It may be Thanksgiving weekend stateside, but in the UK, it’s still business (and gossip) as usual. Here’s a photo of Charles Saatchi arriving at court on Friday afternoon. Look at him all acting like Rico Suave in his fancy suit. Dude thinks he’s in control, but he’s ultimately making a fool of himself. Nice suit though.
For a recap of Saatchi’s latest antics and the ongoing mess of his split with TV chef Nigella Lawson, check out last Wednesday’s post. In the meantime, the civil fraud suit against the couple’s assistants, Elisabetta and Francesca Grillo, has continued unabated. Last time we heard, the sisters accused Nigella of using cocaine daily for over a decade while granting them unlimited access to Saatchi’s credit cards in exchange for their silence on the matter. I agree with many of you about how this defense doesn’t make much sense. If Nigella had something to hide, why didn’t she use her own credit cards to keep the sisters quiet? Nigella has millions in the bank, and she could afford such a tactic.
At the moment, the Grillo sisters’ case has been adjourned until Wednesday when Nigella is expected to take the stand. That should be fun. Here’s a photo of the Grillo sisters entering court if you’re curious:
A number of stories are circulating about the court proceedings from the past few days. Let’s do bullet points to get ourselves up to speed:
* New reports say that Nigella had already informally separated from Saatchi one year before the choking incident. Nigella allegedly relocated into one of the couple’s other houses with one of the Grillo sisters and only officially moved out of the family home after she lunched at Scott’s in Mayfair with Saatchi (for the last time). This tale seems suspicious since Nigella wore her wedding ring until after the choking incident when she felt public pressure to leave Saatchi.
* The Grillo sisters not only loved luxury goods but reportedly blew £1 million per year on Saatchi’s credit cards. Their lawyer says they were given the option of living rent-free while paying back their “ill-gotten gains.” The sisters refused to do so because “they felt it tied them to the company for the rest of their lives.”
* The sisters maintain that they were only (in regard to Saatchi’s credit cards) acting like any other celebrity assistants but were “treated worse than Filipino slaves.” Their attorney stated “they believed that they were authorised to incur this personal expenditure, and suddenly [Saatchi was] saying they were not.”
* Saatchi is so lonely and sad about everything. He took the stand and described himself as “utterly heartbroken” over the divorce and stated, “I wish this last year had never happened. If you think I am taking any pleasure from this situation then you are greatly mistaken.” He also regrets describing his ex-wife as “Higella” in recently released emails. Right.
* Saatchi admits he doesn’t really know whether or not Nigella was snorting cocaine, but he is very upset that his douchey emails were leaked to the public. He still “absolutely adores” Nigella and is “broken-hearted to have lost her.” Saatchi also claims he never choked Nigella but was only “holding her head, by the neck, to get her to focus.” Were they speaking of Nigella’s alleged drug abuse while choked her? Saatchi admits, “No,” but “I’m very against drugs.” As to the Grillo sisters’ alleged misdeeds, Saatchi described the duo as “naughty girls.”
* Saatchi’s new girlfriend, Trinny Woodall, is still showing questionable judgment. Trinny was photographed, um, hugging Saatchi’s crotch in the back of a taxicab on Saturday. I wonder what Trinny thinks of Saatchi’s “heartbroken” declaration.
Photos courtesy of WENN
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