George Harrison’s widow applies to build a yoga studio in mansion grounds
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George Harrison’s widow has applied to build a yoga studio on the grounds of the mansion she loved, which could become a lasting legacy for the former Beatle.
Olivia Harrison, 74, has submitted plans for the contemporary glass structure to be built in the gardens of Friar Park, the magnificent Gothic Revival mansion Harrison bought in 1970.
Harrison, who died at age 58 in 2001, was the most spiritual member of the band and practiced yoga and transcendental meditation.
During his lifetime, he recounted how he was most at peace surrounded by nature on his sprawling Oxfordshire estate, where he developed the “decidedly non-rock star hobby” of gardening.
George Harrison, who died at age 58 in 2001, was the most spiritual member of the band, practicing yoga and transcendental meditation.
The separate studio features three walls of glass, including one with sliding doors, set on a suspended concrete platform finished with porcelain tile.
Olivia has submitted plans for the contemporary glass structure to be built on the grounds of Friar Park, the magnificent Gothic Revival mansion Harrison purchased in 1970.
Insiders said Olivia “clearly had her legacy in mind” when plans for the new building were submitted to South Oxfordshire District Council.
She wants the studio and gym to be built on a part of the estate ‘mainly used for leisure’ in a lawned garden area next to the outdoor pool and pavilion.
It would run parallel to a mature hedge that divides the tennis court from the leisure area.
The planning documents say the character focus of the 10-foot x 23-foot structure is to “provide a contemporary-style building surrounded by glass walls to connect its use with the context of nature and utilize matching design and elements.” with the existing pavilion in its immediate context”. ‘
The freestanding studio features three glass walls, including one with sliding doors, set on a suspended platform of porcelain-finished concrete.
Part of the platform would extend outwards to allow outdoor exercise.
According to the plans, the rear wall, clad in iroko wood, will have a facility to hide equipment inside to limit clutter.
Insiders said Olivia Harrison, 74, “clearly had her legacy in mind” when plans for the new building were presented to South Oxfordshire District Council.
Below the plans, the rear wall, clad in iroko wood, will have a facility to hide equipment inside to limit clutter.
The studio would run parallel to a mature hedge that divides the tennis court from the leisure area.
Part of the platform would extend outwards to allow outdoor exercise. In the photo: the site of the yoga studio.
Shaun Tanner Architecture and Planning, who designed the new yoga studio, said: “The choice of materials and elements has been carefully selected to ensure that a minimalist and contemporary building is delivered on the site, which also ties in with the existing pavilion opposite. “.
‘The proposal seeks to deliver a single storey open plan annex building, with a flexible layout to meet the proposed use of a gymnasium and yoga room, with service equipment concealed within the walls and a section of the platform that is external and creates a small terrace in the front, where the occupant can use for yoga and external exercises as well.
The 120-room Victorian mansion, which was built in 1889, is Grade II listed, while the 62-acre property has been designated as a ‘Historic Design Landscape of National Significance which is listed by Historic England on the Register of parks and gardens of special historical interest”. .
Close to Henley-on-Thames, it is also part of a conservation area and an area of ’outstanding natural beauty’.
The Gardens Trust, the UK’s heritage charity for designed gardens and landscapes, was asked about the historic nature of the park’s gardens but declined to comment.
An image of the existing pavilion, near which the yoga studio will be built as part of a leisure section of the property.
She wants the studio and gym to be built on a part of the estate ‘mainly used for leisure’ in a lawned garden next to an outdoor pool and pavilion (pictured)
Harrison began to embrace spirituality after experimenting with LSD and meeting Swami Vishnu-devananda, the founder of Sivananda Yoga, while filming the movie Help! In the Bahamas in 1965.
He bought Friar Park as a quiet escape from London and a place to set up a new recording studio.
Once the band broke up, he began to further explore his spiritual journey and love of gardening.
He separated from his first wife, Pattie Boyd, before marrying the American-born Olivia in 1978.
Olivia had also studied meditation with an Indian guru before meeting her husband.
A year after his death, in 2002, he told NBC that Harrison felt more at home in the Friar Park gardens.
She said: ‘You know, it was really nature that I loved.
And I think he felt closer to God in nature.
‘Yes, he loved it here.
‘You know, from the beginning, he had to leave London. And so we keep getting further and further away from London.
“And he found a place where he could get away from the crowds and this was it.”
She also recently opened up about her love for the nature that surrounds her home, telling the Henley Literary Festival about her new book, Came The Lightning.
She said: ‘The book is set in the garden. My life is set in the garden.
‘The garden is a marker of life. I started by looking at the trees in the garden that have been my witness for the last 45 years.
“When we came to live in Henley, George just wanted peace after a tumultuous decade.
“I lived there as a refuge to find a semblance of life.”
Musicians such as Bob Dylan and Roy Orbison visited the house, which at one time housed one of the best recording studios in the country.
In an interview with David Hartman’s Good Morning America in 1981, George said, ‘I decided to become a gardener.
I like the garden. In the garden, you see all the seasons come and go, and anything you do can affect everything.
‘But at the same time, the flowers don’t answer you. Don’t give yourself trouble. Is very pretty.’
The couple’s love for the home endured despite a frenzied attack in December 1999 when trespasser Michael Abram broke into the property and repeatedly stabbed the rock star.
The application will be decided at the beginning of January.