It’s not exactly the only music beef going right now, but never fear: Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page and former Take That singer Robbie Williams are still feuding over Williams’s home renovation plans, as they have ever since William bought the historic West London mansion next to Page’s own in 2013.
The latest round in the fight goes to Page for now, as the Evening Standard reports that a meeting of the local planning committee on Tuesday opted to defer approval for Williams’s plan to build a basement swimming pool and gym. Page is concerned that vibrations from the potential excavation next door could damage his red-brick Gothic Revival manse, particularly the elaborate plaster, tile, and stained glass installed by its designer, English architect William Burges. Page claims he plays only acoustic guitar at home for fear of sound waves.
Williams’s representatives reportedly told the committee that effects on neighbors would be “negligible,” but that proved insufficiently convincing. A final decision is delayed pending further “legal assurances” regarding independent monitoring and possible accommodations, such as requiring all work be done with hand tools.
That seems to leave open the possibility that Williams may still get his basement swimming pool, dug with a garden trowel if necessary, and thus we have hope for more of this delightful feud, which has already seen Page allegedly spying on Williams’s work crews (who were later fined for noise violations) and forced Williams to issue a public apology for suggesting Page might be exhibiting signs of mental illness.
