A luxurious London pub and boutique hotel owned by celebrity British chef Gordon Ramsay has been taken over by a gang of squatters who are threatening legal action if an effort is made to remove them, according to reports that place the value of the property at 13 million pounds sterling (About $16.2 million.)
Gordon Ramsay, promotional photo.
Gordon Ramsay’s York and Albany pub in Regents Park, London, image via Wikipedia.
On tomorrow’s front page: Gordon Ramsay’s £13m pub taken over by squatters with brazen gang even threatening to take legal action against TV chefhttps://t.co/esisyDpr8B pic.twitter.com/EQozVJRX7C
— The Sun (@TheSun) April 12, 2024
Excerpt from the UK Sun report:
The gang, said to be made up of at least six “professional squatters”, used Ramsay’s own kitchen appliances to barricade themselves in and have glued shut the locks.
Photos show the swanky bar area of the venue — which had been temporarily closed for a handover — resembling a tip, with debris sprawled everywhere and a squatter crashed out on a leather sofa.
Ramsay, 57, was about to sign over a multi-million pound lease to new partners when the gang broke in to the York & Albany pub and boutique hotel near Regent’s Park, central London.
The TV chef — who was embroiled in a legal battle over the venue back in 2015 — called the police last Wednesday but has been unable to remove the squatters from the 19th-century building.
SNIP
They have also slapped a legal notice on the front door, saying they are entitled to stay there as it “is a non-residential building”.
They claim that the law which prevents squatting is not applicable because it “was NOT designed or adapted, before the time of our entry, for use as a place to live”.
Incredibly, they then threaten legal action, suggesting that if anyone tries to enter “by violence” they could end up in jail for six months.
They warn: “Take notice that we occupy this property and at all times there is at least one person in occupation.
“That any entry or attempt to enter into these premises without our permission is therefore a criminal offence as any one of us who is in physical possession is opposed to such entry without our permission.
“That if you attempt to enter by violence or by threatening violence we will prosecute you.
“You may receive a sentence of up to six months’ imprisonment and/or a fine of up to £5,000.”
The note, signed by “The Occupiers”, also warns: “If you want to get us out you will have to issue a claim for possession in the County Court or in the High Court.”
End excerpt. Please read the complete Sun report at this link for more including photos of the squatters.
Background on the property via Yahoo!Life/ the Evening Standard (excerpt):
The historic Regent’s Park pub that was at the heart of a court battle between Gordon Ramsay and the building’s owner is on the market with a guide price of £13 million.
Film director and actor Gary Love bought the freehold of the derelict former coaching inn in 2007 from the Crown Estate. He leased the premises to the celebrity chef on a 25-year term where Mr Ramsay opened the York and Albany hotel and gastropub.
Mr Ramsay claimed that the lease for the premises had been signed with an effectively forged signature, alleging his father-in-law, who was then CEO of his company, had used a ghost writer machine to sign his name on a document that made him personally liable for the rent.
Mr Ramsay was unsuccessful in his action and remained bound by the lease.
Ramsay’s website lists restaurants he owns around the world:
Now internationally renowned and holding 7 Michelin stars, Ramsay has opened a string of successful restaurants across the globe, from Singapore to the United States. These include a Le Pressoir d’Argent in Bordeaux; six restaurants in Las Vegas (including Gordon Ramsay Hell’s Kitchen at Caesars Palace, Gordon Ramsay Fish & Chips at The Linq, Gordon Ramsay Steak at Paris, Gordon Ramsay Pub and Grill at Caesars Palace and Gordon Ramsay Burger at Planet Hollywood); two restaurants in Atlantic City (Gordon Ramsay Steak at Harrah’s and Gordon Ramsay Pub and Grill at Caesars); two ventures in Versailles (Gordon Ramsay au Trianon & La Veranda); Bread Street Kitchen by Gordon Ramsay in Dubai; Bread Street Kitchen in Sanya, China and Bread Street Kitchen in Singapore.
In the UK, the Gordon Ramsay Restaurants has locations across major cities including London, Edinburgh, Manchester & Liverpool. These include iconic brands such as Lucky Cat, Gordon Ramsay Bar & Grill, Bread Street Kitchen, Heddon Street Kitchen, Street Pizza and Street Burger.
More from Ramsay, who is 57 years old:
While best known as a celebrity chef now, Ramsay is successful in a variety of other ventures outside of food and television. Most notably as a published author, Ramsay has released a number of books, many of which have become bestsellers around the world; including his autobiography, Roasting in Hell’s Kitchen. Aside from this, Ramsay has a global partnership with WWRD (Waterford, Wedgwood, Royal Doulton), which offers quality home and lifestyle products as well as HEXCLAD offering high performance cookware.
In 2006, in recognition of all that Ramsay has contributed to the industry, he received an OBE (Order of the British Empire awarded by Queen Elizabeth II). Since then, Ramsay and his wife, Tana, set up the Gordon and Tana Ramsay Foundation in 2014, to make a meaningful difference to the charities that are important to them. You can find out more about the Gordon and Tana Ramsay Foundation here.
Now, Ramsay splits his time between Los Angeles and South London, where he resides with his wife, Tana and six children, along with their dogs, cats and tortoise.
Ironically, Ramsay was the host of the reality show Hotel Hell that ran for three seasons over 2012-2016. Ramsay tried to revitalize rundown establishments like this one in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia:
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