Its main attraction is a volunteer-run forest in a disused quarry, and it has only one cooperative shop to its name.
But soon the quaint village of Marford in Clwyd on the Welsh-England border will roll out the red carpet to welcome Hollywood royalty when an A-list couple move in.
Deadpool star Ryan Reynolds and wife Blake Lively, 35, have bought a £1.5million four-bedroom house in the sleepy village with his wife Blake Lively, 35.
The house – said to be the ‘fancy house in the street’ – is just five miles north-east of Wrexham, where he and fellow film mogul Rob McElhenney run the town’s football club.
It’s a far cry from the £4.3million luxury New York home that Reynolds and his wife share with their four children – and it looks like Lively is in no rush to move out of the Big Apple anytime soon, as she moved in yesterday. the city sauntered. .
Ryan Reynolds on Monday during the Vanarama National League match between Wrexham and Notts County at The Racecourse Ground
Blake Lively was pictured walking in New York on Monday after the news broke
Marford has been part of both England and Wales over the years – just a few miles from the border.
The village has about 2,500 inhabitants. There are two pubs, one at the bottom of Marford Hill – The Trevor Arms – and the other at the top, The Red Lion.
There is one store, the Co-op which opened in June 2016, adjacent to The Red Lion.
The village also has a disused quarry, which opened in 1927 to originally provide materials for the construction of the Mersey Tunnel before it closed in 1971.
It has since become an important nature reserve, colonized by a variety of plant species and insects such as moths and butterflies.
Marford’s previous claim to fame was the hometown of former Blue Peter presenter, Tim Vincent, so a wave of excitement is sweeping the village.
Maguz Malik, 57, owner of The Red Lion pub, told MailOnline today: ‘It’s great news. Ryan Reynolds has done so much for Wrexham and the surrounding area.
The sleepy village of Marford in Clwyd on the Welsh-England border will soon roll out the red carpet to welcome Hollywood royalty
Marford has been part of England and Wales over the years as it is only a few miles from the border
But the small community is a far cry from the hustle and bustle of New York City. It has a Co-op (pictured) and two pubs
One of the pubs is The Red Lion. Maguz Malik, 57, owner of the pub, said: ‘It’s great news. Ryan Reynolds has done so much for Wrexham and the surrounding area’
Maguz Malik, owner of The Red Lion pub in Marford, told MailOnline today: ‘It’s great news. Ryan Reynolds has done so much for Wrexham and the surrounding area’
‘It has caused a lot of commotion in the village, many locals are excited that such a big star is going to live here.
‘I’ve seen a lot of his films and of course I’ve seen the Netflix documentary about him and Rob McElhenney taking over at Wrexham Football Club.
“Ryan seems like a real down-to-earth guy and I think he’ll fit in here. It is a friendly and welcoming place to live. I’m sure he will love it as much as we do.
‘And he’s more than welcome in the pub, there’s a pint waiting for him.’
Wrexham fan Rob Davies, 58, was also delighted to have such a famous neighbour.
He said: ‘It is fantastic news that he has chosen Marford to live. What he and Rob have put into Wrexham, both the football club and the local community, is incredible. They have been a good force for the past two years.
“I think they both have a genuine love for the club and the area and it’s definitely mutual.
“Ryan is kind of like his character in Deadpool, very deadpan. I like that. He doesn’t take himself very seriously and has been criticized for taking on Wrexham by other rival supporters, but he never snaps or gets heated. He takes it all with humor – and that’s the best way.’
The small village, where about 2500 people live, does not have its own church or place of worship. But here and there are buildings like this, with Gothic style architecture
Before the arrival of Reynolds, the biggest celebrity to live in the village was Tim Vincent of Blue Peter (pictured in 1995)
The Deadpool star is believed to have splurged on a four-bedroom house where he’ll be joined by wife Blake Lively and their children James, eight, Inez, six, and Betty, three, as well as their fourth baby who was born earlier this year ( photo last month)
Local residents from the Marford area have expressed their excitement at the arrival of Reynolds and his family
Lucia Cunningham, 23, said she hoped to bump into Reynolds at the local co-op.
With a big smile she said, ‘He’s a really nice man who cares not only about the football club, but about the whole city.
‘It’s the little things he does, like making Welsh cakes and learning Welsh. It endears him to us, the locals.
“I’m so glad Marford is getting a little bit of Hollywood glitz and glamour. It would have been so easy for someone like Ryan to settle in Cheshire, Manchester or Liverpool, where many of the big football stars live, but he has chosen to live with us here in North Wales.
“It’s so funny to think I could bump into him in the shops to get a paper and some milk. I hope he brings all his known friends!’
Meanwhile, Alex Roberts, 35, said a friend of his actually met Reynolds at a recent match in Wrexham.
He added: ‘My mate and his son spoke to him at the Racecourse Ground and he was brilliant with them. He can interact with people, he can talk to anyone and get along. Ryan is going to put Marford on the map.
“We haven’t seen too many celebrities in recent years. Tim Vincent, the former Blue Peter host, was from here, but Ryan is a different breed – he’s on the Hollywood A-list!’
Reynolds, along with co-chairman Rob McElhenney, has helped transform Welsh team Wrexham FC and has had tremendous success documenting their progress in season one of their ‘Welcome to Wrexham’ documentary series.
When Reynolds moves to the area, he is able to visit the local pub, The Red Lion
Lucia Cunningham said she hoped she would bump into Reynolds at the local co-op
The actor bought the Wrexham football club in 2020 along with It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia actor Rob McElhenney (pictured with his wife Blake at a game last year)
In August last year, Reynolds revealed that his wife wasn’t particularly happy when he told her he bought the Welsh team with It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia actor McElhenney.
In an interview on Jimmy Kimmel Live! he said, “I remember seeing Blake say, ‘I’ve got some bad news and I’ve got some really bad news. I slipped into someone’s DMs again. The really bad news is I might have bought half of it.’ of a fifth tier national football competition in Wales”.’
However, Mrs. Lively has been caught cheering on Reynolds’ club. In May last year, the pair saw Wrexham take on Bromley in the Buildbase FA Trophy Final at Wembley Stadium in London.
The pair bought the club back in 2020. They have since put Wrexham and the once struggling club firmly back on the map.
They reached the Wembley final in 2022, just missing out on promotion after finishing second in the National League.
The duo from the club also aim to boost women’s football and recently announced that they will be attending Wrexham’s women’s team’s match against local rivals Connah’s Quay Nomads tomorrow.
Reynolds and Lively have four children James, eight, Inez, six, and Betty, three, and their fourth baby who was born earlier this year.