AC/DC star's mega-mansion

AC/DC guitarist Angus Young's latest deed is far from dirt cheap, but it's a long way to the top.

The reclusive rock legend is spending millions of dollars to build a towering mansion in a sleepy Dutch town.

The controversial three-storey home boasts a basement recording studio, his-and-hers bathrooms and a swag of guest rooms.

A vast back yard offers plenty of space for Young to hang his trademark schoolboy uniforms out to dry.

The property is the talk of Aalten, which has a population of 12,000.

Locals are aghast that the energetic wild man of rock's on-stage theatrics have spilled into a showy display that they say is out of keeping with the town's modest houses.

Young has a long-standing connection with Aalten, the home town of Ellen, his wife of more than 25 years. The guitar god's in-laws run the local blacksmith business.

Young recently made an appearance on the Netherlands' "rich list'' for the first time, with Quote 500 researchers estimating his fortune at $125 million.

Ellen Young is understood to have worked with a leading architect to design the multi-million-dollar mansion, and is closely overseeing the building and decorating work.

The couple have a small house diagonally opposite the building site, and when The Sunday Telegraph visited, Mrs Young was spotted crossing the road every couple of hours to check on its progress.

"I don't want to talk to you about it,'' she said. "My husband is very private, and this is nothing to do with you.''

Neighbours who made a fuss about the house to a Dutch newspaper were asked by the Youngs to keep quiet in future.

"It's a big house in a little town,'' one woman said. "It stands out. Look at it, and you see it doesn't fit.

"Angus doesn't want to stand out. He is shy, and no one really knows him. Why build something like that?''

Albert Linden was one of the few people prepared to voice their concerns publicly. "It's a nice house, but a big house,'' Mr Linden said.

"It's in the middle of other buildings, and it's not like those other buildings.

"Outside the village would be a better spot for something that size.''

Politician Jan van Duijvenvoorde said the committee that approved the massive building had not seen the need for much debate.

"On the drawings, it didn't look that big,'' Mr van Duijvenvoorde said.

Neighbour Jolanda Assink said Mrs Young had invited her inside the unfinished home.
"It's very large but nice,'' she said of the interior.

"She helped design it. It has a bathroom for her and a bathroom for him next to the main bedroom. And the kitchen is very big - a good place for entertaining.

"They are good neighbours. I don't see him much, but she is friendly with my children.''

Resident Nicole Wubbels said she thought the new addition to Aalten's skyline was "beautiful''.