After four long years in development, the Rooney family have finally moved into their brand new £20m mansion in Cheshire. Known as the High Lake Manor, the home is found on the outskirts of Knutsford in a small village called Marthell and has a swimming pool, cinema, gym and snooker room
Wayne and Coleen have been accused of turning the area into a 'footballers housing estate' by the local parish council, but in reality it is surprisingly normal and quiet. CheshireLive took a drive to the Knutsford suburb of Marthall to see what the fuss is about and what life may be like in the area for the new arrivals.
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Sweeping south east out of Knutsford, celebrities can pop in at Aldi, where one can sample the delights of the middle aisle and perhaps emerge with some wellies, power tools and drinks brands that you can’t get anywhere else.
A little beyond there is the Lambing Shed Farm Shop. It is set in 400 acres of farmland and proudly offers award-winning, home-reared beef and lamb, and was recently named the UK’s Farm Shop Café of the Year in the Farm Retail Awards.
The Lambing Shed has even hosted a music festival over the Jubilee weekend with the Zutons as the headline act. If you take a left at the small hamlet of Ollerton you’re soon into Marthall, which in reality is a series of leafy Cheshire lanes with high hedges.
If you want life away from hustle and bustle, Marthall is hardly big enough to be even called a village. There is a church, but there aren’t any shops. High Lake Manor sits in the middle of a field and you can just about see it if you look over a hedge.
That’s not to say there isn’t money in the area, there certainly is, as occasionally Porsches or Maserati's pass by - many displaying personalised registration plates. But apart from that it, it is completely quiet. Many of the houses have long driveways with gates up and signs saying 'Private Road'. One farm house, whose owner has a sense of humour, even calls itself “Marthall High Noon Ranch.”
Moving a little way north of Marthall, you come to Warford Park where on Faulkner Lane there’s the Private CPASE Health club. Judging by some of the cars in the car park this is where many monied Cheshire types clearly come to relax.
Just beyond the health club, on the Mobberley border, is the charming Frozen Mop Pub which has an excellent menu serving seasonal foods, cask ales and fine wines. A small crowd of people indulged in Rainbow Trout, 10 ounce bacon chops and crispy beef satay salad from the menu.
We asked the barman if he’d seen Wayne Rooney. "No, but (Manchester City and England player) John Stones was in last week," he replied.
