The Tudor Barn
Then and Now
Originally built as a barn for the adjoining farm in or about 1505, the Tudor Barn was restored to its present superb and attractive condition in the early 1990s and opened as South Bucks Bridge Centre in 1994.
The Tudor Barn is operated by Tudor Barn (1505) Ltd and runs as a full-time bridge club during the week with social events at the week-end. Bridge events are also run on some Sundays by the Centre itself, by local clubs, and by the Berks & Bucks Contract Bridge Association. The Centre is also occasionally used for the final stages of national tournaments and for international matches. It is equipped to a high standard and provides one of the finest environments for competitive bridge in the world.
The Tudor Barn is available at weekends for weddings, parties and other functions.
History of the Tudor Barn
The Tudor Barn and the adjoining buildings were originally known as Lower Britwell Farm. Diaries for years between 1787 and 1810 of a local farmer, John Edgson were published by Burnham Historians in 1992 with the title "Both Teams at Plough". They are mostly the record of daily work concerned with the running of the farm, but they reveal interesting insights into the history of Lower Britwell Farm.
In the 18th Century the owner was John Bayley, who died at an early age in 1787, leaving his widow Fanny Bayley in charge until their son came of age. John Edgson, who owned nearby Upper Britwell Farm befriended Fanny Bayley and helped her with the running of her farm. Their working friendship gradually developed until John moved in with Fanny towards the end of 1789 and a daughter, Emma, was born to the couple a year later.
There is a gap in John's diaries from 1791 to 1803 and we do not know in any detail what happened in those years, except that the relationship did not survive for very long. John moved back to Upper Britwell Farm and Fanny married a farmer and corn merchant, John Webster in 1796 and bore him three more children, but she died herself in 1801 and Lower Britwell Farm passed into the possession of William Bayley, son of her first husband and it continued to be farmed by him and his descendants for many years.
In this century, the use as a farm ceased and the premises were used as a convent from 1920 to 1991 and were known as "The House of Prayer". The number of nuns in the order gradually declined over the years and in 1991 the few remaining moved to smaller premises in Edgware.
Bridge enthusiast Laurie Champniss was looking for suitable premises to convert to a Bridge Centre when the premises were offered for sale; the possibilities became apparent as soon as he entered the barn, and a purchase was made by the Champniss family Company, Panstar Properties Ltd. At the time little more was known about the early history and the property was said to be "over 200 years old". Renovations to the farm house revealed that extensive changes and extensions had been made to it over the years and some parts were clearly much older than others.
Laurie Champniss decided to have the barn dated more accurately and called in an expert who dated the original oak beams by dendrochronology at 1505. The beams evidently come from nearby Burnham Beeches and this is assumed to be about the date when the barn was constructed to adjoin the farmhouse, which must therefore be at least as old.
Dendrochronology is the dating of wood by the structure of the rings in it. A core sample is taken of the wood. The rings vary in size and structure in a consistent manner depending upon the climatic conditions for each year, so that the exact age can be determined by comparison with a database of local wood samples of a known age.
The Recent Conversion
Once planning consent was obtained, the process of conversion began. The original barn, has been extensively and tastefully refurbished and what was a derelict adjoining building has been rebuilt in similar style for use as a restaurant. The original farmhouse has been converted into serviced offices, with individual rooms and small suites available for a fully inclusive rent.
To bring the premises up to modern standards of heating and ventilation the outer structure of the barn was stripped completely to leave just a skeleton of original beams, insulation was installed to modern standards before the roof was lowered back on and the walls re-plastered in the original style.
Most of the original beams were retained but those which were completely rotted were replaced with modern oak, every care being taken to ensure that the appearance of the original method of assembly was retained.
Underfloor heating by means of circulating hot water was installed. In addition, thermostatically regulated warm air is introduced through hidden vents under staircases to the new mezzanine floors which were added at each end. Cooled air can be introduced by means of chillers to allow the barn to be cooled on the few days each summer when it becomes too hot.
Extensive work was also carried out to the interior of the farmhouse to bring it up to required modern standards and now offers several comfortable and attractive small office suites. One of them includes the chapel from the convent with its original stained glass windows. This house is now known as Brightwell Grange, retaining the name of a local well, which later became changed to Britwell.
Part of Brightwell Grange and the gateway through to the coutyard and The Tudor Barn.
The care put into the restoration to keep the buildings with as much of the original character as possible, but with modern standards of comfort, convenience and ease of access resulted in a conservation award from the Burnham Society.
The Centre has 6 acres of attractive grounds. The restaurant's picture windows open onto this patio and lawn with a large plum tree and some smaller trees and plant tubs.
The meadow beyond this had in earlier this century been part of an extensive orchard. Most of the trees were dead or dying and have been removed, but a few apples and pears still survive; this meadow is now used by a neighbour for grazing ponies.
Large car parks have been constructed at the side of and behind Brightwell Grange, the former farm house. An old brick wall has been retained to conceal these from the road. Behind the car parks are wooded areas with flowers and shrubs, lawns and a small graveyard for the nuns, surrounded by a tall yew hedge.
Outside the main barn entrance is a gravelled courtyard with tubs of flowers and surrounded by several outbuildings, one which had been used in the early 1990s as a small workshop by a local potter. This is now available for seminars and small functions.
The site is now controlled by Tudor Barn (1505) Ltd. although the property is still owned by Laurie Champniss.