The Big Wooden House with an extraordinary history

Like a building out of The Lord of the Rings, Greyholme, also known as the Big Wooden House, is one of the most extraordinary homes in the west of Scotland.

Built around 1938 by architect William Gibson as his private home, the Arts-and-Crafts house on the Isle of Arran is up for sale with a price tag of just £695,000.

Owned by jazz vocalist Joni Keen, it's been used as a holiday let for the last few years.

Clad in elm, with cedar window frames, the Big Wooden House sits on stilts, with a veranda running most of the way round to make the most of the wonderful views of mountains and sea.

The stunning staircase, with quirky carved figures on the newel posts, has plenty of history all of its own. It was created by Claude Gill from reclaimed oak from the original 1922 Waterloo Bridge over the River Thames.

As the Historic Scotland website notes, "The design of this house is unusual in Scotland, and unique in Arran."

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However, despite its fairy-tale exterior, the house has plenty of modern conveniences.

"Greyholme is as unique as it is beautiful," say agents McEwan Fraser Legal. "This extraordinary building has been carefully maintained and modernised, both internally and externally, to create fantastic and flexible accommodation."

The ground floor now houses a banqueting suite that's been used for weddings and parties, with luxurious living accommodation above. There are two reception rooms, a kitchen and one bedroom on the first floor, with four more bedrooms and two bathrooms above.

The setting is just as magical as the house itself: a 1.3 acre plot up a long tree-lined drive at the mouth of the Rosaburn River. It's just a five-minute walk from a lovely secluded beach, and there's even a golf course next door.