Vendor Comments

‘Beechcroft’ is believed to have been built in 1908. (I was told this by the previous owners in 1977.)   It had a 100thBirthday Party in 2008 for family members and the neighbours when the ‘entertainment’ was 1908 style.  A sign on the front door read, “No Mobile phones or modern gadgets, please.”

Originally on the left of the property was an orchard.  On the right was a tennis court.  The land was sold before my time here.  Dormer bungalows were built on each site.

In the late 70s I met someone who used to play tennis on that court, as a child.  She told me that one of the Bird Family (custard) used to live here but that has never been confirmed.

Next door but one, at No. 52, lived a bachelor, George Titcombe who had a wholesale fish market business in Birmingham.  During WW2, he said, an American lived here.   Air raid shelters were built to share between two  bigger houses then.  (No Anderson Shelters for the wealthy.)  When the air raid warning siren sounded, George would come round here to join his American neighbour to seek shelter.  Fortunately for him, the American who was always well stocked with whisky.  They didn’t have too much difficulty getting through the air raids, in Birmingham and the Spitfire factory in Castle Bromwich, until the ‘All Clear’ siren sounded.

I moved into ‘Beechcroft’ in 1977.  Every door had been covered in plywood and painted over. – ‘Barry Bucknall’ style.  He was a DIY character on 1950s black and white TV, who encouraged house owners to modernise their homes.  The staircase, too, had suffered the ‘cover up’ treatment, finishing off with luxurious Lincrusta, the ultimate in wall covering.  The oak beams had been painted over, as had the beautiful oak front door, bright blue on the outside – white on the inside.

I suspected that there may be spindles on the staircase.  There were, - 35 of them covered in dark brown faded varnish.  It took me 14 months to rub them down.  The white painted newel posts I treated with nitromorse and elbow grease.  The oak beams received the same treatment.  The original leaded light coloured window in the dining room door was a delight to discover.  It was renovated by a specialist in the Jewellery Quarter who also made matching glass for the two kitchen doors, and soon after, the windows in the kitchen.  The original parquet floor was renovated.  

The 20thCentury Society was considering listing the house because of the superb yellow bathroom, all in excellent condition and in full working order.  Other original features they were impressed with were the 2 marble fireplaces, the parquet floor, the front door,  the beautiful staircase and the original leaded light windows.

John and I are gardeners and have redesigned the garden which was choked with Mares tail and bindweed in 1977.  It took a few years to eradicate the weeds.  The borders have developed over a number of years with herbaceous plantsand shrubs.  Every summer for a number of years we  opened to the public to raise money for charity.

‘Beechcroft’ is a happy house.   It has been a pleasure to live here.  We are reluctantly leaving it to downsize.

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