Reality TV star falls prey to falcon-breeding neighbours

A REALITY TV star has been handed a £250,000 court bill after losing a fight with bird-breeding neighbours who claimed his noisy building work killed their prize falcons.

- Paul Keogh

Former London art dealer Barnes Thomas, 29, appeared as a contestant on Bear Grylls' survival skills show The Island in 2018 before setting himself up as a farmer in St Just, Cornwall.

Mr Thomas who described himself as maybe "the most hated man" in the village soon found himself locked in a "bitter" row with birds-of-prey breeder Martin Nicholas 32, and his brother Scott, 31.

Although they got on well initially, the three fell out, with the brothers accusing Mr Thomas of causing so much noise on his land that it killed three valuable falcons one of them a race-winner worth £150,000.