The Dublin property market is still fixated on the question of who bought the £5.9 million Sorrento House in Dalkey. Selling agents Lisney are under intense pressure to reveal the buyer's identity, but they are determined to stand firm. They will say, however, who hasn't bought the Victorian semidetached house - and top of the list is film star Jack Nicholson, who was named in weekend reports.
"Jack Nicholson did not buy the house," said Tom Day, who handled the auction last Tuesday. "He did not even view it, and neither did the other fellow," he said.
The "other fellow" is singer George Michael who, according to one Sunday newspaper, was the underbidder for the property.
However, according to one source close to the sale, the new owner is not a star and not a household name. "People are unlikely to know him and his name is certainly not in the papers all the time," he said. This rules out all the celebrities who have been mentioned as possible candidates. Dancer Michael Flatley was a prime candidate and did in fact view the house. However, he was not the buyer, said Mr Day.
Flatley's name has been associated with most high-profile house sales in the Dalkey/Killiney area in recent years, as has that of racing driver Eddie Irvine, who lives in a cottage nearby. He also viewed Sorrento House, but did not buy it.
Other "usual suspects" in the celebrity property market include Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, Marlon Brando, Michael Douglas, Pierce Brosnan, Elizabeth Hurley, Madonna, Cher and Barbra Streisand. The Sorrento House sale has shaken the Dublin chattering classes. While there have been several million-pound sales in the last two or three years, the record of £5.9 million is proving hard to swallow.
The idea that the buyer could be Irish is electrifying. Who could have that sort of money to spare? The hunt for clues goes on, but it is unlikely that the buyer will be known before the deal is signed and sealed.
