The dastardly Mr Deedes

Former energy minister Charles Hendry, who — quelle surprise! — now roosts on the board of energy firm Independent Oil and Gas, is renting out his Scottish estate Blair Castle for Hogmanay. For £7,000 a night, Hendry, 58, promises ‘The Downton Abbey experience to people on a relatively modest income’. All in the best possible taste, I’m sure. If you’re wondering how an ex-MP can afford a sprawling, 14-bedroom castle, wife Sallie won a multi-million-pound divorce settlement from the mega-rich Moores family, ex-owners of the Littlewoods pools empire. IBM executive Harriet Green reminds us it’s World Rhino Day today, tweeting: ‘Rhinos could be extinct by 2025. Let’s put poachers on the endangered list instead.’ We haven’t heard much from glossy Harriet, 55, since she departed as boss of Thomas Cook in 2015 and took what we imagined to be a high-profile role at IBM. Surely it isn’t time to add her to any endangered list? Credit Suisse boss Tidjane Thiam has parted company with smooth-talking mouthpiece Christoph Meier. It’s reported that Thiam, 55, was concerned about negative publicity surrounding the bank, a refer- ence, perhaps, to recent tax evasion scandals. Perhaps Meier’s replacement will summon the courage to address that other public relations hot spud at Credit Suisse – namely Tidjane’s stonking £9.6m pay package. Defence firm BAE yesterday issued guidelines on spotting money launderers, which it says will help businesses in their fight against financial crime. What a pity it is the firm didn’t spot the financial jiggery-pokery occurring on its own doorstep when it was whacked with a (then record) £288m fine in 2010 following bribery allegations. Must-have footwear among Silicon Valley’s dressed- down eggheads are cap-toe sneakers by chic Parisian fashion house Lanvin. Google boss Sundar Pichai, Instagram chief Kevin Systrom and Microsoft’s Satya Nadella all sport the fancy trotters, priced at a trifling £300. A tad steep for a couple of bits of rubber moulded together in a factory, but that’s fashion, dahling. Have you any gossip for our City diary? Email: mrdeedes@dailymail.co.uk