Moore Place
| Moore Place | |
|---|---|
 Pictured in 2010 | |
 | |
| General information | |
| Address | Portsmouth Road |
| Town or city | Esher, Surrey |
| Country | England |
| Coordinates | 51°21′59″N 0°22′12″W / 51.366340°N 0.369912°W |
| Completed | c. 1900 |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | 2.5 |
Moore Place was a historic mansion in Surrey, England. It was known as the "gateway to Esher", the town in which it stood.[1]
The building's gate lodge, completed in 1905, is Grade II listed.[2] Moore Place was listed in The Survey Gazetteer of the British Isles in 1914.[3]
History
[edit]Built in the late 18th century or early 19th century,[4] replacing a house which had been there since the Middle Ages,[5] the mansion had a glasshouse and formal garden, along with a nine-hole golf course which was opened in 1926.[6][7]
Alfred Hayes was living at Moore Place in 1860.[8] Edmund Henry Hayes was the occupant three years later.[9] Lady Byron, widow of Lord Byron, lived at the mansion in the first half of the 19th century.[5][10][11]
In the 1920s, the building became a hotel and restaurant. It was later painted purple, which became a talking point.[5][12]
In 2004, Gordon Ramsay visited the restaurant in an early episode of Ramsay's Kitchen Nightmares. The restaurant had been recently purchased by Richard Hodgson and Nick Whitehouse. They sold the business in 2006, when it became another bar and restaurant, Esteem. That business also failed, and the property was purchased by Moore Place Holdings. They were given permission to demolish the building, which happened in 2010.[5] It was replaced two years later by a care home.[5][13]
The adjacent golf club and course closed in 2019,[14] after almost a century in business.[7][13][15] In 2025, plans were submitted to build around 300 homes on the land.[15]
References
[edit]- ^ "New flats threaten future of historic 'gateway to Esher'". Surrey Comet. 18 February 2007. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "LODGE TO MOORE PLACE, Non Civil Parish - 1191864 | Historic England". historicengland.org.uk. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ Bartholomew, John George; Bartholomew, John (1914). The Survey Gazetteer of the British Isles: Topographical, Statistical and Commercial, Compiled from the 1911 Census and the Latest Official Returns. J. Bartholomew & Company. p. 479.
- ^ "New flats threaten future of historic 'gateway to Esher'". Surrey Comet. 18 February 2007. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ a b c d e Tobitt, Charlotte (21 December 2015). "Take a tour around the new Moore Place care home in Esher". Surrey Live. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "Moore Place, Portsmouth Road, Esher" – Exploring Surrey's Past
- ^ a b "Moore Place Golf Club shuts down". GolfBusinessNews.com. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ coll, Marlborough (1890). Marlborough college register, from 1843 to 1869 inclusive [ed. by G.W. De Lisle]. To 1889 inclusive. (Ed., H.W. Simpkinson). p. 141.
- ^ Rugby School Register. From 1675 to 1867 inclusive. With alphabetical index. [Edited by F. Temple, Bishop of Exeter.]. 1867. p. 229.
- ^ Seymour, Miranda (6 November 2018). In Byron's Wake. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 978-1-68177-936-2.
- ^ A Handbook for Travellers in Surrey, Hampshire, and the Isle of Wight: With Map. Murray. 1858. p. 87.
- ^ "No more hope for Esher's Moore Place". Your Local Guardian. 25 June 2009. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ a b Weir, Luke (29 April 2022). "Surrey restaurant served Gordon Ramsay a 'cremated turd'". Surrey Live. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "93-year-old Surrey golf club closes down". The Golf Business. 2 October 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ a b "Surrey: Housing plans proposed for former Esher golf club". www.bbc.com. 21 February 2025. Retrieved 14 April 2025.