Home with Royal seal of approval
THE view of the tumbling River Tay is so impressive, it even received the Royal stamp of approval. The Prince of Wales appreciated the waterside view from the patio of Dugald Campbell’s home in a former textile mill during a visit to assess the conversion work.
The four-bedroom townhouse is part of Mid Mill, one of three buildings transformed from industrial plants into four-storey properties as part of an award-winning project at the turn of the Millennium.
Prince Charles, a renowned conservationist, was so keen to keep an eye on the development’s progress that he often turned up at the site unannounced, in a dark Range Rover, to check things out.
Yet the view the Prince and the homeowners enjoy today is a far cry from how things used to be.
Mr Campbell said: ‘Former mill workers occasionally drop in to see how the place has changed.
‘They can’t believe the views through the windows. When they were working in the mill, cotton particles would clog the windows.
‘One even told me he didn’t realise you could see the river through one window.’
Mr Campbell’s A-listed property in Stanley, five miles north of Perth, is a stunning legacy of the industrial revolution. In the 1780s, Sir Richard Arkwright was a pioneer of textile mills across Britain, all built on major rivers to harness the enormous power of water.
He helped satisfy the huge demand for cotton from America by turning it into cheap, mass-produced clothing. To do so, he used child labour on an industrial scale. In some of his mills, the workforce was often twothirds children – some as young as six – working from six in the morning until seven at night.
While someone employing youngsters for 13-hour days could scarcely be deemed benevolent, Arkwright’s mills, unlike others, were never described as ‘dark and satanic’.
In New Lanark, for example, he partnered with David Dale, the industrialist famous for pioneering more enlightened attitudes towards workers by providing suitable housing and education.
The Mid Mill conversion embraces and reflects its industrial past – and the power of the river is evident every day.
Mr Campbell, a headteacher who retired four years ago, gets a lot of contentment from sitting on his patio watching the Tay.
He said: ‘It is stunning to watch. It’s a known fact that the Tay has more water going down it than the Thames and the Severn combined. You see branches of trees, bales of hay, floating by.’
Inside, iron supports run through the house. Elsewhere, the appealing dining kitchen has shaker-style wall and base units, with an integrated oven, electric hob, dishwasher, freezer and microwave.
All upper apartments are reached by a feature spiral staircase at the centre of the property.
On the first floor is a superb maple-floored lounge, dining and reception area with breath-taking views of the river from the external wooden balcony.
Two double bedrooms are to be found a floor up, both with en suite bathrooms. Another floor up and you will find two more bedrooms, served by a family bathroom suite.
The conversion won the 2009 European Union Prize for Cultural Heritage/Europa Nostra Award, shared between Historic Scotland and the Prince’s Regeneration Trust.
A little known fact is that the roof once covered those who were enjoying some of Her Majesty’s pleasure – the slates come from Perth Prison, after the roof had to be replaced following a riot by inmates.