We live just outside Battle, England, in the beautiful Ashbourne Oast which we purchased in December 2008. We both own and run What’s On Magazine - an independent company established for 16 years. We enjoy living here because of its proximity to the beautiful historic town of Battle, it gives us the peace of the countryside with easy access to the coast and larger towns of Eastbourne and Tunbridge Wells for shopping. London can be reached easily by the local mainline stations.

Michael Townsend purchased this farmhouse in 2008

The large property is a twin Oast House and Barn conversion with an attached Annexe, set in 2 acres of land down a short track from the main road.

The property offers all the benefits of the peaceful countryside with easy access to local and regional towns. It is set in an elevated position and has far reaching views of the surrounding countryside.

The British oast is a well-loved feature of the countryside that happens to make a great home too.

So what is an oast? For visitors from overseas, the distinctive circular towers with conical roofs can be quite a surprising sight. Oasts were the farm buildings where hops were traditionally dried out and packed for our brewing industry from the 16th century onwards.

The word actually refers to the attached barn, where the hop press was situated, while the tower where the hops were dried should properly be called the kiln or roundel. The roundel acted like a chimney. A charcoal-fired kiln was built at the bottom, and above were two or three thin floors where the hops were spread, through which the heat could pass, before disappearing through the white-painted cowl on the top.