The Old House stands by the side of the valley road in Lydbrook, a straggling village in the Forest of Dean. Most of the picturesque structure dates from the 1500s though the extension on the right is later and is dated 1718. It is built on a slope and the stone cellar has doors and a window at ground level at the front.The wattle and daub infilling of the timber frame on the facade has been competely replaced on the street elevation by later brick noggin, but is present elsewhere. The slate roof and sash windows are also later but the other elevations and interior retains much work from the sixteenth, seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The house sign shows both its name as given above and the fact that it was once "Sarah Siddons' House". Sarah Siddons (1755-1831) was a noted Welsh-born actress, a tragedienne, a nationally known celebrity, and the subject of many painters including Thomas Gainsborough and Joshua Reynolds.
Note: The photograph has had two bags of builder's gravel removed from the bottom left corner of the house, material to be used in some refurbishment of the Grade II* lListed Building.
photos © T. Boughen Camera: Lumix FZ1000 2
