Tycoon’s wife rips down his ex’s £20million villa
FOR years it was at the centre of the dazzling Barbados social scene, hosting wild parties that would carry on for days.
But now Greensleeves, the sprawling £20million home of Tetra Pak tycoon Hans Rausing and his late wife Eva, has been ruthlessly razed to the ground… on the orders of Hans’s second wife, Julia Delves Broughton.
The property was adored by Eva, who died tragically of an overdose in London in 2012.
Some of her friends are horrified, believing that Julia, who married Hans in 2014, is wiping out Eva’s memory and the ‘last remaining piece of her’ from the island. Sources say Julia, 58, has been reluctant to go to the 11-bedroom home since marrying billionaire Hans, 56, though he is keen to return more often. It’s suggested that the demolition is part of a compromise, with Julia agreeing to visit Barbados once it has been almost entirely rebuilt.
My source says: ‘It seems like Julia wants to erase the memory of Eva. Perhaps she couldn’t bear to sit in the house with the ghost of her husband’s wife.
‘Some staff and regulars are horrified as Greensleeves is part of Barbados history. Tour guides even point it out.’ Another source tells me: ‘Nearly all of it has been flattened. But the new property is going to look amazing. I’m sure the Rausings will live in it when they’re on the island.’
Julia, a Christie’s art dealer, has been credited with helping keep Hans clean – and masterminding his social resurrection – after drugs destroyed his life and killed Eva at 48.
The source adds: ‘It’s little wonder Julia wants to erase all memory of the woman who would spend days with Hans getting high on drugs in the sunshine.’
A spokesman for Hans said: ‘Hans and Julia are looking forward to refurbishment completing. They felt it needed it after 20 years of being left untouched.’