I’d certainly go and take a look around, it would give me a reason to visit England.
The only way living there would be a consideration is if the inheritance was somehow tied to that. If not, take the money, sell the property and contents and return home
I’d sell it. I don’t like having too much money tied up in a house. I’d rather travel.
How much would the house be worth? If the total plus the chunk of additional change were 10 million or so, I’d retire, buy a house in Ithaca and a condo in Breckenridge which I could rent out to skiers. Then I’d visit London to see if it would be worth it to buy a condo there which I could also rent out, since it may not be worth it since it could run into the millions depending on location.
I wouldn’t mind a nice slice of terrain if it included great waterfalls (which the great house would not), but the grounds and gardens I wouldn’t want to visit more than a few times a year. Even if I lived with a couple more people, I wouldn’t want more than 4000 square feet of house, and definitely not even a pool since it would take up too much time to upkeep. Although if the cash totalled 20 million I’d splurge on a flower garden since I could afford to pay someone to upkeep it. And then buy a small vineyard so I could try my hand at winemaking.
In the real world almost all of these things are uneconomic messes. The National Trust is awash in properties they don’t need and unworkable visitorless museums that don’t begin to pay the cost of keeping them open.
In the fantasy world of infinite cashflow it’d be fun to ride horses around your awesome manicured grounds and bits of wild forest. For a bit.
Then you’re supposed to be a fixture in the local community hobnobbing with the other elite in the nearby counties and smiling benignly at civic events while spreading largesse to worthy causes far and wide.
Except nobody much likes you due to your funny accent and odd taste in clothes & food. The upper crust know you’re a poseur and the lower crust thinks you’re an invader.
Probably not such fun.
My parents lived for nearly 3 years Great House made by the British Raj and later used as Commanding General House for the region, the post my Dad was on. I was at University then and let me tell you the House was grand but very very uncomfortable. Most of the property was used as offices/command post for the Generals staff, but the private apartments were tiny, 2 bedrooms, a study and a small sitting area (then a TV room). There was zero privacy outside of the apartments, and little inside it; I was housed in a room in another wing when I stayed over.
Place was listed building, and I remember meeting some expert or the other who told me that even when it was a private residence, it would not have had much by the way of privacy for the owners.
I much rather live in a regular modern house.
Sell it.
Cool story. Thanks for sharing.
You’ve certainly had a more interesting and varied life than many of us here.
Well, I can definitely pass for upper class in the UK, so that side isn’t an issue. A Viscount, though, is very much lesser nobility. It might be fun to have the local matriarchs press their older unmarried daughters on me. Or press themselves on me, for that matter. My attitude to the house would depend upon the listed status of the building and the reasonableness of the local authorities. And, of course, if I like it. If they allow me to revamp and modernise the interior, install double-glazing, Ethernet, etc, then we’re fine. Otherwise the house will get gutted and left to rot and I’ll be cosy in one of the estate cottages.
How big is the garage?
Well, if you want to introduce reality into this fantasy, then it’s really unlikely for an inheritance of a title and a great house to be a surprise. If you look up any of the titled nobles in Wikipedia, you’ll usually see several heirs listed. For the British throne, Wikipedia lists the first 56 people in line. And somewhere on the Internet, I saw a much longer list.
So the King Ralph scenario is never going to happen.
The father of a schoolmate of mine had an inkling he was the legitimate heir to a title. He did the research, found he was indeed the heir, and managed to get ennobled and sit in the Lords before the hereditary peers were largely abolished.
But that situation would never have arisen if the inheritance had included cash, assets or both.
Well, sure I would, but I already live in England, so it wouldn’t be much of a move…
For those wondering, yes, there are still some “Lord of the Manor” type houses used as private residences. Where I used to live there was one just outside the village; I believe they had occasional days where the owner opened it for a tour as a charity fundraiser, it is possible to hire part of it for weddings, and I did go to a country dance the owner held in the courtyard, (he was rather condescending, iirc), but largely it’s just used as a private home. Most of the original grounds are now a public park though, upkeep is just too much.
They very often come with listed status that means doing something like converting them to flats would not be permitted, and the National Trust would generally either want to own or lease the property, if they were interested in it, they won’t help landowners open it up themselves, though there are other organisations who may.
We have such a lot of big 'ol houses here that it’s hard to make opening one up to the public profitable, unless it’s actually famous.
Why do you say that? I was too young at the time to enquire about that side of the matter.
I’m a pretty introverted guy, so I’d be fine with it as long as I can find a few gamers (D&D, Pathfinder, CoC, that sort of thing) in the area.
Hell, if there’s enough money, I could hire gamers to fill the maintenance/groundskeeper spots.
How’s the broadband service there? Does it get FIOS?
I’d enjoy having a second home in English. I would live there during the summers and my current home the rest of the year.
I’ve had farm animals before and enjoyed it. I’d raise cows and horses in the English pasture. Employing locals would make me popular. 
I like the idea posted above about checking it out first … sounds like a cool gig to be honest … Viscount Watchwolf of the Democratic People’s Republic of Malheur National Wildlife Refuge … that’s a cool looking coronet, I’d wear that proudly whenever me and the Queen had tea and crumpets …
Couple of questions:
1] How hard is it to learn the local language … I’ve heard how people in Glasgow talk … that’s NOT English.
2] Do I get a seat in the House of Lords?
3] Is UK citizenship very difficult to get?
Frankly, I’d love a chance to work on the building … it’s something of a carpenter’s challenge to do maintenance within the rules of a scheduled building.
I could be wrong but I believe that currently there are very few positions in the house of lords which are automatic anymore. I think the hereditary lords are elected by the people who could potentially sit in the house of lords. All the rest are appointed to the position for life by the Queen or PM or a combination of the two. I could have the details wrong.