€295k Midleton Edwardian red-brick home with plenty of fairytale flourishes

Edwardian red-brick with a charming turret is one of Midleton’s more singular homes

The Gables, 35 New Cork Road, Midelton

Midleton, East Cork
€295,000
Size	84sq m (900sq ft)
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2
BER	Exempt

The owners of this whimsical redbrick in Midleton put money into it before they ever bought it, as a sort of lucky charm that it might come their way in a sale.

They’d admired it a few weeks previously, when driving through the East Cork town, and were pleasantly surprised when it subsequently popped up on a property website with a ‘For Sale’ sign.

“We put in an offer and when I told a friend about it, she said we needed to put money under the mat to help make the sale come about,” says Dee Carroll, one half of the couple that bought the house in 2022.

At the time, they were living in Ballincollig and she persuaded hubby, Dara, to make a return trip to Midleton, where they hid a euro coin under the mat of The Gables, No 35 New Cork Rd.

Whether by luck or magic, the coin seemed to work and the sale went their way. It’s a tale that sits well with the storybook look of the house, which dates to around 1898 and has more than a hint of the Arts and Crafts movement to it. Its asymmetrical design, handcrafted details, weathervane, and unusual roof — including a distinctive turret— give it an almost fairytale quality. It’s a striking landmark, made all the more prominent by its position at the point where the road divides in to the Old Cork Rd and New Cork Rd, by the Talbot Hotel Midleton (previously the Midleton Park).

No 35 was a rental when the Carrolls bought it, but it was in good shape. The previous owners but one had insulated the attic and installed double-glazed windows, a new boiler, and a wood-burning stove. However, the interiors were underwhelming and there was the sense of a building that had lost its identity, when you crossed the threshold. Photographs of what it used to look like inside show a fairly generic fit-out - nothing to write home about.

What the Carrolls achieved during their four-year ownership was to deliver an interior that lives up to the outside promise. Materials, furniture, and fittings, colour, light, and markedly better use of space all played into the transformation.

Awkward angles and sloping ceilings were turned in to characterful nooks: A tricky recess in the living room is now a focal point, transformed by a 1970s vintage chair, re-upholstered in an eye-catching pink fabric. There’s form and function to the recess now and it’s a favoured reading spot.

A strong colour palette helps to emphasise original details of this late Victorian/early Edwardian property. In one room, a deep-green feature wall complements an original, black, slate fireplace, where a stove sits into a red-brick surround. Beside it, in-built shelving makes good use of what might otherwise be an awkward alcove.

Dara, an engineer, did a lot of the carpentry, ripping out the kitchen (extended by previous owners, on the ‘Midleton Park’ side of the house) and replacing it with an elegant bank of navy units, with some original red brick exposed near the sink. Worktops are quartz and fixtures are brass in the open-plan kitchen-dining room. Dee spent many hours trawling Facebook Marketplace.

“I’m a bargain queen and I love to buy stuff on a budget and upcycle it,” she says. Evidence of a good eye is everywhere.

Originally from Kildare, the pair made their way to Midleton via Canada (five years abroad) and Ballincollig (one year).

“When we were coming back from Canada, we did not want to get in to the whole Dublin commute thing and as I knew and liked Cork from a previous job, I brought Dee down for a look and she loved it,” he says.

They bought first in Ballincollig, but continued to look, and driving through Midleton one day, spotted The Gables.

Dee remarked that she would love the house and by some cosmic power of the universe (a euro coin under the mat?), it came to pass. The couple poured heart and soul in to the property, paying for a professional to rewire it, and improving the outdoor space by removing a massive hedge at the ‘Cork’ end of the wedge-shaped site, and replacing it with fencing, gaining a few yards in the process.

They now have a sunny courtyard with room for a garden shed for storage. As The Gables is a compact house — about 900 sq ft — every square inch is put to work.

At the time the Carrolls acquired it, it was on the market as the ‘Turret House’, presumably because of its most obvious architectural feature - although there are plenty others - which is why you will find it on the national list of heritage buildings, noted as presenting “a striking Edwardian façade to the streetscape”.

The entry mentions the oriel window, terracotta roof tiles, and cast-iron finial, as well as the recessed street entrance with doric-style columns.

Its prominence on the street and how noticeably different it is to its neighbours raises questions about its provenance, which this writer is unable to answer (nor could the AI chatbot). What can be said with certainty is that it’s quite unique.

Selling agent Kyle Kennedy, of Kennedy Estate Agents, is in agreement and he describes it as “bursting with character, history, and charm”.

“The property would make an ideal lock-up-and-leave townhouse, due to the low-maintenance required.

“Equally, first-time buyers, downsizers, and those looking for an unusual property that exudes character undoubtably will be interested,” the agent says.

He adds that the location of the three-bed is “unbeatable”, a three-minute walk from Main St, a 10-minute walk to the train station, close to several supermarkets, with six beaches inside a half-hour drive, not to mention regular bus and train services to Cork city.

The Carrolls are sad to be leaving town — their dog even has his own drinking bowl at the local — but are relocating to a more rural setting, while staying in East Cork.

The price for this unique property is €295,000.

VERDICT: A singular property of exceptional character at an affordable price.