He will be back
Taki
Gstaad T wish to add a few words to those of 1 Mark Steyn and William Shawcross about Conrad and Barbara Black. It was about time. Piling on is an American football term for those who smash into people lying on the ground after the whistle has blown, The Blacks have been piled on by the press as if they were common criminals, the irony being that, if they were criminals, they would have been treated with far more kindness by the nice folk who write in newspapers. The most vicious of all has been a Big Bagel weekly rag owned by an ex-Ivan Boesky business partner, one who reneged on a deal with Lord Black about five years ago and who now sees an opportunity to rub it in.
In the process, many of Conrad's friends, people like Henry Kissinger and Bill Buckley, have been maligned, insulted and libelled, purely for having been loyal friends to our present (or ex-) proprietor. This guilt by association I find an outrage, especially coming from a man who was associated with some of the biggest crooks of Wall Street. But I will not mention his name because this is what this individual wants: Publicity with a capital P. He has not been able to crack Noo Yawk's elite and never will because of too much hair dye, grotesque manners and his relentless efforts to ingratiate himself with celebrities.
I wrote in my American Conservative column this week about the Blacks, more or less saying the same thing that Dominic Lawson said in the Sunday Telegraph three weeks ago. If Conrad was a bully, I never saw it. Throughout the 18 years that Conrad owned the Speccie. I metaphorically packed my bags three times. But it was
not to be. To the chagrin of many, Conrad never pulled the trigger, and for this I am extremely grateful.
At our 175th anniversary party last September, an incident almost overshadowed the proceedings. While Boris was giving a very funny speech, a tabloid hack approached me and asked me if Conrad and I were on good terms. I refused to answer and turned my back. He insisted. I told him I wished to hear what the sainted one had to say and to f--off. Still the man kept on. So I threatened him with violence and was about to throw one when two soft arms wrapped themselves around me. I turned and saw it was Lady Black. `Taki, come and stand here with us,' she said sweetly, moving me away.
Later on I cooled off and sincerely apologised to the hack — after all, he was only doing his job — and he reluctantly accepted it. Barbara was asked about the incident and she said that Taki has to be protected from himself most of the time, and that is all I did ... Pretty damn nice, I thought, and her embrace was very timely. Can you imagine what it would have looked like? While Boris was being Demosthenian, one of his minions is throwing punches like a yob and rolling around the floor: 175 years of elegance down the drain, and tens of hacks there to report it. Thanks. Babs, and good luck to both of you.
And there's more. For some strange reason I don't believe a word of what Eleanor Mills reports (that she was disinvited by the Blacks and told to leave by the back door because some people thought her presence as a Sunday Times reporter was inappropriate). I can only write about personal experiences. I have attended many of Conrad's parties, and the Blacks have always been extremely gracious. Even the time when Princess Michael of Kent — apparently — voiced great displeasure at my presence. Barbara met me at the door, welcomed me with a big smile, and warned me to avoid the Austro-Australian. `She's on the warpath, be careful ... ' Conrad, the great bully, took me aside on another occasion, and asked for a favour. 'Anything you want, boss, except for my wife, daughter and mistress.' Nothing as dramatic as all that, just please try to lay off Princess Michael, she's a good girl ' Some bully!
The fall of the great is always very satisfying to those who suffer from envy. But as Mark Steyn very correctly pointed out, make no mistake, Conrad will be back. It would give me great pleasure to see him have his day in court and win. He bought a great institution and preserved it, which is more than you can say about Murdoch and the Times. I happen to know some members of the Berry family, and they are as good as it gets. If they or the Barclay brothers get it, no sweat. Ditto for Jonathan Rothermere. And poor little me is also in the running. As the great Nigel Dempster used to say, watch this space.
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