The dastardly Mr Deedes

Busy ex-London Stock Exchange boss Xavier Rolet was reported by Sky News last month to be joining the illustrious board of billionaire Tory donor Sir Michael Hintze’s hedge fund CQS. Several weeks later and still no announcement. Is it happening? A well-placed source tells me: ‘Don’t count your chickens. Sir Michael’s a private person and wasn’t impressed to discover his approach to Monsieur Rolet had filtered through to the media.’ Intrigant! Patisserie Valerie chairman Luke Johnson has been accused of ‘talking down’ to shareholders during the deep-in-the-doo-doo company’s emergency meeting yesterday. They shouldn’t take it personally. A Johnson acquaintance sighs: ‘Luke would talk down to the Dalai Lama.’ Goldman Sachs’ new boss David Solomon, who succeeded Lloyd Blankfein last month, is generally perceived as a competent pair of hands on Wall Street. But I wonder if he regrets a recent interview with Vanity Fair, which took place prior to the slaying of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, in which he enthuses of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince Mohammed bin Salman: ‘He’s extremely impressive. He’s got a lot of energy. He’s very passionate about what he’s doing. He’s very, very engaged about what he’s trying to accomplish, and he’s trying to change his country, which has an impact on the world for the better.’ Italian cobbler Salvatore Ferragamo’s widow Wanda, who has died aged 96, was on friendly terms with Eva Peron and Sophia Loren, but the only woman she’s said to have envied was Marilyn Monroe. The pouting blonde bombshell was a devotee of her hubby’s famous trotters and would order 30 pairs at a time. Departing BT boss Gavin Patterson, who’s being replaced by ex-Worldpay boss Philip Jansen following shareholder dissatisfaction, announced a passable final set of results yesterday. Said Gav: ‘We are successfully delivering against the core pillars of our strategy with improved customer experience metrics, accelerating ultrafast deployment and positive progress towards transforming our operating model.’ My management gobbledygook decryption device translates: ‘The turnaround began on MY watch!’