Women behaving badly

Amanda Harris-Deans and
Patricia Gibb have spent
all their money on a  
dilapidated mansion. Five
years on, they have stretched
their budget by restoring it
themselves. Sam/9 L01/zsdale
pays them a visit
H atricia Gibb was given a ' E hobby, but otherwise whiling
 scaffolding tower for her E -days as ladies of leisure. Asiml
r birthday. “I was over the Z changing the odd lightbulb an
. moon -- just what I wanted,’-’ Z the occasional window frame,
    or ; says the 59-year-old E them knew the first thing aho
grandmother. “We were using tooth o ,5 Then, in 1995, they did som
picks to remove old paint from the E friends considered completely,
t plaster mouldings on the ceiling and E With Patricia’s son, Barry, tlu
the tower really saved my neck from E their homesaand bought High;
cricking. Perhaps a Jaegter suit would 3 an 87-room stately home outs
have been more appropriate for » E Canterbury, for just under £1 l
. someone my age, but the tower was E The house, a former resident-t
so much more useful.” E Countess Margaret Zborowslr
Five years ago Patricia and her E Astor) and her son, Count Lou
49-year-old friend, Amanda Harris- E created the original Chitty Ch
1 Deans, were living a life of genteel E Bang motor car there, had ber-
semi-retirement. Both owned their E for years. a
own lrlom-es --— Patricia in a village just E “We were living nearby and
outside Canterbury, Amanda in the E we saw this enormous ‘For Su
town itself --- and both were more than E
comfortably off, breeding horses as a  - ' Contim