Couple who claim they like their friends buy the world’s ‘loneliest’ house

The old lighthouse is the only building that sits on the island of Skalman (Picture: Jam Press)

The world’s ‘loneliest’ house that sits on an isolated island two hours from civilisation has been sold to a couple who enjoy the peace and quiet.

The old lighthouse is the only building that sits on Skalmen, off Norway’s coast, and Andreas Bjarøy and his wife, Mona Kruse Bjarøyhave, bought it for £89,000.

The island is so secluded that visitors are banned from it between May and July because it is a protected bird reserve.

If you are adventurous enough to visit the island, visitors must take two separate ferries and then a 4-mile boat trip from the other nearest town.

The old lighthouse which was built in 1907 proved to be popular with prospective buyers who entered a bidding war.

It initially went on the market for £36,000, so sold for nearly two-and-a-half-times its original guide price.

Only two parties fought it out until the end though after five bids were initially received.

The lighthouse needs some renovation work (Picture: Jam Press)

It is the perfect spot for an introvert who wants the quiet life (Picture: Jam Press)

Talking about the purchase, Andreas said: ‘We’ve spent a lot of holidays there over the years, love the area, and have fished a lot around Skalman.

‘So, this became very interesting for us. We deal a lot with property in our job and like projects.

‘It’s not every day you get to buy a lighthouse. We thought it would be cool to restore it to make it as good as it should be.

‘And then we can spend more time in the area with our own place.’

The pair plan to ‘completely refurbish the building’ but realise they will have to spend more money to do this.

The first keeper of the lighthouse was a man called Anton Lund and he went on an expedition with famous explorer Roald Amundsen, but it hasn’t been manned by anyone for more than 20 years.

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It is thought his dog’s footprint can still be seen on the island.

There were plans to demolish the lighthouse but following a backlash it was put on the market instead.

Closer to home, a bizarre space-age building by the M6 motorway has been left to rot.

The Pennine Tower was built as part of the Forton motorway services in 1965 and it towers 90ft above the road which connects the Lancaster and Preston bypasses.

It was built in a futuristic (at the time) hexagonal shape and was intended to be used as a fine dining restaurant serving up lobster and steak.

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