Deck The Halls

Jackie and Mener Tsitsis’ beautifully restored period house is the perfect setting for a traditional family Christmas

- Rachel Leedham

With the fires lit and the fairy lights twinkling, Jackie and Mener Tsitsis’ 18th-century house comes into its own during the festive season. ‘It is made for large gatherings,’ says Jackie. ‘On Christmas day, we walk in the forest and come back to a late lunch with family and friends. We then sit around the fire playing games – it’s a relaxed, sociable time.’

Jackie and Mener, who have three children – Gregory, 24, Anna, 21, and George, 18 – are London-based, but their love affair with the New Forest began in 1999 when they bought a beach hut in Mudeford. ‘We then progressed to a cottage and after that, a six-bedroom house,’ says Jackie. The family used to pass this place regularly, and so when Mener, a property developer, spotted that it was for sale, his curiosity was piqued. ‘I d