A leisure complex dubbed “Britain’s largest man cave” is no more as the millionaire behind the construction was forced to demolish it, ending a decade-long planning dispute.
The images show the flat section where the 10,000-square-foot leisure complex once stood in the garden of Graham Wildin, who repeatedly defied court orders to tear it down.
Work to knock down the building began at the end of May, after the 72-year-old lost a decade-long planning battle with Forest of Dean District Council to keep the building at his home in Cinderford, Gloucestershire.
Wildin had received multiple orders over the past 10 years to remove the building, which included a bowling alley, casino and movie theater, and even served time behind bars for refusing to tear down the complex.
Over the years, he has claimed that he built the structure for his children and grandchildren. It was complete with a three-story, 25-foot-tall dollhouse, indoor tennis and badminton courts, and a large children’s play area.
The images show the flat section where the 10,000-square-foot leisure complex once stood in the garden of Graham Wildin, who repeatedly defied court orders to tear it down.
The structure was built in 2014 and Wildin has been fighting to keep it at his home in Cinderford, Gloucestershire ever since.
Wildin, pictured, had previously been locked up after refusing to remove the compound behind his home.
But the land where the complex once stood is now flattened, as drone footage shows.
Built in 2014, Wildin claimed he did not believe he needed a permit when construction began and said he built the complex 18 feet under water to ensure it would not be seen.
Over the years, he has lost a series of other legal proceedings before local developers, as well as angering residents after he parked his classic cars and vans in front of his neighbors’ houses and requested to convert their adjoining house into a vacation rental.
Wildin’s first of five court defeats came in September 2018, when a High Court injunction was handed down initially giving him until the end of April 2020 to remove the building.
He failed to comply with the court order and was given a suspended sentence in June 2021.
He then lost an appeal against the ruling at the Court of Appeal in November and was ordered to demolish the complex by March 10, 2022.
But when Wildin’s challenge continued, the six-week suspended sentence for contempt of court was activated on August 13, 2022.
Once released from HMP Cardiff, he was given 18 weeks to “gently strip” the interior of the building until it was unusable.
Wildin had received multiple requests over the past ten years to remove the building, which included a bowling alley, casino and movie theater.
Built in 2014, Wildin claimed he did not believe he needed a permit when construction began and said he built the complex 18 feet under water to ensure it would not be seen.
Work to knock down the building began at the end of May, after the 72-year-old lost a decade-long planning battle with Forest of Dean District Council to keep the building at his home in Cinderford, Gloucestershire.
The roof was torn off the building in July of this year, exposing the labyrinth within the structure.
Aerial photographs taken in July showed the roof torn off revealing debris piled in rooms inside.
Wilden lost his fifth court battle over the ‘man cave’ extension in March 2023, when three High Court judges ruled it was right to jail him for defying court orders, despite Wildin claiming he had sold the building to a Mexican shopper for just £1.
In September last year, the millionaire’s neighbors also won a ‘David and Goliath’ court battle after complaining that he parked his 11 classic cars – including a gray Bentley Turbo R and a burgundy Austin 1100 – and two vans on the street with a CCTV network. cameras installed to monitor them.
Residents of Meendhurst Road complained to Gloucestershire Police that Wildin’s behavior in monopolizing street parking was anti-social and obtained an interim injunction in September limiting the number of vehicles he could park on the street.
Wildin immediately lodged an appeal against the injunction, but in December District Judge Jonathan Napier imposed a full and final injunction against the millionaire, meaning he will now only be allowed to park two cars on the road plus room for two visitors. , they can only stay a maximum of eight hours.
Complaints against the pensioner led to ‘Solace’ – a partnership between Gloucestershire Police and county councils and boroughs to prevent, investigate and tackle anti-social behavior – bringing together a panel responsible for obtaining the initial injunction.
Wildin photographed outside his home in July as demolition work continued on his man cave.
Graham Wildin inside the leisure center he built for himself and his family in his back garden
Mr. Wildin’s spectacular man cave had room for a foosball table along with a comfortable living room.
Mr. Wildin’s man cave also included a casino with roulette and its own bar.
The structure was even completed with a fully equipped gym inside.
During the two-day trial, Gloucester County Court heard that Wildin had placed parking ticket notices on several neighbors’ vehicles blocking his driveway.
The court was also told that due to the number of vehicles parked on the road, a Forest of Dean District Council bin truck was unable to collect the rubbish.
Wildin challenged this and many other issues through his legal representative Sasha Wass KC.
During the trial, in which Solace sought a full and final injunction, Mr. Wildin’s attorney argued that his neighbors were to blame and stated that, except for one occasion, he had not blocked his neighbors’ driveways with any of his vehicles. .
The prosecution, led by Victoria Fennell, claimed Wildin moved his classic car collection onto the street to create chaos in the parking lot in an attempt to force authorities to make a U-turn on the man cave.
Mr Wildin was ordered to pay his own legal costs, believed to be around £80,000, plus £5,000 to cover Solace’s costs.
The judge removed a provisional condition about causing annoyance and inconvenience to others, as well as the power to arrest if he did not comply with the court order.
One resident said they and their neighbors were delighted that the structure had finally been torn down.
‘It was time,’ they told the Telegraph. ‘We have a full view from here. “Absolutely, I’m happy to see him go.”
Forest of Dean District Council confirmed the demolition has been completed and they intend to claim the costs back from Mr Wildin.
“It is important to note that the cost of this process should not be borne by the taxpayer, and we are now working to recover the full cost of the demolition from the land owner,” a spokesperson said.
“We want to thank the neighbors once again for their patience and understanding during this process.”
