Richard Branson is preparing to retreat to his wine cellar as the most powerful hurricane ever recorded in the Atlantic heads towards his Necker Island complex. 

The billionaire Virgin boss has already announced he will not leave his home on the British Virgin Islands despite Hurricane Irma - which is the size of France - threatening 'potentially catastrophic' as it lashes the Caribbean with 185mph winds.

Speaking of his experience last night, Branson - who is staying with an entire team of staff on the island - said the 'howling wind and rain' battered his home and created an 'eerie but beautiful' atmosphere. 

He wrote on his blog today: 'We are expecting to get the full force of the hurricane in around five hours’ time, when we will retreat to a concrete wine cellar under the Great House. 'Knowing our wonderful team as I do, I suspect there will be little wine left in the cellar when we all emerge.'

He added: 'The strength of this hurricane is unheard of.

'Everyone is willing the eye of the storm to veer away from the BVI [British Virgin Islands] in these last few hours. As I wrote yesterday, our main concern is safety, for everyone here and for all the people in the BVI and in the path of the hurricane.  All of us slept together in two rooms. I haven't had a sleepover quite like it since I was a kid.' 

He said that, despite worries about the storm's severity, he considers it a 'privilege' to weather 'possibly the strongest storm ever' with a 'great group of young people'. 

He said: 'We were listening to the parrots in their boxes in the next room chattering away. Watching the tortoises congregating together, as if they sense what is coming our way.'  But Branson is not the only notable figure with something to lose in the storm - a host of celebrities could see their homes wrecked by Hurricane Irma as it smashes into the Caribbean.

Mass evacuations are set to take place in the Florida Keys and the Caribbean after the hurricane - the size of France - was declared the most powerful storm ever recorded in the Atlantic Ocean with 185mph winds.

This morning, the 'potentially catastrophic' hurricane slammed into Barbuda just hours after officials warned people to seek protection from Irma's 'onslaught' in a statement that closed with: 'May God protect us all.' Aid agencies, meanwhile, are bracing for a 'major humanitarian response'.  

Homes belonging to the likes of Johnny Depp, David Copperfield, Oprah Winfrey, Mick Jagger and even President Donald Trump could also be hit.

The Miami-based National Hurricane Center reported that the storm is headed northwest toward the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico with potential for storm surges of up to 20 feet above normal tide levels.