{"id":749102,"date":"2026-08-25T09:44:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-25T09:44:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/749102\/"},"modified":"2026-08-25T09:44:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-25T09:44:11","slug":"planning-row-erupts-as-batmans-wayne-manor-put-under-threat-of-seizure-over-bats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/749102\/","title":{"rendered":"Planning row erupts as Batman’s Wayne Manor put under threat of seizure… over bats"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mentmore Towers, the Buckinghamshire stately home that doubled as Bruce Wayne’s residence in Christopher Nolan’s 2005 film Batman Begins, could be seized in a row over bats.<\/p>\n

Buckinghamshire Council has warned that the Grade I-listed mansion could be reposessed unless a licensed bat ecologist is engaged to carry out a survey.<\/p>\n

The council said conducting the surveys is “reasonably necessary for the proper preservation” of the property, which stands accused of being allowed to deteriorate over many years.<\/p>\n

Syrian-British businessman Simon Halabi, who bought the estate in 1999, owns the mansion through Mentmore Towers Ltd.<\/p>\n

The 68-year-old purchased the property after it was placed on the market two years earlier.<\/p>\n

Historic England has classified the building’s condition as “very bad,” with roofs, chimneys, rooflights, roof lanterns and leadwork all in a state of decline.<\/p>\n

Council photographs accompanying the notice reveal cracked walls, shattered windows and facades overrun with ivy.<\/p>\n

Bat droppings were also discovered during an inspection of the site.<\/p>\n

\"Mentmore<\/p>\n

Mentmore Towers served as Bruce Wayne’s residence in Christopher Nolan’s 2005 film Batman Begins<\/p>\n

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PA<\/p>\n

Originally built between 1852 and 1854 for the Rothschild family, the mansion represents the sole major surviving creation of Sir Joseph Paxton, the architect responsible for the Crystal Palace.<\/p>\n

Under the terms of the council’s notice, three bat-emergence surveys must be finished by August 2027, together with any requisite Natural England licence and associated recommendations.<\/p>\n

The owner is also required to prove that a contractor experienced in the restoration of listed buildings has been appointed.<\/p>\n

Should no steps be taken, the council may look to repossess the mansion for good.<\/p>\n

Weekly inspections by council and Historic England officials must also be carried out once restoration work starts.<\/p>\n

COUNCIL CHAOS – READ THE LATEST:<\/p>\n

\"Buckinghamshire<\/p>\n

Buckinghamshire Council said conducting the surveys is ‘reasonably necessary for the proper preservation’ of the property <\/p>\n

| GOOGLE<\/p>\n

Henrietta Billings, director of SAVE Britain’s Heritage, said: “We welcome this action taken by Buckinghamshire Council requiring the current owner to carry out urgent and overdue repairs to this great house.<\/p>\n

“We urge the owners, who have owned the building for over 25 years, to step up and undertake immediate repairs.<\/p>\n

“This exceptional landmark has been neglected for too long.”<\/p>\n

Mr Halabi originally envisaged transforming the mansion into a high-end hotel comprising 171 suites.<\/p>\n

Those ambitions were derailed in September 2004 when local resident Jonathan Davey secured a last-minute High Court injunction blocking the conversion.<\/p>\n

\"Small<\/p>\n

Under the terms of the council’s notice, three bat-emergence surveys must be finished by August 2027<\/p>\n

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GETTY<\/p>\n

A judicial review subsequently examined whether the planning permission conditions had been properly observed.<\/p>\n

In March 2005, the High Court determined that the planning approval was “unimpeachable.”<\/p>\n

Despite that legal victory, Mr Halabi’s hotel scheme was ultimately shelved after his property business ran into difficulties amid the collapse of the housing market.<\/p>\n

Prior to Mr Halabi’s ownership, the estate’s former proprietors had established a country club featuring an 18-hole golf course in 1992, though it stopped operating in 2015.<\/p>\n

Company filings submitted to Companies House in May reveal that Mentmore Towers Ltd, directed by Mr Halabi, is classified as dormant – neither trading nor generating any investment income.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Mentmore Towers, the Buckinghamshire stately home that doubled as Bruce Wayne’s residence in Christopher Nolan’s 2005 film Batman…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":749103,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[35884,96,59,50,2331,18329,56,54,55],"class_list":["post-749102","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-across-the-uk","tag-entertainment","tag-gb","tag-news","tag-sgg","tag-south-east","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/749102","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=749102"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/749102\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/749103"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=749102"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=749102"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=749102"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}