Millionaire houseboat tycoon, 60, faces losing his £3m Swiss Chalet in Surrey

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A houseboat tycoon who chased after a tenant with a roofer’s tool shouting: ‘I’ll break your head’ faces losing his £3 million Grade II listed Swiss Chalet and business, a court heard on Thursday.

Millionaire Myck Djurberg, 60, was in dispute with Klaus Beversluis, 52, over the rental at the Hampton Riviera Boat Yard in Richmond.

Mr Beversluis had rented mooring space for five years before Djurberg demanded more cash for ‘additional and unwarranted’ charges.

The landlord was said to have assaulted his disgruntled tenant after he went to the office to discuss the surprise charges on 8 May last year.

Djurgerg was convicted of hitting his tenant in the back of the head with orange and khaki gardening gloves, shouting ‘I’ll break your f****** head’ and brandishing a lead dresser.

He failed to attend his trial at Wimbledon Magistrates’ Court in February and was convicted in his absence. 

Djurberg now faces the prospect of losing the Grade II listed Swiss Chalet Djurberg calls home at the Hampton Court Riviera, Hampton Court Road, Molesey, Surrey, has been on the market and was listed at £2,850,000, in 2019.

It was imported from Switzerland in 1882 and features an indoor real-sand beach, cinema, library, 24-carat gold bathroom and a spa. 

From the outside it looks like a quirky old-fashioned property, but inside it’s an ultimate luxury home with a heated indoor beach, gold-covered bathroom and £500,000 kitchen.  

Djurberg, now applying for Universal Credit, appeared in court on Thursday wearing an orange Ralph Lauren cable-knit jumper, patterned scarf and blue jeans.

Magistrate Mandy Lamplough handed him a 12-month community order.

Djurberg bowed his head as she told him: ‘You were not at the trial and you have said today that you are sad your story was not heard but you could have attended.

‘The CCTV footage clearly showed aggression and shouting. You used some pretty unpleasant and aggressive words. You are applying for Universal Credit so we are reducing the trial costs you have to pay.’

Mr Beversluis said in an impact statement: ‘I am shaken and scared. We are moving for our business because of him. I was upset I was hit to the back of my head. He keeps saying he will sink out boats. I have to sleep on my boats to protect them.’

Oluwakemi Rufai, defending Djurberg, said: ‘He has not been able to give his version of events but he accepts the court findings. His property is about to be repossessed.

‘His business is about to fold. This is a man completely on the brink. He borrowed £5,000 from a bank with a view to paying any financial penalty he gets here today.

‘He has got no savings. He has applied for universal credit.’

Mr Beversluis asked the court to issue a restraining order, but Ms Rufai protested it would mean her client would be unable to with an upcoming claim in the civil court.

She said: ‘The complainant owes him £2,700 of unpaid rent. Neither side are represented so they have to be able to contact each other.’

Magistrate Lamplough did not grant the request for a restraining order ‘because there was no physical injury even though it was likely to cause the complainant to fear for his safety’.

She also noted that despite Djurberg’s pending appeal against the assault conviction he has said he ‘understood the consequences of your actions and admitted guilt’.

Djurberg denied but was convicted of assault by beating and using threatening words and behaviour with the intent to cause fear or provoke unlawful violence and was handed a 12-month community order and ordered to pay costs of £345. 

A video of the incident was recorded using a clip-on camera worn by Mr Beversluis as he approached Djurberg in his office, before being attacked.    

In 2016, the chalet in East Molesey was on the market for £7.5million plus £5.5million for the marina operation.

The Chalet Estate on the River Thames, next to Hampton Court Palace, is ideal for a wealthy party animal. It was imported from Switzerland in 1882 and was once a garden feature for a huge house called Riverholm.

It was used as the boathouse with Riverholm until 1996 – but had fallen into disrepair before Djurberg bought it in 2012 and got permission to raise the building off the flood plain in 2014. 

Looking around his five-floor party palace, one of the stand-out features is the 70ft man-made beach with 40 tonnes of sand that has underfloor heating to recreate the temperature of being on a sunny beach.

The 8,000 sq ft property features four bedrooms – one of which has a whole floor to itself – and is surrounded by acres of protected parkland. It also has a state-of-the art kitchen that has five Gaggenau fridges.

The bathroom has two £9,000 copper baths and £18,000 basins made in Italy with marble and 24-karat gold leaf. 

The house, which is a short walk from the Palace, also has more than 600ft of mooring for up to 25 boats and parking for around 20 cars – which would provide opportunities for private parties.

Inside is a lush oriental garden with a grated metal floor with a Koi carp pond underneath.

A bridge allows you to see down to the beach party room with a bar, pool table, wine cellar for 1,600 bottles and a stage area.

Behind the bar is a secret door to a cinema room and there is an old submarine door that leads to the spa complex with a gym, sauna, steam room and pool.

In the dining room there is an £80,000 table, encrusted with Swarovski crystals, that seats 18 people, with designer leather chairs. There also is a Swarovski crystal glass door between the dining area and kitchen.

The room is decorated with four original Battle of Waterloo cannons bought at auction for £7,000 each and lampshades made from £4,000 antique Indian saris.

Two of the guest bedrooms are designed around a Japanese theme, with ‘pod’ style beds which have a massage system in them and a built in TV and computer. The house has a surround sound system running through it.

There was a story that the land the chalet was built on was bequeathed by the Prince of Wales – later Edward VII – in payment for a gambling debt, but those with knowledge of the property say this seems unlikely. 

However, by 1909 it was called O’Hagan’s Boathouse, and Edward had a Lord-in-Waiting called Maurice Herbert Towneley-O’Hagan, 3rd Baron O’Hagan – so it is possible that the legend is at least partly true.

It is also believed that Baron O’Hagan was imitating the Swiss chalet built as a playhouse at Osborne House in East Cowes on the Isle of Wight for Victoria and Albert’s children in 1854.

Speaking about the house in the past, Mr Djurberg said: ‘The inside of the building looked like council flats when I bought it, it was a total war zone. I’m not what you would call an ordinary architect and I wanted to preserve this special building.

‘I think of myself as the custodian of this masterpiece. It’s an 1880s building and was a house for entertaining. It’s a really gorgeous property but it took me four years to renovate it. This building is one of those real one-offs.

‘I wanted to retain that sense of an entertaining house. It’s perfect for big parties – we had 120 people here last week. It’s got 360-degree views of the river and the park so I wanted to reflect how special it is inside and create something lavish. I decided to make it as grand as possible.

‘The kitchen cost £500,000 alone, the gold basins in the master bedroom en suite were £18,000 each and the baths £9,000 each. From the bathroom you get the most beautiful view out but no one can see in. I designed the bed in the master bedroom myself and the Japanese wallpaper is £900 for 4 metres.

‘The dining room table cost £80,000 and has Swarovski crystals throughout it. In total I’ve spent £3.3million on the building itself and another £1.4million on the grounds, but I just had to do it justice. I don’t think it will be for people to live in all the time, it’ll be for someone to show off and have parties.’