Berlusconi 'To Sell Villa To Saudi Royals'

Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi is reportedly set to sell his holiday villa to the Saudi royal family for £350m.

Villa Certosa, on the island of Sardinia, apparently includes an amphitheatre, a secret underground entrance that allows guests to exit discreetly and even an artificial volcano that erupts.

Former guests to the villa - which reports say has 68 rooms and is set in 168 acres of land - include George W Bush, Vladimir Putin and Tony Blair.

In 2009, Villa Certosa was in the headlines after a series of photographs of naked women at the villa emerged.

Other shots showed Berlusconi walking in front of a woman along a path on the estate.

The Corriere della Sera newspaper reports Berlusconi has given a five-hour personal tour to Crown Prince Mohammed bin Nayef, the nation's deputy prime minister and interior minister.

The newspaper has speculated he is acting on behalf of the King of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud, in making the purchase.

It comes weeks after the king cut short his holiday to the French Riviera after the closure of a private beach outside his villa caused public outrage.

Berlusconi has taken a back seat from Italian politics since a series of trials forced him from power.

Earlier this year, Italy's highest court upheld his acquittal on charges that he paid for sex with an underage prostitute and then used his influence to cover it up , amid the notorious Bunga Bunga scandal.