Next door the plot deepens

HOW I feel for Jung Chang, author of the haunting novel Wild Swans. The poor woman has next door neighbours intent on hollowing out a basement extension to create a “spiral wine store” for their 1,000 bottles.

Known as icebergs because their tiny tip conceals colossal acreage beneath, these subterranean extensions are considered a savvy way to maximise your property’s square footage. Jung Chang fears she won’t be able to complete her next book if the excavation goes ahead.

I have lived next door to the monumental upheaval caused by a similar extension for almost two years and she has every reason to worry. Not only will her home be shaken to its core, the stairs will vibrate, the windows crack and rattle in their casements and the walls throb with pressure.

She will be subjected to decibels of thunderous diggers, industrial slicers to break the ground’s surface and vast vehicles clogging up the road.

She will suffer deafening noise from eight in the morning till six in the evening, half day on Saturdays, blissful silence only on Sundays. Her garden, car and washing will be silted with filth. She will be unable to hear her guests speak or the television.

At some point she will veer between a nervous breakdown and lose the will to live. Basement extensions are not conducive to city-life. If you want a spiral wine store you should move to a large property in the country.

Councils should show some understanding and ban them forthwith.