From outside this is just a plain stone cottage, pleasant enough if unremarkable; but inside it is another matter. The broad passage running across the middle of the house has oak partitions on each side and both the downstairs rooms have ceilings of heavily moulded oak beams. Upstairs the rooms are open to the roof and a contemporary wall painting remains in one of them. The staircase has solid oak treads and all the doorways are of well-above-average quality. It is a very strong, interesting and well-preserved interior, dating from the end of the sixteenth century.

What is all this doing in so small a house and where, indeed, was the kitchen? The explanation may be that this was the parlour wing of a larger house, which was later divided into several cottages. Whatever the answer, the result is most satisfying.

Moreover, the surroundings are extremely pleasant. The group of old cottages, of which Margells is one, includes a distinctly agreeable pub. Near the house a stream of water comes out of a spout in the wall and flows away under the road. Opposite, over the roofs, a wood climbs up a hill and beyond that is the sea.

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Sleeps: 5