Thursday, 23 June 2011

Patricia Kluge, a 62-year-old socialite, winemaker and one-time adult film actress, reported debts with her third husband of about £30 million, despite selling her 300-acre estate in Virginia.

 

She admitted defeat after a £10 million fire-sale last year of paintings, Roman statues, Qing dynasty antiques, a Chippendale commode, a four-poster bed from Hedingham Castle and a George III crystal chandelier.

Liquidating jewellery including 64 carats worth of diamonds, platinum and diamond earrings, and a sapphire-and-diamond Cartier watch, also failed to keep her afloat.

Asked last night where all her money had gone, Miss Kluge would only say: "That's a very long story". Her husband, Bill Moses, has said: "We spent too much, too fast."

"It's not the moment to talk about 'what ifs'," Miss Kluge told The Daily Telegraph, "or for what we coulda, shoulda, woulda".

"It needn't have come to this, and we had settlement talks on the table, but the banks decided this was the route to take. We're focused on the future and moving forward."

Born to an English father and half-Scottish mother in Baghdad, Miss Kluge married Russell Gay, a 1970s soft porn baron, and appeared in his magazine Knave as a model and columnist.

She once told The Daily Telegraph that moving from Iraq to England had been "an epiphany".

"It was so invigorating," she said. "I didn't have to wear gloves any more. Mini-skirts and boots were much more interesting." She went on to appear in the film 'The Nine Acres of Nakedness'.

But eventually she separated from Mr Gay and, in 1982, wed John Kluge, a 66-year-old, German-born US television mogul who came to be America's richest man, worth $6 billion.

She became a fixture on Manhattan's social circuit and a £1 million party was thrown at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel for her 40th birthday. Among the 400 guests was Frank Sinatra.

When the couple divorced in 1990, Miss Kluge won an estimated $1 billion comprising cash and their mansion, Albemarle House, together with its grounds in Charlottesville, Virginia.

She went on to marry Mr Moses, a lawyer two years her senior. The couple founded a 775-acre vineyard close to where Thomas Jefferson had attempted to produce wine at his Virginia estate, Monticello, in the 18th century.

Their vineyard, which produced 'Kluge New World' wines, supplied the White House and high-class New York restaurants. Its limited-edition debut wine, which cost £300 a bottle, came in a specially-made box of American walnut with purple velvet lining, which was designed by Viscount Linley, the Queen's nephew.

But despite early success and a personal investment of £27 million, the vineyard ran into difficulties amid the international financial crisis.

It was sold to Donald Trump, a friend, for £3.7 million this year. Miss Kluge said last night that the couple now planned to relaunch it and manage it for the property tycoon.

"All we're focused on is getting this done and then re-building the company with Donald and his team, bottling the wine and re-opening our distribution channels," said Miss Kluge.

"Our friends from all over the world have been very supportive and protective. And we've had great support from the state governor and senators.

"They want to see Virginia become a major wine state, and it's going to be now we have an old friend to help us make it happen".

Their mansion, once listed for £62 million, was sold for just £9.3 million. They now live in a more modest house nearby. "It's not so small, but it's much smaller than Albemarle," said Miss Kluge.

"We're very happy," she said. "It's life. We're not the first to go through it. Through all this tragedy we see a lot of positive things. I'm a Brit - you cut one arm off and I'll grow another

ASHLEY Cole has caused a double stink by giving a gangster "salute" and leaving piles of filth outside his holiday mansion.

My Defence: Winning, Losing, Scandals and the Drama of Germany 2006
Footballer Ashley Cole was snapped at his £5,000-a-month Los Angeles pad flicking the "Westside" gesture.

And now gun campaigners are threatening to picket Chelsea's Stamford Bridge ground unless he apologises for making the notorious three-fingered sign.

Mothers Against Guns founder Lucy Cope, 56, lost her son Damian, 22, in 2002 when he was shot outside a nightclub.

She said: "I want to see an apology within 24 hours or we will demonstrate outside Chelsea Football Club.

"We won't let him get away with this. My son was a Chelsea fan at the time of his death.

"Ashley should apologise to all those young people who look up to him as a source of inspiration."

Love-rat Cole gave the salute while posing outside the million pad with pals Shaun Wright-Phillips, 29, and New York hip-hop artist Jim Jones, 34.

It was a favourite of rapper Tupac Shakur, known as 2Pac, who was shot dead in gang violence in 1996.

Last night Cole's spokesman claimed: "Ashley has no idea what a gangster sign would look like.

"This is a peace sign, he does it in all his photos."

The row blew up as new pictures emerged showing the mountains of trash Cole and Manchester City star Wright-Phillips have piled up during their raucous lads' break.

Furious neighbours have described the place as looking like a "pig-sty".

Bins outside the property, two doors from one owned by Hollywood star Sharon Stone, 53, were overflowing with Heineken bottles, crisp bags and greasy KFC wrappers.

Another holiday guest, Manchester chauffeur boss Curtis Codrington, has been updating the world about their wild partying via Twitter.

In one message he Tweeted to followers: "Jim Jones in the house we having a blast in LA."

And in another update he said: "Bottles till u drop LA wooo.

Tuesday, 21 June 2011

Galliano has been sober for three months and is "rebuilding himself" after treatment in the United States for addiction

Fashion designer John Galliano will attend in person his trial on Wednesday over charges he hurled anti-Semitic insults at customers in a cafe in a series of outbursts that have wrecked a towering career.

Galliano, 50, was fired as creative director for fashion empire Dior in March after a video surfaced online showing him, apparently inebriated, telling a woman he "loved Hitler" and that her parents might have been gassed in a Nazi death camp.

The video, filmed in December, sent shockwaves through the fashion world as complaints surfaced over two separate incidents of alleged anti-Semitic slurs by the British designer, which will be dealt with at Wednesday's trial.

If found guilty Galliano faces up to 22,000 euros ($31,500) in fines and a six-month prison sentence, people close to the case said.

The designer, who has been treated since his dismissal from Dior for multiple substance abuse problems, is to appear at the trial and testify that he is neither a racist nor an anti-Semite but an addict who lost control of his words, his lawyer said.

"One obvious thing is that John Galliano was ill," lawyer Aurelien Hamelle told Reuters.

"He had a triple addiction to alcohol, benzodiazepine (Valium) and sleeping pills ... The combined effect of these drugs is a state of complete and utter abandon."

Under pressure to turn a profit at Dior while also managing his own fashion label, Galliano fell deeper into addiction until he was drinking heavily, ingesting Valium tranquilizer pills "like candy" and using sleeping pills regularly, Hamelle said.

"When he was in that state he had no way of knowing or remembering what he said. Every witness at the cafe has said he was in an abnormal condition," Hamelle said, adding Galliano himself was baffled to see his behavior in the video.

Galliano has apologized repeatedly for the recorded remarks.

PLAINTIFF VIEW: A LION IN HIS DEN

The prosecution will present Galliano as a bigoted man whose hatreds and prejudices rose to the surface when he was drunk and cavorting on what he considered to be home territory.

Geraldine Bloch, a museum curator who said she did not know of Galliano before their encounter on February 24, is suing him over what her lawyer described as a 45-minute, drink-fueled tirade of anti-Semitic, racist and personal abuse.

Lawyer Yves Beddouk said his client was not interested in money. He will fight at the trial for 1 euro of symbolic damages and the publication of the court decision in the fashion magazines Elle and Vogue and in the French daily Le Figaro.

The three known incidents involving Galliano and alleged rants -- Bloch's in February, another in October and the December incident that was filmed anonymously and published on the Internet -- all took place at La Perle, a cafe down the street from Galliano's home in Paris's trendy Marais district.

"Galliano considered that he was on his own territory, and that people he didn't like had no right to be there," Beddouk told Reuters outside a courthouse in Versailles.

"When you've got such a big reputation, you need to be even more respectful and cautious than regular people," he said, adding that Galliano's rants seemed to be part of a pattern.

Whatever the trial's outcome, Galliano will struggle to overcome an episode that has devastated his career, tainting what had been one of the biggest success stories in the world of high fashion in two decades.

Long known as the "enfant terrible" of haute couture, Galliano revitalized the Dior brand on taking it over in 1996, injecting a powerful dose of edginess until his last Fall-Winter womenswear collection was presented, in his absence, on March 4.

In the ensuing weeks, Galliano was also dropped from his own fashion brand, "John Galliano," 92-percent owned by Dior, and came under fire from people like Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld.

Dior is the main fashion name at LVMH, the world's biggest luxury group and led by billionaire Bernard Arnault.

Hamelle said Galliano has been sober for three months and is "rebuilding himself" after treatment in the United States for addiction but had yet to return to a regular professional activity.

 

Sunday, 19 June 2011

David Lloyd, a well-known figure in Phuket property circles, is being sued by another former British tennis ace Greg Rusedski for more than 740,000 pounds that was to be invested in building luxury villas.



Mr Rusedski wants his money back. He says no villas have been completed, and he says he has had no explanation as to what has happened to the money, says the Daily Mail.



But according to the national daily newspaper, sources close to Mr Lloyd say that the project has fallen behind schedule because of the global financial crisis, and civil unrest in Thailand over the past three years.

A source said: ''Rusedski will get his money back once the villas start selling. The villas are still being built and won't be ready until early next year.''

The Daily Mail says Mr Lloyd's Phuket project, launched in 2008, involves building 27 holiday villas on Phuket's west coast, each with spectacular Andaman Sea views.

In a writ lodged at the High Court, Mr Rusedski, 37, claims that he and his wife Lucy, 34, wired the money in three instalments to Mr Lloyd's personal bank account in Thailand.

A source close to Mr Lloyd said that the investment was turned into a loan which Mr Rusedski will get back as soon as the villas are sold.

Thailand has experienced a more than 50-percent drop in number of property transfers during the first quarter of 2011. Investors are hoping that sales will pick up after the national election on July 3.

Wednesday, 15 June 2011

Two men are being questioned over a suspected plot to rob and murder singer Joss Stone after they were arrested close to her home.




Unconfirmed reports said officers found swords, rope and a body bag when they apprehended the pair, aged 33 and 30, near Stone's country home in Devon.
Both men are understood to have had maps and aerial photos of the property.
The 24-year-old singer's spokeswoman said police had been in contact with the star.
The suspects were detained around 10am on Monday morning after being seen driving a red Fiat Punto in the quiet lanes near the star's home in rural Cullompton.
Her neighbours are said to have foiled the plot after reporting the pair behaving suspiciously around the property.

According to the Sunday Times Rich list 24-year-old Stone has a £9m fortune
They were initially arrested on Monday morning on suspicion of having an offensive weapon and planning a burglary.
But Sky News understands the men - from the Manchester area - are now being held on conspiracy to rob and murder the singer, who is said to have a £9m fortune.
Stone, a friend of Prince William and Kate Middleton and a guest at their wedding, is not believed to have been home at the time.
Earlier Sky News filmed a white sports car leaving the house with a person covered by a blanket in the front passenger seat. It is not clear if it was the singer.
Detective Inspector Steve Parker, leading the investigation, said: "The two men in custody had in their possession information relating to an individual in the Cullompton area and items which lead us to suspect that they may have intended to commit a criminal offence.
"We're unable to say anymore at this time but I would like to thank the local residents for reporting the suspicious car."
Stone, who has sold more than 10 million albums, is due to go on a European tour in a few weeks.

Tuesday, 14 June 2011

Sean Bean 'stabbed' in the arm following a row over glamour model April Summers

He became known to millions as the rugged, hero soldier in historical drama Sharpe.

And now actor Sean Bean has proven once and for all that his tough-guy image is not just fictional.

The Daily Mail has learned that Bean was ‘stabbed’ in the arm following a row over a beautiful young model.


'Stabbed': Sean Bean was involved in a fight over a glamour model, April Summers

The four-time married star was apparently attacked outside the Hill Bar and Brasserie in Camden, North West London late on Sunday evening.

Mr Bean was said to have a cut arm and a bruised face, according to witnesses.

However, extraordinarily, he declined to attend hospital.

Instead, the star walked back into the bar and, after staff gave him aid from a first aid kit, ordered another drink.  

A member of staff said: ‘Sean is a regular here and we’ve never had any problems before. He was with a very attractive woman and an incident occurred outside the bar.

‘He came in with a cut on his arm and a bruise on his eyebrow. We saw to his injuries with the first aid kit.He seemed ok and wanted to have another drink.’


The row began when Mr Bean, 52, and April Summers - a glamour model who is 30 years his junior who had gone to the bar with him - were standing outside, having a cigarette.

Miss Summers – whose real name the Daily Mail understands is Nadia Foster – lives close to Mr Bean in the same area.

According to witnesses, a passer-by then made lewd comments about Miss Summers, a topless model who has appeared in a number of UK lads’ magazines as well as the Italian edition of Playboy.


Keeping a low profile: April is spotted near her North London home today

As a result, Mr Bean followed the man down the road to challenge him.
Later in the evening, Mr Bean went out for another cigarette and was then  attacked by a man.  

The star, who lives close by, was said to have been stabbed in the arm – believed to be with a broken glass - and punched in the face, according to witnesses. Police were then called.

Bean – who also appeared in Hollywood blockbuster Lord Of The Rings - divorced his fourth wife Georgina Sutcliffe last December after just two years marriage.




They said they had found it intolerable to live together. Miss Sutcliffe – who Mr Bean had first met when she was working at one of his favourite bars - had also once accused Bean of assault but the charges were dropped.

Mr Bean – who originally hails from Sheffield, South Yorkshire -  was first married to hairdresser Debra James, his teenage sweetheart.

He then wed actress Melanie Hill, with whom he has two daughters Lorna, 23, and Molly, 19. They originally met at drama college RADA but divorced in 1997.

He married Abigail Cruttenden, who he had met on the set of Sharpe, that November. They had a daughter Evie, now 12, before divorcing in 2000.


 Sean is currently starring as Lord Eddard Stark in Sky's Game Of Thrones


In character: Sean, who is most well known for his role in Sharpe, was attacked outside the Hill Bar and Brasserie in Camden, North West London late on Sunday evening

It is not known if Miss Summers is Mr Bean’s latest girlfriend.

The star – who first rose to fame as Mellors opposite Joely Richardson in a 1992 BBC production of Lady Chatterley’s Lover  – told the Daily Mail last month how he continues to enjoy drinking.

He said: ‘I like a good drink like the next man. But on my own terms. I feel a bit queasy at the thought of attending premieres and stuff.

‘I’m not that social type. But if you court publicity you can’t complain if you get pestered. And I don’t want to be pestered. To be famous and seen in clubs and bars – is that it?’ 




The police had no comment  to make on the alleged fracas. Mr Bean was unavailable for comment.

Miss Summers – who also lives close to the bar - said she was not injured in the incident. She told the Mail at her home last night: ‘I’m fine, it is a private matter. I don’t want to make any comment.’

 

Monday, 13 June 2011

I was paid to abort Ryan's child: Natasha Giggs

The controversy surrounding Manchester United's Ryan Giggs took a new low on Sunday when his brothers wife, with whom the footballer had an eight-year affair, claimed that she had aborted his lovechild weeks before marrying his brother Rhodri.

British press went into a tizzy after Natasha Giggs told News of the World that she was categorically told by Ryan to abort the child and that there was no other option for her. "You have one option - termination. We cannot ruin everyone's life," Natasha quoted Ryan as saying.

Almost simultaneously, Mail Online reported that Natasha had been paid 500 pounds to cover the expenses for the abortion by Ryan. In the interview to News of the World though, Ryan's 28-year-old sister-in-law said that it was a tormenting experience to go through the procedure. "I could not have married Rhodri while I was still pregnant. It was horrendous (nonetheless) to go through the termination."

Natasha got pregnant with Ryan's child after she slept with him at his friend's house last April

 

Nicolas Cage's son hospitalized after fight in Hollywood

Nicolas Cage The frantic Con Air star rushed to the Farmer's Kitchen in Hollywood after hearing about an altercation between Weston and his personal trainer.

Police were called after the heavy metal singer reportedly erupted when Kevin Villegas banned him from eating an item on the menu.

According to witnesses he kicked the trainer and was then punched several times in the face, leaving him a "bloody pulp".

Concerned Cage, 47, dashed to the scene and had to be restrained as he tried to get to his badly beaten son.

He later climbed into an ambulance, that took the 20-year-old to hospital after police reported he was "unstable".

Cops threatened to us a taser gun on the troubled musician and he was strapped to a gurney before being driven away.Los Angeles police are investigating an altercation in Hollywood involving the son of actor Nicolas Cage, department officials said Tuesday.

Details were still sketchy, but sources familiar with the case said Weston Cage, 20, began fighting with an unidentified individual around 4:10 p.m. near the intersection of Selma Avenue and Ivar Avenue.

The cause of the incident was unclear, but Weston Cage was taken to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center with unspecified injuries, the sources said, adding that he was accompanied by his father.

It was not immediately clear if Weston Cage had been questioned in connection with the incident or if the incident was being treated as a crime, the sources said.

 

 

'He is completely mad': Lewis Hamilton slammed after crashing into Mark Webber and teammate Jenson Button

Former world champion Niki Lauda believes the Formula One authorities need to do something about Lewis Hamilton after the British driver crashed out of the Canadian Grand Prix.

Hamilton collided with McLaren teammate Jenson Button on the eighth lap in Montreal, shortly after sending Australian Mark Webber into a spin.

Button went on to win the race, which stretched over four hours because of a two-hour rain suspension.

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Controversial ... Lewis Hamilton, front, drives close to teammate Jenson Button bvefore crashing into him. Photo: Getty Images
The incidents came after Hamilton's actions at the Monaco Grand Prix drew criticism and Lauda said it was time for action to be taken against the aggressive-driving former world champion.

"What Hamilton did there goes beyond all boundaries," Lauda told RTL television.

"He is completely mad. If the FIA does not punish him, I do not understand the world any more.


Hit by Lewis Hamilton ... Jenson Button, left, and Mark Webber. Photo: AP
"At some point there has to be an end to all the jokes. You cannot drive like this - as it will result in someone getting killed."

Hamilton came off worst when he tried - and failed - to get past his fellow Briton Button, leaving his teammate fuming over the team radio.

"What's he doing?" Button said in the aftermath of the crash to his team back on the pitwall.


Outspoken ... Niki Lauda. Photo: Craig Sillitoe
"Jenson made a mistake into the corner and I got the run on him," Hamilton told the BBC.

"I felt I was halfway up the outside, but he kept moving across - whether or not he saw me I don't know, but then I was in the wall."

Hamilton tried to nurse his damaged car round the track to the pits, but he was told to pull up, park and retire.

He added: "The team said I had a broken suspension and so I pulled over, but when I got out that wasn't the case. It was only the tyre that was busted - I thought."

The team later confirmed the damage to his car was more serious than Hamilton believed.

Team manager Jonathon Neal said: "I think there is such a thing as an accident. We're not the first team to have such an accident and I'm sure we won't be the last."

Hamilton had collided with Red Bull Webber on the first corner after the cars were allowed to race when the safety car pulled in after four laps.

"I went down the inside and he braked quite early," said Hamilton. "I was on the kerb and then I pushed over and we just touched."

Hamilton's latest brushes with his rivals and controversy came just hours after he had received support for his 'all-out attack' driving style from an unexpected quarter.

Former world champion Brazilian Emerson Fittipaldi had accused him of being over-aggressive but seven-time champion Michael Schumacher, whose history of bold and attacking driving also attracted as many critics as admirers, was the man who moved to defend the 26-year-old Englishman.

The 42-year-old German, now racing for Mercedes, said he disagreed with the views of Fittipaldi - one of the stewards for Sunday's race - and believed Hamilton did not deserve the punishment he received for his alleged transgressions in Monaco two weeks ago.

Schumacher said: "In Monaco we know it is very difficult to pass and if somebody doesn't want it, then it is very hard to avoid a collision. I guess, in two of the four cases he passed people, two didn't want it and two accepted it.

"It is a tough situation to be perfectly right. You will always find one or the other opinion on that - but put it this way - I would not have given him a penalty for [the incident with] Felipe [Massa] at least."

 

Thursday, 9 June 2011

The Duchess of York is set to open her heart in a six-part television documentary, but British audiences may never get to see it.


The royal admits that despite "Fergie-baiting selling a lot of papers in Britain", Finding Sarah, to be aired on the Oprah Winfrey Network in the United States, may not go down well with a British audience.
"Could it air in Britain? Probably not without dramatic ramifications and negativity - because I think that it's difficult," she said.
The show, touches on subjects including the Duchess's exclusion from the royal wedding and her role in a scandal in which she admitted trying to sell access to her ex-husband to an undercover News of the World reporter.
"I knew this guy was wrong. I knew that he was a journalist," she said of the newspaper sting.

Sarah Ferguson's sister says she doesn't recall any abuse
Sarah Ferguson: 'No-one loves me. I'm disgusting'
"I had an instinct as it was - and yet my people-pleasing addiction kept me going, if he could help me and if he could invest in my business - and he also promised to build schools in Afghanistan - maybe then everyone would love me more or maybe then all my staff would be paid. And you know what? It wasn't real. Why didn't I just listen?"
"You live with regret ... that's the most difficult thing I've had to learn."

Sunday, 5 June 2011

Ryan Giggs has found himself hitting headlines once again, this time for an alleged extra-marital affair with his brother’s wife.


A Sunday tabloid has claimed that the Manchester United star embarked on an eight-year relationship with his 28-year-old sister-in-law Natasha.

Following his alleged affair with Big Brother star Imogen Thomas, who was gagged with a super-injunction, now more claims of betrayal have stunned his fans.

The News Of The World today claimed that the multi-millionaire footballer even spent the night with estate agent Natasha last month on April 9.

The tabloid also alleged that Giggs was seeing Natasha behind his wife Stacey’s back while she was pregnant.

The 37-year-old former BBC Sports Personality of the Year is said to have met his brother’s wife in a string of hotels, after first meeting Natasha when she was single in 2003.

A friend of Natasha told the newspaper: ‘I knew it was wrong. It’s the worst possible betrayal. I tried to end it but my relationship with Ryan was like an addiction. Anything he said, I did, I couldn’t say no.’

She continued that it was all on the footballer’s terms and he never told her he loved her.

‘Ryan was never romantic with me. It was all about sex’, the friend said.

Giggs is said to have met Natasha eight-years-ago in Manchester nightclub Sugar Lounge, when she was 20-years-old.

She had apparently recently split from the father of her first child and Giggs was engaged to his now wife Stacey.


Natasha’s friend revealed that he apparently bought her drinks and complimented her appearance before taking her number and allegedly asking her to meet him the following night.

The following night they went to the Living Room bar, where Natasha also met Ryan’s brother Rhodri.

The trio continued onto another club and then dined at a Chinese restaurant for a meal before all heading back to a friend’s house.

The source told the tabloid that this was where Natasha allegedly first slept with Ryan, but afterwards found out that the star had a pregnant girlfriend

American dancer Derek Hough has revealed that he has dumped Cheryl Cole after one year of their relationship because she was living like a recluse.

 

Hough, 25, had ended the romance two weeks ago, just before Cheryl was dramatically axed from her prestigious judging role on US 'X Factor'.

"I love that girl with all my heart, but I just can't do it any more. I have done everything I can to pick Cheryl up. But every time I am with her she refuses to leave her room for days and days," the Mirror quoted him as telling a friend.

"It's not healthy behaviour and doesn't make for a healthy relationship. It's tough but I have to leave Cheryl and get on with my life," he added.

The dancer's stepfather Aaron Nelson, 54, has also confirmed the split.

"It's sad – but it was just not working out. Derek just wants to move on with his life," said Nelson.

Ex-husband Ashley Cole, 31, is now comforting Cheryl, 27, and she is even considering taking him back.

The two have been talking on the phone every day and Cheryl believes the England and Chelsea footballer has changed

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