Locally based television personalities Ant and Dec are planning an £8 million bid to buy Fouberts on the High Road according to a report in the Sun newspaper.

 

Owner Maria Lodica was quoted as saying that she has been in negotiations with Ant and Dec for 4 weeks and the Sun reports a spokesperson for the pair saying that they plan to covert it into a members' only bar and night club as well as a 5 star hotel.

 

They are said to have found financial backing for the scheme which will require £6 million to purchase the premises and another £2 million to refurbish it.

 

The five storey property is made up of 4 separate buildings and current includes a cafe, an ice cream parlour and a restaurant as well as the hotel. The owners have been looking to sell for some time and several major hotel and restaurant chains have been linked with the site which is the largest on the High Road available to buy. Rumours have been circulating that it was to become part of the Carluccios chain and there are also unconfirmed reports that the property has already been sold.

 

The report comes just after the Soho House group were quoted as saying that they were considering opening an establishment in the Chiswick area.

March 14, 2005