Owner of six-bed townhouse built for Henry VIII’s confessor accuses ‘retired football star’ of reneging on deal to buy it for £5.2m: Ex advertising boss, 71, says sportsman ‘screwed me up’ after pulling out of deal
- Owner of six-bedroom townhouse has accused ‘well-known footballer’ of pulling out of the sale last minute
- Clive Hemsley, 71, has claimed the unnamed retired sport star ‘screwed him up’ by reneging on deal to buy it
- Longlands House in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire was built for King Henry VIII’s confessor John Longland
- Longland is understood to have helped to persuade Tudor King to annul marriage to wife Catherine of Aragon
The owner of a six-bedroom Georgian townhouse that was built for King Henry VIII’s confessor John Longland has accused a ‘well-known football star’ of reneging on a deal to buy the property for £5.2million.
Longlands House was built for the Bishop of Lincoln who is understood to have been one of the first to persuade the Tudor King to annul his marriage to first wife Catherine of Aragon.
The stunning Grade II mansion in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, has a grand 18th century façade but the original 15th century stables form a self-contained two-bedroom cottage at the back.
Its awe-inspiring features include a basement bar and media room and a stunning suntrap roof terrace offering panoramic views over the River Thames.
However its current owner, Clive Hemsley, 71, has now claimed an unnamed ‘retired’ sport star ‘screwed him’ after he pulled out of an 18-month verbal deal to buy the property.
The ex-advertising boss said the footballer had ‘mucked him about something rotten’ and even attempted to reduce the agreed purchase price to £4million the day before the exchange was set to take place, reports The Times.
He believed the anonymous star had arranged for the property to be bought by a Kuwaiti family following the original sale.
Longlands (pictured) is one of just a few townhouses in the town that has not been converted into flats and is just 120 yards from the banks of the Thames
Longlands House (a living room, pictured) was built for John Longland, Bishop of Lincoln, understood to have been one of the first to persuade the Tudor King to annul his marriage to first wife Catherine of Aragon
Longland sat as assistant judge in Henry’s divorce proceedings and willingly signed the Act of Succession – which declared the king the supreme head of the church of England and not the bishop in Rome. Pictured: The kitchen in Longlands House
Longland gained the favour of Henry VIII, who appointed him Bishop of Lincoln in 1521 and the king’s almoner – who distributed alms to the poor – and confessor. Pictured: One of the rooms in Longlands House
John Longland (Longlands House, pictured) was appointed Dean of Salisbury in 1514 and became closely associated with influential men like Sir Thomas More and Cardinal Thomas Wolsey
Clive Hemsley, the current owner, purchased the property as commercial offices in 2000 and ran a successful advertising agency from it before deciding to restore it to its former glory as a family home (a bedroom, pictured)
Its awe-inspiring features include its basement bar and media room and a stunning suntrap roof terrace offering panoramic views over the River Thames
Hemsley, who ran the advertising agency Billings, said he had bought all of his former properties on ‘handshakes’ and has ‘never had bad debt or people go sour’ on him until now.
He said: ‘This guy came to me and seemed very genuine. We shook hands on it and that was it. He asked me to take it off the market, so I did. And beggar me, here we go. He screwed me up.
‘I never ever had bad debt or people go sour on me. That’s been my life. I’m old fashioned. My word is my bond.’
Hemsley bought the property for £1.1millon in 2002 and is now planning on putting the mansion back on the market for potential buyers.
Longlands is one of just a few townhouses in the town that has not been converted into flats and is just 120 yards from the banks of the Thames.
John Longland was appointed Dean of Salisbury in 1514 and became closely associated with influential men like Sir Thomas More and Cardinal Thomas Wolsey.
He gained the favour of Henry VIII, who appointed him Bishop of Lincoln in 1521 and the king’s almoner – who distributed alms to the poor – and confessor.
Longland sat as assistant judge in Henry’s divorce proceedings and willingly signed the Act of Succession – which declared the king the supreme head of the church of England and not the bishop in Rome.
Unlike some of his fellow clerics he never fell out of the king’s favour and died in his seventies in 1547, four months after Henry.
The six-bedroom property (a hallway, pictured) in Henley-on-Thames has a grand 18th century façade but the original 15th century stables form a self-contained two-bedroom cottage at the back
A breathtaking Grade II-listed townhouse (a dining room, pictured) built for King Henry VIII’s confessor has hit the market for £6.25million
Unlike some of his fellow clerics Longland never fell out of the king’s favour and died in his seventies in 1547, four months after Henry. Pictured: A bathroom in the property
Mr Hemlsey said he will be accepting bids over £4million – a reduced price of £2.2million after it appeared on the market in January 2021
The 15th-century stables have been converted into a 1,275 sq ft cottage (pictured) with a kitchen, living room, office, two bedrooms and three bathrooms, a private gated walled garden and generous parking
The property’s walled garden features a summerhouse making it ideal for buyers looking for a tranquil escape
The six-bedroom property – situated next to a parish church – has become a landmark building in Henley-on-Thames
The property has 4,467 square feet of living space (its floor plan, pictured). The 15th-century stables have been converted into a 1,275 square foot cottage
John Longland, Bishop of Lincoln, gained the favour of Henry VIII
Much of the existing property dates to 1786 and it has been one of Henley’s landmark buildings since then. The house is next to the parish church and part of a group of listed buildings and structures in the area.
From the 1970s the building was used as head offices for a brewery, then an investment firm before Mr Hemsley used it for his advertising agency.
The property has 4,467 square feet of living space with a bar and media room in the basement and a kitchen, dining room and living room on the ground floor.
It boasts six bedrooms, a study or studio space and four bathrooms spread over the first and second floors. It is also topped with a suntrap roof terrace with views over the Thames.
The 15th-century stables have been converted into a 1,275 square foot cottage with a kitchen, living room, office, two bedrooms and three bathrooms, a private gated walled garden and generous parking.
Mr Hemlsey said he will be accepting bids over £4million for the six-bedroom property – a reduced price of £2.2million after it appeared on the market in January 2021.
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