Bats Halt Richard Hammond's £1.99m Welsh Mansion Revamp

A wildlife survey found eight protected bat species at Richard Hammond's £1.99m Georgian estate in Wales, threatening his pavilion and padel court plans.

Richard Hammond's plan to build a dream estate in Wales has run into an obstacle few buyers anticipate: a colony of legally protected bats. The former Top Gear presenter, 56, paid £1.99 million for a Georgian mansion at Llanwenarth in Monmouthshire, near Abergavenny, and now faces possible delays after a survey identified eight bat species living on the grounds.

Hammond bought the 21-acre property intending to overhaul it into a personal showcase. His scheme included a pavilion, a padel court and purpose-built rooms to display his car collection. A wildlife survey has put parts of that vision in doubt.

Eight bat species on the estate

Surveyors working between June and August recorded eight species of bats roosting and feeding across the site. At least two of those species were seen leaving a stone barn that Hammond had earmarked for renovation, according to reports.

That finding matters because British law shields bats from harm. Deliberately disturbing, injuring or killing the animals is a criminal offence, and so is wrecking or destroying the places where they roost. The rules cover their habitats as well as the creatures themselves.

The government does allow licences in limited situations. One may be granted where damage or disturbance cannot be sidestepped, or where survey and conservation work is under way. Even so, Hammond may need to build accommodation for the animals into his designs, adding features such as roosting areas, purpose-made voids and bat boxes.

Heritage-led defence

Hammond's planning agents have stood by the proposals. They told The Times the project grew out of a heritage-led design process that responds well to the building's importance. The plans, they said, aim to protect its architectural and historic character while safeguarding its future through careful repair, restoration and adaptation.

The purchase followed a difficult year in Hammond's personal life. Roughly twelve months earlier, he and Mindy Etheridge, his wife of 23 years, said they were splitting up. He has framed the new house as a fresh start, speaking warmly about finally having his vehicles under the same roof.

"I moved house recently. These cars have never lived here and they're home. My babies are back. I'm childish, but I'm excited," he said.

Still on the road with The Grand Tour

Hammond remains tied to the motoring world on screen. The Grand Tour has entered a new era after the departure of its founding line-up of Hammond, Jeremy Clarkson and James May.

Three new hosts, Francis Bourgeois, Thomas Holland and James Engelsman, are taking over the show. Bourgeois credited the outgoing trio with helping the incoming team settle in.

"They've been very supportive, very warm, very open in just saying, 'Go ahead - make it your own,'" Bourgeois told The Independent. He said the fresh line-up wanted to keep enthusiasm for cars at the centre of the programme.

Hammond has also talked publicly about his daughter Izzy, 25, and the worry he felt after she crashed while driving a Formula E car earlier this year. He told Metro that watching her compete can be hard given his own history in motorsport.

"It's a little uncomfortable because I know from personal experience that things can and do go wrong," he said. "I'm a father, like any other father. I don't want to see my little girl hurt, but I don't want to hold her back from opportunities that present themselves." He said Izzy is forging her own path, and that he can only sit back, watch and applaud.

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