A new four-bedroomed house is to be built on the site of the fire-damaged former home of Huddersfield eccentric Jake Mangle-Wurzel – and his grave will remain in the garden.
Jake, who died in August 2021, was buried in the grounds of his home of 50 years – in a grave he built himself.
His burial place is marked by a secondhand gravestone he bought years earlier and is inscribed to Mary Ann Ramsden, a woman who died in November 1903.
Jake lived in a ramshackle house at Peat Ponds, off Laund Road in Salendine Nook. A hoarder, he never threw anything away and the site, on the edge of the Heatherleigh Recreation Ground, became an eyesore and Jake had several run-ins with Kirklees Council.
After his death, aged 83, Jake’s home and land was sold – along with his grave, which remains on the site.
A planning application to build a new house was refused by Kirklees Council in September 2023 amid concerns about how Jake’s grave would be protected.
Now a new application has been approved by the council after the applicant gave assurances about the protection of the grave.
The grave must be fenced off during construction works to ensure it is not disturbed.
The new house will be a stone-built two-storey detached property with a garden and driveway for three cars. It has been scaled down in size from the original plan.
The house will front Peat Ponds while the grave will be behind the house in what will become the back garden.
After the land was sold following Jake’s death it is understood there was talk of having his body exhumed, which would need an Exhumation Licence from the Government.
However, it is thought there were some complications over how the burial site was originally registered so plans to move it were dropped.
READ MORE: How Jake Mangle-Wurzel was late for his own funeral – for the second time in his life!
Kirklees Council’s Environmental Health department has previously expressed concerns about the potential for damage to the grave.
Documents with the latest planning application say that the council expressed concerns to the applicant in January 2023 warning that the grave must be protected.
The email said: “Before the grave is disturbed you must seek permission from the Ministry of Justice. If you disturb the grave or remove the remains without permission, you will have committed a criminal offence under Section 25 of the Burials Act 1857.
“You will need to arrange for an alternative burial site prior to applying for the Exhumation Licence. You will also need to provide details of Mr Mangle-Wurzel’s next of kin and have their consent to relocate his remains.”
Jake’s original home was destroyed in a blaze in 2010. He built an extension and a new home out of a 30ft static caravan, which was also gutted by fire in 2016.
Jake was the self-styled ‘King of the Eccentrics’ and amused and infuriated people in equal measure for decades with his madcap antics.
A spokesman for Acumen Designers and Architects, agents for the applicant, confirmed the grave remained in place and would be protected during development work.
He added: “The original house burned down and was not suitable for repair. The only way to prevent the site from becoming derelict – and to ensure the grave will be protected and maintained – is to re-develop the site.”