Homes gossip: Liam Gallagher and Nicole Appleton; Nathan Morris

Liam: the only way is Essex, NY

Former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher has splashed out $2.5 million (£1.6 million) on a hip New York City apartment.

The Beady Eye singer, who also runs fashion label Pretty Green, has bought a two-bedroom condo on Manhattan’s Central Park South. It is on the 17th floor of the Jumeirah Essex House Hotel, a celebrity haunt that incorporates private residences as well as hotel rooms.

Gallagher, 39, must also pay a £3,000-a-month service charge for the flat. But he and 37-year-old wife Nicole Appleton, who have a son Gene, 11, will have access to amazing facilities, including a top spa and sumptuous restaurants. Liam’s living the American dream.

---

Will you get that lovin’ feeling living in the secret venue where that dress was made?

Islington's Canal Building once hid a top secret. The super-cool live/work warehouse was used as a location for putting the finishing touches to Kate Middleton’s wedding gown, designed by Sarah Burton.

Set in a gated development, this was a suitably subtle spot to work on the dress, which attracted a record number of visitors to Buckingham Palace when it went on display after last year’s ceremony, raising approximately £8 million.

Now a two-bedroom flat in the block is on the market with Urban Spaces for £800,000 (020 7251 4000; urbanspaces.co.uk).

The waterside pad has 24-hour concierge, is well-positioned between Angel and Clerkenwell, and has an abundance of bars and restaurants nearby. The City is within walking distance, too.

Just the spot for young professionals in search of a stylish investment.

---

Buy a slice of Hovis hill

Dorset's cobbled Gold Hill is one of Britain’s most scenic streets, on TV screens regularly in the Seventies after Ridley Scott directed his “boy on a bike” Hovis ads there. It’s also where Thomas Hardy’s Far from the Madding Crowd was filmed in the Sixties.

For your own slice of country life, snap up an enchanting two-bedroom cottage (above), at the heart of the steep Shaftesbury landmark. It is for sale through Jackson-Stops & Staff (01747 850858, jackson-stops.co.uk) for £325,000.

The period property is surrounded by historic buildings including Shaftesbury Abbey, founded by Albert the Great in the ninth century.

From nearby Gillingham railway station, London Waterloo is less than a two-hour journey away.

---

Renting is a team game for Nathan

England rugby player Nathan Morris is looking for a new rental property.

The London Wasps rising star is said to be keen to find a three-bedroom house in Ealing to share with some of his team-mates.

But is this wise? Here’s hoping the house has a quiet study area away from the rest of the lads, as the 19-year-old still has a geography BA to complete at King’s College.

In any event, if the beefy hooker’s career continues to flourish it is unlikely to be long before he can buy a place all to himself.