THIS is the dramatic moment Captain Tom’s daughter’s illegal spa is finally bulldozed after the complex in the hero’s name sparked fury.
The unauthorised building has been reduced to rubble at the home of Captain Sir Tom Moore’s daughter in Bedfordshire.
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A team of workers were spotted fully bulldozing the £200,000 spa complex in Marson Moretaine.
A demolition excavator tore down the site leaving the whole structure flattened.
The huge machine is then seen ripping off wood and debris from the property’s roof and knocking down the walls.
Workers have been salvaging the site for days – destroying windows and removing the toilet and home cinema.
Scaffolders arrived at the home on Tuesday, with a section of the roof removed the following day and the crane removing the spa pool on Friday afternoon.
The daughter of the beloved war hero looked downcast as she watched demolition workers remove roof tiles, a sink, a toilet, and a home cinema from the site on Thursday.
Hannah Ingram-Moore and her husband, Colin, lost an appeal against an order to remove the Captain Tom Foundation Building in the grounds of their property after a hearing in October.
Inspector Diane Fleming ruled in November that the spa block must be demolished by February 7 after authorities declared it illegal as it didn’t receive planning permission.
Central Bedfordshire Council said it would be “reviewing the onsite position” the following day, on February 8.
‘HUMILIATING’
Locals told of the family’s “embarrassment” on Wednesday while celebrating its imminent destruction.
Frustrated neighbour Ian Knight told the Independent: “We were proud of what he’s done but now we’re the laughing stock.
“They’ve spoilt everything. It was a good thing what he’s done, and now it’s embarrassing.”
Neighbour Jilly Bozdogan, 70, said: “The tiles are coming off fast and furious.
“I am glad they are finally getting on with it.”
Another neighbour, whose home overlooks the spa, said: “It is a humiliation for Hannah. I think she thought she could get away with it.
“I wonder if they will move when it is all over.”
NHS HERO
The demolition follows a monstrous planning row that began three years ago following Captain Tom’s death.
The WW2 vet raised almost £40 million for the NHS by walking laps of his garden over lockdown.
The challenge captured the nation’s hearts and he was knighted for his achievements.
He sadly died of Covid in February 2021.
Later that year, Hannah set up the Captain Tom Foundation before getting permission to build an office to house the charity.
The family applied in their own names for planning but used the foundation’s name in the design, access and heritage statement, The Sun revealed last year.
But they instead built a 50ft by 20ft pool house with changing rooms, toilets and showers in the garden of their home.
The construction sparked fury among neighbours, with one slamming it had “devalued” other homes and looks like a “prison”.
Planners had ordered Hannah to demolish the building in July after it was ruled illegal.
A subsequent 2022 retrospective application was refused by the planning authority.
The family lost an appeal against Central Beds Council to keep the spa after a planning inspector ruled it was “at odds” with their Grade ll listed home.
POCKETING FUNDS
Hannah admitted to Piers Morgan that she pocketed £800,000 from the three books her dad had written – claiming he wanted his family to keep the profits.
She told the TalkTV’s host: “We have to accept that we made a decision, and it was probably the wrong one.”
Read more on the Scottish Sun
Other controversies included her £18,000 payment to attend the Captain Tom awards – and only donating £2,000 of it to his charity.
Neighbours had previously accused Hannah of “playing on her father’s name”.
FROM NHS HERO TO SPA CARNAGE
How the Captain Tom Moore story unfolded:
- April 2020 – Cap Tom Moore walks laps of garden for NHS Charities Together, raises over £39 million by his 100th birthday on April 30
- June 2020 – Captain Tom Foundation established by daughter Hannah Ingram-Moore
- February 2021 – Captain Tom dies after contracting Covid-19
- 2021 – Council give permission to build garden office for foundation
- June 2022 – Charity commission investigates questions over foundation finances
- July 2023 – Office turns out to be spa complex and charity stops receiving donations
- November 2023 – Family appeal previous demolition order which council throw out
- February 7, 2024 – Spa complex due to be demolished
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