George Clooney's Sonning garden flooded - Telegraph

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George Clooney's Berkshire garden flooded due to high tides of nearby River Thames

Flood-swollen river bursts its banks and sends water gushing into Hollywood star's garden in Sonning-on-Thames, Berkshire

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George Clooney's builders were battening down the hatches as the River Thames burst its bank allowing a surge of floodwater to gush into his garden Photo: Vagner Vidal/Copyright INS News Agency



By Agency
12:24PM GMT 13 Jan 2016

The River Thames burst its banks, sending floodwater cascading into the grounds of George Clooney's new mansion and threatening to encroach on the £10 million home that has just had a major renovation completed.
Other homes in Sonning-on-Thames, Berkshire, were also under threat as the flood-swoollen river topped its banks and the Environment Agency warned issued a flood warning for the village.
Clooney, the 54-year-old Ocean's Eleven star, and his barrister wife, Amal, live in a 17th Century Grade II listed mansion on the banks of the Thames in Sonning.
Following recent repeated deluges of heavy rain in the south of the UK, the water levels of the River Thames have risen dramatically and have gushed into the film star's garden - just yards from his front door.
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Clooney, pictured with his wife Amal, will meet staff at the Social Bite, who employ former homeless people and pass on profits to charity 

The Environment Agency warned that the picturesque stretch of river running from Mapledurham to Sonning was likely to burst its banks and flood low-lying areas throughout the day.
An Environment Agency spokesman said: "Levels on the River Thames at Reading have risen in response to recent rain.
Showers on Monday may lead to flood water flowing out into low lying areas today."
The Environment Agency has released an image of the areas at risk to flooding.

The Thames-side Clooney mansion sits on an island in the river.
Building work at Aberlash house was mostly completed following renovations carried out to piece together a new pool house, but the remaining workers had to pack a set of wellies as a second massive pool was forming and deepening in the flat garden.
The slowly-rising flood, which is still free-flowing as more water pours in, can be viewed through gaps in the fenceline perimeter of the property from a public footpath running alongside the River Thames.
The flooded area is already larger than the house itself and covers a large patch towards the edge of the front garden, but has not yet reached the house.
From the air, it can be viewed in comparison to Clooney's newly-fitted outdoor swimming pool and is significantly bigger, swallowing the comparatively tiny leisure pond.
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George Clooney's house in Sonning-on-Thames before the water levels had risen 

The French Horn restaurant, on the opposite side of the river to the Clooney house, has river access steps where customers visiting by boat can moor and walk up to the garden.
However, the water levels had risen so much on Wednesday that the river waters were lapping against the top step ready to spill onto the garden.
Two years ago, the Thames flooded and cut off some of the surrounding villages, including Caversham and Sonning, as the Sonning Bridge was shut due to flood damage in February 2014.
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George Clooney and Amal Clooney seen out in Manhattan, New York 

The Clooneys moved in just months later, but were yet to experience the true ferocity of their neighbouring river.
Clooney hit the headlines recently after neighbours of his country manor spoke of their outrage at the noisy construction work taking place at the house as part of a project to install CCTV cameras and to build a cinema room and pool house.


Clooney and his wife bought their mansion in October 2014 after tying the knot in a star-studded ceremony in Venice.
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The nine-bedroom listed building sits on a green patch of land straddling the Berkshire and Oxfordshire border in the picturesque quietude of the River Thames.
Set in four acres on the outskirts of the village of Sonning, the Clooneys' neighbours include Home Secretary Theresa May and Led Zeppelin founding member and guitarist Jimmy Page.