JDP Architects were created in 2001 but just before this, actually back in 1580, a chap named Richard Forster - wealthy shipping merchant and all-around big shot—decides he needs a swanky pad-slash-workplace by the River Severn. Naturally, he builds “Forster’s Folly” out of ship-grade oak, complete with a key so hefty it’s probably doubling as a dumbbell even today, (we had it in the office for a while).
Fast forward, the house survives a blazing row during the Civil War that left most of Bridgnorth looking like a barbecue gone wrong. By the 18th century, it’s owned by Arthur Lowe Percy, whose claim to fame is being the dad of Bishop Percy. That’s when the house gets its now-fancy name.
Come the 19th century, it’s all downhill. The place is falling apart, doubling as an iron foundry, a huckster’s shop, and what sounds suspiciously like a medieval junkyard. By 1909, it’s so knackered it’s about to be flattened, but Apley Estates swoop in and save it.
Then, in a twist no one saw coming, it becomes a Boys' Club. Cue gas fittings, billiard tables, and even a gym where the foundry used to be. By 2003, though, the upkeep costs were eye-watering, so the Boys’ Club called it quits and put it on the market and that’s when our lovely client became involved. They called in Johnson Design to carefully, (very very carefully), create a café with wonderful accommodation above it.
So there you have it: from shipping moguls to soup kitchens to Scouts, it’s a Grade 1 Listed house with more lives than a particularly resilient cat and JDP Architects loved delivering this very special project.
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