Cate Blanchett in noise row over house in Cornwall

The 54-year-old Lord of the Rings star and her playwright husband Andrew Upton, 57, bought a £1.6 million cottage in Mawgan Porth four years ago and have since demolished the original structure to replace it with a five-bedroom eco-home.

But the ongoing renovations have upset some of her new neighbours, who have spoken out after a new application for 'ground works' was submitted, to allow car parking on an existing green meadow.

Among them is holiday let owner Karen Burgess, who claimed there had been a “disregard” over the noise and that it had affected her business.

She added: “We thought [Blanchett's property] work was finally over and now there is a new application for ground works. This work should NOT be permitted during the holiday season.

“My property is one of many holiday properties and hotels in the bay. I expect the council to severely restrict the days in which this work can take place, if indeed it is ever approved."

Cate Blanchett bought the property with her husband Andrew Upton (Image: Paul Davey / SWNS)

However, hitting back at Ms Burgess’s objections, Watershedd, the architect behind the build, claimed it was a case of mistaken identity and the noise was coming from another property.

They said: "She cannot be referring to our clients’ property where there were no noisy works during the peak holiday period last year. Once again, our clients’ property has been mistaken for other works going on in Mawgan Porth.

"Throughout the whole process of the build on our clients’ property, we have been in regular communication with friendly and accommodating neighbours to ensure that they are aware of works starting, and to alleviate any concerns regarding usual or anticipated construction noise or disturbances.

"Our contractor is always on hand to speak to people in the local community where they might have questions about the building process."

The house in the wider context of the landscape and neighbours (Image: Daniel Dayment / SWNS)

Planning permission to build the home was granted by Cornwall Council in September 2022, but an additional application from Situ8, acting on behalf of the owners was submitted in November last year.

They have now applied to make changes to an additional plot of land, purchased by the couple in 2021.

The couple want to develop a small part of that land to provide a new entrance to their new home with car parking.

Another neighbour wrote as part of the planning process: "It is one thing to allow temporary access and quite another to allow this to become a permanent scar on the landscape.

“This application should be rejected, the importance of green spaces emphasised and the land restored to its original condition once building is complete."

Situ8 responded and described the loss of green space as "minimal" and said its client intends to maintain the rest of the meadow - around 86 per cent of it.

It said the new access was also "vital for the property."

They said: "The proposed parking area would be tucked into the edge of the site and would not encroach into the open area of the meadow.

"The rising ground of the meadow is not affected in any way by the proposals, and it is only the higher areas of the meadow that are seen from other properties and public roads - not the level area of the proposals."

Blanchett was also recently given the go-ahead to build 90 solar panels to power her £5m mansion in East Sussex, after applying to install a solar panel array and extend the plant room in the 13-acre grounds of Highwell House.

The actress bought the home in 2015 after it had been abandoned for more than a decade, having once been home to Sherlock Holmes creator Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Doctor Who actor Tom Baker.

It has since undergone major refurbishment. Her plans to build an outdoor pool were approved in March last year, while in 2021 she was also given the go-ahead to build a home office/studio and gallery in the garden.

The latest application for the Mawgan Porth property will be ruled on by Cornwall Council at a later date.