Smallhythe Place is a timber-framed house south of Tenterden, built when this quiet lane was part of a busy shipbuilding settlement linked to the old Rother waterways. The sea has long since retreated from the story, which makes the place feel even stranger.
The house later belonged to Ellen Terry, one of the great Victorian stage actresses, and now holds a small theatrical collection connected with her life and work. It is not a blockbuster museum, but it gives Tenterden's countryside a surprisingly layered stop.