A woodcutter who built his own Hobbit house revealed he has never watched Lord of the Rings, but nevertheless lives in it almost off-grid despite being nearly 90.

Great-grandad Stuart Grant moved into the cottage he bought as a wreck with no roof and no doors in 1984 while he was renovating a house, but found it was so satisfying doing DIY on the quirky building which dated back 200 years, that he decided to make it his home.

He doesn't have a mobile phone or use the internet and no longer drives due to his age, but he loves getting out and meeting people, which is good considering he has been inundated with visitors to his home in Tomich, near Inverness, after his house was posted on a French tourist board's recommendations for north Scotland.

"I haven't watched Lord of the Rings," said Grant, who worked as a joiner and carpenter for decades. "it's just a coincidence that my front door is almost the same shape and same kind of wood."

"It was a shoemakers' cottage and a croft. There was no roof, just four walls which are 200 years old. It is not a fancy house, it is made from other people's leftovers."

The old house had doorways, but no doors; window frames, but no windows, and there was no roof either. Outside there were only cows, chickens, and a donkey as neighbors. Building everything by hand, he described as working in "slow motion," while living in a shed near to the cabin.

"I was always a glutton for scenic beauty, beautiful houses, and thatched cottages in England," said Grant. "I cut the wood myself from fallen trees and collected stones from the river for the stonework. I put the stairs in. It took quite a few years, I never counted it. I just enjoyed doing it so much—I was getting such a buzz out of doing it."

As the tourists began coming—busloads—they would routinely apologize for disturbing him  say they would probably feel a lot better if there were a collection box. He eventually acquiesced but insists no one has to put anything in it. Fast-forward to present day and he's pulled over £5,000 out of it.

"You get a real buzz out of doing interesting stuff. I'll be 90 in less than two weeks but I feel like a teenager," he added.

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