Historic manor house where Shakespeare wrote ‘As You Like It’ goes up for sale - what it will set you back

Property-hunters have been given a rare opportunity to buy a 16th century manor house where Shakespeare is believed to have written the play, ‘As You Like It’. The £4.5 million property is set on a beautiful English country estate with 20 acres of grounds.

The Grade-II listed Shakespeare House, in the village of Rowington, Warks, was home to the Bard’s relatives and is believed to be where he penned ‘As You Like It’. The timber framed Tudor period property was originally built for the playwrite’s family.

The 7,500 sq ft, main hall comes with seven bedrooms and four bathrooms while the estate also boasts four separate cottages, as well as stables and paddocks. Records show it was occupied by Thomas and Isabelle Shakespeare in the late 1600s and “1682 TS IS” is engraved into one of the front gables.

Local legend also has it that William Shakespeare wrote the comedy play ‘As You Like It’ in a small room on the first floor.

The sprawling manor house is now being sold for the first time in over three decades and comes with the hefty price tag of more than £4.5 million. Estate agents DM & Co. Homes, which is handling the sale, say the home is in one of the most sought-after parts of Warwickshire.

It’s just minutes from the M40 motorway and has good rail connections to London and Birmingham International Airport. Kathy Griffiths, head of premium at DM & Co. Homes, said: “The house today is a Grade II listed building and has remained in private hands since its construction.

“The accommodation comprises seven bedrooms and six bathrooms in the main house, with kitchen, reception rooms, gorgeous drawing room and dining room on the ground floor displaying period splendour at its very best.

“But not only will the new owner be the proud owner of Shakespeare Hall, the estate also comes with four cottages and stables, with plenty of paddocks for horses or livestock.”

Shakespeare is believed to have written As You Like It around 1599 and it was first published in the First Folio in 1623.

The play has been adapted for radio, film, and musical theatre with the likes of Laurence Olivier, Helen Mirren, Brian Blessed, Vanessa Redgrave and Katharine Hepburn starring on both screen and stage.