http://www.odditycentral.com/pics/no-mans-land-fort.html#more-2768 No Man’s Land Fort By Spooky on May 19th, 2008 Category: Pics, Travel LIKE DISLIKE Not many places offer this kind of privacy. Built between 1861 and 1880 to protect Portsmouth from French naval attacks, No Man’s Land Fort was last used for military purposes during WWII and in later years it has been transformed into a luxury hotel with 21 rooms, indoor heated swimming pool and 2 helipads. But due to multiple problems, including finding a dangerous virus in the water supply in 2004, this incredible location ended up for sale in 2005 and 2007. But the 4 million British pounds price tag kept buyers away and in the meantime the owning company went bankrupt. Now the building is on auction again, while the owner lies in prison. If you have the money, No Man’s Land Fort is worth a look, it’s 81 meters in diameter and 18 meters in height, it’s built out of granite blocks and reinforced with a thick iron plating and if its luxury doesn’t convince you, at least you know that if you ever have to fend off a naval attack, you have a chance. -------------------------- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/No_Man's_Land_Fort No Man's Land Fort was a fort built in the Solent as part of the Palmerston Forts. It is 2.2 kilometres[1] off the coast of the Isle of Wight and built between the years 1867 and 1880 to protect Portsmouth. It was built for a cost of £462,500, a considerable sum if adjusted for inflation*. (*According to the Bank of England Website, £462,500 at 1880 prices is equivalent to £43,391,356 as at December 2010) No Man's Land Fort is almost identical to Horse Sand Fort. It is now a luxury home/hospitality centre for high-paying guests – due to the privacy it offers – with an indoor swimming pool and two helipads. In July 2004, Legionella bacteria found in the hotel's water system forced its closure.[2] The Fort was put up for sale in 2005 and again in 2007, but the company collapsed.[3][4][5] In March 2008, Harmesh Pooni, claiming to still be the owner, barricaded himself inside the fort in protest against the administrators KPMG.[6] The property was eventually sold by KPMG, who repossessed the fort as acting administrators of property finance company Lexi Holdings from Mr Pooni, for £910,000 in March 2009.[7] The 1972 Doctor Who serial The Sea Devils used the fort as a filming location for several scenes ====================== http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-468609/Man-island-fit-Bond-villain-sale--4-million.html Man-made island fit for a Bond villain up for sale - for £4 millionBy BEN FARMER Last updated at 22:41 15 July 2007 Comments (0) Add to My Stories Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-468609/Man-island-fit-Bond-villain-sale--4-million.html#ixzz1W4bsdisR =================== http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/house-and-home/property/for-sail-no-mans-land-fort-397668.html It's billed as the ultimate island hideaway. But there is no curving stretch of golden sand dotted with languid palm trees. There are certainly views of the sea, but at this time of year it's mostly grey and bleak. In fact, this mysterious private island looks for all the world like a giant rusting tin can bobbing about in the sea. But inside, accessible only by helicopter, there is a Jacuzzi, bar and swimming pool, as well as state rooms, bedrooms and entertaining rooms. This is no ordinary island. It is a floating fortress, built in the 1860s to defend Portsmouth from the French during the Napoleonic wars. And it's for sale. There is no asking price, for who can put a value on this? But, as a guide, you will need to charter a helicopter if you want to go and see it, which might put off all but the most seriously interested parties. No Man's Land Fort is the largest of four such forts and stretches to almost an acre in space. By the time these military outposts were completed, the French were no longer such a threat and they were abandoned. Used briefly during the two Great Wars, they were finally deactivated in 1956 and put up for sale in the Sixties. This one is 200ft in diameter and provides some 55,000sq ft of internal accommodation. There's a basement and two further floors arranged in concentric circles, one of which is set around a massive glass-topped atrium. On the deck is a three-bedroom lighthouse with a 360-degree observatory, and, of course, a helipad: in fact, there are two. There is a boat launch and a winch, but it has fallen into disrepair and is presently unusable. When it works, you can be winched up the side of the fort, where there is a door which slides back and lets you in. The agent, Knight Frank, is remaining tight-lipped about the vendor. A spokeswoman confesses she doesn't know anything about him, or her, or even them. It is, apparently, on a strictly need-to-know basis. Which somehow fits right in with the Fort. For there is an unmistakeable atmosphere about this place. Stare at it, and you almost expect the roof to open and a helicopter to rise from the depths with an impassive scar-faced Blofeld clutching a sinister white cat and one of Her Majesty's top agents hanging grimly on to the back. But assuming the buyer isn't a billionaire Bond villain in need of a secret complex, who would buy such a place? It was converted into a luxury hotel in the early Nineties, but as it has lain empty for two years, one can only assume there wasn't much call for this type of retreat in the Solent. There is planning permission to build a floating harbour with 40 berths, so perhaps there are commercial possibilities. But before you think of ripping it all apart and creating some vast open spaces, you should know that it's Grade II-listed and is scheduled for English Heritage Ancient Monument status, which might limit any plans for dramatic loft-style conversions. If you can afford the transport costs, and you fancy lounging about on your own private deck with a cocktail, or perhaps zipping along in your speedboat to visit the neighbours on their much smaller forts in the distance (which are already privately owned), then this might be the place for you. It would be a wonderful place for someone rich looking for an accessible retreat. Word of warning: to anyone with plans to emulate the owners of Sealand, that other island fortress in the North Sea which declared independence from the UK in 1967, you should know that this is only two miles off the coast of the Isle of Wight. This means you are not in international waters and remain firmly under UK jurisdiction, which definitely rules out the Bond villain market. ========================= http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2007/jul/16/property.uknews Bolthole in the Solent goes on sale for £4m reddit this David Ward The Guardian, Monday 16 July 2007 16.40 BST Article history No Man's Land fort in the Solent. Photograph: Mike Walker You could approach by boat, but that would mean an undignified climb from sea level to deck. Far better to use one of the twin helipads and arrive with breath intact. No Man's Land fort, lying in the Solent a mile off Portsmouth and now for sale for £4m, boasts every comfort the modern hermitage can offer, including a Victorian postbox ("Last collection: sunset"). The circular fort was completed in 1880 at a cost of £462,500 to stop the French having a go at ships moored at the country's biggest naval base. It is 61 metres (200ft) in diameter, built from granite blocks and probably vulnerable to nothing except nuclear attack. It was sold off by the government in the 1960s and converted 20 years later into a luxury hotel, with its central courtyard glazed over to make a sun-trapping atrium. All 21 bedrooms, slotted neatly into former gun emplacements, are en suite. Guests can enjoy a heated indoor pool, jacuzzis and gym; they can stroll on the roof garden, play snooker (don't ask how they installed the table), try their luck in the amusement arcade, drink in five bars and eat in four dining spaces. And those who feel they have to justify this exposure to luxury by doing a little light work can make their way to any of three meeting rooms or the business lounge. Broadband and satellite television are available but there is also a classic red telephone box. The fort has a cultural pedigree (it was the location for a Doctor Who adventure, when Jon Pertwee was the Doctor) but its commercial life may have been cursed by the Daleks. In 2004, the corporate events company that owned No Man's Land went bust, banks took possession and the fort went on the market for £2m-3m. Simon Le Bon of Duran Duran was reported to have considered buying the place for a private hideaway. In February 2006, it was acquired by Charyn, part of property finance company Lexi Holdings, run by a Manchester entrepreneur, Shaid Luqman. But Lexi Holdings also went bust last October with debts of more than £100m. Luqman, a former entrepreneur of the year in 2004, who was once reported to have a personal fortune of more than £250m, was jailed earlier this month for 18 months for failing to respond adequately to high court orders won by administrators at accountants KPMG over his assets and company records. KPMG have now put No Man's Land up for sale. "We are letting people express an interest in the property before we invite offers for it, but is expected to fetch up to £4m," said company spokeswoman Rachel Halliday. "This property is certainly a one-off and we have never had to sell anything this unusual before. It is such a unique place that we are expecting interest from a number of people." Preferably those with helicopters.