The Cheltenham Festival was back last week after going ahead behind closed doors in 2021, and business bigwigs were there.
Former Sainsbury’s boss Justin King, 60, rubbed shoulders with Peter Jackson, 46, the chief executive of Paddy Power and Betfair owner Flutter. Manchester United’s finance chief Cliff Baty, 51, drowned his sorrows in the Jockey Club suite on Wednesday after the team were knocked out of the Champions League.
A soggy Ladies Day did not stop Jade Holland Cooper, 35, turning up dressed to the nines. The fashion designer, married to Superdry boss Julian Dunkerton, posed for photographs holding a Chanel clutch bag rather than a Superdry backpack.
It was a mixed return to Cheltenham for pantomime villain Rich Ricci, 58, seen trudging in the muddy paddock wearing his usual tweed and trilby. The former Barclays banker’s hot- favourite horse, Gaelic Warrior, was edged out in the Boodles Juvenile Handicap Hurdle on Tuesday, while Chacun Pour Soi fell in the Champion Chase on Wednesday. But his horse Vauban won the JCB Triumph Hurdle on the final day.
Kenny Alexander, the former chief executive of gambling giant GVC, was all smiles after his horse Honeysuckle retained its Champion Hurdle crown due to an excellent ride from jockey Rachael Blackmore.
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Scotsman Alexander, 52, knows more about joyriding than horse riding: last May he was fined £1,000 for stealing a takeaway driver’s car from outside a kebab shop in Perth after a boozy night out. Thankfully, the £235,000 prize money should just about cover that.
Ocado goes off amid eating out
Nine months ago, riding high on a lockdown-induced boom in demand, Tim Steiner declared it was “increasingly clear” that the pandemic had changed the grocery market “for good”.
Last week, such proclamations were somewhat lacking from Ocado’s pugnacious boss. Alongside a 5.7 per cent drop in sales, the online grocer conceded that some of its customers seemed to be enjoying going back to the supermarket, or even having a meal at a local restaurant.
To finish things off, a funding round for rapid grocery start-up Getir valued it at £9 billion — £500 million more than Ocado. Ouch.
Cost-of-living crisis hits Mayfair
On Monday, members of Annabel’s received an email that made them spit out their Dom Pérignon. Owner Richard Caring, 73, and wife Patricia, 40, told members of their Birley Clubs empire that from now on they must settle their bills on the day and cannot just stick them on the tab. The reason? Members are failing to pay up.
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“This unfortunately has to be put into practice due to the ever-growing amount of current and historical unpaid bills, which is now becoming extreme,” moaned the permatanned private clubs tycoon. Members of Annabel’s and the other Birley clubs, such as Mark’s, will even have to settle up when moving between rooms out of fear they might scarper without paying. Apparently the cost-of-living crisis has reached Mayfair.
Currys’ top dog blue over Chelsea
In the wake of the sanctions on Roman Abramovich and the impact on Chelsea Football Club, spare a thought for Alex Baldock. The chief executive of TVs-to-laptops seller Currys, 51, is a diehard blues fan — so much so that his family named their menagerie of pets after former players.
There is a Jack Russell called JT (after former captain John Terry), two labradors called Frankie and Zola (after Frank Lampard and Gianfranco Zola), and even a horse called Vialli (after Italian stallion Gianluca Vialli).
At least there isn’t a hamster called Roman.
• Fancy a career in a high-octane environment? Look no further than Gazprom Energy, the British energy-supply arm of the Russian state-controlled gas giant. The company, which is a big supplier of gas and electricity to British businesses rather than households, is still hiring for entry-level jobs, despite concerns over the future of the firm in the UK after Vladimir Putin’s regime invaded Ukraine.
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Gazprom Energy said on LinkedIn that it offers staff private medical and dental care and discounts in shops. Suitable candidates, it said, will thrive in a “busy, fast-paced environment” and must have a “can-do attitude”— as well as “courage”, “determination” and “action”. Candidates with a moral compass need not apply.
Just saying . . .
“I hereby challenge Vladimir Putin to single combat. Stakes are Ukraine ... Do you agree to this fight @KremlinRussia_E?”
Billionaire Tesla founder Elon Musk lays down the gauntlet to the Russian president on Twitter
Funny business
