Bannockburn House is a Jacobean mansion that has been stripped of almost all decoration and been allowed to fall apart.

Amid some controversy with the eviction of caretaker Terri Collinson after 38 years looking after the house, a small group of volunteers (unrelated to the eviction) were clearing and cleaning the house to prepare for an open weekend to once again open the doors of the house to members of the public.

These days, the building is an almost empty shell but there are glimpses of its previous splendour.

Anything not nailed down was sold at auction in the 60s when the current owner bought the property.

With so much of the building stripped bare, I looked at the way the light entered and interacted with the few remaining objects.

I was fascinated by how much light would be let in by the windows only to fade before it even reached the other side of the large rooms.  The original residents must have spent their time moving from light to shadow.

The snooker room was in relatively good condition.  It had been sealed up many decades ago and was only opened up by the volunteers attempting to restore the building.

The apparent reason for the eviction.  Many parts of the building are falling apart and weren't safe to explore or live in.  

Terri was angry at the turn of events.  Not just at her eviction but at the clean up of the building as well as she felt the volunteers would likely inflict further damage to the already fragile building.

In my conversation with Terri, she told me that in order to negotiate the stairs, she had to stay to one side to avoid falling through the boards.  In her eyes, this didn't seem reason to leave as she knew where she could and couldn't put her feet.

The house is hidden away from public view.  Having been neglected by the owner for so long, most people wouldn't even be aware of its existence.  

It's had a turbulent history over the years and the latest developments suggest that it's not done yet.

The volunteers hope to put together a bid to buy the House for a local Trust and preserve the building and its history.