Jean queen Ida in restoration drama at cost of building work

A COMPANY co-owned by an Australian fashion tycoon known as the “jean queen” is facing a £236,000 bill after a row with a builder over the restoration of her 19-bedroom Jacobean mansion.

Donna Ida Thornton, 50, whose denim has been worn by the likes of Olympian Dame Kelly Holmes and model Jodie Kidd, is embroiled in a feud with Plymouth-based contractor Keith Elliott. He claims he has not been paid a penny for work on the £1.2 million property.

Ms Thornton bought the Grade II listed Langdon Court in south Devon with her husband Robert Walton, 67, a restaurateur, in 2021 and hired Mr Elliott that April to help turn the property into a boutique hotel.

However, Ms Thornton and Mr Elliott parted ways in December 2022, twothirds of the way into the project, following an “amicable” disagreement about costs.

Their relationship then deteriorated further with Mr Elliott going on to complain of his treatment on social media.

Mr Elliott claimed his company Keith Elliott Construction (KEC) had shouldered the full cost of the renovations but had not been paid for the work.

In November 2023, Mr Elliott applied to an adjudicator at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors to decide who was responsible for the costs.

In January 2024, the adjudicator ruled in Mr Elliott’s favour, saying Langdon Court Ltd, a private company which is owned by Ms Thornton and her husband, was liable to pay accumulated costs of £236,000.

Documents seen by The Telegraph show Langdon Court was instructed to pay 100 per cent of the bill claimed by KEC, as well as the adjudicator’s fee.

Counterclaims by Langdon Court for a similar sum, which argued that some of the works were defective, were thrown out.

KEC was also awarded interest on money owed. Both KEC and Langdon Court agreed that their contract had been ended by mutual consent.

Mr Elliott posted a photo of “a bar and ban” letter on Facebook, reportedly issued by Ms Thornton, prohibiting him from setting foot on the estate.

He is now taking legal action in the High Court against Langdon Court, claiming he has not received any funds following the adjudication.

A representative for Ms Thornton declined to comment to The Telegraph.