Geeveston couple have been busily working away on Castle Phoenix during the COVID lockdown

It’s been a 10-year labour of love so far for a Geeveston couple – and a major talking point for anyone who drives past. SEE THE AMAZING PICTURES

• Bask in the big blue views from this family abode
• Ultimate guide to buying a house and land package
• Coal River Farm loses COVID redundancy cost fight

“WE’VE got a moat, and we’re not afraid to use it.”

While Tasmania has spent the past few months successfully quarantining from the rest of the country, a Geeveston couple have gone a step further and been working away on their own private moat and future home.

It’s no ordinary home – it’s a 17m-high castle surrounded by a man-made lake and sculpture garden.

Christina Kent and Francis Shepherd are building a castle at Geeveston. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

Come October, Christina Kent and Francis Shepherd, who are both artists, will have been working on the project for a decade almost entirely on their own.

The couple moved to Tasmania from Queensland almost 14 years ago and bought the property, which is an old apple orchard.

They plan to live in Castle Phoenix when it is complete – which they predict will be in about three or four years’ time.

Inside the castle at Geeveston. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

Ms Kent said had they known it would take this long they may well have never started.

“You have to have an element of naivety to start a project like this – if you thought about it too much you’d never go through with it,” she said.

“We’ve kept ourselves motivated by focusing on one job at a time and enjoying completing each step.

“Unfortunately, Francis was made redundant earlier this year, but we were chuffed we had more time to work on the castle.”

The castle will be mostly surrounded by its own man-made lake. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

Work has progressed well this year with more time to work on the build during the pandemic, with the pair now half way through the third level, which will take another six months to complete.

Next will be the rooftops, mosaic tiles on the exterior and the internal fit out.

Francis Shepherd and Christina Kent’s castle under construction at Geeveston. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

Mr Shepherd said it was a labour of love that continued to impress him.

“The whole thing is to be like a giant sculpture you can live in,” he said.

“The back of the castle is actually more interesting than the front. I look at it and that’s when it strikes me ‘wow, we did that – we’re building a castle – that’s crazy’.”

Inside the castle at Geeveston. Picture: CHRIS KIDD

He said there were often people wanting to take a look at their quirky backyard project.

“We get so many rubberneckers, I’m continually amused by it – I think they might think we’re crazy and might come out with a gun or something, but we’re more than happy to show people through,” he said.

The castle under construction at Geeveston. Picture: CHRIS KIDD