We’re a little obsessed with James Bond films — see our 007 architecture roundups here and here — but if this Martello Tower “Y” by Billings Jackson Design and Piercy & Company doesn’t look like a sexy spy hideaway then we don’t know what does! Billings Jackson and Piercy & Company have joined forces to convert an old fort tower from 1808 into a gorgeous, isolated private home on the coast of Suffolk, England. Nearly untouched from the outside, the centuries-old tower, with its 3-meter-thick walls, is topped off with a sleek, slanted glass roof that allows for perfect look-out views. Read more!

The home has certainly came with its fair share of red tape. Built more than two centuries ago, the Martello Tower stood as a national “At Risk” monument. Furthermore, it was named a national “Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty,” which gave it certain protections and restrictions. “The planning negotiations were matched in complexity by the on-site logistics,” said the architects in a statement.

Fortunately, the final design has proved so successful that the English Heritage Organization not only accepts the home, but lauds it as an example of pristine and thoughtful restoration. (No word on where they keep the jet packs.)

Photos: courtesy of Edmund Sumner

[via contemporist]

by Molly Cotter

posted in Uncategorized

tagged Billings Jackson Design, england, James Bond. 007, Martello Tower Y, Monuments, Piercy & Company, skyfall, Suffolk

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