A millionaire who was jailed over Britain’s “biggest man cave” has accused neighbours of prank calling his home.
Graham Wildin, 73, claims he was targeted with night-time prank calls after a decade-long fight to preserve his illegal 10,000 sq ft leisure complex in Gloucestershire.
The lush structure featured a bowling alley, casino, cinema, squash courts and soft play area.
Forest of Dean District Council demolished it in June last year after Mr Wildin repeatedly defied court orders.
Mr Wildin served six weeks in prison in August 2022 for failing to comply with an injunction requiring the removal of the building.
Drone images now show the site resembles a “concrete car park”.
The dispute began in 2014 when Mr Wildin constructed the leisure complex at the rear of his Meendhurst Road property without planning permission.
A member of the public complained to Forest of Dean District Council in November 2013 when building work started.
Wildin now operates an Airbnb on the site
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FOREST OF DEAN DISTRICT COUNCIL
Council officers told Wildin the structure did not qualify as permitted development and required full planning approval.
The council later secured an injunction against him in November 2018, setting a deadline of April 25, 2020, for demolition.
Mr Wildin was found in contempt of court in June 2022 for ignoring the injunction.
A judge handed him a six-week suspended sentence, demanding the building to be stripped and decommissioned within 18 weeks.
The council confirmed it would pursue demolition costs from Wildin
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FOREST OF DEAN DISTRICT COUNCIL
The 73-year-old appealed but lost, receiving a deadline of March 10, 2022, to complete the work.
The council confirmed it would pursue demolition costs from Wildin.
Mr Wildin now operates an Airbnb on the site where the infamous man cave once stood.
In a recent application to approve a noise management plan for the holiday let, his representatives refused to share a personal contact number for neighbours to report issues.
“The owners are not willing to provide personal mobile telephone numbers to neighbours due to previous issues with prank calls received at unreasonable hours, which are believed to have originated from some neighbours and which the police have been unwilling to pursue,” the application read.
The noise management plan was approved last month, meeting a planning condition for the holiday let conversion with a noise monitoring system being installed to alert owners if sound levels exceed agreed limits.
Neighbours admitted conditions have improved since the man cave was demolished, with one ceding that it had “all gone very quiet”.
“He [Graham] has his moments but keeps himself to himself – there’s no noise or trouble from the holiday home,” the resident said.
“The main trouble was back when there were loads of vehicles on the road.”
“It was about time and I think everyone down the bottom are very happy it has gone,” another neighbour chimed in.
Meanwhile, a third resident commented: “I don’t know anything about any prank calls to him but that probably shows just how much he upset people here.”
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