Skinflint's City Diary
No doubt there are a number of excellent people, people of gentle character and inner gentleness, that one should meet in the Honours List. The first of this year's Life Baronies goes to Sir Harold Samuel, the rich self-made property dealer, and Chairman of Land Securities Investment Trust. He is admired by estate agents and, property men_as having an acute eye for the development potential of old bits of London. But however generous he may have been,_ he must be second in the public's esteem and affection to the other life baron, Brigadier Sir Bernard Fergus, son. Fergusson's is a well known story in the Buchan tradition, from his expeditions into Burma with Wingate to the GovernorGeneralship of New Zealand. He is also the possessor of exceptional literary talent.
Would it be blunt to suggest that a man like Fergusson with a lifetime of public service behind him and still in his early sixties has more to contribute to the House of Lords than charitably disposed businessmen — even though, as in the case of Sir Harold, they have rendered the invaluable service of giving £250,000 for redecoration the of Chequers?
Friendly landlord
Pat Matthews of First National Finance Corporation remains unfairly cast in the eyes of many as the hard rapacious landlord and maker of small loans at high interest. The well-trodden trail of widely publicised charitable gifts to Cambridge has helped little. He has now washed his hands of his flat and apartment house empire by selling to no less than twentytwo nameless but doubtless equally profitconscious developers at a profit of £26 m. No doubt one day he will be joining Sir Harold in the House of Lords, though I doubt if he can count on it soon.
Covent Garden
Nine. Elms goods yard has been bought for the new Covent Garden market by the -. Covent Garden Authority for millions. It has always been a highly controversial move and there has been doubt that market traders will be prepared to pay economic rents. Particularly strange is the poor use of the land. Lightly built single storey structures are being erected — which is a timid waste of resources, making the servicing of the original loan virtually impossible.
London Weekend Television
London Weekend Television are opening • their new South Bank studio this month and there is now news that an invitation to dinner has been extended to a representative of The Spectator.
However the celebrations will be to some extent disinterested. There is grim news awaiting London Weekend Television shareholders who may have taken last year's report and accounts at face , .-value. Referring to the new Television . Centre the report states: "London Weekend Television's new twenty-six storey :South Bank Television Centre at King's Reach is progressing on schedule . . ." In a note on the secured loan obtained from Coal Industry (Nominees) to develop the property of 105,000 sq ft of offices and studios the balance sheet says: "Contracted Capital Expenditure includes an :amount of £4,077,223 in respect of the contract and ancillary costs to be incurred in the construction of the new studios and • offices at King's Reach. The whole of this is due to be funded by Coal Industry (Nominees) Ltd." There is not one word admitting that Coal Industry (Nominees) in fact now own all the equity in the South Bank Television Centre except for the studios (which, for technical reasons connected with the obtaining of investment grants and building allowances, are held on mortgage by London Weekend Television). Let us hope that next year's accounts show the position less misleadingly.
Effectively the complete ownership and future appreciation in value of the building 'have been allowed to pass, by way of sale and leaseback at about £700,000 per annum rent, to the coal industry's pension .fund, due to the lack of any special commercial adroitness on the part of Mr John Crai Freeman's predecessors, Mr Aldan and Dr TOM Margerison, who agreed to buy the site from nu:. dir whose Chairman was a LW,' Wiseheads in LWTV now wish w" pany had stayed clear of the Soutctu site and bought the old Wernble: they have been using. Flotation of be should come early next year when letting of the spare 60,000 sq at the South Bank Centre has take° 1973 advertising bookings Permitti116.
Not before time too.
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