The Master Wishmakers created the 60-acre Challis Island for a 29-year-old client

Pirate islands, Bond lairs and a £38m treehouse... how some developers and property owners are prioritising the fun factor by creating lavish play areas for grown-ups

We are obsessed with adding value to our properties, our ambition focused on converting the loft or turning that pokey side return into a family room with bi-fold doors and pound signs hanging from the ceiling. But how about forgetting profit for a moment and prioritising the fun factor instead? Why not indulge your inner child by creating play areas not for your kids but for you, where you can escape every now and again to be James Bond – or, as pirates seem to be a popular adult fantasy, Jack Sparrow.  

The pirate-themed island cost an undisclosed seven figure sum

“One 29-year-old client had a love of all things pirate and asked us to create a 60-acre pirate island in a lake on his land near Cambridge. It was his fantasy, but it had to be realistic and historically accurate, stand the test of time and become his legacy,” says Sege Rosella, co-founder of Northamptonshire-based themed architecture and design company The Master Wishmakers.

Visual for The Master Wishmaker's £38m treehouse

When the company began three years ago, it specialised in creating luxury fantasy play spaces for children: playhouses built and insulated like real timber-framed houses, racing car beds that you can really drive etc. But Rosella, who also runs a construction firm, soon realised the adults wanted these bespoke flights of fancy for themselves. The pirate island, for example, which cost an undisclosed seven figure sum, has its own pub and accommodation....Continue Reading

> via The Telegraph