As family sagas go, it’s almost too lurid to be true — a feast of fame and fortune, coated with one foul-mouthed, supersized ego and rippling with lashings of betrayal.
Yet, just when you thought we’d already been treated to the last morsels of Gordon Ramsay‘s battle with his father-in-law and one-time business partner Chris Hutcheson, it appears the left-overs are about to be re-heated and served once more in London’s High Court.
And this time, I can disclose, Hutcheson’s wife, Greta, is being thrown into the mix.
Preliminary legal documents reveal Greta, 79, is not only named in an action being brought by a brace of insolvency practitioners against her husband — sacked as chief executive of Ramsay’s business empire back in 2010 — but is being sued, by the same pair, in an entirely separate action.
It’s difficult not to feel some sympathy for Greta, who has four children, including Ramsay’s wife, Tana, with Hutcheson. Unknown to her, he had two more offspring by a mistress called Frances Collins. The existence of this second, family emerged only after Ramsay hired private detectives to unravel what his father-in-law was up to. The findings prompted Ramsay to allege Hutcheson had hacked into his personal and corporate files and withdrawn £1.42 million to fund a ‘very complex life’ — including paying £5,000-a-month to a second mistress.
Hutcheson took out a gagging order — later lifted by the High Court — and branded Ramsay a celebrity-obsessed ‘monster’ who turned Tana against him.
Remarkably, a reconciliation was forged two years later — only for Hutcheson to be jailed in 2017 after a court concluded he had indeed hacked into Ramsay’s computer and gained access to financial files.
In 2018, Hutcheson declared himself bankrupt. But, months earlier, he’d sold the house he and Greta shared and transferred his share — £328,000 — to her. In effect, said Fiona Cushley, Deputy Official Receiver, he had ‘disposed of his only tangible asset to his wife’ even though he knew the ‘money should be shared amongst all his creditors’.
And, ultimately, Hutcheson, who’s banned from running limited companies, has ensured the hapless Greta, loyal to him despite his infidelities, now faces being hauled before the court.
Paloma puts faith in staying single
Pop star Paloma Faith wouldn’t have minded missing Cupid’s arrow yesterday. Since the collapse of her relationship with French artist Leyman Lahcine, she prefers being single.
‘All my life, I’ve been terrified of being by myself. And I’ve arrived at a place where I’m quite enjoying my own company,’ she says.
Paloma, 42, adds: ‘When I had a break-up in the past, I’d usually be out getting drunk and flirting with people. Now that I’ve got kids, I don’t have the same interest in that.
‘I don’t feel I need that validation in the way I might have when I was younger.’
Donkey show drops King scene
Writers of the Drop The Dead Donkey stage adaptation have removed a controversial scene pre-empting King Charles’s death — following his shock cancer diagnosis.
The touring show of the classic sitcom features a scene mocking television presenter Holly Willoughby, in which fictitious TV station ‘Truth News’ practises a rehearsal for announcing the death of the King.
The ensemble, who last week performed in Sheffield, had a day off on Tuesday — the day after Palace officials revealed His Majesty’s illness.
‘That whole section was re-written rather hastily,’ a source tells me, adding: ‘Had there been a performance due on the Tuesday night there would have been virtually no time for a re-think.’
Writers, led by the comedian Andy Hamilton, scrapped the entire segment, which would have lasted several minutes, in time for their performance the following day.
Meanwhile, the King, 75, has been advised by doctors to postpone his public duties while he undergoes treatment.
Smart look suits you, Dad! Pixie and Bob have night out
Bob Geldof was perfectly suited to his daughter Pixie as they made a rare joint public appearance at the Old Vic in London to attend the press night for Just For One Day: The Live Aid Musical.
The usually dishevelled Live Aid founder, 72, appeared smart in a tailored suit beside his daughter with late ex-wife, the TV presenter Paula Yates.
The 33-year-old model, who is married to musician George Barnett with whom she has a two-year-old daughter, wore a green co-ordinated suit designed by Alessandra Rich.
Pixie has followed her father’s charitable efforts and last year ran the London Landmarks Half Marathon, raising almost £1,500 for Diabetes UK.
Strictly Come Dancing professional Johannes Radebe has revealed his excitement at taking his mother to Buckingham Palace… and her disappointment that drinks were served in plastic cups.
Prince Edward invited him to give a keynote speech to about 3,000 people.
‘That was nerve-racking, but what was beautiful was that I got to take my mum, and my mum is obsessed with the monarchy,’ he says. ‘She had an amazing time, but she was looking at the mugs. You could see the thought process… ‘Why are there plastic mugs?’ My mum was, like, ‘What is going on?’ ‘
Excoriated for their ‘provocative’ decision to relaunch their website as ‘Sussex.com’, with its homepage labelled ‘The Office of Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex’, the California-based couple remain eager to put those less well acquainted with royal etiquette immediately at their ease.
‘I did make sure to ask how I should be addressing them when they get here,’ explains veteran Canadian broadcaster Scott Moore, the new CEO of the Invictus Games, which Harry and Meghan are promoting in Canada this week. ‘I was told the simple ‘Sir’ and ‘Ma’am’ is fine,’ adds Moore. Vancouver and Whistler will host the games next year.