KING WALKS
Ibrox chairman traipses through packed city centre for 40 minutes as he waits to hear £11m court battle outcome
RANGERS chairman Dave King went on a 40-minute walkabout yesterday while waiting to hear his fate over an £11million court battle.
The businessman was expected to give evidence on the case at the Court of Session in Edinburgh.
But while legal discussions went on behind closed doors, King went on an impromptu tour of the capital.
With an associate struggling to keep up, the businessman completed a circuit of Princes Street Gardens and dodged traffic on Princes Street as he made his way to a posh hotel on George Street.
The court was due to consider whether King had breached a court order compelling him to make an £11million buyout offer to Rangers’ shareholders.
The order was made after watchdogs the Takeover Panel took legal action against him.
The South African-based entrepreneur previously said he couldn’t produce the “free funds” to make a share offer, with his assets tied up in off-shore family trusts.
Lawyers for King and the Takeover Panel were due to present their cases before Lady Wolffe at 10am yesterday.
King was spotted in the court’s historic Parliament Hall, which is used as a meeting place for lawyers and clients.
He left at 10.10am with his associate and headed into the adjacent St Giles’ Cathedral cafe, seemingly to wait for word from his legal team.
Half-an-hour later, King emerged grim-faced. He crossed over the Royal Mile, picking his way through a mass of tourists and festival street performers.
He stopped in St Giles’ Street to make a phone call for several minutes and paced up and down. He briefly went inside Stocks bistro before hurrying down the News Steps to Market Street and over to Waverley Bridge.
Making his way through lines of sightseers queueing for tour buses, King waited at traffic lights on Princes Street to cross, then turned into Princes Street Gardens instead.
Taking the perimeter path through the gardens, he emerged 10 minutes later on Waverley Bridge again.
King and his associate arrived at The Principal Edinburgh
George Street hotel at 12.20pm. Formerly known as the George Hotel, its guests have included Elizabeth Taylor, Omar Sharif, Jack Lemmon and Kylie Minogue.
It later emerged the court hearing had been postponed until October due to legal issues and it is understood King will not have to appear.
An insider said: “Today was a setback for the Takeover Panel. They expected the matter to be resolved over the course of the current hearing and obviously that hasn’t happened.”