Up near Ballintoy, Charlie Witherspoon visits an unusual house built by a mysterious man who declined to be interviewed or filmed. The house is still under construction and had been now for 29 years. It’s a maze of rooms with no apparent plan. The internal artwork is staggering. Now we do know the story of Bendhu House and its original owner thanks to research including the book, Bendhu and its Builders by Andrew Cowser. ‘Bendhu was the creation of Newton Penprase, a remarkable Cornish artist based in Belfast,’ explains Cowser, an architecture lecturer at Queen's University.

‘Penprase started working on it at the age of 47, changing the design as work proceeded, defying Atlantic gales and the occasional hostility of local people. For 40 years he laboured on its construction, but he only finished the ground floor. The top two floors – the two main floors of the house – remained unfinished in his lifetime,' said Cowden.

Born in Wales, Penpase moved to Belfast in 1911 and was an accomplished painter and lecturer at the Art College. A reluctant motorist, Penprase usually persuaded his son to drive or else got the bus. He was often carrying materials that he needed for construction, including a bag of cement. 'He must have been quite a sight for the other passengers,' explained Cowden.

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