Well I wouldn't say it was "crazy" - it's definitely possible but it depends on how motivated you are to do it and whether you have the cash available.
I'll just list the steps again since people above have pointed them out :
1) Visa/Permission to work - without this the whole thing is no go.
2) JAA Class 1 medical - Shouldn't be a major issue and can be obtained a bit cheaper on the basis of an FAA medical, but you need to have it and they can be quite thorough. I believe I'm still correct in saying the only place an intial UK Medical can be obtained is from Gatwick in the UK (the UK CAA HQ is there).
3) CPL/ATPL conversion. Firstly there are the 13 exams. There is no "self-study" for these exams - you have to do some kind of approved course. There is (was?) at least one course that you could take on a home study basis with a company called Bristol Groundschool but even for that you have to go to their facilities in the UK for 2 weeks before each block of exams. The alternative would be a full time study course which will also take about 6 months (I suppose you could do this at the Bristow Academy in Florida).
4) CPL Flight test - this needs to be done with a CAA examiner but it's possible to do it in the USA at the Bristow Academy. This costs a fair bit - the examiner alone is expensive (around £350 if memory serves) and then there's aircraft hire on top (perhaps £250 depending on type).
5) JAA IR - This has to be done in a full IR approved aircraft, which for the UK will basically mean a twin turbine or the one single turbine that is approved. It doesn't really make much difference in the end they're all going to cost the same roughly. For an IR conversion from FAA you're looking at a minimum cost of about £19000 - this is for the whole lot and includes taxes. Bear in mind that this will take around 2 - 3 weeks, assuming you crack through it in the minimums and you'll need to be in the UK while doing it.
6) With all that stuff you can get your license issued - the best bet is to go to Gatwick and get them done "over the counter" since there are some horror stories of logbooks going missing in the post/at the CAA etc. There is a pretty hefty charge for licenses - around £110 I think per license.
7) Get a job. It's unclear at the moment but hiring does seem to have slowed a bit. Scotland offshore is Bristow, Bond and CHC. All are using various Eurocopter types and all will offer conversions if you're hired in exchange for a bonding of 2 - 5 years depending on what they need to get you.
As mentioned above, CHC have a rather difficult hiring process which involves extra written tests, interviews with a psychologist and a simulator based flight assessment in Norway. Bristow just seem to use a regular interview plus sim check, and Bond just do an interview. They all pay more or less the same, although there is some indication that CHC benefits may be a tad bit better (they still have a final salary pension for example), while Bond benefits are the worst but they pay a tad bit more to make up.
8) Commuting - the companies may offer a commuting roster. It could be 14/14 but potentially 7/7 (that's going on what I know from a colleague). If you can fit that into flying back and forth to the US then great. I don't think Bond will provide such a roster though, but I'm not sure either way. CHC and Bristow seem more likely. If you'll go to somewhere like Scatsta then you might find something nicer in terms of roster but you're in a more remote location so travelling there and back may negate the extra time.
Finally remember that unless you're offshore based then you'll need to pay for accommodation near your base.
9) Pay - IF you were to go the offshore route then you'd start as a First Officer. Bristow and CHC have BALPA negotiated payscales so you get paid based on a fixed set of criteria. FOs start at around £35000 per year and go via Senior FO to around £60000 per year based on hours and longevity of service - I imagine with your hours you be somewhere near the upper end of that FO scale to start with. Commanders are paid on a similar basis starting around £55000 per year and increasing to around £90000 per year. These are numbers for "basic" line flying pilots. If you take extra responsibilities (Chief Pilot, Line Trainer etc) then there are additional pay increments and there is the possibility of overtime and offshore allowances if you are based offshore.
Oh I should point out these numbers are before tax - in the UK the highest tax rate is 45% although I think it's going to be 40% for the kind of pay we're talking about here. To give a more practical number - if you're getting around £50000 per year, your monthly income into your bank account will be around £2800 (not allowing for any pension payments you choose to make).
Well it's not cheap or easy, and depending on your current circumstances the final pay may not even be worth it (see the exchange rate too - good one way but not the other) - but with the right attitude, the process may be fun!
One final thing, if you're able to get work in the Norwegian sector you may find you get a better solution - the Norwegians seem to get better rosters and pay than us in the UK for the most part. However, the Norwegians pay even more taxes than us so it may be the benefits are only "on paper".
BG.