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Tell you what: 2026 has got off to a great start for Spitfire stans. Last month, we brought you the news that Southampton has launched a year-long celebration of the fighter plane to mark 90 years since it was created in the city. Now, a derelict former World War II RAF building, which previously held Spitfires and US fighter-bombers, is being turned into a holiday let – and its location really is the bomb.
The RAF Ibsley control tower, located near Ringwood in Hampshire, is nestled in woodland overlooking the picturesque Mockbeggar Lake. The former airfield opened in 1941 and ceased operation in 1947, during which time it was used as a location for the 1942 movie The First of the Few. Now, the Landmark Trust, an organisation that specialises in taking buildings that are in danger of collapse and turning them into holiday lets, has been granted permission to redevelop the site.
In 2024, Natural England opposed the proposed £3m scheme on the basis that it would be a conservation risk. At the time, the Landmark Trust wrote to the New Forest District Council about the issue, saying:
‘We entirely understand NE's reluctance to see any change on this special site and their responsibilities for ensuring its protection. However, we are also deeply conscious of the outstanding historical importance of the watch office and the very high risk that if action is not taken the building all it represents will be lost.
‘The watch office was erected at a time when Britain stood almost alone against Nazi Germany and is a monument to the immense human sacrifice of the Second World War.’
Natural England withdrew its objection after offers of mitigation, with the council granting planning approval after it heard that the building was ‘at risk of total loss due to its state of disrepair’.
The Landmark Trust, a charity, described the building as a ‘patchwork of risk’ that has ‘rapidly collapsing ceilings’. It added: ‘The 1940s layout and wartime decorative schemes will be respected. Special events, offering free public access, will be offered, alongside online interpretation, to share the story of the Watch Office and its history.’
Work is due to begin this year. The First of the Few, starring Leslie Howard and David Niven, tells the story of RJ Mitchell, the man who created the Spitfire. The plane made its first journey in 1936, when Joseph ‘Mutt’ Summers embarked on an eight-minute flight. Upon landing, unlike the Landmark Trust, he reportedly said: ‘Don’t change a thing.’
ICYMI: The 9 best things to do in the New Forest.
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