Kevin McCloud has opened up about the ‘mixed emotions’ of Grand Designs’ ‘saddest ever’ home – as he spoke out for the first time since it was finally sold last month.
Speaking ahead of Grand Designs Live at NEC Birmingham this week, the Channel 4 property show host said the story of Chesil Cliff House on the north coast of Devon had been a ‘huge part’ of his life.
During his time on the show, Edward Short, 52, had left viewers in floods of tears in his quest to renovate a dilapidated lighthouse into a luxury eco-friendly home – with some even branding it the ‘saddest’ tale to ever feature in its 25 years on air.
The decade-long transformation – which was only meant to take 18 months and cost £1.8million – left Edward on the edge of bankruptcy and unable to attract a buyer, after taking years to complete and going wildly over budget.
Last month, it was revealed that Mr Short had finally sold the property for £4.35 million to a London taxi driver turned property developer – but not before it had cost him his 20-year marriage to wife Hazel and left him drowning in £7million worth of debt.
What’s more, the mansion was in the hands of the receivers when it was up for sale, meaning Edward himself won’t see a penny from it.
He had first appeared on Grand Designs in 2010 and returned to the show for numerous follow-up episodes, including one detailing the history of his misfortunes in 2019.
Understandably, host Kevin was very affected by news that the property had finally been sold and reflected on the intense emotions the saga had brought with it.
‘I know that Ed will have a lot of mixed emotions about it, he’s been wanting to sell the project for so long – he’s immensely attached to the building, it was a passion project for him, one that he didn’t intend to sell initially,’ Kevin told crowds in the arena, as per The Mirror.
Grand Designs host Kevin McCloud (pictured last week) has broken his silence after the show’s ‘saddest ever’ home finally found a buyer
Edward Short is pictured at Chesil Cliff House on the north Devon coastline, which featured on Grand Designs
He continued: ‘It’s been a huge part of his life, and a huge part of our life – making the programme and revisiting him. I’ve got to know Ed very well, and I know that he’ll have mixed feelings. His relationship with that place is complex.
‘I just pray that it brings all the resolution and all the opportunity to move on that he was hoping, and I know that it will be a relief for him and for Hazel, and that it will refresh a degree of sadness as well, because its occupied so much of their lives, and changed their lives in so many ways.’
Edward, his wife Hazel, 60, and daughters Nicole, 24, and Lauren, 25, had moved from London to Devon in 2004, and paid £1.4million for the crumbling lighthouse in 2008.
Father-of-two Mr Short, spent 10 years building the sprawling five-bedroom home on the rugged North Devon coastline near Braunton.
He had ambitious plans to transform his family’s 1950s home into a stunning property complete with a private beach cove and an infinity pool.
The music industry executive and his wife Hazel put their life savings into building their fantasy eco-friendly home, known as Chesil Cliff House.
Last year, the property went up for sale through debt collectors for a cut-price of £5.25million, after Mr Short initially listed it for £10million.
Last month, estate agents Savills confirmed that it had finally been sold.
Kevin McCloud and Edward Short appear on an episode of Grand Designs described as one of the series’ ‘saddest ever’
Edward Short and his wife Hazel put their life savings into building their fantasy eco-friendly home, known as Chesil Cliff House (Pictured: the completed home)
The property’s seaside views means its new buyer can look out onto the idyllic Bristol Channel for miles
Estate agent Knight Frank previously boasted that Chesil Cliff House has ‘far-reaching sea views from every room’
The large property has stunning sea views but has set its new buyer back millions of pounds
‘Savills marketed the property for sale between January and October 2024 which resulted in a sale being secured and completed in October 2024,’ a representative told Homebuilding News.
‘We filmed the project over, what, six years, and, you know, it’s a disaster,’ Kevin added, according to the Wandsworth Times.
‘Ed’s marriage falls apart, at one point his daughters are very distraught, and it’s all hugely risky
‘If you try too hard and you just pushed too large, you may just fail and it was the most epic example of that.’
Chesil Cliff House first appeared on Grand Designs in 2010 and has been the subject of numerous follow-up episodes, where Mr Short detailed how the recession and building issues cost him millions of pounds and his marriage.
He originally had a budget of £1.8million with hopes of completing the house within 18 months.
But a series of financial blows and errors with the construction saw the project halted time after time, putting an intense strain on the Shorts’ relationship.
Mr Short previously said it was his ‘overconfidence and arrogance’ that landed him in debt – an admission which made him realise it was time to sell up.
Mr Short previously said: ‘These past ten years have been a marathon slog – and I have got used to being a millionaire in debt’
He said: ‘These past ten years have been a marathon slog – and I have got used to being a millionaire in debt. I’ve accepted the only way forward is to finish and sell it.
‘I had no idea it would end up costing so much but I’ve accepted now that I’m never going to be able to live in it because I have money I need to pay back.’
The episode followed Mr Short and his family as misfortune beset the project, leaving the house unfinished and with the family plunged into millions of pounds worth of debt.
He revealed that the arrival of the recession, building issues and the end of his marriage to wife Hazel had left him on the edge of bankruptcy and his dream in tatters.
In 2022, the property was finally finished and listed for sale – with Mr Short saying his family were ‘proud’ of what he’d managed to achieve.
A deal was almost done on the property in August 2023, but a mystery buyer pulled out at the last minute and it was put back on the market.
It then faced a further raft of issues when cracks began appearing in its driveway, which saw the asking price slashed to £5.25million – a near 50 per cent climbdown on what he first had asked for.
Edward Short on Grand Designs with his wife Hazel at Chesil Cliff House in Devon
Mr Short said the ‘slight problem’ came after celebrity buyers such as Harry Styles were toying with the idea of purchasing the property – claims that were later denied.
Even after the property was sold, there was one more tragic twist in the tale of Chesil Cliff House.
Speaking to The Sun last month, Mr Short shared that he has now split from his new partner, Jalia Nambasa – a nurse with whom he’d found love following his split from wife Hazel – as fate appeared to repeat itself.
The couple had even been planning to tie the knot but, despite the strong bond that came from experiencing the housing saga together, decided to go their separate ways in June.
Edward told the newspaper: ‘I was very sad about that, although we are still friends.
‘It was a difficult period because she was with me when the house went from not selling to bringing me to the verge of bankruptcy and I was also going through a career change. It wasn’t easy for her to live through that.’
