Lockdown? It’s party time for Sir Philip’s birthday girl Chloe
30th bash for 25 pals at £1k-a-night Maldives resort
PARTYING in exotic climes is merely a far-flung dream for most people right now.
But Sir Philip Green is planning to mark daughter Chloe’s 30th birthday this weekend with a lockdown-busting bash in paradise for close friends and family.
A group of around 25 of Chloe’s best friends have gathered for the celebrations over three nights at the Four Seasons Kuda Huraa resort in the Maldives.
The bill is not known, but yesterday a source close to Sir Philip, whose retail group Arcadia collapsed at the end of last year, said: ‘It’s not a big party.’
Unlike other infamous Green celebrations, the entire resort has not been taken over.
For Sir Phil’s 60th, guests including Gwyneth Paltrow and Leonardo DiCaprio were serenaded by Stevie Wonder and the Beach Boys in Mexico and the final bill was well over £5million.
The source denied Chloe’s birthday will be a mega blowout with a million-pound budget.
He said: ‘This is just a quiet place to celebrate her birthday with a lunch and a dinner. Some friends from Monaco have come out for a half-term holiday with their kids.’
But even a ‘low-key’ celebration will come with a hefty price tag as a simple burger at the poolside costs £50 and a room is around £1,000 a night.
The resort consists of 96 rooms on a tiny island, which are ‘water villas’ on the ocean or beachside bungalows, with thatched roofs and teak floors. Luxe bathrooms feature walkin rainfall showers, with most also boasting ‘charming’ outdoor showers too.
Kuda Huraa has outstanding spa facilities, a dedicated surf school and resident marine biologists who offer education programmes for guests. There are four restaurants.
Visitors to the archipelago in the Indian Ocean have to present a negative Covid test taken three days before departure, but there are no further barriers to entry.
Under current UK restrictions, the message is to stay at home. Residents must not travel without a legally permitted reason and it is illegal to travel abroad for holidays or leisure purposes. Returning home, UK residents must selfisolate for ten days at home, and show a negative test taken before departure.
As citizens of Monaco, Sir Phil and his family have been living under a 7pm-6am curfew, with face masks mandatory, bars closed and restaurants serving only lunch. Working from home is compulsory.
Travel, though, is allowed, with Monegasques being told only to ‘ avoid travelling in infected areas’.
In the Maldives, international visitors have to quarantine, but tourists are exempt and many resorts have been open since last July. The state has only reported 60 deaths due to Covid and 19,000 cases. All visitors have to wear face masks at the airport and in ‘enclosed public spaces’ – but no such considerations will apply at the resort.
Government advice simply reminds tourists to ‘ practise good hygiene and… respiratory etiquette’ and to keep their distance from others. Outdoor gatherings of more than ten people are prohibited.
There is a simple temperature check at the airport. All tourists do have to present a negative Covid test taken within three days of arrival.
Chloe has been dating Manuele Thiella, 34, a yacht broker based in Monaco, since last June. She was previously in a two-year relationship with ‘ hot felon’ Jeremy Meeks, a former gang member and jailbird turned model.
He is the father of her son, Jayden. They parted around the time of Jayden’s first birthday in May 2019.
They were said to be engaged, and although Chloe and her mother Lady Tina got as far as scoping out possible wedding venues, the romance petered out over the summer of 2018.
Arcadia collapsed with gross liabilities said to exceed £550million and 13,000 jobs lost. Asos bought the Topshop, Topman and Miss Selfridge brands and Boohoo snapped up the Dorothy Perkins, Burton and Wallis brands.
The Green family is reportedly set to receive £50million from the sale of Topshop via Aldsworth Equity – they are secured creditors and will be paid before suppliers, landlords and HMRC.
It has been reported that there is a shortfall in the employee pension scheme of up to £350million.
‘Resorts open since July’