Humewood Castle bought by John Malone

Billionaire US businessman John Malone has emerged as the mystery buyer of Humewood Castle in Co Wicklow.

Mr Malone, who is the largest landowner in the US with 2.2 million acres, paid €7.225 million for the stately home and its 427-acre estate.

It is understood that he plans to refurbish the property, which has 15 en-suite bedrooms and covers 38,000sq ft.

The estate includes woods, private lakes and stables, along with three staff cottages and three gate lodges

Mr Malone, who has family roots in Cork, is chairman of Liberty Global, a listed company in the US with cable TV and telecoms investments across the world.

In Ireland, the company owns cable TV and broadband provider UPC. It has invested more than €1 billion in the market here.

Mr Malone was born in 1941 in Connecticut. He is now reputedly worth $5.6 billion (€4.2 billion).

He has picked up Humewood for a snip compared to the €25 million paid by John Lally’s Lalco Holdings to German businesswoman Renata Coleman in 2006. This made it the most expensive country house sale in Ireland at the time. Lalco had planned a €250 million luxury golf development for Humewood but the plan was later abandoned.