Farmer Robert Fidler built a £1 million castle in secret on his own land but was forced to tear it down after losing a long legal battle. He went ahead with the project without planning permission and during its construction kept it hidden under a giant tarpaulin, a stack of tyres and of pile of hay bales over a four year period.
Speaking about the saga in a new interview, Mr Fidler said he had hoped a loophole which states if it had been up for four years without planning permission it could stay up would protect the structure. However he admitted he had been "cheeky" keeping it hidden from view, reports the Mirror.
It was council chiefs from Reigate and Bansted Borough Council ordered him to take down the building at Honeycrock Farm, Salfords, Surrey. Today he continues to live in the farm’s converted office with his wife Linda, 52, and son Harry, 21.
