(AFP) - The Tengku Mahkota of Pahang, Tengku Abdullah, has bought the most expensive house ever sold in Britain, the Malaysian High Commission in London announced today.

He inspected his palatial new property, all 30 bedrooms, 24 bathrooms and five swimming pools of it, on Monday after shelling out 70 million pounds (US$100 million).

The polo-playing friend of Britain's Prince Charles may have been attracted by the nearness of the local polo club, where his team often plays.

As yet unfinished, the house in Windlesham, in a tranquil corner of Surrey, southern England, also has a marble driveway, cinema, shooting gallery and tennis and squash courts, as well as a stable block.

Nine of Malaysia's 13 states have traditional rulers, of whom the prince is one. They meet every five years to choose one of their number to be king under the country's unique system of rotating monarchs.

According to the Daily Express , the mansion will cost an estimated one million pounds (RM5 million) a year to run.

Initial speculation on the buyer had focused on Sheikh Mohammad bin Rashid al-Maktoum of the United Arab Emirates.