Shaw's Corner

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Shaw's Corner is an Edwardian Arts and Crafts-influenced house situated in the small village of Ayot St Lawrence, Hertfordshire, England.

Built as the new rectory for the village in 1902, the house was the home of playwright George Bernard Shaw from 1906 until his death in 1950. The Church of England decided that the house was too large for the size of the parish, and decided to let instead. Shaw and his wife Charlotte moved in during 1906, and eventually bought the house and its land in 1920, paying £6,220. At the same time the garden was extended in 1920, when Shaw bought land from his friend Apsley Cherry-Garrard, and now totals 1.4 hectares (3.5 acres).

At the bottom of the garden is the revolving hut, originally Charlotte Shaw's summer house, but which was converted by Shaw to a "writing hut" and where he found the peace he needed to write. In particular, Shaw named the hut "London", so that unwanted visitors could be told he was away visiting the capital [1].

Shaw's Corner is now a National Trust property and open to the public. Inside the house, the rooms remain much as Shaw left them, and the garden and Shaw's writing hut can also be visited.