Updown Court

It is with great pride and satisfaction that we bring you a broken link.

Or at least the link was broken earlier today when I was trying to visit it. So what is so great about a broken link? Well the site is meant to be selling the worlds most expensive private residence, updown court built at a cost of $60 million, the developer is asking $70 million and can't even run a Web site.

This place has five swimming pools (why?) a heated drive (what is the point don't they have ground staff?) and looks like it was designed by a Barrett Homes architect in his spare time. The BBC has an article with a photo.

The place is being sold as being designed for the billionaire set rather than mere millionaires. The developer recons that there are 600 known billionaires and 600 unknown ones. I think he is going to find that billionaires are much less interested in conspicuous consumption than he imagines, anonymous billionaires probably want to remain anonymous. Anyone who buys the place is going to be known the minute they throw their first party, and if you don't throw parties there is no real point in a 22 bedroom house.

People who do have $70 million to spend on a house are most likely to want to have it designed to their own specifications. The house was sold to Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia in 2001 but he has since become king and is unlikely to be very interested in buying the place back again in the current political climate. It is hard to think of many other billionaires that are as wedded to conspicuous consumption who are likely want a principal residence of that size in London.

Ultimately the place will end up as a not very convenient hotel.