Anthony Bailey | |
---|---|
Born | London, England | 13 January 1970
Occupation | Public relations consultant |
Spouse | |
Children | 1 |
Website | anthonybailey.org |
Anthony John James Bailey (born 13 January 1970) is a British public relations consultant.
Bailey was active in UK political circles in the early 2000s, and has also had roles with various charities and Catholic organisations. He has received various honours, including an Order of the British Empire (OBE) awarded in the 2008 Birthday Honours. However, he has also been stripped of various honours, including the OBE, which was revoked in 2023 after a London High Court judge sentenced him to prison for contempt of court in a 2022 divorce settlement hearing.
The son of an Irish mother, Veronica, and an English father, Colin, Bailey was born in London on 13 January 1970 and brought up in Ruislip, attending The Douay Martyrs School, [1] then University College London. [lower-alpha 1] His father was an engineer and instructor at FÁS, an Irish state body responsible for training the unemployed. [4] Before entering public relations, Bailey sold men's suits and worked in a pizza restaurant. [1]
Bailey was a senior account director for communications firm Burson-Marsteller, which he joined in 1993, [1] chairman of his own company Eligo International (incorporated in 1998), then chairman of Anthony Bailey Ltd, a public relations company incorporated in 2014. Eligo International was dissolved in January 2016 with their final accounts showing funds of -£85,000. [5] Anthony Bailey Ltd did not trade until 2016, and in accounts posted that year showed liabilities of more than £40,000. [6] Anthony Bailey Ltd was dissolved by order of Companies House in October 2020. [7] Its most recent accounts from 2018 showed it had built up losses of more than £220,000. [7]
In 2006, Bailey assisted with the first British royal marriage to take place at the Vatican since the Reformation. Described as the couple's friend, spokesman and wedding planner, he supported the Catholic wedding of Lord Nicholas Windsor, son of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, to British-born Croatian aristocrat Princess Paola Doimi de Lupis Frankopan Šubić Zrinski. The couple had an audience with Pope Benedict XVI at the Apostolic Palace before a small ceremony. [8]
In 2007 The Observer referred to Bailey as a "PR guru who is one of the most influential men you have never heard of" and "a key player in the world of Catholic and Middle East politics." [1] Bailey's descriptions of his own occupation have included "Public Relations Consultant" (2010), "Royal And Diplomatic Consultant" (2011), and "Head R. Order of Knighthood" (2004). [9]
Bailey was co-president of the think-tank British Influence and a supporter of Britain's membership of both the European Union and the Commonwealth. [10] He was a supporter of the Conservative Party until 1999 from which time he aligned himself with the Labour Party. [11] He made a substantial donation to the failed leadership campaign of David Miliband in 2010. [11]
In 2005, it emerged that a £500,000 donation Bailey had made to the Labour Party had been rejected by its chief fundraiser, Lord Levy, who allegedly feared the money had come from foreign businessmen. Bailey insisted the money was his own and issued legal proceedings. He later said: "The Labour party has apologised unreservedly for any distress that the affair caused". A subsequent donation of £50,000 was accepted. [1]
In the 1990s, Bailey "revived" the so-called "Delegation for Great Britain and Ireland of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George", under the authority of Prince Carlo, Duke of Castro, who is the "Franco-Neapolitan branch" claimant to the headship of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. [12] (The House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies has controlled no territory since the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was suppressed in 1860. Since 1960 the headship of the House has been disputed.) In 2009 Bailey was appointed "magistral delegate" of the Delegation, and the organisation has awarded him other honours. [13] Bailey has never been an officer or member of the long-established version of the Order, which is under the authority of Prince Pedro, Duke of Calabria, the "Hispano-Neapolitan branch" claimant to the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. The longstanding version of the Order has no connection with Bailey, nor with his business activities, nor with the order of which he is described as "delegate". [14]
In December 2020, Bailey resigned from all the roles he held in his branch of the Constantinian Order, citing its impact on his "physical and mental health", [15] though his personal website still lists him as a "campaigner" for the order. There has been no announcement of a successor, although the order's website continues to be maintained.
Bailey was appointed in 1999 as executive chairman of the Saudi organization "Painting & Patronage". [16] (The UK company "Painting and Patronage" was dissolved in 2014. [17] ) From December 2005 to November 2013, Bailey was a director of the United Learning Trust. [18] He was, from December 2009 to July 2016, a director of St Mary's University. [19]
In 2016, Bailey was appointed President of the Executive Council of the Portuguese Centenary Appeal. [20] He is also a Patron of the Faiths Forum for London. [21]
In 1995 police recorded his telephone conversations with a client, who claimed to be a Libyan prince. Bailey was accused of blackmailing the client, but the case was dismissed before it got to court. [1] Bailey complained to the Press Complaints Commission about the way this was reported in the Daily Mail in 2010; in resolution, the PCC negotiated a statement from the Mail that it had omitted some details in reporting these circumstances, and that it apologised for any distress caused. [22]
Bailey claimed to be Ambassador-at-Large for The Gambia between 2004 and 2007, [23] [24] though the Gambian High Commission in London said at the time that they don't know much about him and "He has no office here". [25]
According to the Prime Minister of Grenada, Keith Mitchell, Bailey asked to be made the country's ambassador to the Holy See, which Mitchell rejected. [26]
In the 2008 Birthday Honours, Bailey was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) "for his services to inter-religious relations and charity." [27] This was revoked in August 2023 [28] following Bailey's failure to obey court orders. [29]
In 2014, Bailey was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Most Distinguished Order of the Nation, by the Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda. [30] In May 2016, the British tabloid The Mail on Sunday reported that Bailey was accused of incorrectly using an Antiguan knighthood as if it were a British title. (Since 1813 Buckingham Palace and the Foreign Office have not allowed the use of titles from foreign knighthoods in the United Kingdom by British citizens. [31] [32] )
Bailey also stated that he had Antiguan citizenship based on his Antiguan passport, issued when he was appointed as their special economic envoy to the European Union in 2015. [33] The Antiguan government did confirm that Bailey's passport inaccurately stated that he is a national of Antigua and Barbuda. However, Bailey was never granted Antiguan citizenship, whether by investment or otherwise. [34]
The British firm that prints the passports apparently assumed that anyone to be issued an Antigua and Barbuda passport would be a national of that country, and they were not informed that this did not apply to Bailey. [34] Bailey's knighthood and his appointment as an economic envoy then became subject to review by the Antiguan Governor General. [34] On 21 July 2017 his Antiguan knighthood was annulled. [30] [35] He remarked: "It is unfortunate that this important goodwill and interfaith engagement has been damaged by a farcical and Machiavellian side show akin to an Ealing comedy. The strong political overtones to this dirty campaign which are well documented and the internal chivalric war led by some highly questionable and unchristian individuals is regrettable." [8]
Bailey was granted a Grenadian knighthood in 2015. [36] The government of Grenada reviewed this grant and took legal advice; the knighthood was rescinded in August 2016. [37] In December 2016 Private Eye reported that Bailey's lawyers were issuing legal warning letters to any Caribbean local newspapers which had reported on the knighthood controversies. [38]
In 2007, Bailey married Marie-Therese von Hohenberg. Their "glittering society wedding" in Salzburg followed a lavish engagement party held at St John's in London's Smith Square attended by royalty and around 40 ambassadors. [8] They had a son, Maximilian, in 2010, and lived in Twickenham, south-west London. [8] They separated in 2016, [39] Hohenberg instigated divorce proceedings, and Bailey was subsequently accused of failing to make court-ordered payments of £2 million to his ex-wife. [40]
On 1 February 2022, the High Court in London gave Bailey a 12-month prison sentence for contempt of court. [41] [39] The order followed an application by his ex-wife over Bailey's failure to comply with a court order relating to the couple's divorce settlement, which included a half-share of his villa in Portugal. The judge, Mr Justice Peel, said that Bailey had been "obstructing the court at almost every possible opportunity, deploying numerous tactical and forensic ploys to attempt to delay the process, and divert attention from his grossly culpable conduct". His behaviour displayed "dishonesty, wilful obstruction, and barefaced contempt for the court process, all to avoid paying that which is owed to his former wife. It is a shameful spectacle deserving of considerable opprobrium." [42] Bailey was believed to be in Portugal (in January 2022 he claimed to be too ill to travel, but he had made seven trips to Spain, Germany, Rome, and the US between June 2021 and January 2022, and the judge on this occasion, Sir Jonathan Cohen, discovered that he was actually in Florida). [42] [43] The prison sentence will only take effect if he returns to the United Kingdom. [44]
In February 2023, it was announced that Bailey was engaged to a Florida socialite, Ms Farley Rentschler of Palm Beach [45] (the couple had previously been seen at various US social events, including a New York party in September 2022, [46] and a British Art reception [47] and a Palm Beach white tie centennial ball [48] in January 2023). Rentschler and Canadian aristocrat Cyril Woods were implicated in Bailey's contempt of court and, in their absence, were each given prison sentences of four months by the court. [49] Woods, like Bailey, had his Antiguan knighthood revoked in 2017 [35] and was a trustee of the Portuguese Centenary Appeal. [50]
In August 2023, Bailey was reported to be living in Portugal, and claimed to be working for the King of Tonga. Apparently renouncing his British citizenship, he described himself as "an Irish national", and "a true internationalist, a proud European, an Irishman living in Portugal, father to an amazing son, diplomat & interfaith and charity campaigner." [8]
For many years, Bailey has sought honours and awards, particularly those of chivalric orders. Some were received in exchange for awards bestowed by Bailey's recreated order of knighthood, and some awards received have since been revoked amid controversy.
Antigua and Barbuda is a sovereign island country in the Caribbean. It lies at the conjuncture of the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean in the Leeward Islands part of the Lesser Antilles.
In the United Kingdom and the British Overseas Territories, personal bravery, achievement, or service are rewarded with honours. The honours system consists of three types of award:
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organizations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established on 4 June 1917 by King George V and comprises five classes across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two of which make the recipient either a knight if male or dame if female. There is also the related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are affiliated with, but not members of, the order.
Sir is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as part of "Monsieur", with the equivalent "My Lord" in English. Traditionally, as governed by law and custom, Sir is used for men who are knights and belong to certain orders of chivalry, as well as later applied to baronets and other offices. As the female equivalent for knighthood is damehood, the suo jure female equivalent term is typically Dame. The wife of a knight or baronet tends to be addressed as Lady, although a few exceptions and interchanges of these uses exist.
Nicholas Joseph Orville Liverpool was a politician and jurist from Dominica who served as the sixth President of Dominica from 2 October 2003 to 17 September 2012.
Sir James Beethoven Carlisle, GCMG is a dentist and the former Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda. Selected by Vere Cornwall Bird, his term ended in June 2007, after 16 years in office.
Sir Wilfred Ebenezer Jacobs was the first Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda.
Antigua, also known as Waladli or Wadadli by the native population, is an island in the Lesser Antilles. It is one of the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region and the most populous island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua and Barbuda became an independent state within the Commonwealth of Nations on 1 November 1981.
A dynastic order, monarchical order, or house order is an order under royal patronage. Such an order is bestowed by, as a legitimate fons honorum, a sovereign or the head of a once-sovereign ruling family. These are often considered part of the cultural patrimony of the ruling family. Dynastic orders were often founded or maintained to reward service to a monarch or their subsequent dynasty.
The monarchy of Antigua and Barbuda is a system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of Antigua and Barbuda. The current Antiguan and Barbudan monarch and head of state, since 8 September 2022, is King Charles III. As sovereign, he is the personal embodiment of the Crown of Antigua and Barbuda. Although the person of the sovereign is equally shared with 14 other independent countries within the Commonwealth of Nations, each country's monarchy is separate and legally distinct. As a result, the current monarch is officially titled King of Antigua and Barbuda and, in this capacity, he and other members of the Royal Family undertake public and private functions domestically and abroad as representatives of Antigua and Barbuda. However, the King is the only member of the Royal Family with any constitutional role.
The Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George (SMOCG) (Italian: Sacro Militare Ordine Costantiniano di San Giorgio, Spanish: Sagrada Orden Militar Constantiniana de San Jorge), also historically referred to as the Imperial Constantinian Order of Saint George and the Order of the Constantinian Angelic Knights of Saint George, is a family order of knighthood of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. Currently, the grand magistry of the order is disputed among the two claimants to the headship of the former reigning House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies as heirs of the House of Farnese, namely Prince Pedro and Prince Carlo. The order was one of the rare orders confirmed as a religious-military order in the papal bull Militantis Ecclesiae in 1718 owing to a notable success in liberating Christians in the Peloponnese. Together with the Sovereign Military Order of Malta it is one of a small number of Catholic Orders that still has this status today. Although it is not an order of chivalry under patronage of the Holy See, membership is restricted to practising Catholics.
Prince Carlo of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, Duke of Castro is one of the two claimants to the headship of the former House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies.
Guy Stair Sainty, is a British art dealer and author on nobility, royal genealogy, and heraldry.
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Carl Bertrand Westerby Roberts CMG was an Antiguan and Barbudan diplomat and was the former High Commissioner of Antigua and Barbuda to the United Kingdom, with concurrent accreditations as Ambassador of Antigua and Barbuda to France, Germany, Italy and Spain.
Sir Rodney Errey Lawrence Williams, is the current and 4th Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda.
Sir Ronald Michael Sanders is an Antiguan Barbudan diplomat, academic, former broadcast-journalist, and the current Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United States and to the Organization of American States (OAS) since 2015. He holds the unique distinction of being the first person, since the OAS enlarged its membership in 1962, to serve as Chairman of the Permanent Council of the OAS for an unprecedented three terms. He completed his highly successful third term on December 31, 2023, having played a widely recognized role in guiding the work of the Permanent Council in the peaceful transition of government in Guatemala on 14 January 2024.
A constitutional referendum was held in Grenada on 6 November 2018. The proposed constitutional amendment, which voters ultimately rejected, would have made the Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) the final court of appeal, replacing the British Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, and renamed the Supreme Court. A slightly different proposal was previously made in a 2016 referendum, but was also rejected by voters.