The dastardly Mr Deedes

The World Economic Forum in Davos has, I hear, invited the Duke of York’s workshy daughter Princess Beatrice to return to next month’s Swiss Alps jamboree. ‘Bee’, 29, attended a business lunch there last year, where witnesses say she impressed guests such as Martin Sorrell and Mike Rake with humility and good grace. Unlike her guileless father, in other words, who as a trade envoy had a knack for knocking diplomatic conks out of joint. The possibly-not-as-nice-as-he-looks property developer Nick Candy, 44, and his baby doll wife Holly, 34, celebrated their High Court win over businessman Mark Holyoake yesterday at lunch with comedians David Walliams and Jimmy Carr plus light entertainment wally Vernon Kay. The dinner party from hell? Samantha Cameron’s brother, Will Astor, has hired lobbying firm Pagefield to water down Government plans to alter leasehold laws which would hamper his investment company Long Harbour’s £1.6bn business. Will, 38, can’t rely on political assistance from brother-in-law Dave, who’s enjoying a convivial break in employment. Though I notice that his vulpine father, Viscount Astor, roosts on the influential all-parliamentary group for leaseholds. Handy! Hargreaves Lansdown founder Steve Lansdown’s £50m investment in Championship football team Bristol City was rewarded this week with a shock cup win over Manchester United. Lansdown, 65, who made over £200m from the investment firm, has pledged to take the team to the Premier League. Admirable, though many might regard his erstwhile partner Peter Hargreaves’ decision to travel the globe aboard his £16m jet as the more agreeable retirement plan. A Parisian dominatrix calling herself Theodora claims to have made over $1m this year after buying up bitcoin. She invested in the cryptocurrency after taking post-coital tips from clients, many of whom are chief executives. If only some of our own flailing fund managers could be blessed with Mme Theodora’s fiscal prescience.