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Split image of Lenny Henry with Dawn French and of a clifftop home© Getty Images / Shutterstock

Inside Lenny Henry's clifftop home with Dawn French where their marriage ended

The comedian was married to the Vicar of Dibley star between 1984 and 2010

Matthew Moore
Online News Writer & Diversity and Inclusion Lead
October 16, 2024
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Lenny Henry and Dawn French enjoyed a 26-year long marriage and for a portion of their married life, the pair lived in a lavish clifftop home in Fowey, Cornwall, sweetly named Point Neptune House.

The pair moved to the Cornish abode, which cost £2.4 million, in 2006 in order to be closer to Dawn's elderly mother. At the time of their move, they counted Richard and Judy, Loose Women's Gloria Hunniford and even Sir Cliff Richard amongst their new neighbours.

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Speaking to the Mirror at the time, the couple's estate agent said: "It is in a spectacular position with superb, unrivalled views over the harbour and out to the open sea."

However, the pair struggled to sell their previous home, Hyde End Farm in Berkshire, during the move. Three years later, their former home, in which they raised adopted daughter Billie, was still on the market. 

An exterior shot of Point Neptune House© Alan Spencer Photography / Alamy Stock Photo
Lenny and Dawn moved into the Cornish property in 2006

Lenny ended up joking in 2009: "We had so many people trying to buy this house when we lived here. Where are they now?"

The pair were living at the property when they decided to call time on their relationship, with Lenny opting to move out of their family home, which Dawn kept for a further 12 years.

A dog sat on a sandy beach by a pile of rocks© Instagram
The nearby beach was perfect for Dawn's dogwalks

Speaking to Fearne Cotton in 2018, Dawn said of her gorgeous home: "It was in a bit of a state and I thought 'Oh, I'm going to need a bit of dosh to do this up'.

"I called Jennifer [Saunders] and I said, 'Look I've seen this place and I know I want to live there but we've got to go on tour, how about it?" And she said something like 'Oh yes, I'm doing my conservatory, OK yes.'"

A bedroom in low lighting© Instagram
Dawn shared several looks inside the Cornish property

In 2019, she made headlines when she submitted a request to her local council to cut down some of the protected surrounding trees owing to safety concerns. In documents, the comedian said there was an "increased risk" of a tree falling down owing to their "poor condition".

In 2022, Dawn sold the property to millionaire Sir Christopher Evans for £6.6 million, an incredible £4 million profit. However, Dawn still remained in the county, and she and husband Mark Bignell moved to a separate Cornish home, which remained 12 minutes away from her daughter.

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