Scholarly SANCTUARY

Statement antiques create drama in this one-bedroom former school hall, owned by antiques dealer Jean Hill

- AMANDA HARLING

Jean Hill and her late husband Douglas came across the property that became their London home a little over a decade ago, after many years of living in Mougins, France, where they ran a shop specialising in antiques and decoration.

As well as antiques, Doug had also always been very interested in property. Originally from South Africa, he first came to the UK in his twenties to further his studies in acting and dance. 'Tall and rather attractive - like many an actor before and since whilst "resting" between roles he would work as a photographic model,' says Jean.

By the time he and Jean met on a photographic shoot, he'd managed to buy several rundown houses in Fulham. I helped him with renovating, decorating and sourcing the furniture. After each house was sold we did another and then another, learning more about decoration and antiques with each project,' she recalls. 'There was no stopping us decorative antiques had become our passion.'

The couple got married a year or two later and, while their two daughters were still quite small, they bought a ramshackle farmhouse in the south of France as a holiday home. Having renovated this, they sold it on and began to repeat the pattern they'd established in the UK. Soon they were living in France full-time, based in a 12th-century village house in Mougins, just north of Cannes, which became their much-loved home for several decades. They also opened their shop, which helped to fulfil their enduring passion for sourcing decorative pieces and antiques.