Reality television personality Billie Faiers has offered her social media followers an exclusive glimpse into the latest luxurious addition to her sprawling £1.4 million Essex residence: a lavish, neon-illuminated cocktail bar. The 36-year-old star, known for her appearances on popular reality shows, is putting the finishing touches on her family home after facing numerous delays and exhaustive planning disputes with neighbours in the affluent Brentwood area.
A Spacious Entertainment Hub
Faiers wasted no time in showcasing the spacious bar room she shares with her husband, Greg Shepherd, designed specifically for entertaining their many house guests. In a recent Instagram post, she revealed the curved bar stocked with bottles of her husband's favourite tequila, alongside refrigerators filled with various beverages and a set of newly installed swivel stools.
The centrepiece of the room is a distinctive pink neon banner bearing the playful message: 'A little party never killed nobody.' This vibrant sign serves as a focal point directly above the bar, creating an inviting atmosphere for social gatherings.
Unexpected Main Feature
Beyond the bar, the comfortable space includes a full-sized snooker table, which Faiers described as 'the main feature' of the room. She admitted that her husband was initially reluctant to purchase the table, but has since come to appreciate its popularity among guests.
'When we have friends over, everyone's always using it and playing on it,' she explained. 'So I'm glad we went for it.'
Personal Touches and Garden Views
Adding a personal touch to the space, Faiers has displayed a framed artwork inherited from her late grandparents and gifted by her mother. The piece depicts what appears to be a crowded ballroom scene, which she finds particularly captivating.
'I feel like it's such an interesting picture,' she said. 'Whenever anyone comes in here, the first thing they walk over to is this. I love it and I feel like it really goes with the vibe in here.'
Floor-to-ceiling patio doors complete the room, offering stunning views across a neatly manicured garden. Faiers highlighted how these doors enhance the entertainment potential of the space: 'In the summer, we just push these doors back, and everyone can come in and out and help themselves to drinks.'
Renovation Challenges and Neighbour Disputes
The couple began renovating their family home in 2021, but the project has been marred by ongoing disputes with disgruntled neighbours even before they moved in. Their relationship with residents in leafy Brentwood became so strained that they reportedly spent £20,000 on laurel trees to maintain privacy.
These trees, which conveniently grow between 15 and 35 feet tall, were purchased at £240 each specifically to keep eavesdroppers away from their property. The planning disagreements reached such intensity that one neighbour expressed concerns to the local council about the scale of the renovations.
'I give my response to the amended drawings for the above property which, whilst I would have liked to have had similar window treatment to bedroom 4 as that of bedroom 2, I find to be acceptable in principle,' a neighbour stated. They went on to claim they would 'give their support' only if the house would 'fit the character of the area,' noting it would become the largest property on the street.
Planning Permission Struggles
In 2020, Faiers confirmed she was no longer speaking to her neighbours after they opposed the couple's plans to demolish the original rundown house and replace it with a five-bedroom palace. Following her successful acquisition of planning permission the following year, she expressed frustration about the situation.
'We've not seen anyone,' she said. 'But it's just not a great start, is it?'
She defended the renovation plans by explaining: 'The house is so old, whoever was going to buy it was going to have to renovate. There's only one neighbour to the side of us and he had a lot of reasons as to why he didn't want us to go ahead, but it was getting a bit silly in the end.'
Reflections on the Renovation Journey
Faiers admitted that the renovation process has been more challenging than anticipated, describing it as 'a very long journey' that was about to become even more pressurised once builders began work. She revealed that she might have reconsidered purchasing the property had she been aware of the 'headache' it would cause.
'Now someone else has also said to us that we should probably think about knocking the house down and start all over again it's just becoming one thing after another,' she said. 'We're nearly a year in now. It would have been nice to know that like six to eight months ago because if we are going to knock the house down it means we're going to have to reapply for planning permission and start this process all over again.'
Despite the challenges, Faiers maintains she doesn't regret buying the house, though she acknowledged: 'If I had known it would have taken this like, like over a year to get to find a builder, I probably wouldn't have done it because I just was so unaware of how long things take.'
The completion of the neon-lit cocktail bar represents a significant milestone in this extensive renovation project, offering the couple a sophisticated space for entertainment despite the neighbour disputes that have characterised their home improvement journey.
