plot of 0.3 acres, with its gardens sloping down to the River Great Ouse and private mooring.

The Great Barford property is currently on sale with Lane & Holmes.

The cottage comes with private mooring (Lane & Holmes)
The cottage comes with private mooring (Lane & Holmes)

Cartland’s former Mayfair townhouse is also on the market for £40 million, having been listed since 2020. Built in 1902 and covering 8,513 sq ft, it has a swimming pool, sauna, bar and roof terrace overlooking the city.

More than 900 blue plaques have been put up since the scheme began in 1866, and they have been shown to increase property prices by almost 30 per cent, a recent study by Leeds University found.