‘My council home is fit for a king’
HOUSEPROUD ADRIAN TURNS HIS FLAT INTO ‘VERSAILLES’
A DIY fanatic has spent 30 years turning a council flat into a replica of the Palace of Versailles.
Adrian Reeman is determined to leave no part of his two bedroom flat unchanged in his quest to make the interior fit for a king.
The 67-year-old has transformed the walls, ceiling, fireplaces and cupboards in every room to give the ninth-floor pad a palatial touch.
His latest project is creating a marbleeffect toilet to serve as a perfect throne in the house modelled on the French royal chateau.
Adrian, a former Merchant Navy chef, said: “I love to keep improving it. I’m very happy with what I’ve done, but I still feel like there’s a bit to do.
“Funnily enough, I don’t notice it that much now – I’ve become used to it. “Other people are amazed when they come in and are quite often taken aback. They say it looks fantastic. “But to me it’s just become normal. “I’ve got my own palace, just on a much smaller scale. “I am currently working to make the toilet look like it’s made of marble. “It’s only a small lavatory, and you can barely turn around in it, but that doesn’t mean you cannot make it look grand.” Adrian’s obsession began when he moved into the Southampton flat with his wife Annette in 1986. She had been living there for two years. Despite having no professional qualifications in design and having never even visited Versailles, he was determined to make changes.
He began to do work on the flat when he was between jobs.
Adrian said: “I really didn’t mean to start creating anything like this.
“I’m really quite proud of what I’ve managed.
“I’ve never been to the real Versailles. My wife and I don’t travel too much, and it’s much easier to stay at home.
“It just seemed a challenge to decorate the flat in that style.”
He kept costs down by finding materials in skips and charity shops.
The tenancy agreement states that the flat must be returned to its original condition if the couple move, something Adrian fears he could never achieve.
He said: “There’s no chance I’ll ever be able to put it back.
“But who would want that? It had a horrible copper pebble wall paper!”