Peter Holmes à Court
Peter Holmes à Court | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1968 |
| Occupation | Businessman |
Peter Holmes à Court (born 1968) is an Australian businessman and a joint owner of the National Rugby League team South Sydney Rabbitohs together with Russell Crowe.[1]
He is the son of the late millionaire businessman Robert Holmes à Court and respected Australian Janet Holmes à Court.
Education
After completing his schooling at Geelong Grammar School in Corio, he read law at Oxford University and received his BA in economics and theatre from Middlebury College, Vermont. At Oxford he was a member of the notorious Bullingdon Club.
Overseas ventures
In 1993 Holmes à Court formed Back Row Productions, operating in New York, London and Sydney. Back Row produced over 20 live shows in 30 countries and 300 cities world wide.
In 1994 Holmes à Court put together an off-Broadway rock musical, Fallen Angel. The show lasted only 3 weeks and lost most of Holmes à Court's available capital as well as the capital put in by investors.[2]
By 1996 Peter Holmes à Court became embroiled in a dispute over a contracted tour of Lift-Off Live, a spin-off of an Australian Broadcasting Corporation educational television show, Lift Off, which was booked and scheduled. Holmes à Court wanted to close the show down, despite contractual obligations. To make things more complicated his mother Janet's company, Heytesbury, was an investor in Lift Off and was entitled to income from ancillary rights. Janet's biographer, Patricia Edgar, details the incident in another book, Bloodbath: a memoir of Australian television, stating that Back Row Productions was also in financial trouble. Edgar describes how Janet initially reacted to the situation by attempting to force Peter to meet his obligations, but later wanted to assume the Back Row Productions' debt and pay out of her own pocket to save her son from ignominy.[3]
Return to Australia
In 2000 Holmes à Court settled out of court with his family to gain his inheritance from the family company, Heytesbury. The family was forced to sell off much of its asset base to make the payout. Holmes à Court's father, Robert Holmes à Court, died intestate leaving his wife Janet one third of the family fortune with the four children getting the other two thirds. The amount Peter Holmes à Court received was reported as A$35 million.[4]
At the same time he took up the position as Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Agricultural Company (AACo) and was responsible for re-listing AACo on the Australian Stock Exchange. Strangely the AACo's main business is cattle, the same as the Holmes à Court family company, Heytesbury. With his younger brother Paul Holmes à Court in charge of Heytesbury, Peter had effectively set himself up in direct competition with his family's primary business.[5]
In 2004 Holmes à Court was deposed from the post of CEO of the AACo. Some senior management and board members of AACo held Holmes à Court responsible for some of AACo's poor decisions and the failure to buy AMP's Stanbroke Pastoral Co.[6] Holmes à Court claimed he had resigned for personal reasons.[7]
Rabbitohs and beyond
In March 2006 Holmes à Court and Russell Crowe gained 75% ownership of the South Sydney Rabbitohs through a vote of the Membership of the club. Holmes à Court became Executive Chairman of the club and in early 2008 became CEO after Shane Richardson resigned to take up a position in a Holmes à Court company, The Passionate Group.
May 2008 saw the sudden resignation of Holmes à Court as Executive Chairman and CEO of the South Sydney Rabbitohs.[8][9] Reports suggested that Holmes à Court had been forced to stand down after his relationship with Russell Crowe had deteriorated beyond repair.[10][11][12][13][14]
Crisis of credibility
In April 2009 Holmes à Court suffered a crisis of credibility, following his testimony in the NSW Supreme Court defending a defamation lawsuit brought against him by Tony Papaconstuntinos. First he admitted that Russell Crowe had hired the notorious Palladino and Sutherland private investigator firm to target people in opposition to the planned takeover of the Rabbitohs.[15] Then he admitted that he had faked death threats and used the lie in the media during the campaign to gain control of the Rabbitohs.[16]
This revelation in the NSW Supreme Court contradicted what had been published in 2006 in an article titled "Holmes à Court ignored warning to stay away from Rabbits" by Alex Mitchell in The Sun-Herald newspaper on 19 March, 2006, where it was stated: "Of the death threats he had reportedly received, Holmes à Court said: "The police have a suspect and, fingers crossed, we might have an arrest before Sunday's vote.".[17]
Holmes à Court's woes continued in August 2009, when it was revealed that he had ignored NSW Supreme Court orders for payment of costs to several people who had been subpoenaed by Holmes à Court in the defamation case. The Sydney Morning Herald revealed, on 22 August 2009, that writs for levy of property had been taken out by two long-time members of the South Sydney Rabbitohs. Effectively this action designated Holmes à Court a "judgement debtor" and enabled the NSW Sheriff's office to seize property on behalf of the two Rabbitohs Members.[18]
In a further setback on 4 September 2009, Holmes à Court was found, by Justice Lucy McCallum in the NSW Supreme Court, to have defamed Tony Papaconstuntinos. Justice McCallum orderd Holmes à Court to pay AUS$25,000 and all costs. In a bizarre display of bravado Holmes à Court claimed a "moral victory".[19]
Current activities
Holmes à Court is the Chairman of White Bull Holdings, a private investment company, a director of Queensland Rail and a member of the Lord Mayor's City of Sydney Business Forum. He was re-appointed as a director of Queensland Rail in September 2009..[20]
Holmes à Court lives in Sydney with his wife Divonne Holmes à Court (the founder of Smart Population Foundation) and their two sets of twins, George and Robert, and Elsa and Madison.
References
- ^ "Russell Crowe dumps cheerleaders". BBC News. 2007-02-10. Retrieved 2007-02-10.
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ Edgar, Patricia (1999). Janet Holmes à Court. Australia. Harper Collins. ISBN 0-7322-5715-8. p.349 The official biography
- ^ Edgar, Patricia (2006). Bloodbath: a memoir of Australian television. Australia. Melbourne University Publishing. ISBN 978-0-522-85281-3 . pp.368-370
- ^ AAP Ben Ready (2009-08-26). "New York to Outback - Peter Holmes a Court comes of age".
{{cite news}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ "ABC Inside Business -Peter Holmes a Court reflects on business and family". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 2003-04-06. Retrieved 2009-09-18.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ Anthony Hoy (2004 ISSN 1440-7485). "Gunfight at the AACo corral". "The Bulletin with Newsweek".
{{cite news}}: Check date values in:|date=(help) - ^ "Burnt by the steak". "Sydney Morning Herald (smh.com.au)". 2009-08-26. Retrieved 2008-09-07.
- ^ AAP (2008-10-31). "Richardson quits as Souths CEO". The Sydney Morning Herald (smh.com.au). Retrieved 2008-09-09.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ South Sydney Rabbitohs (2008-02-02). "Rabbitohs Elevate Internal Staff in Management Restructure". South Sydney Rabbitohs (rabbitohs.com.au). Retrieved 2008-09-09.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Phil Rothfield and Rebecca Wilson (2008-05-18). "Holmes a Court to quit Souths". The Daily Telegraph (news.com.au). Retrieved 2008-09-07.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Josh Massoud (2008-05-27). "How Souths drowned in latte and largesse". The Daily Telegraph (news.com.au). Retrieved 2008-09-07.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Patrick Smith (2008-05-28). "A Court in the crossfire: the syndrome threatening to derail Souths". The Australian. Retrieved 2008-09-07.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Josh Massoud (2008-05-27). "Russell Crowe dumps Holmes a Court as Rabbitohs chairman". Courier Mail (news.com.au). Retrieved 2008-09-07.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Ray Chesterton (2008-05-27). "Crowe's company ruined Souths". The Daily Telegraph (news.com.au). Retrieved 2008-09-07.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Susannah Moran (2009-04-03). "Russell Crowe hired Bill Clinton's PI to stalk takeover foes". The Australian (news.com.au). Retrieved 2009-08-26.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Susannah Moran (2009-04-04). "Peter Holmes a Court faked death threats". The Australian (news.com.au). Retrieved 2009-08-26.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Alex Mitchell (2006-03-19). "Holmes a Court ignored warning to stay away from Rabbits". The Sydney Morning Herald(smh.com.au). Retrieved 2009-08-26.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Roy Masters (2009-08-22). "Sheriff could seize Holmes a Court's assets". The Sydney Morning Herald(smh.com.au). Retrieved 2009-08-26.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ Kim Arlington & Bellinda Kontominas (2009-09-05). "Holmes à Court claims win". The Brisbane Times(brisbanetimes.com.au). Retrieved 2009-09-05.
{{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in:|publisher=(help) - ^ . Media Newswire. 2009-09-28 http://media-newswire.com/release_1100256.html. Retrieved 2009-10-02.
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