Manor once owned by ‘Sherlock Holmes’ author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle on sale

By Ed Cullinane via SWNS

A stunning country "Sherlock Homes" manor once owned by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is up for sale for £3 million ($3.5 million).

Bignell Wood in Brook in Hampshire, England is surrounded by the New Forest and boasts eight bedrooms, seven bathrooms and ten additional rooms.

Doyle bought the massive house in 1924 as a birthday present for his second wife Jean after falling in love with the area while researching for his novel "The White Company."

The pair used the property as a country retreat to get away from their main home at Crowborough, East Sussex.

The author even took inspiration from the nearby village of Minstead for the book, and ultimately was buried there when he died in July 1930.

A stunning country 'Sherlock Homes' manor once owned by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is up for sale for £3million. (Spencers New Forest via SWNS)

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Set on six acres, the property was originally a Saxon barn and two cottages before the author teamed up with a local architect to build the country house that exists today.

Featuring landscaped gardens, open woodland, paddocks, a stable and a detached garage with a workshop, the magnificent property is a truly perfect English country manor.

The current owner, interior designer Jane McIntyre, bought the house in 2006 and re-styled the interior while preserving the property's character.

Her additions include a new spacious open plan kitchen and dining room, along with a media room and two studies.

A future owner would even get the chance to have their own "study in scarlet" to work in - the same room that Conan Doyle wrote his literary masterpieces, which has now become the "red room."

Jane said: “It's a beautifully built house that still has all three of the original stone fireplaces Sir Arthur put in.

"We renovated the parquet floors and ripped out the very modern kitchen and bathrooms, reinstating an arts & crafts style more in keeping with that period.

“Sir Arthur is known for his Gothic suspense crime fiction and historical adventures so I've decorated the house with rich, dark colours as a bit of a nod towards Gothic drama.

"There's a little corner bay where we like to think his desk was. We were told by one of his descendants that that's where he used to write.

"There's a really warm friendly feeling about the house - everybody who ever comes in absolutely loves it.

"We've kept the original layout, which is very cosy, yet you still have gorgeous entertaining spaces.

“The house is in a brilliant location: you can walk out the back door straight onto open Forest. If people have horses, you can ride up to Stoney Cross, a few minutes away, and there are miles of riding up there. It is fabulous.

"Yet it is so convenient. It is 20 minutes to Winchester and half-an-hour to Southampton Airport. You can get straight onto the motorway to whizz off to London and Heathrow.

"But within seconds of coming off the motorway you are absolutely in the countryside. It is pretty unique.”

You can find out more about the property here.