With Prince Philip as patron and Margaret Thatcher among the guests, The Lord’s Taverners Christmas lunch has become a London institution.
However, I hear that the cricket charity has scrapped this year’s event after 73 years, much to the dismay of its supporters.
He says the lunch, traditionally held at the Grosvenor House hotel in Mayfair, has become too expensive to organize. The charity’s chairman, former cricket star David Gower, partly blames the Covid pandemic.
“Lord’s Taverners did lunch until Covid became hugely popular and successful,” he tells me. ‘We had huge numbers. Covid, of course, threw that back.”
Prince Philip was a strong supporter of the organisation, which helps disabled and disadvantaged people through sport.
With Prince Philip as patron and Margaret Thatcher among the guests, The Lord’s Taverners Christmas lunch has become a London institution
Former cricket star David Gower partly blames Covid pandemic for scrapping event
“It’s a terrible shame,” one follower tells me. “It was one of the highlights of the season.”
The event moved in 2021 to the more accessible Park Plaza Westminster Bridge, with tickets costing £180 each.
A spokesperson for The Lord’s Taverners says: ‘As a charity we have a responsibility to ensure we raise as much money as possible for the young people and their families we support.
“Christmas lunch costs have increased by 40 per cent since 2019 and, as we do not make a profit from ticket sales, we rely solely on in-house revenue from the raffle, silent auction and live auction.” .
Some regional lunches will be held, including one in Sussex with TV presenter Chris Tarrant.
But as the charity’s 75th anniversary approaches next year, many are concerned about how it will be celebrated. Gower tells me, “We want to put our main efforts into making this a big, productive year.”
Moneybags Blair and a turnover of £108 million
The Tony Blair Institute has recorded that its turnover was £108 million in 2023, £17 million more than in 2022.
He looked, it was joked, like a Bond villain when, this summer in Sardinia, he strolled aboard the 288-foot, £122 million superyacht owned by American technology magnate Larry Ellison.
But that is not the only gift Ellison has given to Sir Tony Blair, who has amassed a fortune of £103 billion.
The Tony Blair Institute recorded a turnover of £108m in 2023, £17m more than in 2022. The Larry Ellison Foundation was among the donors.
But there is no mention of cryptocurrency guru Sam Bankman-Fried, whom Blair joined on stage at a conference in the Bahamas last year.
Convicted of fraud in March, Bankman-Fried was jailed for 25 years and ordered to forfeit $11 billion. So, a real Bond villain.
Emily Maitlis earning good money
Prince Andrew and Emily Maitlis after Newsnight interview in 2019
Newsnight’s interview about Prince Andrew’s car accident ended his role as a working member of the Royal Family, but it has been great for Emily Maitlis’ career and her bank balance. Figures from his company Mouse Inc, which he uses to channel his profits, reveal a £400,000 increase in profits over the past year.
The former BBC presenter, 54, declares £613,000 in capital and reserves in March 2024, compared to £215,000 in his 2023 accounts.
Why Made in Chelsea stars are joining the Notting Hill set
Jamie Laing and Sophie Habboo have received the keys to their first home in Notting Hill
As stars of scripted reality TV show Made In Chelsea, Jamie Laing and Sophie Habboo helped promote the expensive area, but decided to buy their first home in a different corner of west London.
I hear the couple have been given the keys to a house in Notting Hill.
It has a basement, which will be converted into a multimedia room, as well as a garden. They plan to renovate the property, with a kitchen created by luxury firm Smallbone.
Explaining why they lived in a rented property in Notting Hill, Laing, 35, said earlier this year: “Chelsea seemed boring to me.”
He is the founder of vegan sweets company Candy Kittens and podcast company Jampot Productions and co-presents Radio 1’s drive-in show Going Home alongside Vick Hope and Katie Thistleton.
Ups and downs for a rising star
Morfydd Clark, who played Galadriel in the Prime Video series The Lord of the Rings
Rising star Morfydd Clark, who played Galadriel in the Prime Video series The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, has been through some ups and downs in his career.
“I was (playing) Juliet in Sheffield opposite Freddie Fox,” says the actress, 35. “At the end, when I was in my enchanted combination, I went up and down the floor in an elevator. During a show, the elevator broke and I went up and down like a jack-in-the-box.
King seeks ‘wedding coordinator’
King Charles advertises job for a wedding coordinator to organize ceremonies at Dumfries House
There isn’t likely to be another big royal wedding for another few years, but that hasn’t deterred King Charles from looking for a “wedding coordinator.”
It is advertising the search for an “enthusiastic and hard-working individual” to host ceremonies at Dumfries House, the stately home in Ayrshire where its charitable foundation is based. Who knows, if the chosen candidate impresses the monarch, a royal wedding could take place.
day-Lewis returns to the screen in his son Ronan’s move
It’s good to see Daniel Day-Lewis accelerate his career again after suddenly retiring seven years ago.
The triple Oscar winner, 67, is seen preparing to film scenes on a 1980s Honda Africa Twin motorcycle in Anemone, an upcoming film directed by his son Ronan Day-Lewis, 26 (pictured above) .
Daniel Day Lewis looked unrecognizable with a beard and mustache as he was filmed riding a motorcycle with fellow star Sean Bean.
Ronan Day Lewis, Daniel Day-Lewis and Rebecca Miller attend the ‘She Came To Me’ New York screening at Metrograph on October 3, 2023
Daniel, son of the late Poet Laureate Cecil Day-Lewis, previously said of his decision to quit acting in 2017: “The urge to quit took root in me and became a compulsion. It was something I had to do. I have great sadness.’
Day-Lewis, whose fortune is estimated at £45 million, is collaborating on the script with Ronan, a painter.
Is John Cleese a grump?
Why has John Cleese become so grumpy? His Monty Python friend Michael Palin says, “We are as susceptible to weaknesses and follies as anyone else.”
John, in particular, tends to be drawn to things that make him angry. And I am attracted to things that make me optimistic, cheerful and reasonably happy.
