Prof Adam, who is said to have designed some projects for the Duchy of Cornwall, says the property is not supposed to look like a genuine country pile built in the Georgian era, but a modern version in the classical style – with all the luxuries super-wealthy homeowners have come to expect.

“It’s not trying to be Georgian, and so it is quite original in a number of ways,” he says. “In the kind of work I do, you don’t get these sorts of opportunities that much. A lot of people would just like an old building. That’s fine, and I can do that. I have the historical knowledge and I don’t object to it. 

“But every now and again you get a chance to do something that moves everything on a notch, and this is an example.”

There is no shortage of entertainment for a modern-day billionaire. Above the floor dedicated to a bowling alley, sauna, steam room and a 2,000 sq ft gym, is the Gatsby-inspired ballroom lit up by eleven double-height arch windows that open onto an outdoor space. Adjacent is an adjacent “event kitchen” to cater for guests. The “prep kitchen” is one floor down.

The elaborate design, however, has not always won over council decision-makers. In 2017 the council rejected an application to lengthen the property’s side wings: “By reason of its scale, bulk, massing and prominence in the landscape the proposed addition to the extant approved scheme is considered to result in a disproportionately sized and unduly repetitive built form.”

In a separate document, it added: “Councillors objected to this application as it is a significant enlargement over the existing planning grant. 

“This design is such that the scale of the property is completely out of keeping with the local area, and should not be allowed as it maintains a process of development creep.”