Tom Conti blasts neighbour Thierry Henry over plan to demolish £6m home and rebuild it to fit 5,000 gallon aquarium inside

Shirley Valentine actor warned there would be 'absolute nightmare disruption' should Camden Council approve Henry's controversial plan

 Henry's spectacular 40ft aquarium would spiral all the way from a swimming pool, bar and cinema in the basement to the master bedroom

Actor Tom Conti has urged footballer neighbour Thierry Henry to move out of his £6 million London mansion rather than demolish it for a larger home to accommodate a monster 40ft fish tank.

The outraged Shirley Valentine actor warned there would be 'absolute nightmare disruption' should Camden Council approve Henry's controversial plan tonight. 

The ex-Arseal skipper's home in well-heeled Hampstead, north London, was designed by former president of Royal British Architects, Sir Richard Mac Cormac.

Footballer Thierry Henry, up has been urged by neighbour Tom Conti,below, to move out of his £6 million London home rather than demolish it for a larger house to accommodate a monster 40ft fish tank 




















Conti, whose garden backs on to Henry's home, and seven others have urged planning officials halt the proposal saying 'If someone wants a larger house why do they not just buy one somewhere else?'


Mr Conti, whose garden backs on to Mr Henry's home, and seven others have urged planning officials to halt the proposal.

Mr Henry's spectacular 5,000 gallon aquarium would spiral all the way from a swimming pool, bar and cinema in the basement to the master bedroom on the second floor.

Mr Conti, 70,said 'If someone wants a larger house why do they not just buy one somewhere else?

'Why do they have to knock it down? It causes such disruption.'

The 15ft long by 3ft wide tank will set Henry back £12,000 a year to run, including weekly inspections at about £50 an hour. The annual bill for fish food alone will be £2,500

The Hollywood star added: 'The noise will just be colossal because he will have to drill down for his basement.

'It's an absolute nightmare.The problem is he wants to build this enormous fish tank and I suppose he is going to have to build a whole new house so he can house that.'

But Mr Conti, set to appear in summer Batman blockbuster The Dark Knight Rises, fears the worst.

He's pessimistic after neighbours acting couple John Alderton and Pauline Collins, from TV's original Upstairs Downstairs, lost their long bitter battle against a neighbour's basement development.

'It's very irritating,' said Mr Conti.

'An individual householder is never going to win just look at John Alderton, who will now have that endless noise in his garden.'

The highly-influential Heath and Hampstead Society has also lodged objections against New York Red Bulls striker Henry, 34, knocking down his house, which is next door to a Grade II-listed home.

A society spokesman branded his scheme 'over-bulky, ungainly, squat in proportion, lumpish' and                                                                                  

with 'no style or elegance'.

The Twentieth Century Society fights to safeguard the heritage of architecture and design in Britain from 1914 onwards.

It said the existing building 'represents a crucial part of the oeuvre of an outstanding firm of the late 20th century', which is part owned by Sir Richard MacCormac.

Mr Henry claims his house has aged badly and is no longer 'fit as a family home', according to his architects.

The ex-Barcelona ace who divorced his wife Claire Merry in 2007 and is now dating Bosnian model Andrea Rajacic, is keen to maintain his London base, in Hampstead, to be close to his daughter Tea.

The French footballer – who fronted the ‘va-va-voom’ TV adverts for car firm Renault – is the latest in a long line of celebrities including Madonna, the Beckhams, Cher and Premier League footballers Stephen Ireland, Joe Hart and Micah Richards, to splash out on opulent fish tanks. 

Ireland has reportedly spent more than £100,000 on his 13ft aquarium, and is now believed to be planning a shark tank under his kitchen floor.

Henry to rebuild his Hampstead home, although the original architect Sir Richard Mac Cormac is opposed to the demolition
But Mr Henry’s super-size version will dwarf them all.

His aquarium will actually be made up of four separate tanks, one for each storey of the house.

CELEBRITY FISH TANK OBSESSION 

 The French footballer – who fronted the ‘va-va-voom’ TV adverts for car firm Renault – is the latest in a long line of celebrities to take an interest in flashy fish tanks.

Madonna, the Beckhams, Cher and Premier League footballers Stephen Ireland, Joe Hart and Micah Richards, have all splashed out on opulent fish tanks. 

Ireland has reportedly spent more than £100,000 on his 13ft aquarium, and is now believed to be planning a shark tank under his kitchen floor.

It has been suggested that the celebrity obsession with aquariums may not be just about a fondness for fish.

One tank designer, who asked not to be named, said: ‘Our client list tends to be male-dominated and they are looking for status symbols and showpieces.’

Each will be made of Perspex-like material and will give the optical illusion of one giant aquarium – but will be cheaper to clean, run and maintain than a single tank.

One industry expert said the £12,000-a-year bill for heating, cleaning and lighting the tanks would be just a fraction of the £80,000 it would cost to maintain one huge tank.

Each aquarium will require a filtration system to ensure the water stays clean and fresh. 

Experts say there are 2,000 species of marine life suitable for the tanks, ranging from smaller breeds of shark to clown fish, yellow tangs, blue tangs and angel fish.

It has been suggested that the celebrity obsession with aquariums has nothing to do with a fondness for fish.

One tank designer, who asked not to be named, said: ‘Our client list tends to be male-dominated and they are looking for status symbols and showpieces.’

The house’s original architect, Sir Richard MacCormac, is opposed to the proposed demolition.

Sir Richard, who also designed the Wellcome wing of the Science Museum, said last night: ‘I don’t think you improve sustainability by demolishing a house which is just 13 years old.

‘It surprises me that someone  who can afford to build a new house and who claims to be serious about architecture should not simply build another one elsewhere.

‘I think my original design is well regarded locally and I think a lot of people are going to be upset.

‘The existing house has a very deliberate low-key design to ensure that it would not look out of place in the conservation area.’

Camden Council was set to consider Mr Henry's bold multi-million pound project at a meeting tonight.