FULL of character, and with many period features remaining, Bluebell Cottage is a deceptively spacious family home in the pretty hamlet of Mount Pleasant in Mickley.

Alongside the original beamed ceilings, fireplaces and exposed stone walls, the accommodation has the modern comforts of double glazing and central heating.

Margaret Burt, who shares the home with partner Geoff Yates, said: “The cottage has a special, warm feel to it. In 1990, the estate agent who sold us the house really enthused about it.

“We didn’t know the village at all and were trusted with the keys to look around ourselves. A mistake. We loved the cottage so much that we put in an offer that day, and kept the keys so that nobody else got a chance to view – for the next 27 years!”

Bluebell Cottage has an entrance porch with tiled floor, a sitting room, breakfasting kitchen, second reception room (currently Geoff’s drumming room – he’s a keen drummer), five bedrooms and a bathroom. At the back of the property is an enclosed raised garden laid to lawn with stone steps and a paved patio area.

Additionally, there’s a log store, store shed and gravelled driveway leading to parking space for three cars.

Margaret, who works in freelance marketing and writing, has dug into the history of her home, saying: “In 1823, two stone cottages and a country pub were built in Mount Pleasant, Stocksfield. Both cottages were later knocked together and became Bluebell Cottage, separated from the pub at the back by a long log store (now a man shed).”

The cottage’s sitting room has an exposed inglenook fireplace with a wood-burning stove, hardwood floor and a door to the 26ft-long breakfasting kitchen.

This has attractive stone-flagged flooring, light-coloured wall and floor units, granite work surfaces, a Rayburn oven and integrated washing machine and tumble dryer. Double doors lead to the patio area outside.

The master bedroom has a range of built-in wardrobes and one of the other four bedrooms has a storage cupboard. They share the washroom with toilet and three-piece family bathroom which has a large, freestanding bath, part-tiled walls and floor and two Velux windows.

Margaret added: “Bluebell Cottage is lovely in autumn and winter. It has thick stone walls, an original Northumbrian stone fireplace with inglenook and wood burner in the living room, and also a stone open fireplace in the second reception.

“The cottage looks over a barley field and a meadow. The country kitchen/dining room is dog and child friendly, with a dark red gas Rayburn, solid slate floor slabs and a cast iron radiator. We put in the French windows to open on to the patio, garden and three parking spaces beyond.

“It’s a lovely family house. With five bedrooms, it could also work as a small B&B with minor alterations, or incorporate a granny/teenage flat or studio.

“Mount Pleasant has just 20 odd houses, a pub and a chapel. It’s very peaceful and you can walk to shops, doctors, hairdressers, a chemist, cafes, buses and trains.

“It’s the kind of place where you can be exactly as sociable as you want to be, surrounded by a small, friendly community.

“I’ll be sad to leave Bluebell Cottage. I wrote my novels here, it’s always been able to accommodate changing needs, and I had been looking forward to living here in 2023, the cottage’s bicentenary.”

Bluebell Cottage, West Mickley

Charming family home, £349,000

Grey Estates, (01434) 700077