Latest news with #JohnnieWalkerScotch
Extra.ie
20-05-2025
- Business
- Extra.ie
Diageo to cut €450m in costs due to Trump… but Guinness is safe
Guinness owner Diageo unveiled plans yesterday to cut almost € 450 million in costs in the face of US tariffs. However, the drinks giant, which owns brands including Johnnie Walker Scotch whisky, Moet et Chandon Champagne and Gordon's Gin, repeated its statement from January that it has no plans to sell off Guinness. Diageo, which is worth € 50 billion globally, said: 'We are introducing the first phase of our Accelerate programme, which sets out clear cash delivery targets and a disciplined approach to operational excellence and cost efficiency. Pic: Getty Images 'This programme will represent a shift in how we do business, moving to a more agile global operating model, and is underpinned by our strong digital and data capabilities. 'This simplified approach will create a stronger platform to optimise investment and allocate resources effectively towards long-term sustainable growth.' Cost-cutting would come from changes to the company's trade investments and advertising spend, overheads and supply chain, said the firm's finance chief, Nik Jhangiani. Nik Jhangiani. Pic: File Diageo is also expected to dispose of some significant assets to help reduce its leverage ratio from 3.1 times net debt to operating profit at the end of last year to between 2.5 and three times. Any sales could include some major assets, Mr Jhangiani hinted. 'We see… some opportunities for what I would call substantial changes versus portfolio trimming. It's clearly going to be above and beyond the usual smaller brand disposals you've seen over the last three years,' he said. However, that will not include Guinness, where chief executive Debra Crew said 'nothing has changed' with regards to the iconic stout, which was described as 'well-performing'. Pic: Diageo/PA Wire In fact, it is selling so well that some pubs in Britain brought in rationing and shipped in more supplies from Dublin over Christmas to cope with demand. The cost cuts will help Diageo, which is also the world's largest spirits distiller, deliver about € 2.7 billion in free cash flow a year from the next financial year. The company also plans to reduce its debt-to-earnings ratio to between 2.5 and 3 by the fiscal year 2028. Pic: Ross Mahon/Shutterstock 'This will be delivered through a combination of organic growth and positive operating leverage, combined with tighter capital discipline, and appropriate and selective disposals over the coming years,' it explained. U.S. President Donald Trump's 10% tariff on imports from the EU and Britain will mean a € 130 million hit to Diageo's annual operating profit, the firm estimates. The company employs 10,000 people worldwide, including 1,200 in Ireland. It has ten sites around the country, including its HQ at St James's Gate in Dublin, its Baileys plant near Belfast and the Smithwick's brewery in Kilkenny. Asked if the cost savings could mean job cuts or the price of a pint increasing, the company did not respond specifically.
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
'He Pulled The Trigger': Richard E. Grant Just Recalled The Terrifying Time His Dad Tried To Shoot Him When He Was 15 Years Old
This article mentions alcohol misuse and gun violence. British actor Richard E. Grant has spoken candidly about his father trying to shoot him when he was a teenager — with Richard only escaping unscathed because his dad was drunk and did not have good aim. The 67-year-old star, who is known for his roles in everything from Spice World to Saltburn, opened up about his difficult childhood in a recent appearance on the Begin Again with Davina McCall podcast. Speaking to the host, Richard reflected on growing up in Swaziland, now Eswatini, a small country in Southern Africa. He explained that his father got custody of him after his parents split, which made him feel 'rejected' by his mom. And despite his father becoming a 'monster' after he developed an addiction to alcohol, Richard maintained that, in hindsight, he would still choose to live with his dad. '[A friend asked me] would you have preferred to have lived with your mother, who is sober, or your father, who became an alcoholic [and] tried to shoot me when I was 15 when I emptied all his Scotch supply down the sink,' Richard began. 'I said I'd prefer to have lived with my father.' 'Even though he became an alcoholic after my mother left, the person that I knew and loved by day outweighed the monster that he turned into when he'd down a bottle of Johnnie Walker,' Richard explained, confirming that his dad would drink a bottle of the whisky a day. 'By 9 o'clock at night, there'd be a personality switch and he'd become unrecognizable.' Davina then asked the star if he ever felt 'safe' growing up, to which Richard shared: 'I felt safe; I found a surrogate maternal figure in my piano teacher, she fulfilled everything that my mother didn't, so I felt safe with her. But in my own family life, I never felt safe, never.' 'If you have a parent that's an addict, it's schizoid because who they are when they're sober and who they are when they're not…' Richard then trailed off. 'The part that I remember now, about my father, was when he was sober.' 'But when I'm doubtful, which is every day at some point, the voice of: 'You're not good enough, you're useless, you're ugly, you have no talent…' that's what comes. I have to consciously go: 'Shut up!' because that is what he'd say when he was drunk. That is what you remember,' he went on. The star then detailed the terrifying moment that his father aimed a gun at him and pulled the trigger when he was 15 years old, recalling: 'When my father tried to shoot me, I'd emptied all his Johnnie Walker Scotch into the scullery. I thought: 'If I get rid of all of this, somehow that might stop his drinking problem for at least a week.'' "I was halfway through [pouring] the eleventh bottle, gun at the back of my head. I ducked, went off, ran to the garden,' Richard went on. 'He finally found me, and said: 'I'm going to blow your brains out,' I said: 'Go on, do it, just get this over and done with.'' When Davina asked if he actually said that, Richard confirmed: 'Oh yeah, I did. I was so angry at this point. Then he pulled the trigger, but because he was drunk, it wavered. So it went straight past.' And this isn't the only time that Richard's dad is said to have tried to shoot him, with the star telling Radio Times in 2023 that he faced a similar near-miss when he sneaked out to watch 'triple-X' rated movie A Clockwork Orange at 15 years old. 'You couldn't see it until you were 18 years old,' Richard explained at the time. 'So I snuck in by telling the woman who was at the box office that she looked just like Elizabeth Taylor." The publication reports that when Richard got home from the movie theater, his drunken father was so angry he pulled a gun on him and took a shot that, fortunately, also missed. Despite this, Richard kept a relationship with his father until he died from lung cancer at age 52, when Richard was 24 years old. And during a past appearance on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs, Richard explained why he chooses to remember his father for more than just his abuse. He said: 'My memory of him is so much more than remembering that part of him, because I knew that that was something that was entirely brought about by addiction rather than the man that I absolutely worshipped and loved." On the other hand, Richard acknowledged having an 'incredibly complicated relationship' with his mom after she died at 93 in 2023. He said in a video that was posted to X at the time: 'She was somebody that was, for me anyway, emotionally withdrawn, and withheld her approbation or approval of anything, so nothing was quite good enough." "What that proved to be is a great motor for ambition and determination to try and prove yourself, and be the best that you possibly can," Richard went on. "And yet, ironically, whatever she did, she demanded and got applause and approval from everybody around her, including me." Richard then revealed that after years of estrangement, he spent time with his mom after his wife passed away in 2021, but it did not go well. He said: "I went to stay with her for a couple of weeks, six weeks after my wife had died, with Covid restrictions being lifted, and she sent me a very terse email at the end of the trip, saying 'I regret to say all of this was an absolute disaster. We only have two things in common, books and classical music.'" "Do I feel sadness that she has died? I feel resignation more than anything, but most of all gratitude, for having given me life," he concluded. Richard — who has a dual British and Swazi nationality — moved to the UK from Eswatini in 1982, one year after his father's death, and got his big acting break in the 1987 movie Withnail and I. You can watch Richard's recent comments in the video below: Begin Again / Via If you or someone you know has experienced sexual assault, you can call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE, which routes the caller to their nearest sexual assault service provider. You can also search for your local center here. If you are concerned that a child is experiencing or may be in danger of abuse, you can call or text the National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-422-4453( service can be provided in over 140 languages. More on this Richard E. Grant Has Called Out The A-List Actors Who Were Only Nice To His Daughter After They Found Out He Is Her Father During Her Time As A Movie Set RunnerStephanie Soteriou · Oct. 23, 2024 19 Of The Most Gut-Wrenching And Shocking Revelations That Celebrities Shared In Their MemoirsLauren Garafano · Nov. 1, 2023 24 Absolutely Wild Celeb Stories I Can't Believe Are RealHannah Marder · Feb. 5, 2025
Buzz Feed
21-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
'He Pulled The Trigger': Richard E. Grant Just Recalled The Terrifying Time His Dad Tried To Shoot Him When He Was 15 Years Old
This article mentions alcohol misuse and gun violence. British actor Richard E. Grant has spoken candidly about his father trying to shoot him when he was a teenager — with Richard only escaping unscathed because his dad was drunk and did not have good aim. The 67-year-old star, who is known for his roles in everything from Spice World to Saltburn, opened up about his difficult childhood in a recent appearance on the Begin Again with Davina McCall podcast. Speaking to the host, Richard reflected on growing up in Swaziland, now Eswatini, a small country in Southern Africa. He explained that his father got custody of him after his parents split, which made him feel 'rejected' by his mom. And despite his father becoming a 'monster' after he developed an addiction to alcohol, Richard maintained that, in hindsight, he would still choose to live with his dad. '[A friend asked me] would you have preferred to have lived with your mother, who is sober, or your father, who became an alcoholic [and] tried to shoot me when I was 15 when I emptied all his Scotch supply down the sink,' Richard began. 'I said I'd prefer to have lived with my father.' 'Even though he became an alcoholic after my mother left, the person that I knew and loved by day outweighed the monster that he turned into when he'd down a bottle of Johnnie Walker,' Richard explained, confirming that his dad would drink a bottle of the whisky a day. 'By 9 o'clock at night, there'd be a personality switch and he'd become unrecognizable.' Davina then asked the star if he ever felt 'safe' growing up, to which Richard shared: 'I felt safe; I found a surrogate maternal figure in my piano teacher, she fulfilled everything that my mother didn't, so I felt safe with her. But in my own family life, I never felt safe, never.' 'If you have a parent that's an addict, it's schizoid because who they are when they're sober and who they are when they're not…' Richard then trailed off. 'The part that I remember now, about my father, was when he was sober.' 'But when I'm doubtful, which is every day at some point, the voice of: 'You're not good enough, you're useless, you're ugly, you have no talent…' that's what comes. I have to consciously go: 'Shut up!' because that is what he'd say when he was drunk. That is what you remember,' he went on. The star then detailed the terrifying moment that his father aimed a gun at him and pulled the trigger when he was 15 years old, recalling: 'When my father tried to shoot me, I'd emptied all his Johnnie Walker Scotch into the scullery. I thought: 'If I get rid of all of this, somehow that might stop his drinking problem for at least a week.'' "I was halfway through [pouring] the eleventh bottle, gun at the back of my head. I ducked, went off, ran to the garden,' Richard went on. 'He finally found me, and said: 'I'm going to blow your brains out,' I said: 'Go on, do it, just get this over and done with.'' When Davina asked if he actually said that, Richard confirmed: 'Oh yeah, I did. I was so angry at this point. Then he pulled the trigger, but because he was drunk, it wavered. So it went straight past.' And this isn't the only time that Richard's dad is said to have tried to shoot him, with the star telling Radio Times in 2023 that he faced a similar near-miss when he sneaked out to watch 'triple-X' rated movie A Clockwork Orange at 15 years old. 'You couldn't see it until you were 18 years old,' Richard explained at the time. 'So I snuck in by telling the woman who was at the box office that she looked just like Elizabeth Taylor." The publication reports that when Richard got home from the movie theater, his drunken father was so angry he pulled a gun on him and took a shot that, fortunately, also missed. Despite this, Richard kept a relationship with his father until he died from lung cancer at age 52, when Richard was 24 years old. And during a past appearance on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs, Richard explained why he chooses to remember his father for more than just his abuse. He said: 'My memory of him is so much more than remembering that part of him, because I knew that that was something that was entirely brought about by addiction rather than the man that I absolutely worshipped and loved." On the other hand, Richard acknowledged having an 'incredibly complicated relationship' with his mom after she died at 93 in 2023. He said in a video that was posted to X at the time: 'She was somebody that was, for me anyway, emotionally withdrawn, and withheld her approbation or approval of anything, so nothing was quite good enough." "What that proved to be is a great motor for ambition and determination to try and prove yourself, and be the best that you possibly can," Richard went on. "And yet, ironically, whatever she did, she demanded and got applause and approval from everybody around her, including me." Richard then revealed that after years of estrangement, he spent time with his mom after his wife passed away in 2021, but it did not go well. He said: "I went to stay with her for a couple of weeks, six weeks after my wife had died, with Covid restrictions being lifted, and she sent me a very terse email at the end of the trip, saying 'I regret to say all of this was an absolute disaster. We only have two things in common, books and classical music.'" "Do I feel sadness that she has died? I feel resignation more than anything, but most of all gratitude, for having given me life," he concluded. Richard — who has a dual British and Swazi nationality — moved to the UK from Eswatini in 1982, one year after his father's death, and got his big acting break in the 1987 movie Withnail and I. You can watch Richard's recent comments in the video below: @beginagainpod Search 'Begin Again with Davina McCall ' on Youtube, Spotify and Apple Podcast. In this episode of Begin Again, renowned actor Richard E. Grant shares a deeply personal and shocking story about a time he tried to help his father's alcohol addiction by throwing away his drink down the sink in the hope of saving him. In a shocking moment, his father tried to shoot him, but narrowly missed as he was under the influence. #beginagain #podcast #davinamccall #actor #drinking #drink #richardegrant #themaskedsinger #celebritynews #father #parents #child #shock #story #childhood #trauma #emotional #family @Davina McCall ♬ original sound - Begin Again Begin Again / Via
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Berkshire takes swig of Modelo maker Constellation; cuts BofA, Citigroup
By Jonathan Stempel (Reuters) - Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway on Friday disclosed a new investment in alcoholic beverages producer Constellation Brands, and said it has reduced its holdings in four banks, including Citigroup and Bank of America. In a regulatory filing detailing its U.S.-listed stock holdings as of December 31, Berkshire also disclosed it has stopped selling shares of Apple, which remained its largest common stock investment at $75.1 billion. The filing nonetheless suggests that Berkshire remains concerned about valuations, after selling $133.2 billion of stock--primarily 490 million Apple shares--between January and September 2024, and letting its cash stake grow to $325.2 billion. Berkshire owned $1.24 billion of Constellation stock at year end, after purchasing 5.62 million shares in the fourth quarter. In after-hours trading, Constellation's share price rose 6.7%, reflecting what investors view as Buffett's seal of approval regardless of whether the revered billionaire investor personally did the buying. Constellation did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Its beer brands include Corona and Modelo Especial, which in 2023 surpassed Bud Light as the top-selling beer in the United States, while its wine portfolio include Meiomi, Robert Mondavi and Kim Crawford. Berkshire also owns a small stake in Diageo, whose brands include Guinness beer, Johnnie Walker Scotch and Smirnoff vodka. To go with the alcohol, Berkshire also invests in Domino's Pizza, and boosted its stake by 86% in the quarter. In Friday's filing, Berkshire said it lowered its Citigroup stake 74% to 14.6 million shares, and its Bank of America stake, until recently its second-largest common stock holding, 15% to 680.2 million shares. Berkshire has reduced its Bank of America stake by one-third since July, when it owned 1.03 billion shares. It has also unwound a small portion of the 700 million Bank of America shares it bought in 2017, when it redeemed $5 billion of preferred stock acquired six years earlier and used proceeds to exercise warrants at $7.14 per share. Bank of America shares have since risen more than sixfold. During the fourth quarter, Berkshire also reduced its stakes in Capital One and Brazilian fintech lender Nu Holdings. It exited one stock altogether, cosmetics store chain Ulta Beauty, which it owned for less than a year. Friday's filing does not say which investments are Buffett's and which are from Berkshire portfolio managers Todd Combs and Ted Weschler, who typically handle smaller Berkshire investments. Berkshire also owns dozens of companies including the BNSF railroad and Geico car insurance, and its annual report expected on February 22 will include its year-end financial results.
