Back for wooden! Robbie Williams fells 70ft tree after planning battle

Robbie Williams has lastly secured victory after reducing down a 70ft tree at his £17.5million house to the fury of his neighbours – after successful a planning battle spanning greater than a yr and a half. 

The Angels singer, 49, has lengthy been a controversial determine on the plush Kensington highway the place he lives – and has beforehand fought a bitter row with next-door neighbour Jimmy Page after he utilized to put in a basement pool at his London pad.

But the previous Take That singer chopped down the massive Robinia tree simply 4 days earlier than Christmas, after the rock star was granted permission for the works in August after consultants discovered that there was ‘important decay’.

The Angels singer, 49, utilized to take away the Robinia tree in late June, blaming decay on the base and saying it has precipitated harm to the backyard wall of his plush London mansion.

He had beforehand tried to rid his entrance backyard of the plant in April 2022, however was unsuccessful after he failed to offer proof of the ‘extent of decay’. 

New footage of his house now present the naked area the place the tree was for the primary time, as a big piece of wicker netting has been positioned over the empty patch to defend his backyard from passers-by.

And enormous cracks left within the brickwork of his exterior wall lay naked the harm brought on by the growing old trunk because it began to be pushed over.

Council chiefs say that if it had been to have been left in place the wall would finally have resulted within the wall being toppled.

But the victory has been exhausting fought, with an unnamed neighbour slamming his newest plans as he tried to get them previous the council – saying sufficient bushes have fallen ‘sufferer’ to his axe. 

Objecting to the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, they raged: ‘I want to object very strongly to this utility. 

‘Mr Williams has already been granted permission to cut down a number of bushes at his property and now one other appears prone to fall sufferer to his needs. 

‘How many extra does he want to eradicate from his property? 

‘Trees are our buddies and never our enemies. We should love them – and to not take an axe to them.’

The tree is topic to a Tree Preservation Order – which means it’s prevented from being minimize down, uprooted or broken with out the native authority’s written consent – and it’s in a conservation space.

But Williams claimed he feared the tree was so diseased it could fall down and he wished it to be eliminated completely. 

As a part of the council’s choice to approve his plans, nevertheless, they decreed that Williams must set up a Silver birch tree as a replacement – and if it dies inside 5 years of planting he should proceed to switch it with a plant of comparable measurement and species.

In the weeks earlier than it was chopped down an indication appeared outdoors his home alongside yellow cones warning neighbours they’d not be capable of park outdoors his entrance between 8.30am and 6.30pm on December 21.

Stating the explanation for his or her choice of their planning approval, Director of Planning and Place at RBKC council Amanda Reid stated: ‘The candidates have submitted an arboricultural report from Crown Consultants. 

‘The report states that there’s important decay within the secondary stem and it’ll solely be a matter of time earlier than fungal pathogens colonise the principle stem.

‘The decrease part of the principle stem is now pushing the boundary wall over and quite a few cracks are seen from the pavement outdoors of the property. 

‘In this case, restore just isn’t a practical choice with the tree remaining in-situ as a result of the backyard degree is roughly 1.2 metres above the skin pavement degree. 

‘If this tree had been to stay, the boundary wall would wish common repairs till such time because the tree pushes it over fully.

‘Ultimately that is an over mature specimen over which there are security issues, it has outgrown its location and will now get replaced by a semi mature tree planted in a extra lifelike place additional away from the boundary wall.’

His newest bid got here shortly after the previous boyband star was accused of ‘environmental vandalism’ over plans to prune 14 crops in his backyard, saying they’re stopping the sunshine from reaching his Holland Park house.

 The Take That frontman and Led Zeppelin rocker Page, 79, have repeatedly been at loggerheads in recent times over the previous Take That star’s plans to construct a mega basement at his mansion.

Just two weeks after Williams’ final failed try to rid his backyard of the Robina the Stairway to Heaven rocker was allowed to prune bushes at his luxurious pad.

He submitted plans in April 2022 to reshape a Bay tree in entrance of his Grade I listed pad and it was permitted a month later with the council calling works ‘routine upkeep.’  

But the pair – whose properties are subsequent door to one another – are stated to have offered a united entrance when Williams final utilized to scale back the peak of his Robinia tree.

Planning paperwork reveal that no neighbours submitted formal objections or feedback in regards to the plan.

Instead it was reported that Stairway to Heaven guitarist Page, 78, was ‘fully behind’ the plan and accepted that the tree wanted to be drastically trimmed.

Council officers performing beneath delegated powers turned down the plan, saying that pollarding the tree to a top of only one metre would simply enable it to develop again.

This was regardless of Williams’ sprawling monster destroying his backyard wall, obscuring a road mild and being rotten on the base.

They even urged Williams rebuilds and strikes his cracking boundary wall to permit the tree to develop extra.

Amanda Reid, the council’s Director of Planning and Place, dominated: ‘If there’s decay on the base of the tree, this extent of decay must be quantified earlier than the removing of this excessive amenity TPO’d tree could be thought of.

‘If the tree is inflicting the wall to crack, this downside won’t be rectified by pollarding the tree to a top of 1 metre, because the tree will regenerate.

‘Additionally, the wall might in all probability be re-built to permit future development of the tree with out harm reoccurring.’

Robbie’s final planning battle additionally recieved dissent from neighbours – as he tried to chop again 14 crops, saying that they’re stopping the sunshine from reaching his house.

One blasted: ‘Hello there, I feel these bushes needs to be left as chopping down wholesome bushes is an act of environmental vandalism.

‘Shame on anybody desirous to destroy our leafy buddies. They give us life – we must always respect theirs.’

The feuding rock stars have beforehand rowed after Williams utilized to put in a basement pool at his £17 million Kensington pad.

But the Led Zeppelin guitarist objected fearing it could harm delicate paintings in his Grade-I listed mansion subsequent door.

Page, who has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice, advised the council in 2018 that he would ‘combat towards a brand new risk’ for the home he has lived in for 50 years.

The mansion was beforehand owned by poet John Betjeman and Dumbledore actor Richard Harris.

He outbid David Bowie to purchase it in 1972, aged simply 28.

The Tower House was designed between 1875 and 1881 by ‘artwork architect’ William Burges as his house – and the rooms have themes similar to Time, Love and Literature.

To keep the home, the rockstar has specialists set up scaffolding and sugar-soap the partitions and solely performs acoustic guitar to forestall harm.

Williams was lastly given permission for his basement in 2019 after an virtually five-year battle and work was as a consequence of begin this yr. 

His development firm despatched a letter to native residents in April telling them development work was as a consequence of start and would final 11 months, however it isn’t recognized whether or not work has began.

Williams has had to make use of hand instruments whereas constructing it to minimise vibrations – massively rising the worth of constructing work.

Works on Williams’ home is anticipated to take 46 weeks – together with web site arrange and enabling works, piling and underpinning, prime down slab development, excavation and propping, concrete field and waterproofing.

Williams has lived in his 47-room home after shopping for it from the household of late director and restaurant critic Michael Winner in 2013.

In this time it has been topic to 46 planning choices as he fights to renovate it.

The rocker defied Williams in 2016 by having work achieved on his roof – by an organization known as Millennium, the title of one of many singer’s best hits.

In 2017 the Take That star submitted plans for an enormous shed on stilts in his backyard so his youngsters might have someplace to play.

This sparked fury with residents who complained it could block mild to their gardens and spoil the environment.

Williams later sparked extra fury and needed to apologise after saying the guitarist had a psychological sickness and had been sitting for hours in his automotive outdoors his home.

He advised Italian Radio DeeJay: ‘Jimmy has been sitting in his automotive outdoors our home 4 hours at a time.

‘He’s recording the workmen to see in the event that they’re making an excessive amount of noise. The builders got here in and he was asleep in his backyard ready. It’s like a psychological sickness.’