Tim Smit, still in his 30s but already a millionare record producer for artists including the Nolan Sisters and Barry Manilow, moved from London to "retire" in rural Cornwall, south-west England in 1987. He had the vague idea of opening a recording studio. Or a rare breeds farm. Or something.
Instead, he ended up cultivating 100,000 plants (5,000 species in all) and building the largest conservatory in the world -- a monstrous geodesic dome made of interlocking 9-meter octagons of transparent foil that towers 55 meters into the air. He also built a slightly smaller one. He sank a lake. He laid down gardens. He grew a rain forest. And he created a green theme park so popular that it draws an average of 1.8 million visitors a year.
Now that's what I call a serious midlife crisis! Most people, though, call it The Eden Project.