**James Corden’s £8.5m Oxfordshire Home Still Boarded Up Two Years After Approval**
It was heralded as the grand return of James Corden to British soil: the multi-million pound purchase of an imposing country estate, Templecombe House, near Henley-on-Thames. Bought for a staggering £8.5 million in 2020, the estate was set to become the new home for the comedian and his family following years living in the United States. Yet, over two years since local authorities granted permission to demolish the existing building and construct a six-bedroom mansion, the site remains eerily untouched.
Aerial photographs recently taken of Templecombe House reveal an estate frozen in time, boarded up and apparently abandoned amid sprawling grounds. Despite a flurry of initial planning activity, little evidence of work is visible beyond the approved demolition and construction plans. The silence surrounding the property has sparked questions among locals and fans regarding the future of Corden’s “dream home”.
When Corden first acquired the 43-acre estate, the intention was clear: a full-scale transformation, reflecting his move back to the UK with wife Julia and their three children. However, real progress quickly became bogged down in a labyrinth of planning requirements. Detailed proposals, first submitted in January 2023, faced objections from both the Wokingham Borough Council and English Heritage, with a lengthy negotiation period ensnaring the project.
Among the major sticking points were plans for luxurious leisure facilities, including indoor and outdoor swimming pools, sauna, and steam room. Conservation concerns also arose, with particular sensitivity around the ancient 45 granite megalithic stones—the Grade II listed Mont de la Ville ‘dolmen’—a site of both historical and archaeological importance that sits within the grounds.
Eventually, permission was only granted when these extravagant amenities were stripped from the proposal, and Corden’s planning team agreed to robust safeguarding measures. These included specialist lighting to protect local wildlife such as bats, badgers, and glow worms, as well as extensive landscaping aimed at preserving both the rare stones and the parkland setting. Archaeologists were also enlisted to carry out trench testing across the site before any building works could commence.
The storied history of the Mont de la Ville dolmen adds further intrigue. First unearthed on Jersey in the 18th century, the monument was relocated to England in 1788 as a gift to Field Marshal Henry Seymour Conway, then Governor of Jersey. The structure was painstakingly reassembled at the Templecombe site, where it continues to stand sentinel over the property’s storied lawns. Calls from Jersey to see the stones eventually returned have, so far, gone unheeded.
Documents on record with the planning authorities show that the house currently on site, itself a replacement for a 19th-century country seat, has languished in neglect, its condition reportedly attracting urban explorers in recent years. The approved plans spell out a vision for a two-storey residence, complete with a basement, double studies, a breakfast room flowing onto a terrace, and a capacious playroom for the Corden children. Upstairs, the design features five ensuite bedrooms and a principal suite with its own pair of bathrooms and a balcony. Original features such as a tennis court are being retained in recognition of the estate’s heritage.
Further hurdles continue to stymie progress. Along with wildlife and archaeological protection, the planning authority mandated robust flood prevention strategies and careful management of mature trees before any demolition could begin. So far, these preparatory tasks—and any visible steps towards construction—appear to be stalled.
For now, there is no official word from Corden’s camp on the delay, leaving the fate of Templecombe House an open question. Whether the Late Late Show host will ever see his grand plans realised, or whether the Oxfordshire estate will remain in its current limbo, remains to be seen. Locals, meanwhile, continue to wait for signs of life—and perhaps a touch of showbiz glamour—at one of the county’s most enigmatic properties.