The man behind chaos engulfing a once-sleepy Cotswolds village is a multi-million-pound haulage tycoon dubbed ‘Fast and Furious’, who divorced his wife before striking up a relationship with a glamorous businesswoman 23 years his junior.

Tony O’Sullivan, 53, now lives behind towering oak gates and rising anti-ram bollards at his £3.4million mansion in picturesque Ebrington, where locals say his arrival has triggered an 18-month civil war that has ripped apart a community of barely 570 people.

The Daily Mail revealed this month how the businessman is embroiled in a bitter stand-off with his new neighbours.

The wealthy father-of-three is also at the centre of a furious dispute over plans to build an extravagant pool house at his country pile – a vast, modern leisure complex featuring a 28-foot swimming pool, gym, sauna and steam room – which neighbours fear will turn their dark-skied rural haven into a glowing beacon.

Now, the Daily Mail can reveal more about the man at the heart of the extraordinary conflict in the Cotswolds.

Once nicknamed ‘Fast and Furious’ by acquaintances over his resemblance to action star Jason Statham, Mr O’Sullivan built his fortune through his haulage and plant machinery firm Messiah Corporation, supplying equipment to major construction projects across the UK.

Following the breakdown of his marriage to wife Laura – despite the couple’s lavish wedding having been catered by Michel Roux, one of Britain’s most celebrated Michelin-starred chefs – Mr O’Sullivan left the family’s palatial six-bedroom home near Ingatestone, Essex.

He later relocated to the Cotswolds, where he now lives with his new partner, Amber Coady, 30, a trained teacher who runs a pre-primary educational business.

Neighbours of tycoon Tony O’Sullivan, who lives behind towering oak gates and rising anti-ram bollards at his new mansion in picturesque Ebrington, say he is causing chaos

Mr O’Sullivan bought his mansion for £3.4million and has plans to build a pool house 

Mr O’Sullivan has now embarked on a new relationship with a woman named Amber Coady (pictured) 

Ms Coady has previously shared eye-catching images on her private Instagram account, including a picture on a boat where her modesty is concealed only by three strategically-placed heart-shaped emojis.

Mr O’Sullivan also became involved in a high-profile deal to acquire the Port of Ardersier in Scotland with a business partner, unveiling ambitious plans to transform the sprawling 450-acre site between Inverness and Nairn into a major energy-transition hub.

The port went on to secure £300million in US investment, but Mr O’Sullivan eventually parted ways with the venture.

One former associate said: ‘He was married with three kids, living in Ingatestone, but the relationship broke down.

‘He was extremely wealthy, his kids went to private school – other parents on the school run jokingly nicknamed him “Fast and Furious” because he looked like Jason Statham.

‘The relationship with Laura ended badly, he met Amber and he left Essex.

‘That was the last we heard of him – until this saga in the Cotswolds.’

After formally divorcing his wife, Mr O’Sullivan bought his million-pound mansion in Ebrington, a quintessential Cotswolds village near Chipping Campden famed for its honey-coloured stone, winding lanes and unspoilt countryside.

But neighbours insist the rural idyll has not survived his arrival.

Mr O’Sullivan is currently locked in a bitter planning battle with the council and villagers over proposals for a new luxury pool house – a structure larger than his main home.

Before moving to the Cotswolds, Mr O’Sullivan lived with his first wife Laura in this palatial six-bedroom home in Essex

Locals claim the tiny village of Ebrington has been plunged into chaos by the tycoon’s arrival 

Furious locals fear it will change the character of the village forever, flooding the countryside with artificial light.

Since buying their Cotswolds mansion, villagers say Mr O’Sullivan has also purchased surrounding land and erected nearly a mile of Cotswold stone walling, transforming the estate into what one neighbour described as ‘a private fortress’.

Trucks linked to his Romford-based company, 72 Group Ltd, now rumble through Ebrington’s narrow lanes on a near-daily basis, delivering materials for what villagers describe as an ever-expanding building project.

One local told the Daily Mail: ‘After he bought his property here, he has gone out of his way to alienate everyone living here.

‘It would be fair to say that Mr O’Sullivan is not well-liked here.

‘He has destroyed the peace and tranquility of the village with his continued development of his property. We’ve had to put up with his lorries thundering through the village to deliver building materials and the noise of building work and traffic is constant.

‘Now he wants to build a monstrous pool house which thankfully the parish council has objected to after numerous complaints from villagers.

‘He’s been busy buying up all the land around him and he’s had almost a mile of Cotswold stone walling built around everything he owns.’

The former acquaintances of Mr O’Sullivan claimed the drama playing out in Ebrington was no surprise.

They said: ‘He’s rude to everyone to the point that everywhere he goes, he has an argument – and the evidence is there with a sleepy village in the Cotswolds.’

The acquaintance insisted Mr O’Sullivan does have business ability, describing him as ‘extremely knowledgeable’ and ‘worldly’, and someone who ‘does know how to get a few quid’.

The businessman has a huge collection of sports cars and has been nicknamed ‘Fast and Furious’ by some 

Ms Coady also has hobbies and cares for a herd of donkeys in the gardens

 But they added: ‘If he was a bit more decent and well mannered, I think he could have made a good business. But he’s fallen out with everyone. He has got some qualities, but he’s just not a nice person.

‘He’s got the world at his feet and just absolutely demolishes every relationship and prospect wherever he goes.’

Parish councillors objected to the proposed pool house, raising concerns about light pollution in an area valued for its dark skies.

Planning officers later refused the application, concluding that light glow from the proposed development ‘would fail to conserve and enhance the character or special qualities of the landscape’.

They also warned that the design would contribute to ‘additional suburbanisation of the landscape’ and the gradual erosion of the area’s rural character.

Mr O’Sullivan has appealed the decision, with agents arguing the pool house was modest in scale and designed to resemble an agricultural building.

At the entrance to his drive sit huge solid-oak double gates guarded by electronically operated rising bollards, behind which are parked Range Rovers, Land Rover Defenders and a silver Porsche.

‘It makes you wonder who he’s so scared of,’ one villager suggested.

Locals claim that Mr O’Sullivan has installed huge oak gates to keep everyone in the village away 

His plans have been criticised by the parish council and his neighbours 

Several months ago, it is claimed Mr O’Sullivan further antagonised locals when he threw a noisy 30th birthday party for his girlfriend – with neighbours saying the lights disrupted the night sky 

The couple also enraged villagers last year when a lavish 30th birthday party was thrown for Ms Coady, featuring laser beams cutting through the night sky, fireworks and DJs blasting music into the early hours.

One villager wrote on the community Facebook page that they felt like they had been ‘back in Ibiza’.

Ms Coady hit back – telling aggrieved locals to ‘jog on’.

She posted: ‘Funny how some people have a lot to say about one birthday party…but I’d genuinely love to know what you were all doing at your 30th?

‘If someone goes out of their way to plan something special for me, it’s not because we’re “rich”, it’s because of years of hard work, commitment and making sacrifices to actually enjoy moments like these.

‘It was ONE night, not every night. A once-in-a-lifetime celebration. If that offends you…maybe take a breath and remember it’s not your life, not your relationship, not your 30th.

‘So, kindly, jog on.’

She added: ‘Does anyone want a pre-warning of what we’re doing today, since apparently we all have to give notice of anything we do?’

But the comments section quickly descended into a heated row.

One local mother accused the couple of ‘taking the p***’ claiming the ‘midnight’ fireworks ‘terrified’ her four-month-old baby.

Ms Coady responded that the fireworks had been a surprise and lasted just minutes.

Ms Coady defended her birthday bash claiming that the fireworks had been a surprise and lasted just minutes

When the Daily Mail visited the village this month, tensions were as high as they had ever been 

Mr O’Sullivan intends to push his plans through despite the heavy opposition 

She said: ‘The fireworks were actually a surprise for me, so of course Tony didn’t post about them beforehand — that would have completely ruined it.

‘They lasted around 4 minutes in total, not exactly an all-night event.

‘I completely understand babies and pets can find loud noises unsettling, but one short display for a milestone birthday isn’t “taking the p***”.’

Mr O’Sullivan later entered the row, writing: ‘I’m sure the baby is fine – terrified I think is a slight over reaction.’

When the Daily Mail visited the village this month, tensions between neighbours remained high.

One resident told the Daily Mail: ‘Tony is a point of discussion in the village. Many people think he’s completely thoughtless and very self-centred. It’s a massive shame for our community.’

Another described him as ‘an incredibly entitled individual and it’s such a shame for such a lovely village’.

To those who knew him back in Essex, it was simply Tony O’Sullivan being Tony O’Sullivan.

‘Everybody says money changes people,’ said the source. ‘But it doesn’t – it just amplifies who you are.’