Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Plans to restore derelict farm buildings as visitor attraction on “Monarch of the Glen” estate

The farm buildings have been falling into disrepair since the early 1970s
The farm buildings have been falling into disrepair since the early 1970s

Derelict farm buildings on a Highland sporting estate that was made famous by the Monarch of the Glen television show are to be transformed into a new tourist attraction.

Balavil Estate, near Kingussie, is planning to convert outbuildings, which have been falling into disrepair since the early 1970s, into “visitor facilities”.

If approved, new buildings would also be built alongside the farmstead to house a cafe and space for events.

Balavil has been described as the “jewel in the crown” of Scottish sporting estates, comprising 7,500 acres running from the River Spey into the Monadhliath mountains.

Its mansion house was made famous as Kilwillie Castle in the television drama Monarch of the Glen.

It was bought for an undisclosed sum last year by Hannah Heerema – the daughter of singer Fiona Kennedy and businessman Francis Clark – and her husband Eric.

The current proposals are one of the first signs of planned investment in the estate by the new owners.

The farm buildings – Mains of Balavil – are B-listed and were built round about 1800.

They stopped being used for agricultural purposes some time before 1971 and have since fallen into disrepair.

In a statement published with the application, planning agent Philip Flockhart of Morris and Steedman Associates described the plans to bring the buildings back into use.

He said: “This application aims to regenerate the range with new uses and to restore the original character of the currently dilapidated buildings.

“The centrepiece of the group, the farmhouse, is to be restored to more closely resemble the original appearance.

“The front porch, rear extension, inappropriate windows, dormers and openings will be removed.”

The mill building, currently in ruinous condition, will be extended from the remnants of the former building – while other parts of the steading will also be renovated and in places extended.

Mr Flockhart added: “Overall the intention is to create a new grouping of buildings around the rear courtyard that harmonises with the steading whilst providing a new sheltered visitor space.”

Car parking will be provided, while the central cobbled courtyard will be redesigned to comply with modern access standards.

Before last year’s sale Balavil had never been on the market before, having been in the Macpherson family since 1790.

After the purchase, the new owners said they wanted to “preserve its legacy” and make the estate an “incredible family home”.