A massive four-storey concrete water tower in Wheldrake, near York, has been put on the market for a whopping £200,000, with local predicting it will soon be on Grand Designs
A four-storey Yorkshire water tower slapped on the market for £200,000 has become the latest internet punchline, with jokers predicting it’s destined for the dreaded Grand Designs curse.
The concrete tower, perched above rolling countryside and boasting sweeping panoramic views, comes with a surprisingly plush garden that would leave most neighbours green with envy.
Sitting in the “ever sought-after” village of Wheldrake, just outside York, it’s a short stroll from the local primary school and only metres away from the village pub.
But despite the idyllic setting, the listing from Ashtons Estate Agents has sent social media into meltdown, with many convinced Kevin McCloud will be circling the property like a hawk any day now.
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Billed as a “blank canvas” for budding self-builders, the tower even comes with the tempting promise of “potential to be converted to a residential property, subject to planning permission”. Those magic words are ones that Grand Designs fans know all too well can be the beginning of a beautiful dream, or an absolute catastrophe.
“Just needs a recently married couple and the curse of Kevin McCloud,” one Reddit user quipped. Another joked, “Somewhere, Kevin McCloud is salivating,” while a third delivered the classic warning: “Subject to planning permission? Best of luck!”
One sceptic recalled a past episode: “I saw a couple on Grand Designs do up a very similar building… it was a complete money hole. You’re not making this liveable for less than a mil.” Another replied: “Don’t say that out loud. We want someone who thinks they can do it for £100k and a few favours so we can watch the inevitable train wreck on a Wednesday night.”
And they may have a point as water towers have a history on the show, MailOnline reports. Leigh Osborne and Graham Voce famously transformed a derelict tower in Kennington, South West London, into a nine-storey home with the biggest sliding doors in Britain. It cost them almost £2 million, and after dramatic price drops, it eventually sold in 2021 for around £2.75 million.
Of course, not every tower tale ends so neatly. Viewers will remember Tassy and Adam’s ill-fated bid to turn an abandoned tower into a nine-bedroom fantasy home complete with slides, a pool and even a fireman’s pole. Five years later, all they’d managed was a few concrete walls and Kevin McCloud’s grim verdict that nothing had changed in two years.
Fans branded the result a “concrete hell”, and now, many fear this Yorkshire tower could be next in line for the show’s long list of heartbreaks.
