Like most people in the public eye, Jonathan Ross is very particular about privacy. Towering yew and cypress trees surround the perimeter of his Grade II listed farm, which he bought for £1.1 million in 2005, in the seaside town of Swanage, Dorset.
The 16th-century building, accessed through an imposing wooden security gate, is hidden at the end of a single-track lane in a leafy residential area.
Surrounded by six hectares, it has its own orchard, stables, duck pond and an Olympic-sized swimming pool and gym in a former cattle shed.
According to locals, the TV presenter (64) and his wife, screenwriter Jane Goldman (54), are not here all year round.
After all, this is only their second home. They spend most of their time in Hampstead, North London – where their three adult children, Honey, Betty and Harvey, are based – and head to the south coast to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life.
“You don’t see the Rosses that often, especially in the summer,” says retired ferryman Dave Mutter, who lives in the sought-after spot with his wife Sandie.
But the couple’s coastal paradise is under threat.
Because a plot adjacent to the Ross estate has been put up for sale – and already has provisional planning permission for 92 homes, a percentage of which are likely to be affordable homes.
Jonathan Ross’s home in Swanage, Dorset, which he shares with his wife, screenwriter Jane Goldman. It was bought in 2005 for £1.1 million
The coast in Swanage, Dorset, on the Jurassic Coast. In recent years, wealthy Londoners have been moving here
The news follows plans for a further 93 homes, at another site also adjacent to the presenter’s property, bringing the total proposed number of new-build homes on his land to 185.
What was once a remote retreat on the Jurassic Coast could be surrounded by a residential area if plans go ahead.
Ross was one of more than 50 people who wrote furious objections to the previous planning application, submitted in July, claiming any development would be ‘very distressing’ for his family.
He added, in a letter on Dorset Council’s website: ‘We have bedrooms facing the proposed development… We are also concerned about the change in the fabric of local life caused by so many new homes in the area, and the direct impact on traffic and facilities.
“We have often been approached by developers asking to purchase our land for the same purpose and declined as we were aware of the impact this would have on the entire community.”
Other residents share his concerns, raising objections to the £5 million sale of the 4.4-acre site over issues ranging from noise to traffic congestion and overloading the sewerage system.
But there are others who firmly support the plans.
As they told The Mail last Sunday, many feel it is somewhat rich for Jonathan Ross, who reportedly has a fortune of £28 million and owns one of the area’s most expensive properties, to object to new houses, while local families struggle to get money. on the property ladder.
Engineering technician Robert Lansing, 38, says he, his wife Mandy and their two children were forced out of Swanage to the nearby town of Wareham due to rising house prices.
He says new construction is desperately needed in the region – for young families like theirs.
His views are in line with the Labor government, which wants 1.5 million new homes built across the country.
Last Thursday, Sir Keir Starmer vowed to prevent homes and infrastructure from being ‘held hostage’ by Nimbys and environmentalists. In an attack on the “blockers and bureaucrats” who he says have “stifled” economic growth and made home ownership unaffordable, the Prime Minister said he would implement reforms to Britain’s “ruining” planning system.
Jonathan Ross with his wife Jane Goldman at the British Academy Game Awards in 2018
Mr Lansing said he would support plans to build new homes in the Swanage region ‘if it means my family can return to where we were born’.
He explained: ‘We are desperate to move back, if only we can find something we can manage financially. Jonathan Ross clearly doesn’t have that problem and just wants to keep his piece of heaven in Dorset.’
Mr. Lansing and his family are not the only locals who feel this way.
“As we have an aging population here, caregivers like me will be in desperate need,” said Charlotte Sheridan, 29, mother of two. “But the high prices are driving me away from my family and friends because I can’t afford to buy in this area.”
That includes shop assistant Deborah Price, 39, who rents with her husband while they save for a home deposit. “There is a clear need for more affordable starter homes for families,” she told the MoS. ‘It is depressing to see that the prospect of buying in the city is becoming increasingly difficult as time goes on.’
People like Mrs Price have seen Swanage, a once thriving seaside spot on the Isle of Purbeck, change dramatically in recent decades.
It was once an idyll of isolation: 40 square miles of picturesque limestone plains, sandwiched between Poole Harbor and the English Channel, with dramatic views of the Isle of Wight.
But in recent years, wealthy Londoners – fed up with the Cotswolds and priced out of nearby Sandbanks – have moved here, fueling demand and pushing up house prices.
Today, the average selling price of a house in Swanage, according to property website Zoopla, is £508,220 – almost double the UK average of £267,200.
Luxury homes are now plentiful, and even nondescript properties come with a price tag. For example, a three-bedroom detached bungalow is currently on the market for £2.85 million.
Second home owners like the Rosses have been blamed for changes in the city, with some residents calling for a ban on holiday rentals. The government’s recently introduced council tax surcharge for second home owners, which comes into effect in April, has also been welcomed.
Jonathan Ross and his wife have been regular visitors to Dorset since the 1980s.
When the farm, which they had had their eye on for some time, came on the market in 2005, they decided to purchase it.
The locals called him ‘The Squire of Swanage’. And initially, he and his wife – who had dyed their hair bright red at the time – raised a few eyebrows when they were spotted locally.
But the new resident did his best to ingratiate himself, visiting the nearby Anchor Inn, chatting to neighbors on dog walks and introducing himself to allotment owners over the fence.
In 2006, a year after moving in, he relied on residents’ support when he needed planning permission to convert part of his property into a gym and tennis court.
They duly agreed – and the plans went ahead.
Although he is in London most of the year, these days he helps out at city events, putting his name (and a sizeable donation) behind the annual regatta and carnival week.
Jonathan Ross with his wife Jane Goldman and one of their three adult children, Honey Kinny Ross, at a screening of the film Barbie in London last year
Landscaper Michael Rutter, 56, says it marks a change from other city residents, who have no interest in being part of the community – if anything, Ross wanted to be “part of the local scene”.
The presenter was not available for comment this week and did not appear to be staying at his home in Swanage.
But as locals unable to get onto the property ladder welcome the plans, neighbors are grateful Jonathan spoke out, citing traffic issues, schools already full and other facilities under pressure.
“Everyone is angry about it, and Jonathan Ross is absolutely right to stand up and say enough is enough,” 59-year-old Simon Chester told The Mail on Sunday.
He says there are already long waiting lists for NHS doctors and dentists in the area.
“This will only get worse if they build more houses there without adding more doctors or dental practices,” he adds.
Montagu Evans, the property consultant behind the sale of the site, did not respond to requests for comment, nor did architect Mountford Pigott, who drew up the plans for the development.
The site only went up for sale last month and ultimately it’s up to the buyer to decide what to do with it.
You can imagine that Jonathan Ross, like the rest of the town, will be eagerly waiting to find out.
But it is inevitable that the Squire of Swanage will never be hit as hard as other members of the community. ‘Eventually he will have the money to move on to a new one
post if he doesn’t like what’s happening,” said retired ferryman Dave Mutter.
“We’re all stuck here and have to live with the consequences.”