THE PR FIXER WHO SPREAD POISON IN THE SHADOWS...

FOR months, rumours were fed to the media by a fast-talking PR about drug-taking in the SaatchiLawson household.

The man behind the storm of rumours circulating online is a former salesman who has made different claims about his relationship with Charles Saatchi.

New Zealand-born Richard Hillgrove had said he was a ‘behind-the-scenes svengali’ to Saatchi. He claimed to be a valued adviser but also said he was not on the art collector’s payroll.

Hillgrove, who lives in Somerset and favours wearing a Stetson, writes a blog, News Opinion. He posted a series of pieces about Nigella and allegations of her drug-taking – and was then threatened with legal action by her lawyers.

In an interview with The Guardian, Hillgrove conceded he had not spoken to Saatchi about the incident at Scott’s restaurant.

But friends close to Saatchi said Hillgrove had simply ‘fed Saatchi fascinating titbits’ of information about Nigella, and was not working for him. The two only met, they claim, when Hillgrove called Saatchi to say Nigella had threatened him with legal action.

Hillgrove, a former salesman for media giant Northern & Shell, is a self-styled PR guru who also claimed to have represented three stars of the BBC’s Dragons’ Den. But Dragon Duncan Bannatyne, briefly a client, said he ‘would not recommend him’. Hillgrove is also accused of trying to defraud British revenue of £100,000.