THE days of spotting celebs sip-ping a pint in the country local could be over as one of Cheshire's most famous residents sells his mansion.

Pop star-turned-producer Gary Barlow has put Delamere Manor Estate in Cuddington on the market for £5.5m.

The 117-acre grounds, bought by Gary for £1m in 1995, include Delamere Manor, Delamere Manor Cottage and Delamere Manor Lodge.

The estate also features a custom-built recording studio, where the former Frodsham High pupil has worked on tracks for Donny Osmond, Charlotte Church, Delta Goodrem and Atomic Kitten among others.

Because of this, locals have become accustomed to seeing famous faces in pubs and on golf courses between recording and songwriting sessions.

It is not known where Gary plans to move, although his parents, Colin and Marjorie, who live on the estate, are said to be staying locally.

Chester estate agent Strutt and Parker said this week the former Take That star, who grew up in Frodsham and has lived in Plumley, had asked them not to comment on the sale.

The sale brochure tells potential buyers: 'The Delamere Manor Estate is an exceptional property both for its wonderful position in stunning countryside, excellent communications

and the quality of the residential property and the design of the gardens and grounds. It is accessed from Cuddington Lane via substantial electronic security gates opening to a sweeping tree-lined brick paved driveway that reaches a gated courtyard at the rear of Delamere Manor.

'The other two houses, Delamere Manor Cottage and Delamere Manor Lodge, have separate access on to Cuddington Lane and, for the purposes of the sale, have been separately lotted. In addition, there is a staff flat situated over the garaging at the manor.

'The property sits in a single block of about 117 acres of land with mature and recently planted woodland, a stunning six-acre lake with an abundance of wildlife and a beautifully designed pump house and park-land-style grounds with a pavilion and a lime avenue leading to an obelisk.'

Delamere Manor has four reception rooms, three bedroom suites, three further bedrooms, the recording studio, garaging and a staff flat.

In the manor's grounds are a tennis court, pavilion, lake, woodland, pump house and open land.

As lead singer of Take That, Gary notched up eight number-one hits.

Since abandoning a career as a solo artist in 1999, Gary, now 34 and married with two children, has largely withdrawn from the public eye.

rebecca.taylor@cheshirenews.co.uk