A woodcutter has built his own Hobbit-like cottage that even Bilbo Baggins would be proud of.
But he’s revealed he has never actually watched Lord of the Rings.
Great-grandad Stuart Grant, 89, moved into the 200-year-old cottage near Inverness, in 1984.
He bought it as a wreck with no roof and no doors, with the plan to live in it while he was renovating another house.
But the dad-of-two enjoyed doing DIY on the quirky outbuilding so much, he decided to make it his home.
He’s lived in the cottage for almost 40 years – but has recently been inundated with Lord of the Rings fans after his home was posted on a website recommending places to visit in Scotland.
Stuart lives almost entirely off the grid – he doesn’t have a mobile phone or use the internet, and no longer drives due to his age, but says he loves getting out and meeting people.
Stuart said: ‘I haven’t watched Lord of the Rings.
‘It’s just a coincidence that my front door is almost the same shape and same kind of wood, oak.
‘Before me there were cows, calves and chickens living in here, and a donkey.
‘It’s not a fancy house, it is made from other people’s left overs.’
Stuart had split his time between the UK and Australia since 1959, then started working on his Scottish home in 1984.
He then made a year-long trip to Australia afterwards and a couple of shorter trips to oz also, so says he worked on it ‘in slow motion.’
Stuart attached a roof and doors and wanted to live comfortably in the little shed while doing up the main house.
He added: ‘I was getting such a buzz out of doing it. I don’t know how much it cost.
‘I cut the wood myself from fallen trees and collected stones from the river for the stonework. I put the stairs in.
‘It took quite a few years, I never counted it. I just enjoyed doing it so much. I got carried away.’
He said that doing creative projects has kept him young.
Stuart said: ‘I have just always been an inventor and a designer.
‘My mum said “you’re always scribbling” when I was a little boy.
‘People think I’m clever because I do original things, but they’ve not tried.
‘I’ll be 90 in less than two weeks but I feel like a teenager.’
Stuart also went on to say that people can’t believe he’s almost 90.
‘I’ve travelled the world, it is all just a great adventure,’ he said.
‘I could start with a seed and end up with a house. Work is the greatest therapy.’
Do you have a story to share?
Get in touch by emailing [email protected].
MORE : Country estate home to perfume brand up for sale at nearly £4million – with orchard and historic mill
MORE : A 17-bedroom mansion once owned by the Queen’s cousin on the market for £4,000,000
MORE : In the market for a teeny tiny £70,000 parking space? Well, you’re in luck
Get all the need-to-know property news, features and advice from Metro every week.
var notifyQ = function () { var i = 0, l = awaitingReady.length; for (i = 0; i < l; i++) { awaitingReady[i](); } }; var ready = function (cb) { if (fbApiInit) { cb(); } else { awaitingReady.push(cb); } }; var checkLoaded = function () { return fbApiInit; }; window.fbAsyncInit = function () { FB.init({ appId: '176908729004638', xfbml: true, version: 'v2.10' }); fbApiInit = true; notifyQ(); }; return { 'ready' : ready, 'loaded' : checkLoaded }; })(); (function () { function injectFBSDK() { if ( window.fbApi && window.fbApi.loaded() ) return; var d = document, s="script", id = 'facebook-jssdk'; var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) { return; } js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.async = true; js.src = "https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/sdk.js"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); } if (window.metro) { window.addEventListener('scroll', injectFBSDK, {once: true, passive: true}); } else { window.addEventListener('DOMContentLoaded', injectFBSDK, {once: true}); } })();
For all the latest Lifestyle News Click Here
For the latest news and updates, follow us on Google News.
