Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Anna Friel? Who?

BUYER: Anna Friel
SELLER: Tim Metcalfe
LOCATION: Ledgewood Drive, Los Angeles, CA
PRICE: $1,195,500
SIZE: 1,821 square feet, 3 bedrooms, 2.75 bathrooms
DESCRIPTION: Sophistication, character and "Old World" charm best describe this 1934 classic home! Beautiful hi-beamed ceiling and fireplace in living room. Cozy den/office also with fireplace. Country decor is depicted in the decorative tile and hardwood floors of the remodeled kitchen. Refinished peg & groove hardwood floors, original wood windows and French doors leading out to yard. Elegant yet colorful bath on main level. Lower level is bonus square footage media room/art studio or game room etc.

YOUR MAMAS NOTES: Your Mama is only a tiny bit embarrassed to admit that we'd never heard of this Anna Friel woman before Mister Big Time recently wrote about her purchasing a million dollar home in the Hollywood Hills. A little research on the internets and Your Mama learned that the British actress has a quite long list of credits for roles in films and television programs that we have never heard of before. However, Miz Friel is perhaps on her way up the celebrity ladder now that she's landed a plum role on the new, quirky, and widely publicized show Pushing Up Daisies, which features Swoosie Kurtz and Kristin Chenoweth.

The internets also tell us that Miz Friel is British actor David Thewlis' live in lover and baby mama. But of course, Your Mama does not know who Mister Thewlis is either, despite his having appeared in such films as Basic Instinct 2, The Omen, and a couple of the Harry Potter films. Of course we'd have to watch the Harry Potter movies to know anything about the actors, so we confess to never having watched the block busters. Simmer down now children, Your Mama is simply not interested in the hocus pocus science fiction genre, so we do not want to hear your shock and flabbergast about our ignorance of these Potter movies. Honestly.

Anyhoo, this Miz Friel recently purchased her house for $1,195,000. Which is nothing remarkable, except that listing information shows the asking price for the property was $1,169,000. What does this say about the general cooling of the recently white hot real estate market in Los Angeles? Maybe things aren't so cool after all?

We haven't a clue if Mister Thewlis will be living in sin with Miz Friel and their illegitimate baby (we kid darlings, so back off). Whatever the case, Miz Friel's new house sits just north of the itty bitty shopping district in Beachwood Canyon and measures a modest 1,821 square feet. As Mister Big Time noted, listing information shows the house having 3 bedrooms and 2.75 bathrooms, but property records show just 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. Hmm. (P.S. for the kids who don't know, a three quarter bath is one with a sink, terlit and shower only. No tub).

Both property records and Lucy Spillerguts, one of our always on top of things sources, tell us that Miz Friel purchased the house from writer Tim Metcalfe, who was one of the scribes for the Revenge of the Nerds series of "films." Records reveal that Mister Metcalfe purchased the house in 1991 for $454,000 with a wonderfully named lady named Prudence, who we presume is (or was) his lady friend, although we have no proof of that whatsoever.

The house itself is a study in contrasts. The exterior is ordinary to the point of boring, and the kitchen is a little too country for our taste. I mean check that plate storage rack thing. But the 1930 black and white tile in the bathroom is dee-voon (even with the feminine and slightly too dark lavender paint), and the living room itself, with the beamed ceiling, is really quite fetching despite the too small rug and too small artwork on the fireplace mantle.

The den has a certain appeal if you like cabins in the woods (which generally speaking we do not), but please note the exquisite order in which Mister Metcalfe kept the shelves. Very impressive and revealing indeed.

As for the "man's room" with the pool table? Ack. Yes, we love a butterfly chair just as much as anyone else with any modern design sensibility, but there's just something so forlorn and bachelor-like about them sitting there all alone in front of that countrified brick fireplace. It looks like an advertisement for a man who does not have the money or good sense to hire a nice gay decorator. In fact, after seeing the beautiful and obsessive order of the den, we're somewhat surprised to see such a sad little room.

Perhaps Miz Friel (and Mister Thewlis too?) will spend a little of their newly earned income hiring someone to come over and wave the decorating wand over the house and turn it into a house worthy of two up and coming British actors making it in the tough as nails Hollywood system. Happy house dollies.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

The problem with Beachwood Canyon is that so many of the original 1920s houses have been disfigured by people who think they're "updating" the exteriors. This probably started out as a fairly picturesque French- or English-inspired cottage, and then someone had to go and slap up that non-descript coat of gray stucco.

David Thewlis was in Mike Leigh's largely improvised Naked back in the mid 90s. Incredible performance.

Anonymous said...

Completely agree with pch's post. My partner and I have often thought about previous owners' upgrades as we rip them out. And we wonder if future owners will be shaking their heads in disbelief when they rip out _our_ updates. :-)

But this house seems like a good deal at that price in that market. Smallish, yes, but tons of potential, nice spaces. I could move right in to that living room with vaulted ceiling and pretty beams.

Anonymous said...

No real man racks his balls like that.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Thewlis is a well-regarded British actor who plays Professor Lupin in the Harry Potter movies. He was also in Black Beauty; which shows you where in the life-cycle of parenthood I'm at...

Author said...

If you are going to feature homes like this, maybe some of our homes should be featured. I mean, it looks like a slightly glamorous tract home.

Anonymous said...

I like it. Love the bathroom (would paint over the purple) with the retro tile. Like the kitchen, including the dish rack - sorry. Hate the $15 Target butterfly chairs in the pool room, but what are you gonna do? Nice house, decent price.

Anonymous said...

Whoa! Anna Friel!
Hope this means that we'll be seeing the pair of them in more films now! Both are excellent talents (& Anna Friel has the first lesbian kiss on a mainstream/primetime tv soap in the 80's - Brookside)
Considering both the exchange rates & the cost of houses in London/SE England; this house is a bargin!
And I love the colour of the bathroom too!

Anonymous said...

I LOVE her she is in my favorite adaptation of Dicken's Our Mutual Friend. And she is too cute in Pushing Daisies.

Anonymous said...

You don't watch PBS, do you? That's where I've seen Thewlis and Friel. Thewlis was in one of the early Prime Suspect's, maybe Series 2.

I love this house, except the exterior. Obviously, butterfly chairs have to go, but I especially love the kitchen and the book-lined office. Perfect.

Love Thewlis, but I rarely see him now as he's in a bunch of fantasy and kids' movies that don't appeal to me.

Anonymous said...

The bathroom is great too. It is nice to see some original tile work still in existence.

Anonymous said...

Good job!