Sir Benjamin Slade, the 60-year-old baronet of Maunsel House in Somerset, has identified a potential heir for his £7.5 million Grade II listed mansion: Isaac Slade, the 26-year-old frontman of the American band The Fray. The two, who share a surname and distant ancestry, met at the estate on Tuesday.
Sir Benjamin, who has no children, launched a worldwide search for a relative to take over the 13th-century property, which includes nine bedrooms, a ballroom, library, and 1,500 acres of land. The search attracted 15,000 responses, but Isaac Slade, from Denver, Colorado, emerged as the frontrunner after contacting Sir Benjamin last year.
Isaac Slade visited the estate with his wife Anna, describing it as "absolutely out of this world." Sir Benjamin praised the singer as a "thoroughly great chap" who does not use drugs and wants to start a family, which he believes the quiet estate needs. The baronet hopes Isaac will eventually take over the property, which costs £1,000 a month to heat and hosts around 25 weddings annually.
Sir Benjamin's quest for an heir was featured in a Discovery Channel show called "I'm Really A Royal." The Slade family motto is "Fidax Et Audax" (Faithful and Bold), and the lineage traces back to William Slade in Devon in 1120. The Fray's debut album sold over five million copies in the US, and the band is set to perform at the V Festival in August.
