‘Middle Earth’ house near completion
The Wairarapa country house understood to be owned by filmmaker Peter Jackson which is almost unrecognisable from it’s former shape as a rural homestead .- Pictures by PETE NIKOLAISON
AN old Wairarapa homestead, west of Masterton, has been given an apparent Middle Earth makeover.
The colonial era house is believed to be owned by acclaimed Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson as his home in the country.
Wairarapa tradesmen and building supply companies are benefiting from the renovation of the homestead, with a convoy of up to 20 vans, utes and station wagons heading to the site on some days. Dozens of Wairarapa tradespeople have been working on the building, which appears to be nearing completion on external additions. But confidentiality clauses in trade contracts means no one is talking.
Times-Age inquiries have found the circa-1900 house has kitchens on two of its three floors, a lift, a swimming pool, and a formal dining room as well as numerous bedrooms, all with ensuite and spa. The swimming pool has a large spa room attached with a starry night ceiling effect. And what cinephile’s home would be complete without a cinema? Thought to be around the size of the Regent Theatre cinemas two and three it occupies a basement beneath the house.
The old two-storey homestead is now buried beneath extensive renovations and appears to have been raised to add another floor underneath. It boasts two towers, one with a cedar shingle- clad spire, which gives the house a fantasy appearance. Although landscaping has not started, a lake may also be added to the grounds.
Set back from the road, the homestead, around 100 years old, nestles among a large stand of mature native and European trees. The surrounding countryside was one of the earliest European settled areas in Wairarapa and the land is rolling and green, reminiscent of the Hobbit country of the Shire in Jackson’s film.
Jackson purchased a Masterton villa in March this year which he moved on to land near the site to function as a caretaker’s residence. The villa and its garden, which was also moved, acts as a gatehouse near the entrance of the long driveway to the homestead.
See Mamzelle's post above for the source link!