Dragons' Den star sues architects over her £2.5m mansion after state-of-the-art dream home was built full of snags and remains unfinished three years later

A former Dragon's' Den winner is suing architects after her £2.5m dream home turned into a nightmare.

Sharon Wright, 55, claims delays to her luxury state-of-the-art pad have cause spiraling bills and left her and her husband under enormous stress, according to legal papers.

Now, she and husband John Ross, 59, are claiming £547,736 from the architectural firm who designed the property after suffering repeated setbacks in their new home - which remains unfinished after three years.

She and her disabled husband John spent £1m building their new pad near the picturesque village of Alkborough, Scunthorpe, after buying an existing house for £625,000 and demolishing it.

The finished home will be worth £2.5m when completed.

In the meantime, wires remain hanging from unplastered walls and ceilings, a glass balustrade for the stairs and a lift - necessary for John to get to the first floor have still to be installed.

The venture has suffered a catalogue of setbacks and left the couple suffering from severe psychological and mental distress, as well as anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and pain, according to documents filed at the High Court in London.

The grandparents have now taken legal action and are suing Den Architecture Ltd, Horsforth, Leeds, West Yorkshire, for £547,736 as well as damages for pain and suffering.

Mrs Wright appeared on Dragon's Den in 2009, winning an investment of £80,000 from dragons James Caan and Duncan Bannatyne for her invention of the Magnamole, a plastic rod used for taking cables through walls without fear of electrocution.

But she later slammed Mr Caan, saying that the promised investment turned out to be a loan of £22,600 and that she lost control of her company, Talpa Products, and turned to inspirational speaking and podcasts, and became the author of Mothers of Invention.

The couple bought the house in October 2021. Yet, the impressive structure with panoramic views over the Alkborough Flats and confluence of the Trent and Ouse rivers remains unfinished.

A source told MailOnline: 'Things started to go wrong from the original planning application and had slowly but surely gone from bad to worse.

'They say they are now well over half a million pounds out of pocket, taking no account of the damage to their mental health and well being.'

Mrs Wright, a motivational speaker, accuses the architects of breach of contract, and says they failed to meet the required professional standards, leading to significant design defects, delays, increased costs, and severe personal distress.

Initial drawings were rejected by local planners, leading to a delay of up to 57 days, she says, and design and construction information provided was not to an acceptable standard.

Drawings for panels showed incorrect heights, leading to a loss of more than £72,000, the roof design was flawed because of lack of ventilation, and a reasonably competent architect would have known that the design for a cold roof was not viable, it is alleged.

Mrs Wright, who suffers from ADHD, also says that external glazing was in the wrong place, drawings for frameless glass balustrades were inappropriate to withstand the forces they would face, and this led to losses of more than £82,000.

The couple say they had to rent builders' accommodation for an extra six months, costing £6,300, because of the firm's errors, delays and untimely production of information, which also led to increased building costs of £77,400.

They lost the chance to sell a lodge, losing £25,00, had to arrange for extra funding, costing £34,000, another bridging loan, extra professional fees, and measures to protect the fabric of the building, costing £30,000.

In all, they accuse the firm of costing them an extra £546,736 and are claiming this, as well as damages for pain and suffering and legal costs.

They also seek an order for specific performance, requiring the firm to complete the project, and reserve the right to bring in another firm of architects to finish the scheme and for Den Architecture to pay for this.

Caytons Law, who are acting for the architect, and Den Architecture, have been contacted for a comment.

The Wrights declined to comment.