The Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett and husband Andrew Upton have bought a house with a sordid past – and it’s not just any haunted house. The manor was once a squalid drug den painted with witchcraft symbols.
No, you did not read that wrong. Cate has shacked up in a famously haunted house that has been a drug den, a meeting place for pagans and a hide-out for criminals. And she paid $6.25m for the privilege.
Prior to its renovation, Highwell House was squalid and run down. Picture: Knight Frank
Previously known as Potters Manor or Steep Park, in 2016 the English manor, located in Crowborough 90 minutes from London, is now named Highwell House.
The Victorian manor was built on the sprawling estate in 1890 and began to fall into disrepair in the early 2000s before it was extensively refurbished in 2015.
Andrew Upton and Cate Blanchett weren’t put off by the spooky past of this English home. Picture: Getty
The place was literally falling apart and looked like some kind of squat straight out of a movie set.
While the home today is light, airy and has been restored to its palatial-like glory, before it was refurbed it was listed as Britain’s 13th most creepy abandoned house in 2015.
A Facebook page dedicated to Potters Manor House is said to feature pictures from people who visited the home and claimed to have captured images of ghosts or spirits.
The house was previously dilapidated and in need of love. Picture: Potters Manor House / Facebook
There are even photographs that show a pagan pentagram, commonly used for seances or wicca magic, painted on the floor at the time.
Local residents are said to be very happy that Cate, Andrew and their four children have moved into the home thinking that by them being there the area is made safer.
The home itself is exactly the picturesque manor home you’d expect to find in England. The exterior has been lovingly restored to its Victorian-style glory and looks beautiful set against the surrounding greenery.
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