Alan Titchmarsh has completed the sale of his Hampshire countryside retreat, with the beloved gardening presenter and his wife Alison now settled in their new Surrey home.
The 77-year-old television personality and his spouse of five decades, 74-year-old Alison, have departed Manor Farm House in Holybourne, a picturesque village close to Alton. However, the presenter previously denied claims that a local planning dispute had anything to do with their decision to move.
Their 17th century Grade II-listed Georgian property, spanning 7,930 square feet with four acres of meticulously tended gardens, was initially marketed at just under £4 million before being reduced to £3.5 million.
The couple have purchased a £2.6 million five-bedroom single-storey residence in Surrey from Rachael Reid, who had won the luxury property through an Omaze raffle after buying a £10 ticket.
Alan Titchmarsh has completed the sale of his Hampshire countryside retreat
| PASources close to the star confirmed the transaction has been finalised.
The sale coincides with a bitter planning dispute that has engulfed the small Hampshire village, where developers Redbrown have proposed constructing up to 156 homes on 15.6 hectares of land directly behind the former Titchmarsh residence.
The scheme has provoked fierce opposition, with approximately 850 objections lodged against the masterplan in a community of just 1,500 people.
Residents have raised concerns about flooding, parking shortages and increased traffic, with the developer's own analysis suggesting the estate would generate an additional 700 vehicle movements daily through a single access road.
Sources close to the star confirmed the transaction has been finalised.
| ITVLocal council planners had earmarked the site as suitable for more than 200 homes to address housing demand.
Just 38 comments supporting the proposals have been submitted, primarily welcoming the 40 per cent affordable housing component.
Mr Titchmarsh has firmly denied that the controversial development influenced his decision to leave the property he purchased for £1.2 million in 2002 and lovingly restored over two decades.
"We are simply downsizing and moving to be closer to our two daughters and our grandchildren who live a few miles away," he said in December.
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Alan Titchmarsh has been on screens for decades | GETTY
He went on to tell MailOnline: "Tempting as it might be to suggest that the proposed development (which may or may not come to fruition) has influenced our decision is completely wide of the mark.
"The village will remain a delightful place to live, with or without additional housing which will not impinge on the enjoyment or convenience of where we live at present."
His new Surrey home brings him nearer to daughters Polly and Camilla, along with his grandchildren.
The gardening icon described his new single-storey dwelling as "wonderfully modern and completely different from the Georgian farmhouse where we were before."
Alan Titchmarsh has firmly denied that the controversial development influenced his decision to leave the property he purchased for £1.2 million in 2002 and lovingly restored over two decades
| ITV"It's a single-storey dwelling that's quite long, but we're refusing to use the B-word because we have five steps! It's a different way of life and quite exciting. It's liberating," he told House Beautiful.
Writing in BBC Gardener's World, Mr Titchmarsh acknowledged that departing a garden he had nurtured for over twenty years had been "a wrench."
However, former neighbours have suggested the housing proposals may have played a role in his departure.
One local resident told MailOnline: "I'm sure anything like that is going to make you think, if someone's going to build in the back of your house."
Consultation on the development continues until June 21.