Grief cliff: Massive landslip leaves Kate Bush's 17-acre home on Devon coast at risk of crumbling into the sea
- House at risk since a ‘significant landslip’ last year
- Neighbours’ gate is now just inches from an 88ft sheer drop into sea
- Repairs can cost hundreds of thousands of pounds or you can let your house fall into the sea
Kate Bush thought that she had found the perfect hideaway when she bought a secluded cliff-top home to protect her from obsessive fans.
But now the notoriously publicity-shy singer, who embarked on a long-awaited comeback tour last week, is facing the prospect of watching her house crumble into the sea.
The property, set in 17 acres, rests on a cliff edge in Devon. It has been at risk since last year when a ‘significant landslip’ caused a large section of adjoining coastline to fall away.
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Kate Bush at the Hammersmith Apollo during her comeback tour this month
Her neighbours’ house was left teetering on the brink – their front gate is now just inches from an 88ft sheer drop into the sea – and Bush’s home is next in the line of danger.
‘That particular stretch of coastline is always on the move,’ said Steve Gardner, of Devon County Council. ‘It is always falling away. It is just nature – the land is very soft there and susceptible to storm damage.
‘If you live there you can either accept it and let your house fall into the sea, or you can take action to prevent further damage, although that can cost hundreds of thousands of pounds.
‘You can attach netting to the cliff face, or another option is spraying it with concrete, although these are very expensive and not something that the council would pay for.’
Last week, Bush, 56, started on a 22-date comeback tour, her first concerts in 35 years. The tour is expected to make her millions – cash that could go towards saving the Devon bolthole, for which she paid £2.5 million in 2004.
The star, who is married to guitarist Dan McIntosh, has lived a reclusive life almost since she burst on to the music scene as a 19-year-old in 1978. She attracted legions of adoring fans with hits such as Wuthering Heights, which topped the charts for a four weeks, and Running Up That Hill.
No running up this hill: The footpath to Kate Bush's Devon home is closed
She has gone on to sell more than ten million records, but Bush has always struggled with fame. Before last week she had only ever performed a six-week tour, in 1979 when she was aged 20.
Since then she has withdrawn from the spotlight, before performing the opening two shows of her much-heralded comeback tour Before The Dawn at the Hammersmith Apollo in West London – the same venue where she effectively quit touring 35 years ago.
The gig was described as the ‘musical event of the decade’, though many fans complained that she didn’t perform early hits such as Wuthering Heights and Babooshka.
Bush also owns a home in Berkshire but the Devon hideaway – believed to have provided the inspiration for her 2005 album Aerial – is her main property.
On Boxing Day 2011, an obsessive fan managed to break into the house, prompting the star to install high-security fencing, electronic entry systems, warning signs and blinding spotlights.
She has also spent much of the past decade campaigning to have a public footpath that surrounds the house closed in an effort to gain more privacy.
Ironically, her wish was granted after part of it fell into the sea during last year’s landslip.
Devon County Council subsequently closed off a half-mile section of the coastline that runs by the foot of Kate’s land, according to public records seen by The Mail on Sunday. It means that ramblers now have to walk along another pathway that runs in a large loop further away from her property.
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