| House in the Clouds | |
| Address: | Thorpeness, Suffolk, England |
| Map Type: | England |
| Website: | Official website |
The House in the Clouds is a water tower built to incorporate a residential home, in Thorpeness, Suffolk, England. The structure was built in 1923 to receive water pumped from Thorpeness Windmill,[1] [2] and was designed to improve the looks of the water tower, disguising its tank with the appearance of a weatherboarded building more in keeping with Thorpeness's mock Tudor and Jacobean style, except seeming to float above the trees due to its height.[3] [4]
The original capacity of the water tank was 50000impgal but during the Second World War, the House in the Clouds was accidentally hit by gunfire from anti-aircraft guns based at Thorpeness. The water tank was repaired using its own steel, which resulted in a reduced capacity of 30000impgal.[5] In 1977, the water tower was made redundant by a mains water supply to the village, and additional living space was created. In 1979, the main water tank was removed to fully convert the building into a house.
The building currently has five bedrooms and three bathrooms; it contains a total of 85 steps from top to bottom and is around 70feet high.
It has been a Grade II Listed Building since 1995.
The house was featured in the Suffolk programme during series 3 of the Channel 4 television series Homes by the Sea in 2017.[6] It also featured on series 12 of the BBC television series Flog It! on 8 May 2018.[7]
In its book 100 Buildings in 100 Years, The Twentieth Century Society chose it to represent 1924.[8]