John you are fortunate to have such a yard, although the tennis court does aspect as a divider breaking up the space, I think this creates an opportunity to create garden zones or rooms. Intimate garden spaces can be individual enough and still be integrated into a larger footprint. Your garden perhaps may be viewed from different windows, and have different aspects, therefore will have different requiremnts of sun, shelter etc. As the second picture appears to have a shed or structure, and looks more of a utility space, I would obstruct the view from the court, by planting a Boston ivy to cover the fencing, providing a delicate hanging foliage wi ever changing colours of reds and greens. I would do the same on the opposite fencing that overlooks the main lawn area, although I would create a large window effect by clipping or restraining the creeper from a large square in the centre fencing section. Tis will create a room with a view in the foreground, and with effective and clever planting, lighting and design elements, you will create an interesting viewpoint that will direct interest into the yard beyond the court. In the background, the timber fence I would plant your murray a hedge, so the small blooms will soften the look of the fence, paint it a dark colour, like domino by dulux so the foliage stands out against it, and gives an illusion of a deeper boundary. In front of that, centre to your created window in your fencing, place either a sculptural element, in the form of an urn, a formal topiary or statue, perhaps a small water feature with lighting, so it extends the perspective yet again. With the green hedges now creating the walls of your garden room, plant your chosen iceberg roses in front of that, and some informal plantings below. I suggest a bench to watch a match or two, and utilize the other garden Rea to house things such as your patio furniture. Garden rooms don't necessarily make a space smaller, rather they may invite you to meander through garden rooms with beautiful elements and relaxing places to sit. I would also like the look of manchurian pear trees along the fencing if you don't like the idea of a creeper.

Judging by the plan, the photos and your comments it appears that too much heat is coming in from high light glazing (clerestory windows) into the lounge and dining areas. Both rooms will be cold in winter because the direct heat from these windows is not enough and not absorbed in an thermal mass and they do not have ground level windows or glazed doors facing north. The elevated floor means that it is cold under the house so heating in winter goes down as well as up. The roof would lack adequate insulation due to the period in which the house was built. The roof tiles probably have another 15 years maybe a bit more so it is costly to insulate from the top (i.e. taking roof tiles off adding insulation then putting roof tiles back in again. The colour of them is contributing a lot to the heat. So what to do. - add external shading device to the highlight glazing, maybe timber battens 40 x 40 at 20mm spacings. This will block direct sunlight within the shading season. That helps to reduce heat intact and see how you go. If that does not work then - add a rigid foam core board to the underside of the timber ceiling, e.g. Foilboard which is 20mm thick r 2, then install a 12mm plywood ceiling lining under this. That way you retain the timber rafter ceilings but also one that has a light coloured (hoop pine ply) timber in between. (Note this is costly) - big gains in heat loss is achieved with underfloor insulation. Try r3 bulk squeezed tightly between the floor joists. Then you can plan for the future with the following - change glass in windows and glazed doors to a low e glass - install insulation into the cavity of the external walls using a company called envirowall. - replace roof tiles with a light coloured metal roof, replace the existing roof battens with a 100 x 40 batten so that you can install a 100mm thick anticon insulation. All of the above costs money and if you don't do it then it costs money to burn energy to keep the living rooms between 21 to 27 degrees year round (what we consider comfortable) so if it tough to decide what to do or not. As an alternative For about 40k you could spend 30 of it on solar cells, and an awesome battery (Tesla powerwall 2) and buy some wall mounted ac units. But that would be kicking the can down the road. But sometimes you have no choice. Good luck

I would build a new floor to ceiling robe where the existing robe is, extending it across to the door frame and building storage across the top of the doorway to the same depth 600 as the robe, this will give great hanging space and privacy from the living room. I would then add draws approx 450 deep facing the bed, this will give more floor space, I would have a full height wall on the entrance side of the drawers to give privacy to this space which could have a TV or shelves or artwork above these drawers. By using drawers and not full height robes it will make the bedroom feel bigger while adding extra storage. cheers

Don't paint the ceiling and don't rush into extending until you have lived in the house for at least 12 months so that you understand how it works with the seasons and the extremes of temperatures. Landscaping is always after building work - as most tradesmen don't respect your plants. One of my clients said that they should be called treadsmen after her garden was trodden down! Look carefully at your lighting options, especially wall sconces and uplights to make the most of the beautiful timber ceiling. Once painted it can never be re-instated back to a timber ceiling easily. While this is your new home you are not going to live their forever. If you paint your ceiling the next owners will curse you, and wonder why you vandalised such a beautiful and expensive feature. If after 12 months of living with it you still hate it then consider a subtle lined finish, which will work with the original architecture of your home, but won't conceal the beautiful grain and character completely. Best of luck with your settling in process and learning to love the beautiful character of your new home, Dr Retro of Dr Retro House Calls and Dr Retro Virtual Visits