Secret millionaire's island for sale
After a €9 million transformation, a Mayo island, which belonged to businessman Nadim Sadek, is being sold by the receivers
WITH THE chill winds of recession sweeping across the land, who wouldn’t like an island of their own as a safe haven from the woes of the world? Well one of the myriad islands in Clew Bay, Co Mayo, is up for sale. It’s called Inish Turk Beg (to distinguish it from the bigger Inish Turk further out in the Atlantic) and the asking price is €2.85 million.The sale of the island is being conducted jointly by Knight Frank and Sherry FitzGerald in association with Christie’s International Real Estate.
The property is in receivership and can be considered a bargain because over the past few years €9 million has been spent on transforming the entire island into a very special residential retreat.
The transformation was carried out by Nadim Sadek, an Irish-Egyptian businessman who 10 years ago set aside his incredibly successful international market research business and arrived at Clew Bay intent on buying his very own island in pursuit of a better life.
He was not the first to fall under the spell of that wild and wonderful seascape beneath the slopes of Croagh Patrick. The patron saint climbed the mountain, Danish pirates held sway in the bay at one time, and Granuaile ruled its waves with buccaneering panache in the 16th century. In modern times, the Beatles bought one of the islands.
Sadek chose Inish Turk Beg, the name of which means “the little island of the wild boar”. It covers some 65 acres deep inside the mouth of the bay and is a five-minute power-boat ride from the shore. He immediately set about transforming it into a sanctuary where people could hide away and immerse themselves in a calming atmosphere.
It took him five years to implement the master plan that would make his utopian dream a reality. Sadek, a man of creative impulse, indulged in other activities on his island including the formation of a trad band, the development of a rarefied single malt whiskey, the organisation of painting and other artistic sessions, and the setting up of a stud for Connemara ponies near the mainland jetty.
With all the building materials having to be transported from the mainland and electricity carried on underwater cables, the completion of the project was a logistical feat resulting in one of the finest residential and holiday developments to come on any market.
It is believed that Sadek, who took part in the RTÉ reality TV programme The Secret Millionaire last year, is now living in London.
There are five houses on the island including a magnificent main residence. There are also reception and craft centres, a pier, a separate floating jetty, an all-weather football/basketball complex, facilities for a home cinema, a gym and games complex, a large indoor heated swimming pool and an outdoor sound system.
The main residence is an imaginatively designed contemporary two-storey house with six bedrooms, a number of spacious reception rooms and a music hall.
The manager’s house – the original cottage of the island – is a spacious two-storey structure with three bedrooms and three reception rooms, overlooking the original pier.
Also available to purchase, under separate negotiation, is Stud Cottage, located on the mainland by the Inish Turk Beg floating jetty at Rosstoughy Harbour, an inlet of Clew Bay. Stud Cottage is a large, modern home with four bedrooms and spacious living accommodation. It is set on about 25 acres overlooking the harbour.
