A developer has launched sales for 18 luxury apartments that it converted from a historic, century-old London school featured in the film "The Theory of Everything."
Tenhurst, the developer, is converting a secondary school by architect Thomas J. Bailey, built in 1908, into prime residences on a posh road in Chelsea. Flats in the converted brick school house, dubbed The King’s Library, will start at £3.2 million (US$4 million), according to a spokesperson for Tenhurst.
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Over the last century the Grade II building housed the Sloane School, briefly served as medical ward for wounded soldiers in WWII and in the 1970s, became one of London’s first adult education centers, according to Tenhurst. Film crews temporarily took over the empty building in 2013, after the college moved to a new campus, to make the Oscar-winning film "The Theory of Everything."
The filmmakers used the building’s old classrooms to depict Cambridge University classes attended by a young Stephen Hawking, played by Eddie Redmayne.
The development is part of a broader trend toward historic and disused building conversion, including such iconic London structures as the old Battersea Power Station, which will become a mixture of flats and townhouses.
When complete, The King’s Library, on Hortensia Road, will include 16 private two-to-four bedroom residences, each with their own unique design and some including double-height ceilings, terraces, wine cellars and private street-level entrances.
The building has an additional two showpiece units, including a top-floor duplex penthouse with five bedrooms and wide views over the city.
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The other ultra-luxe unit, marketed as "The King’s Hall," is a four-bedroom home centered around the double-height, former school hall converted to an open living space. A second-floor gallery surrounds and overlooks the great hall, which has a sweeping staircase to the second level.
The developers have preserved the intricate moulding and millwork in "The King’s Hall," as well as the building’s brick exterior.
Knight Frank and Savills are marketing the units. The listing agents had until now focused on off-market communication with high-net-worth clients, and have recently begun a more public sales campaign, the spokeswoman for Tenhurst said.