A couple who stumbled across a "deep hole" whilst renovating a cottage said they were stunned to discover it was a 200-year-old wishing well.
Victoria Ellington, 36, and her husband Andrew, 40, from Redcar, North Yorkshire, couldn't believe it when they found the 27ft hole by the front door which featured crystal-clear water. They decided it would be a shame to cover up their magnificent find and decided to incorporate it as a feature, which has attracted renters to the stunning property.
Following months of hard-work, the pair managed to fit a pump to help bring the wishing well back to life and then covered it with protective glass. The beautiful addition can now be viewed at the beach-front home called Bute Cottage, and can book it for just over £600 per week.
Mum-of-two Victoria said: "We bought the cottage during the 2020 Covid lockdown and Andrew, who is a builder, started renovating it. We were planning to add an extension and build a family home but the foundations started slipping and we knew something was up. One day Andrew found this deep hole and realised it was quite a deep well right on top of the property by the front door."
"He was digging at the foundations and all the soil was falling into this hole. He just sent me a photo and said: 'Oh my god, have you seen this?' We knew then that we couldn't build an extension so Andrew just decided to make it part of the building and we could rent the cottage out."
Instead of paving over the well the couple covered it with a glass walkway and lined the walls of the shaft with lights. Victoria, mum to Oscar five, and Henry, nine, said: "Our sons were excited about having a wishing well so we thought we should make that a reality. We've put lights down the walls of the well and the glass is toughened."
"We can pump water into the well and we've got a little slot for people to make wishes. You can see right down to the bottom. Andrew tried to measure a few times and I think it is around 27ft deep." The couple completed the renovation earlier this month and now rent the two-bedroom cottage out for £629-a-week. Victoria added: "The well makes it a bit different. When I saw it I was totally blown away and every time I see it I just totally love it."