Kerri-Anne Lashes Out

Kerri-Anne

Jo Cassamento & Ronan Keating

It was fairly gloomy day yesterday- grey skies and intermittent rain. The atmosphere outside perhaps reflected that inside at the chic Darlinghurst restaurant Spic I Am where around 40 friends and production staff gathered for a farewell lunch for TV's daytime queen Kerri Anne Kennerley who has been dumped after a nine year run at Channel Nine.

Spice I Am owners Padet Nagsalab and Sujet Saenkham are pals of Kerri-Anne and the restaurant's chef had appeared many times on her programme. They laid on a sumptuous Thai banquet and champagne for the crew to drown their sorrows.

But things took are a dramatic turn when Kerri-Anne heard of one guest who had been invited-the top columnist from the Sunday Telegraph Jo Cassaamento. It seems Jo had a written a piece about Kennerely in the past which she didn't like.

A hapless publicist was dispatched to telephone Cassamento and rescind the invitation to lunch. The Shuttle gathers the publicist received a right royal roasting from Jo. I'm sure we'll read all about this Sunday !

As for Kerri-Anne, rumours are that there is already an offer in the pipeline from another network. Not that she needs the work. Hubby John Kennerley, who with partners started Littlewoods Pools in the UK is loaded.

Ligging at Neville's house

Lindsay Fox (left) chats while Neville looks for a buyer.

Suburu owner Kerri-Anne

They were out on force at Neville Crichton's gleaming new Ferrari and Maserati sale rooms in Green Square for the launch of a range of the Italian autos.

2 of Sydney's best known gate-crashers (they are called "liggers" in the UK) and a host of well known business, sporting and show-biz personalities. Will Neville notch up a sale or 2 from the night that generously included a fleet of chauffeured Maseratis to ferry guests to and fro-all the better for quaffing French champagne by the bucket ?. Hard to tell. tSS did a straw poll of some of the more well heeled guests and found few takers.

Daytime TV queen Kerri-Anne Kennerley drives a very practical Subaru which she says she loves as does husband John Kennerley, the man who started Britain's Littlewood Pools and sold out for squillions. They have a Lexus for more sedate moments.

What does nightclub king Justin Hemmes
(right) motor around in ?. Anything he wants with he and his father John's amazing collection of vintage and new luxury cars. But not a Maserati or a Ferrari amongst them and he won't be buying one soon.

Nor does the countries top jeweler Nic Cerrone-a Mercedes, and as for trucking magnate Lindsay Fox, he doesn't drive at all but has a man at the wheel of either the Rolls Phantom or Bentley Continental that slip into the Spanish style driveway of his legendary mansion Boomerang. We gave up after 12 inquiries. Not a Ferrari owner in sight. The 2 liggers ?. They share a taxi or an ancient Ford Falcon when it's running.

Still, everyone looks pretty sitting and posing in the gleaming autos.

Nic Cerrone-always happy to pose for the camera.

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Earlier that night the Oxford Street cabaret club Slide showed off some of it's season's upcoming acts that include the crooner Barry Crocker who pens the occasional play review for the Shuttle. Slide is run by French chef Marc Kuzma who doubles up as maitre de and as drag act, Claire De Lune.

Claire de Lune

Crocker's squeeze Katy Manning, the original Dr Who co-star is still in London and working at the BBC.

Slide maitre de Marc Kuzma with Sharon Sargent and Barry Crocker

Barry played the Private Eye comic strip character in the film Barry McKenzie Hold His Own. It's difficult to tell which came first-Barry Crocker or Barry McKenzie. Did Barry inspire Baz ?.

A question for creator Barry Humphries next time we see him.