Tatham House

Tatham House is a beautiful big party house, tucked in the valleys between the Exmoor National Park, and the Blackdown Hills. 

The house sleeps up to 22 guests in 10 bedrooms, all of which have a bathroom or shower room attached. One of the upstairs bedrooms is ideal as a family room – it sleeps 4, and has its own shower room. Two of the bedrooms are downstairs, each with their own en-suite, and one of them would be ideal for any guests who might have accessibility needs. 

Downstairs, there are two large, light-filled sitting rooms, each with French windows leading to the garden, vast sofas and working fireplaces. There is also a small library, reached through a secret door off the hall. 

The kitchen and dining area are connected by sliding doors, so the party cooks don’t feel left out, and an enormous oak table to seat the whole house for a feast.  

Below, in the cellar, there’s a games room, with a pool table, table-tennis and bar billiards, and a cinema room (with a big squashy sofa, instead of fiddly seats). The house provides Sky Movies. 

Outside, there’s terracing to two sides of the house, so you can follow the sun, and a brick-built barbecue. The gardens and orchard are well-sheltered and blissful for lazing away a few hours, or playing games. The indoor pool has bi-fold doors leading onto the walled garden, and there are tables and loungers beside the hot tub. For the energetic guest, there is a large all-weather tennis court, which can be adapted for raucous games of hand-ball. 

Edmund’s Choice of Extraordinary Feature

“There’s so much about this house that’s great – it really has been designed with a guest’s perfect stay in mind. I’m a sucker for a secret door, though, so I’d have to say the library would be a draw for me. Ideal place to sneak off for a quiet, late-night brandy…”

About The Location

Tatham House is about 12 minutes’ drive from Taunton, which itself is just off the M5. Taunton has a mainline train station and is easy to reach from London, Paddington.

Things To Do

The house is so well-appointed that it might be a wrench to leave and head off to explore Somerset. It’s worth it if you can, though, there’s so much to enjoy. 

Taunton is known as the Gateway to the West, and has lots going on within the town itself. If you like walking and cycling, there are great routes near the house, or you can drive 20 minutes or so to Exmoor National Park, where there’s year-round pony trekking. 

There are plenty of nature parks in the area (The Willows and Wetlands park is lovely), and National Trust estates to visit.