The Isle of Man is the only nation to have UNESCO Biosphere Reserve status, which means it is a ‘learning place for sustainable development’.
A fine and worthy place to live. And what a fine and worthy home Arragon Mooar will make for its new owner... while also giving them some exciting Bond villain lair vibes.
On the market with United Kingdom Sotheby’s International Realty for £20,000,000, this secluded compound must be one of the wackiest estates in all of Britain, with unique and rather eccentric design which saw the property dubbed “the most complicated house ever built”.
The property was conceived by renowned inventor Dr John C Taylor OBE, 88, who most famously invented the thermostatic control switch that turns off boiling kettles.
After buying the derelict property in 2005, it took seven years to finish due to Taylor’s exacting design with its circular architecture.
Among the details that made it particularly complicated are the chandeliers so technical that a new type of wire had to be manufactured to power them.
The showpiece element is the central atrium which rises to over 32 feet and has a bespoke stone floor which resembles a dhalia flower when viewed from above.
On the atrium wall is one of Dr Taylor’s inventions, a three metre-tall Dragon Chronophage, which shows the time without using hands; instead, the dragon opens its mouth and swallows a pearl to mark a minute passing.
This central atrium also has a galleried first floor connected by a cantilever staircase (which was so original it had to be ‘stress-tested by a supercomputer’), a glass lift and even a secret staircase.
There are in fact a number of secret passages within the property.
Up top, a 360-degree roof terrace overlooks the parterre garden, orangery, rockery and pond.
The property is situated on the south of the island and provides sweeping views of a 5,000-year-old Neolithic quartz circle, and across the Irish Sea to Snowdon.
Each of the six en-suite bedrooms is uniquely designed, alongside an elliptical drawing room, dining room, library and cosy TV snug.
The kitchen and breakfast room is complemented by glass and bottle pantries.
There is a suite of three offices off the main entrance hall, and the house also has a lower atrium, with a function suite served by a catering kitchen, and a three-room exhibition space (which also could be used as a gym), and a photographic studio/cinema.
Outside, formal gardens feature a classic English parterre, under which there’s a hidden eight-car garage. Within its 70 acres, the estate also includes three cottages all with en-suite bathrooms and extensive land.
Situated near the village of Ballasalla and just minutes from the Isle of Man airport, Arragon Mooar enjoys both tranquillity and accessibility.
The Isle of Man itself is a self-governing Crown Dependency, and is famed for its high quality of life with exceptional healthcare, education, low tax regime and dark-sky stargazing sites.
Dr Taylor said of the place, “It is a fantastic place to live, and in design terms, this is the most complicated house ever built. Modern architects build things in straight lines. The most difficult shape of all is an elliptical house, and if you can do something, you should.”
“I never like to do what other people have done before. Everything I do has to mean something – it’s the process of creating that I enjoy.”
