David Parkin on the Fletcher arena aftermath, restaurant wars and why football can be pants

MY cynical journalistic mind powered into overdrive this week after the latest, and probably final, instalment of the protracted court battle between one-time property developer Jan Fletcher and Leeds City Council.

After a short hearing in Harrogate County Court, the council dropped its bankruptcy claim against Fletcher after she finally paid around £2m towards its costs from the High Court case she brought against it over Leeds Arena.

It is a very sorry end to a very sorry episode. The £2m is around half the estimated £4m legal costs that the council was forced to shell out defending itself against the court action by Fletcher’s since-collapsed Montpellier Estates Limited (MEL).

She gave a written undertaking to the council before the original case began, guaranteeing payment in the event of MEL both losing the case and not being able to pay up.

After the company missed the High Court set deadline to pay the council’s costs it was forced to pursue a bankruptcy claim against her personally in an attempt to secure payment.

Jan Fletcher’s business reputation is in tatters when you add this latest episode to the battering her reputation took from Mr Justice Supperstone in his judgement following the original case where he found that her evidence was “unsatisfactory in material aspects” and suggested she had a “tendency to exaggerate”.

He also concluded that he could not be “satisfied” that certain conversations she had claimed to have had actually taken place.

So why am I thinking about conspiracy theories?

Well, because in two of the three hearings in this case at Harrogate County Court, our reporters have been prevented from entering the court by over-officious ushers claiming that the district judge has ruled that “no Press are allowed”.

I’d like to think that this happened because Harrogate County Court has so few visits from journalists that its officials basically don’t understand the law and think they can apply their own rules.

It would be a dark day for the law if there were any other reason for the Press to be barred from perfectly legitimately reporting on a case in a court of law.

We’ve made a complaint to the court and will pursue the matter with the Ministry of Justice should we not be provided with a satisfactory answer.

I know that in a previous hearing it emerged that the funds for Jan Fletcher’s payment towards the council’s costs were likely to be provided by a “third party”.

The discussions about that were held behind closed doors in the court room.

This case continues.

:::

I SWITCHED on a TV documentary this week following the fortunes of two celebrity chefs opening competing restaurants hunting Michelin stars in Manchester.

I’m not one for TV cooking shows or even fly-on-the-wall documentaries, but this was good stuff because of the egos involved.

I even spotted an old contact, Mike Magrane, one-time manager of the Queen’s Hotel in Leeds and now running the flagship Midland Hotel in Manchester where two-Michelin star chef Simon Rogan is putting his own stamp on its historic The French restaurant.

BBC2’s Restaurant Wars: The Battle for Manchester, also features Aidan Byrne who has opened Manchester House.

The star for me was the old-school maitre d’ who clearly had little time for bolshie Logan’s plans for his workplace for the last 20-odd years and had decided on retirement.

It looked a good call as Logan visited the original restaurant and then told the cameras that there were too many “please and thank you’s and yes sir, no sirs” which he intended to change and “modernise”.

Manners cost nothing, certainly a lot less than an eight course tasting menu, so it is sad that Logan feels these have no part in a modern restaurant.

It will be interesting to see how his venture fares and whether it has even a fraction of the staying power of its predecessor.

Clearly the retiring maitre d’ didn’t think it would. He told the cameras that many of these modern restaurants enjoy a honeymoon period but don’t last much longer, before he yanked off his microphone and strode off out of the kitchen.

:::

LAST Sunday’s FA Cup semi-final at Wembley was a difficult one for the neutral. The clash between Sheffield United and Hull City featured two teams from our region with great history including plenty of ups and downs.

Hull ultimately triumphed but Sheffield United played their part in a great match and the experience should hopefully fire them up for a promotion run next season after new manager Nigel Clough secured League One safety in the current campaign.

News reaches me from the Steel City that some among the Blades-supporting business community were absolutely sure they were going to triumph.

And that was not just because they were leading at half time.

The directors of one firm said they never doubted Sheffield United’s success because one of the girls in their factory had worn her ‘lucky pants’ for every round and went down to Wembley with them firmly in place.

“We are all trying to find out what an earth she got up to at half time as she must have lost them by the start of the second half!” my contact told me this week.

Have a lovely Easter.

Close