HARRY Redknapp has been given the go-ahead to upgrade his 'Italian villa' in Sandbanks.

The former football manager, famously crowned king of the jungle, and his wife, Sandra, received approval in September 2023 to demolish their previous property and construct a five-bedroom luxury villa overlooking Poole Harbour.

The original building has already been demolished, but the Redknapp's opted to revise their plans midway through construction.

Modifications include adding three arch windows on the ground floor sun terrace to enhance sea views.

Located in Panorama Road, the villa overlooks Brownsea Island nature reserve. 

The adjustments will open up these views from the property's open-plan kitchen and dining area.

(Image: PA)

According to the Daily Mail, developers were so confident the revisions would be approved they began constructing the 15-foot archway for the double doors before the official sign-off.

The white-rendered villa, with its Palladian-style columns and four balconies, is already taking shape as construction progresses.

Once completed, it will resemble the classic properties around Lake Como, Italy, rather than the modern, flat-roofed mansions typical of Sandbanks.

The villa will include a grand entrance hall, an open-plan living, kitchen, and dining area, two reception rooms, a study, a boot room, and five en suite bedrooms.

The double garage will provide a gym space, a new boathouse will be built at the garden's edge, and a jetty offering direct access to Poole Harbour.

Planning officers have stipulated that the flat roof of the boathouse cannot be used as a rooftop garden.

Experts estimate the new home will be worth around £12 million.

It will be the third property the Redknapp's have owned on the Sandbanks peninsula.

Their first home was a mock Tudor mansion, where they lived for 12 years before selling it in 2013 for £10 million. They then moved to a modern home on Sandbanks beach but sold it due to privacy concerns with onlookers.

Currently, the couple reside in a mansion a mile inland in Branksome Park but are said to have missed living by the sea.