The Lord of Warleigh made national headlines when he advertised for a woman with whom he could share his manor. Now it appears that the need to find a Gothic chimney piece will take precedence.
Father-of-four David Piper acquired his title after purchasing the Manor of Warleigh, in Tamerton Foliot, Plymouth, in 1994. In November 2002, he advertised in the International Herald Tribune for a lady of the manor because the historic home was too big for one person.
After Piper sold the estate, which is valued at £2.4m, South Hams District Council issued an enforcement notice ordering him to replace a missing 18th or 19th century original chimney piece, which he had allegedly removed from the billiard room in breach of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990.
Piper appealed to an inspector, arguing that the chimney piece had, in fact, been a replica. However, the inspector altered the wording of the notice to require Piper to reinstate the “removed” item. He dismissed Piper’s claim that installing a replica would undo the damage, stating that the “historic fabric would be lost” and that such a replacement “would not be as appropriate in architectural or historical terms”.
In the High Court, Keith J has rejected Piper’s claim that the missing chimney piece cannot be traced.
The judge held: “There was no error of law. The inspector had been entitled to find, in March 2003, that there was clearly a prospect of the chimney piece being traced. Once the inspector had reached that decision, there is no basis for concluding that the applicant’s current assertion that the chimney piece cannot be traced founds a claim that there was an error of law.”
The ruling means that the council may choose to prosecute Piper for failure to comply with the enforcement notice.
However, Piper remains optimistic. His website states that his aims for 2004 are “to clear his £600,000 overdraft, to practise the organ, and hopefully to settle with the ‘love of his life’”.
Application of Piper Queen’s Bench Division: Administrative Court (Keith J) 23 March 2004.
References: EGi Legal News 25/3/04
