A newly constructed building in Winchester, designed by the well-known Southgate Street architects, Huw Thomas Associates, could be judged ‘Britain’s Best Home’.

The four storey house, Novus, was commissioned by Vincent and Anne Oddie and is one of a number of carefully selected houses to be featured in a new edition of the Channel 5 series “I Own Britain’s Best Home”.

“The Oddie family knew exactly what they wanted in terms of living space for their family of four children and I was able to come up with a one-off design which suited all their needs”, Huw Thomas explained. “ The result is a house which is very modern, incorporating the very latest technology and equipment, and yet it fits in admirably with the architecture of an historic city.”

Fittings include a state of the art kitchen, home cinema, with music and technology systems throughout the house. There is an intriguing Zip HydroTap in the kitchen which delivers filtered, chilled and boiling water on demand so there is no longer a need for a kettle in a 21st century house. Huge sections of bi-folding glass doors virtually mean that the entire ground floor spaces open directly into the garden.

Huw Thomas has had many awards for developments in the city, including for the restoration of the Peninsular Barracks, but this one, he says, would certainly be a novel title to have house described as ‘Britain’s Best Home’. Even if it does not win, it is still one of twenty-four houses chosen throughout the British Isle’s.

Filming for the new series is to begin in Winchester shortly.