MEET THE REAL GYPSY KING

From Tarmacking drives to driving a Rolls-Royce, why static caravan billionaire Alfie Best's rags-to-riches story is giving pop queen Taylor Swift a run for her money

- Laurie Stone

GYPSY billionaire business king Alfie Best has almost overtaken Taylor Swift in the Amazon Prime Video charts. An award-winning documentary on his rise from being born in a caravan in a roadside layby on the outskirts of Leicester to running Europe's biggest portfolio of residential mobile park homes is trending second to superstar Swift's Eras tour video.

"I actually can't believe it," says 53-year-old Alfie. "But Gypsy Billionaire has got that feel-good factor that we all need nowadays. I know that thanks to Cher's famous song, Gypsies, Tramps & Thieves, the perception of gypsies is that they are all liars, tramps and thieves. But we are born where we are in life and then we have to go and move on from there. For me, I am a gypsy.

"Just because a cow is born in a stable, it doesn't make it a horse.

He adds: "I was inspired by the first gypsy to own a Rolls-Royce. I thought if he could do it, so could I. I firmly believe anyone can achieve their goals. The need to survive and thrive was ingrained in me."

That will to survive and succeed means entrepreneur Alfie's Wyldecrest Parks company now owns 119 residential and holiday parks, plus a string of luxury villas in Barbados. And he says the formula for his static homes can definitely work in America and be replicated in other countries around the world.

Speaking exclusively to the Daily Express, he says: "It is the answer to affordable housing and allows homeowners to release equity in their properties, downsize to a park home, and live a rewarding retirement."