Duran Duran bassist John Taylor has submitted plans to create a modern gym and wellness complex at his 15th-century manor house in Wiltshire, following his permanent move back to the UK.
The 66-year-old musician and his American designer wife, Gela Nash-Taylor, 72, want to convert unused outbuildings on their 260-acre estate into a Pilates studio and a separate sauna.
Planning documents submitted to Wiltshire Council show that the proposed facilities would be located near the property’s stables and butler’s cottage, away from the main ten-bedroom Tudor manor.
Former Outbuildings to Be Converted Into Pilates Studio
The plans include transforming an existing workshop, which dates from the 1970s, into a Pilates studio with a washroom.
Proposed alterations include replacing its existing artificial roof with natural stone slates, removing a roof light and installing a glazed dormer facing away from the manor house.
The internal floor, currently described as a modern concrete slab, would be lowered to provide additional headroom. The entrance would also be relocated, windows reconfigured and new internal finishes installed.
The architects involved in the project said the workshop had little historic significance.
Separate Pavilion to House the Sauna
A neighbouring 19th-century pavilion is earmarked for the sauna. The building has rubble stone walls and a natural stone slate roof but is currently empty after previously being used for storage.
The proposed work would also include landscaping and the installation of stepped access points to accommodate the lowered floor levels of the workshop and pavilion.
In a design statement, Taylor’s representatives said the project would repurpose a relatively modern building and restore the unused pavilion, which they described as requiring urgent repair.
They also argued that the proposed changes would not damage the historic character of the wider estate.
Bat Protection Concerns Delay Planning Decision
The development has encountered an environmental issue after surveys identified three species of bat using buildings on the estate.
During a survey in June, four common pipistrelle bats were observed emerging from the stable block.
An ecological report accompanying the application states that any work affecting areas used by the protected animals would require a low-impact licence from Natural England.
Wiltshire Council’s ecologist has lodged an objection while seeking further details about the precise locations of the bats’ roosts and whether the construction work could disturb them.
No objections have been submitted by neighbours. Historic England declined to provide advice on the application, while clarifying that its decision should not be interpreted as an assessment of the proposals.
Wiltshire Council has yet to reach a decision.
Taylor’s Career With Duran Duran Spans More Than Four Decades
Taylor was among the founding members of Duran Duran when the band formed in Birmingham in 1978.
The group became one of the leading acts of the 1980s, achieving international success with songs including The Reflex, Wild Boys, Rio and A View to a Kill. Duran Duran have sold more than 100 million records worldwide.
Taylor left the band in 1997 to pursue solo music and acting projects before rejoining in 2001 when the original line-up reunited.
He has also continued performing with the group, including an appearance alongside singer Simon Le Bon in Glasgow earlier this month.
Musician Previously Opened Up About Alcohol and Cocaine Addiction
In his 2012 memoir, In the Pleasure Groove, Taylor described how the excesses of touring and his rock-star lifestyle led to alcohol and cocaine addiction.
Born Nigel John Taylor, he recalled being a relatively quiet teenager who wore glasses and enjoyed playing wargames with hand-painted model soldiers before discovering music.
He wrote that his experiences on tour in 1981 introduced him to drugs and a lifestyle that eventually became difficult to control.
Reflecting on the pressures of touring and his fear of spending nights alone in hotel rooms, he described cocaine as a way of ensuring he had company.
Taylor later said his lifestyle had brought him close to losing control of his life.
Taylor Turned to Therapy and Rehabilitation Before Getting Sober
Taylor married actress Amanda de Cadenet in 1991, when she was 19. They had a daughter together shortly afterwards.
In 1994, while attempting to save their marriage, he began attending therapy sessions in Los Angeles. The couple separated in early 1995, and Taylor subsequently entered rehabilitation.
He eventually achieved sobriety after taking time away from his career.
Taylor met Juicy Couture co-founder Gela Nash in 1996, and they married in Las Vegas in March 1999.
The couple purchased a Spanish-style villa in the Hollywood Hills shortly before their wedding for $2 million, equivalent to approximately £1.5 million at the time.
The property had four bedrooms, seven bathrooms, a library, a home gym, an outdoor kitchen, a swimming pool, a spa and an outdoor fire-pit lounge.
It remained their main residence until they decided to return to Britain last year. They subsequently sold the villa for $7.8 million, or approximately £5.6 million.
Couple Bought Historic Wiltshire Manor in 2004
Taylor and his wife purchased their Wiltshire manor house in 2004 after it was listed for sale at just under £7 million.
The property has Tudor origins, alongside significant Elizabethan and Jacobean architectural features. It served as the ancestral home of the Long family, a prominent English landowning dynasty, for several centuries before passing out of the family’s ownership in 1966.
The estate is also associated with a local story about Sir Walter Raleigh introducing tobacco to his host, Sir Walter Long. According to the legend, servants poured water over Raleigh when they saw him smoking, believing he was on fire.
The house has six main reception rooms, including a great hall, billiards room and library. Its accommodation includes seven principal bedrooms, three smaller bedrooms and a self-contained flat.
The wider estate features a tennis court, ornamental pond, five cottages, an octagonal stone summer house, a cricket ground and a kitchen garden.
After purchasing the property, the couple reportedly commissioned opera director and designer Patrick Kinmonth to create a sophisticated theatrical interior.
Gela Nash-Taylor Previously Discussed Adjusting to Country Life
When the couple first moved to the estate, Gela told Vogue magazine that its proximity to Bath was one of the main attractions.
She said she enjoyed shopping and socialising and wanted to remain close to a city with access to shops and other amenities.
More recently, she spoke about the difficulties of adapting to life in the English countryside during an interview with the Daily Mail in December.
Gela joked that she sometimes needed subtitles to understand people and said she missed Mexican food, particularly tortilla chips and salsa.
She also discussed the possibility of adopting a different accent, explaining that she admired the style of women in Manchester.
However, when she suggested to her husband that she might develop a Manchester accent, Taylor reportedly told her no.
Gela said she would probably keep her existing accent.
