'I think it's beautiful!' Homeowner reported to council after erecting section of Berlin Wall in his garden

A south London homeowner has been reported to his local council after installing a 3.6-metre section of the Berlin Wall in his back garden.

Steven Thorpe, 65, transported the 2.6-tonne concrete slab to his Herne Hill home earlier this year.

The historic structure features graffiti reading "f**k cops" and "Crime signs of Europe".

Neighbours have now lodged complaints with the council about what they claim are unauthorised building works.

One anonymous complainant told The Telegraph: "It is quite ugly, it's an eyesore. We're a bit up in arms about it. It is a slab of concrete that has been pulled out of a dump."

Mr Thorpe witnessed the Berlin Wall's collapse firsthand during a 1989 rugby tour with the Clifton Rats, when they played against the British Army team.

He told The Telegraph: "We were there when the wall came down. It was amazing, it was enormous – the biggest event in my lifetime.

"The wall had significance for me. People were knocking chunks off and taking them home in their hand luggage."

Born in 1961, the same year the wall was erected, Mr Thorpe discovered sections were available through his friend James Hervey-Bathurst.

The pair visited farmer Peter Clausen in Siggelkow, Germany last February - where hundreds of wall sections were stored.

Mr Thorpe said he was unaware the structure required planning permission, considering it a piece of art.

A neighbour visited on the night he installed it, demanding he move it because it was ruining their view.

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The wall was erected on February 10 and buried slightly to reduce its height to 3.1 metres.

Mr Thorpe planted trees around the slab, hoping to block his neighbours' sightlines.

But after warning letters about the unlicensed structure, he submitted a retrospective planning application.

A council officer is scheduled to inspect the property on July 15.

He told The Telegraph: "I really don't want to move it."

Mr Hervey-Bathurst, who owns the Eastnor Estate, bought his own section and installed it at Eastnor Deer Park near Ledbury in Herefordshire.

He told the BBC in December: "I was fascinated to learn that original sections of the wall were still available. Seeing them first-hand made me determined to bring one here, where it could be experienced by the public."

He added: "I hope older visitors will appreciate what a serious and imposing barrier it truly was, and that it will introduce schoolchildren to such an important chapter in European history."

A Southwark Council spokesman said: "We have received a planning complaint about a section of wall installed in Dulwich. We will investigate the complaint and take any appropriate action in line with the national planning process."

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