EXCLUSIVE Vigil star Rose Leslie and her Game of Thrones husband Kit Harington are locked in row with conservationists over plans to turn 15th century barn at their £1.75m country house into guest bedrooms – amid fears work would disturb BATS
- Rose Leslie and Kit Harington want to turn barn at their £1.75m country house into guest bedrooms
- Concerns have been raised the plans could impact roosting bats
Vigil star Rose Leslie is locked in a planning row with conservationists over turning a 15th century barn at her £1.75m country mansion into bedrooms for guests – because of bats.
The 36-year-old actor lives in the Grade II listed Tudor home in Suffolk with her husband and Game of Thrones husband Kit Harington.
It boasts a swimming pool, stables, a tennis court, a pavilion, banqueting hall and croquet lawn.
Under new plans submitted to Babergh Council, the couple want to refurbish and restore a barn to provide guest accommodation as well as create a games room.
The plans will also include various landscaping works and a second set of front gates for the property.
Game of Thrones stars Kit Harington and Rose Leslie’s £1.75m country property in Suffolk
The plans involve the conversion of a 15th century barn into guest bedrooms and a games room
The couples architects wrote of the plan, which was lodged in November: ‘The proposed works comprise the refurbishment and restoration of the Barn to provide guest accommodation for use ancillary to and in association with the House.
READ MORE – EMILY PRESCOTT: Game of Thrones’ stars Kit Harington and wife Rose Leslie driven batty by unwanted guests at £1.75million home
‘Associated landscaping works are proposed alongside the partial demolition of the Cart Lodge.’
However, a bat survey report warned that converting the barn could result in the loss of roosts. It noted several different species of bat, including common pipistrelle and Barbastelle, had been roosting in the barn.
The report revealed that 39 common pipistrelle bats were seen ’emerging from the barn’ during three separate occasions in 2022.
Ecological experts from Place Services lodged an objection and citing the report, warned the plans could impact bat roosting sites.
In planning documents, they noted: ‘We note that the Bat Survey Report (TMA Ltd, April 2023) for the conversion of the barn to a residential annex building will result in the loss of a number of known bat roost features.
‘We are not satisfied that there is sufficient ecological information available for determination of this application.
View of Rose Leslie and Kit Harington’s £1.75m country mansion in Norfolk
The barn has been home to several species of roosting bats including the common pipistrelle
The plans also include various landscaping works and a second set of front gates for the property
‘This is because further details on the mitigation and compensation of the bat roosts were required.’
READ MORE: Rose Leslie reveals the one way that being pregnant actually helped her to film action-packed drama Vigil’s second series
Bats are protected by law, meaning it is illegal to harm them, or to destroy or interfere with their roosts and habitats. Legislation also dictates that any structure or place which bats use for shelter or protection must be protected from damage or destruction whether they are occupied or not.
The couples planning agents had initially proposed to ‘use an alternative structure to provide suitable alternative roosting opportunities which may not be possible to achieve within the proposed conversion of the barn itself.’
The application is still awaiting a decision by Babergh Council.
It comes after the celebrity couple lodged plans to build new gates at their country residence to stop people peering in.
They said their privacy and security had been ‘continuously breached’ since they moved into the farmhouse in 2017.
Kit Harington and Rose Leslie departing Rayne Church in Kirkton on Rayne after their wedding on June 23, 2018 in Aberdeen, Scotland
Rose Leslie (pictured left) stars as DS Kirsten Longacre in Vigil alongside Suranne Jones as DCI Amy Silva
Their representatives said they have had to deal with a growing number of incidents of trespassers with an ‘unwelcome and intrusive desire to observe the occupants’.
They were also given permission in October 2020 for a £1million refurb of the heating system in the 15th century farmhouse.
Leslie stars as DS Kirsten Longacre in Vigil alongside DCI Amy Silva, played by Suranne Jones.
The first series of the Scottish-based show was set on a nuclear submarine, which aired two years ago. The action has shifted from the Navy to the RAF for season two.
Leslie and Harington met in 2012 on the set of Game of Thrones, in which they played on-screen couple Jon Snow and Ygritte.
They married in 2018 and Leslie, who is from Aberdeenshire, gave birth to their first child, a boy, in 2021. The couple later welcomed a baby girl in July this year.
Leslie and Harington’s representatives have been approached for comment by MailOnline.
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