Hugo Melling?
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When I started drinking gin it was unpretentious falling-over-water. Now of course everyone and his three-legged dog is making some sort of foofy artisanal stuff…
From the BBC synopses, which may give you a starting point:
- 17 July 2017
Matt is keen to make a good impression with the Investors’ Day at Grey Gables. He even persuades Christine, who is having lunch with Peggy and Jill, to drop in. Christine has no money to invest, but can’t resist all the talk about horses. She is flattered when Matt offers to introduce her to his boss Hugo. - 18 July 2017
Matt has to explain the poor turn out at the Investors’ Day to Hugo. He tells Christine how impressed Hugo was with her. Later, Matt accuses Justin of orchestrating the failure. Every no-show seems to have some sort of business connection with him. Justin is unapologetic. Matt’s interference is becoming irritating. Justin gives Matt a serious warning. Stay out of his domestic and private affairs, and then, perhaps, he’ll stay out of Matt’s. - 17 November 2017
Christine talks excitedly about the Rhine cruise she won at the Hunt Ball, donated by Melling Equestrian. Lilian feels uneasy when Christine points out she doesn’t have any details yet. She feels even worse when Christine divulges she invested quite a lot of money in the racecourse. - 19 November 2017
Lilian believes that the police will soon make the news of the Melling Equestrian Investments scam public. Peggy’s shocked when Lilian informs her of Christine’s involvement. They break the news to Christine as gently as possible. Christine tells them that she has lost about £50,000, and hastily retires to her room. Feeling guilty that she didn’t discover the scam sooner, Lilian can’t stop telling Peggy how sorry she is. Peggy’s just glad Christine didn’t invest even more. - 20 November 2017
Christine gives her statement to the police regarding the scam. Meeting DI Thorpe has given her confidence that she might get her money back, but Peggy’s more realistic. Christine’s upset to discover Peggy’s told David and Jill. She implores Peggy not to tell her son Peter.
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10/10 Gus - another breakthrough - cheers!!
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Amazing groundwork Hedgie - some wonderful legal stuff for me to invent in there…I remember those episodes so well - it seems like yesterday - we all felt Aunty C’s pain - oh to have a pal like Peggy to pay one’s care home fees (where can I find one? ) - I hope the Laurels has a bar.
However one crucial detail still eludes us…I know she told Peggy that was “only” £50,000 (less than Caroline’s loss remember in 1991 - RPI link that… and we all see that Caroline must have been a trustie kid) BUT didn’t Aunty C later fess up that she ACTUALLY had invested the entire sale proceeds of her house (…what was it called? Something Cottage?) to Fallon and Harrison…the figure of £300,000 sticks in my mind - does anyone else remember that? Maybe we could look up the sale price on Rightmove or the Land Registry???
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Can’t have been all of it, because:
- 5 October 2017
Fallon and Harrison host a housewarming party at Woodbine Cottage. Harrison thanks Christine again for selling it to them. Christine feels that she’s done very well out of the rent and the sale, and offers to put the money to a good use. She’d like to fund a changing room for the women cricketers.
and yet
- 24 November 2017
Shula explains to Peggy and Christine that Anisha is considering moving her father to The Laurels, although her uncle objects. Christine had always assumed that she would move there if she needed to, but after Shula leaves she laments to Peggy that she couldn’t now afford the fees. The family must think she’s such a fool. Peggy tries to console her - she still has plenty of money from the sale of Woodbine. But that’s the problem - Christine lied about only investing £50,000. In fact, she has lost everything, but couldn’t bear for anyone else to find out. Peggy promises to keep the secret. She’ll sort something out.
(I’ll leave it to That Fish to listen to any actual episodes. I just do the archiving.)
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A total figure of £350k rings bells with me.
The thing is, the chronology of this scam is all cock-eyed, as pointed out by the indefatigable Fish on this thread. Not only the chronology.
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Aha…Matt was lying to whet Latif’s appetite for investment - Aunty C could have agreed to transfer funds and then transferred sales proceeds later but will burrow around in that thread - thanks for that - 350k does indeed sound about right for a bijou pretty 2 bedroom cottage in leafy Ambridge doesn’t it? Expensive to us Northerners …and crucifying for the likes of poor Emma and Ed - I reckon a creative solution to Ambridge housing shortages would be pre-fabs - or they all move to Prudhoe …ohh nooooo!
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Goodness, you were all busy while I was sleeping! I’ve no pertinent facts to add but if I’d been awake earlier (I must explain, Joanna, that I am in Canada, oh, and welcome) I would have been putting my hand up and shouting “Miss, Miss, it’s Hugo Melling!”
So my sole claim to fame is that I used Hugo Melling’s name to leave a review of a hotel on Trip Advisor. Favourable.
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“Very relaxed about wanting to see identification, happy to be paid in cash. Would break my three-continent flight from justice here again.”
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Love it, Hedgers! I expect Hugo was collecting investments from the gullible pun’ers in the lounge, too.
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Thanks Janie - was the hotel GG perchance?? Can I suggest (if you really are takign in three continents as the Sparrow suggests) that you return via Costa Rica (it must be Sourth America surely?) and do a bit of sleuthing to recover some of Aunty C’s dosh? Peggy is chuckign her money around these days (wilding Ambridge, new cats) and may not be able to meet the Laurels fees much longer…I do worry about these things.
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Considering Hazel got most of Jack’s dosh, I am surprised Peggy is still apparently so wealthy but as it happens I believe Christine’s son, Peter is it? or Paul? is paying the fees, or topping them up at any rate. But as for recovering the dosh, forget it, I’m the one that nicked it, amn’t I?
(No it wasn’t Grey Gables, it was a holiday let in West Sussex, we criminals like to keep a low profile, so we find that self-catering is best.)
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I think it says “wealthy” on her character sheet. So it doesn’t matter how much money she spends, she’s always a rich person.
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If it was dog friendly send me details…I need somewhere down there later this year while seeing rellies in Chichester…will obvs tarry halfway down in Borsetshire
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Indeed - I often wondered that too…can’t have been The Bull …another financial black hole opens in Ambridge
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Did Hazel get the properties of Jack’s estate and Peggy got the rest?
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The actual details of Jack’s will were never revealed, but Hazel certainly got the lion’s share - “you’ll be a very wealthy woman” as the solicitor put it in that oh-so-professional way we’ve come to expect in TA. There was much debate at the time as to whether or not Peggy got what was left of the proceeds from the sale of GG, since that was originally supposed to go to her, but IIRC was sold to pay for his time in The Laurels.
How Peggy is still sufficiently flush to throw half a million at the rewiddling project is a mystery, since her own investments were found to be in a pretty poor way when Brian got his financial adviser to look them over. She’s since (probably) paid off Tom and Kirsty’s debts for the wedding that wasn’t and been paying at least some of Christine’s care fees. My guess is that the SWs have simply forgotten.
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Just did a bit of digging - the episode in question was 16/1/14:
TOBY [Jack’s solicitor]: In summary, Jack made several small bequests to charities. Then he left Peggy The Lodge, together with a minority share of his other investments. And the main beneficiary–who receives the substantial majority of his estate–is you, Hazel.
HAZEL: Yes!
TOBY: So, all in all, you’re set to become quite a wealthy woman.
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No, that was hers plus Jack’s investments that she was supposed to be looking after for him. Their accountant died and she disliked his son so she simply didn’t get in touch with him after she had her stroke, and thus managed to halve the value of their investments.
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… because she has such a good head for business.
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