Two of Barbados’ leading celebrity luxury properties owned by the rich and famous are on the foreign market.
Collectively, the price tag is in the vicinity of $15 to $17 million.
Sir Cliff Richard, the multimillionaire and British music icon who has been living in Barbados for at least 20 years, is reportedly selling much of his property empire which consists of luxury real estate in Sugar Hill, Barbados, Portugal and the United Kingdom.
He has put his six-bedroom villa on Barbados’ West Coast on the for sale list, and while the agents handling the matter aren’t revealing the asking price, what’s known is that properties in the exclusive community sell for between $7 and $10 million.
At the same time, Wendy Kidd, mother of London supermodel Jodie Kidd, is seeking a buyer for Holders Estate in St James, the home of Holder’s Festival, according to the Daily Mail of London and Ireland, which also reported on Sir Cliff’s entry into the foreign market.
“Holder’s Estate, a luxury hotel and polo venue, has been owned by the Kidd family for the past 50 years and is where her polo player brother Jack, and their designer sister Jemma all grew up,” reported the Mail. “Wendy, 76, a former model herself, ran the estate with Johnny, the husband of 32 years, until their marriage ended in 2005.”
In the case of Sir Cliff, who has played host in Barbados to Tony Blair, when he was Britain’s prime minister, and to other celebrity guests from England over the years, he put his property on the market a year after taking similar action on his apartment in Britain.
Interestingly, the word of the proposed sale of the Barbados mansion came after a British High Court judge put Sir Cliff on notice that details of his real estate assets could be disclosed during a hearing of a libel case he has initiated against the BBC.
That trial is expected to be heard this year and it will centre on allegations that the wealthy pop singer engaged in sex abuse. He was never arrested or charged with a crime in England or elsewhere, and he has vigorously maintained his innocence while complaining that the “false” charges damaged his reputation.
“It was two years of hell,” said Sir Cliff, a Christian pop star, while reflecting on the charges.
Mr Justice Mann warned the famous star about the release of the financial information after his lawyers requested that the court should bar journalists having access to a part of a document containing private financial information, reported the Mail.
Sir Cliff sued the BBC over its coverage of a police raid at his Berkshire property in Sunningdale more than three years ago. The police invaded the apartment and the singer complained that the cops soiled the place, all over lies, he said.
The Barbados property has been described as one of the most “beautiful” villas along the platinum coast, with a view of the sea that’s out of this world.
In addition to the six bedrooms, the Sugar Hill villa features a powder room, a formal dining room, large seating areas, a swimming pool, two kitchens and a covered terrace. Owners also have access to tennis courts, a pool house and a bar.
As for the Kidds’ property, it is a former sugar plantation “set amongst five acres of formal gardens, and promises an impressive tinge of amenities and a sense of privacy unmatched by the more populous developments and resort communities”, stated the Mail.
“The purchase price is only available on request, but it is understood to be in the range of [English pounds] 6.4 million,” reported by the Sunday Telegraph in London.
“Mrs Kidd turned the estate into a functioning guesthouse but over the years, Holders has struggled to make itself pay,” stated the Mail. “With the island’s economy taking a dip, Ms Kidd has been forced to put the exquisite 17th century house on the market.”
Barbados’ “cache” as tourism resort may be traced to its British links and the presence of many Irish, Scottish and British celebrities. (TB)
