Noel Edmonds plans TV doc about his £73m battle with Lloyds after losing millions to fraud
NOEL EDMONDS spent 11 years watching the public take on the Banker in Deal Or No Deal – and now he’s going to do the same.
has begun work on a new documentary revealing his battle with Lloyds bank after finding himself millions of pounds out of pocket in a fraud case.
It will not only tell the inside story of his “deep distress and public humiliation” but will also include interviews with other victims of the scandal.
Former DJ Noel found himself with huge losses after staff at a former HBOS branch in Reading, who were bought by Lloyds in 2007, were convicted of a complex fraud — resulting in him demanding £73million in compensation.
He was a client of former HBOS employee Mark Dobson, who was sentenced in February to four and a half years in jail along with five others.
A jury heard the six men spent the proceeds of their £245million loans scam on superyachts and sex parties while destroying businesses to which they had lent money.
Noel’s company, Unique Group, was among those hit by the fraud.
A source said: “Noel has made no secret of his anger at what has gone on with Lloyds.
“And the longer things go on, the more furious he has become. It has spurred him on to hit back at the bank and tell people exactly what has happened to him.
“He wants to make an example of them so that nobody else suffers in the same way he has. Making TV is what he has done all his life. He’s got a platform and he’s determined to use it.”
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Lloyds has set aside a £100million compensation scheme to repay those affected by the scam — understood to be a total of 64 customers. The star wrote to Lloyds boss Antonio Horta Osorio after the six men were jailed, claiming he had “suffered immense economic loss as well as distress and inconvenience”.
But after being promised a deal would be agreed by the end of last month, Noel set up a website devoted to counting down the days, hours and minutes before a payment was agreed. It is now counting the time that has passed beyond the deadline.
Noel also hopes to air the banker-bashing film in cinemas and hold public events to criticise those involved in the fraud and attack the finance industry as a whole.
They are going to wish they had messed with a different celebrity.
— HIT cartoon SpongeBob SquarePants is being made into a Broadway musical. The show, which is due to open in December, will feature music from DAVID BOWIE.
Piers' threat of a Katie duet
’s duet with ex PETER ANDRE on A Whole New World gave me nightmares.
But there could be an even more unsettling collaboration after she appeared on Good Morning Britain.
PIERS MORGAN attempted to sing Katie’s new track I Got U – to the horror of his co-presenter .
He said: “I think we should duet, Pricey and Piers!” Katie later performed a pre-recorded version of her dance tune, produced by DJ TOM ZANETTI, on the ITV show.
It came just days after she appeared on my Facebook page – and revealed she would rekindle her relationship with former flame GARETH GATES if she was single.
Maybe he would be up for a duet too.
Andrea flasher horror
ANDREA McLEAN has revealed her horror at seeing a grown man expose himself in front of children while she was on a family holiday.
The Loose Women host told of her disgust at seeing the incident while swimming underwater in a hotel pool, as she joined STACEY SOLOMON, JANE MOORE and COLEEN NOLAN on show.
Andrea said: “What I saw made me literally swallow water and come up.
“Then I went back under to make sure what I was seeing was what I thought.
“A man was exposing himself to children in the pool.
“Before you say, ‘Oh, maybe he was just getting a bit of fresh water on it or something’, he was clearly aroused.
“And he was in a swimming pool surrounded by children.”
Despite mentioning the incident on the ITV show, Andrea says that she regrets not reporting it to police.
She added: “I saw him at the buffet table, actually. I realised he was one of the guests at the hotel.
“I went over to him and just said in a really quiet voice, ‘I saw what you did and you are disgusting and if you ever do that again I will report you’.
“Now when I come home I’m annoyed with myself.
“I should have screamed and shouted and reported him and got him hauled off to prison because you do not do that.”
Rod and Penny: 'She won't dance with me'
SINGER ROD STEWART and PENNY LANCASTER celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary by renewing their vows in a lavish ceremony at their Essex estate.
But I am told it was another man who Loose Women panellist Penny took for a spin for her first dance – her former Strictly pro dancer IAN WAITE.
The pair were partnered when Penny took part on the BBC show a decade ago and have remained close pals. She said: “My dance partner Ian came to the ceremony and later he was like, ‘Come on darling, let’s do our jive’.
“I was like, ‘I don’t remember the steps’. He went, ‘Just take my hand and I will lead you’.
“It was brilliant fun – and Rod loved it.”
But while Rod has previously performed his music on Strictly, Penny has ruled out the possibility of him ever taking part.
She added: “I don’t think he’d ever go on the show.”
Spoilsport.
— FORMER I’m A Celeb champ CARL FOGARTY was airlifted to hospital after breaking two ribs and puncturing a lung in a horror crash on Sunday.
The most successful World Superbike racer of all time lost control in one of a series of races in King’s Lynn, Norfolk.
But he seemed to recover enough to want others to watch the accident. He said: “You can see all the madness and mayhem at 8pm on Wednesday on ITV4.
“Mrs F hates me right now. I promise I’ll never race again.” Don’t count on it.
soapbox
THERE are some tough decisions to be made in EASTENDERS as Lauren mulls over the prospect of starting a new life in New Zealand with Louie.
At the same time she struggles to try to find the right way to tell Steven that it’s all over between them.
Meanwhile, Abi makes another attempt to convince Steven that he is better off with her rather than Lauren, but he refuses to listen.
In EMMERDALE’s hour-long episode Aaron gets a horrifying blast from the past when, desperate for the drug Spice, he calls Ethan.
But he’s in for a shock when prison bully Jason arrives too, causing things to kick off.