The FINANCIAL -- Former Judas Priest guitarist KK Downing intends to build a luxury country house hotel in the grounds of his Shropshire estate.

According to Caterer and Hotelkeeper, the multimillion-pound plans outline the development of a 63-bedroom hotel with an indoor swimming pool, spa and restaurant at the 320-acre Astbury Hall estate, near Bridgnorth. It also includes the building of a clubhouse for the estate's golf course, which Downing designed himself and opened in 2010.

Downing, who was born in West Bromwich, said that he intended the hotel and leisure facilities to compete with the best in the world.

He told the local newspaper, the Shropshire Star, that he had the vision for creating something special and would bring in professionals to run the operation.

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