Space to entertain: Ovington Square
Situated in one of Knightsbridge’s most elegant garden squares, this six-storey 1850s townhouse has seen its fair share of recitals and soirées. Now, it needs a new owner to throw some house parties of their own
It was the extravagant proportions and sumptuous décor of the Knightsbridge townhouse’s appropriately named Grand Salon that won over American couple Mina and Jeffrey when house hunting in London 16 years ago.
Occupying the width of two properties in Ovington Square with late 19th-century pine panelling and painted motifs brought over from a French chateau in 1945, it was like nothing else that the New Yorkers had seen. “It just spoke to us. It was perfect for entertaining,” says Mina, a retired hedge fund managing director who moved to London to set up her European office. “We loved the history but also all the high-ceilinged, light-filled rooms.”
The couple were moving over from their Georgian home in New Rochelle, upstate New York, but Mina says the Grand Salon was a little less grand back then: “It was rather a wreck. We put in new ceilings, repaired mouldings, added the beautiful parquet floor, the chandeliers. Painting clouds on the ceiling was my idea!”
Long before these upgrades, the five-bedroom stucco-fronted property built in 1850 for a sculptor had a long history of illustrious house guests. Jeffrey reveals that Edward, Prince of Wales knew the owners and, in 1927, spent an evening there with the Broadway musicals producer Richard Rodgers who regaled them on the piano.
“In 1912 the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova danced for guests at a party for 300 guests, it is said,” he adds. “Then from 1914 the house was occupied by Violet Gordon Woodhouse, the leading harpsichordist in London who gave recitals at home. One was attended by Bertrand Russell and Picasso on a visit in 1919.”
Mina and Jeffrey have kept up such traditions with chamber musical recitals at their many soirées, cocktail parties and even a wedding reception for one of their two sons. “It’s got amazing acoustics for classical music and easily holds 60 to 70 people,” she adds.
Although their eldest son was already living in London – and still does – the couple were welcomed by a cosmopolitan array of neighbours during their 13 happy years there with their Giant Schnauzer. Of the five bedrooms, Mina commandeered two as her offices, while Jeffrey, a retired lawyer, had another.
Having now moved back to their New York home, the house is for sale and become a secondary residence, minus their piano, artwork and the dining table that seats 14. Mina is back and forth several times a year with her work for Maths4Girls, the organisation she founded to promote maths and science study for post-GCSEs.
The couple will always keep a London base, but not a six-storey townhouse, says Mina: “We are now too old for all the stairs – we want lateral living!”
Ovington Square is for sale at a guide price of £10,950,000. Please contact Alastair Nicholson with any enquiries on alastair.nicholson@knightfrank.com
