Comedian and television presenter Josh Widdicombe has made a major lifestyle shift, purchasing the former Devon home of TV legend Noel Edmonds for a substantial £2.95 million.
A London Exit for a Georgian Gem
The 42-year-old star of The Last Leg and his producer wife, Rose Hanson, also 42, have officially quit the capital. They sold their £2.3 million five-storey townhouse in Victoria Park, London, last summer to facilitate the move. Their motivation was to provide more space for their two young children—seven-year-old Pearl and four-year-old Cassius—and to be closer to Widdicombe's childhood roots in Devon.
The couple's new residence is a stunning Grade II listed property situated on one of Exeter's most exclusive streets. The 7,500 sq ft white-rendered house boasts five en-suite bedrooms and comes with a separate one-bedroom coach house within its grounds.
Inside the Edmonds-Widdicombe Residence
The impressive interior features highlight the property's grandeur and character. Pictures reveal an enormous living room complete with a grand piano, high ceilings, and a log fire. The home also contains two additional sitting rooms, two dedicated offices, a spacious 35ft dining room, and a large kitchen and breakfast room warmed by an iconic Aga cooker.
Further amenities include a home gym, a wine cellar, and carefully preserved Georgian features such as chandeliers, fireplaces, and large bay windows. Notably, the Exeter property offers three times the space of the family's previous London home.
A Property with a Colourful Past
The house carries a notable history from its previous famous owner. Television host Noel Edmonds, now 76, bought the property for £1.36 million in October 2006 following his divorce from his second wife, Helen Soby, and during the peak success of his show Deal or No Deal.
Edmonds undertook extensive renovations, but the project led to a bitter court battle. He was sued by a former friend, builder Ulrik Lawson, whom he had not paid for the management of the refurbishment. Edmonds claimed the work was done on a 'no fee' basis, a claim Lawson strongly denied. In 2011, the court ruled against Edmonds, ordering him to pay £600,000 plus legal fees to Lawson. Edmonds had sold the house in August 2008 for over £2 million.
Widdicombe has already addressed the property's famous past on the Parenting Hell podcast, clarifying to co-host Rob Beckett that it is not the iconic Crinkley Bottom mansion from Noel's House Party. Beckett humorously retorted that Widdicombe had moved into a house where Edmonds had been sexually active.
The couple are no strangers to property projects. They fully renovated their London home after buying it for £1.9 million in 2017 and also own a £1 million holiday home in Mullion, Cornwall, which they have restored and now rent out. Rose Hanson has stated she leads on interior decisions, joking that while Josh is good at writing jokes, she is good with interiors.
Their new Devon project is already underway, with renovation pictures showing builders removing bathrooms, moving walls, and demolishing a damp-affected conservatory to build a new garden room. A former workshop is being converted into a home gym for weightlifting enthusiast Rose, all while protecting the house's significant period features.
