Centrally located on the village green, Honeysuckle Cottage was once the crown jewel of Ambridge until Walter Gabriel let it fall into disrepair in 1977. Walter bought the half-timbered, thatched-roof cottage that is situated across the street from the green’s duck pond in 1957 from Tim Wainwright. From here, he ran his village carrier business from the outbuildings located on the near acre-sized piece of property.

In 1988, Walter passed away and his only son, Nelson Gabriel, inherited the coveted home. Nelson, most notable for his salubrious dealings, was once arrested by Interpol, tried and found not guilty on charges of a being involved in a mail van robbery. Nelson took great pride in the cottage; tending to the garden and plum trees. He sold the cottage to the (new) village doctor and travelled to South America where in 2001 he mysteriously turned up dead.

Doctor Tim Hathaway and his wife Siobhan became the new owners. They extensively renovated the cottage and extended its size. During the renovation, they found a picture of Walter Gabriel taken in the cottage’s garden with Mrs. Perkins at his side. It was estimated that the photo was nearly 50 years old. Intrigued by the photo, Siobhan had it framed and hung it on one of the cottage’s walls. But in 2001 scandal rocked the idyllic cottage – Siobhan, who was having an extramarital affair, became pregnant with Brian Aldridge’s only son and the Doctor ran off with the Vicar, Janet Fisher, in January of 2003.

The cottage went up for sale but stood on the market for an extended period of time until Matt Crawford scooped it up as an investment property. In 2004 Matt’s marriage to his wife Yvette was on the rocks and consequently he took residency there full time during the separation and divorce proceedings, during which time he added a hot tub to the garden.

Matt was forced to sell the property as part of the divorce settlement and in September 2005 gay couple Ian and Adam purchased the property.