Latest news with #StAlbans-based
Daily Mirror
16 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mirror
Two wives fight over bigamist husband's £1.8m after he secretly married both
Millionaire bigamist James Dinsdale died but left a fierce High Court battle over his £1.8million fortune behind him when he secretly married two women Two wives are locked into a fierce inheritance battle over their dead husband's £1.8million fortune after he secretly married both of them five years apart - but failed to get a divorce. Bigamist accountant James Dinsdale died of cancer, aged 55, in October 2020, but a raging fight over his money had sparked between a beautician and a dentist. After his death, his most recent partner, beautician Margaret Dinsdale, 41, began sorting out his affairs on the assumption that she would inherit his wealth. The wife was left reeling in shock when she unexpectedly discovered James was still legally married to his ex-partner. It comes after a woman claimed 'I lost my husband and now I've only got 12 months to live'. READ MORE: I was forced to wed at 17 – now I speak out for girls trapped by child marriage The accountant married his latest partner in 2017 in a Las Vegas wedding but hadn't divorced his first wife - making their marriage "void" and leaving Margaret with no automatic right to inherit. Just five years earlier, James had married St Albans-based cosmetic dentist Dr Victoria Fowell, 53, at a Vegas wedding chapel on the same street and just 600 metres from where he wed Margaret, but never got round to getting a divorce. The two women are now battling it out in the High Court after Margaret launched a claim to a share of James' money. The most recent partner has claimed she should be treated as a "spouse" because she married him in "good faith". In a short preliminary hearing, High Court judge Master James Brightwell heard how the accountant and Second World War history expert built a fortune worth around £1.8million. James had a thriving property development business, based around central London, before he died and an estate. Margaret's barrister Jonathan Davey KC said his client and James had met in 2008 and become friends, before beginning a "romantic relationship" in 2014, setting up home together the following year. However, she had no idea he was still married, and only learned of it after his death. The accountant had not made a will so his £1.8million wealth would be divided between Dr Fowell and his son, William Dinsdale, 28, under intestacy rules - leaving Margaret with nothing. The barrister said: "Margaret believed that she was validly married to James Dinsdale and there is no evidence that she knew that the deceased was married to Dr Fowell as at 2017. "She understood the marriage between the deceased and Dr Fowell to have ended some time prior to the relationship between the deceased and the claimant beginning. We have no idea what James' state of mind was, perhaps he didn't realise he wasn't divorced. "Margaret's assertion is that she believed the deceased to be unmarried and already divorced when she married him in good faith." The case reached court for a preliminary hearing after Margaret made a claim for "reasonable provision" from James' estate under the 1975 Inheritance Act, amounting to at least half of his £1.8m. The barrister said Margaret had looked after James "24 hours per day" during his final struggles with terminal cancer and was his "primary carer". He added: "The evidence of his close friends is that James and Margaret had a loving relationship, and that he was very grateful for her care." He also added that James and Margaret had been together for six years, they planned to have kids together and his partner gave up work to stay at home and look after the millionaire. The barrister said: "She and James had a relatively lavish lifestyle, which was funded by his wealth and she was entirely financially dependent on the deceased. Dr Fowell and William Dinsdale were not being financially maintained by the deceased at the time of his death." Mr Davey directed that there should now be a future hearing focusing on how James' estate should be divided up between his two partners and son. The court heard it is alleged that Margaret has already received £375,000 "from the estate or in sums derived from James," but Mr Davey said that is denied and that she has only received £20,000 from his pension. The judge allocated £50,000 to cash-strapped Margaret to help cover her bills and contribute towards hefty lawyers' fees.
North Wales Chronicle
17-07-2025
- Business
- North Wales Chronicle
Shoppers flock to sweet treats inspired by US trends, Mr Kipling owner says
The St Albans-based owner of brands including Mr Kipling and Bisto said there were signs of shoppers switching back to brands. Branded sales across the group grew by 1.2% to £216 million over the 13 weeks to June 28, compared with the same period a year ago. This was driven by an 11.34% jump in sales of its sweet treat branded products including Mr Kipling and Cadbury cakes. Mr Kipling birthday cake tarts, inspired by snack trends in the US, and newly launched 'lunchbox' cake slices helped draw in new shoppers, the company said. Chief executive Alex Whitehouse said the uptick in branded sales was 'driven by the strength of our innovation programme with new product ranges such as Mr Kipling birthday cake tarts performing very strongly, as we brought to Britain a trend that is particularly popular in the US'. 'We expect branded revenue growth to build through the year, as we launch further new products, such as Fuel10K yoghurt and granola pots,' he added. However, revenues from its grocery products declined by 2.7% over the latest period. Demand for items such as gravy, stock and soup were impacted by warmer-than-usual temperatures, Premier Foods said. It pointed to new product launches such as The Spice Tailor rolling out Mexican kits and Bisto bringing out peri-peri gravy to attract more younger consumers. Meanwhile, non-branded grocery revenues declined by 8.8% year-on-year, which Premier Foods said partly reflected consumers switching to brands. Premier Foods said it was expecting sales growth from its portfolio of brands to build throughout the financial year. It is also continuing to target cost-cutting across the business in a bid to bolster profits. Shares in the company were down by nearly 4% on Thursday following the update.
South Wales Guardian
17-07-2025
- Business
- South Wales Guardian
Shoppers flock to sweet treats inspired by US trends, Mr Kipling owner says
The St Albans-based owner of brands including Mr Kipling and Bisto said there were signs of shoppers switching back to brands. Branded sales across the group grew by 1.2% to £216 million over the 13 weeks to June 28, compared with the same period a year ago. This was driven by an 11.34% jump in sales of its sweet treat branded products including Mr Kipling and Cadbury cakes. Mr Kipling birthday cake tarts, inspired by snack trends in the US, and newly launched 'lunchbox' cake slices helped draw in new shoppers, the company said. Chief executive Alex Whitehouse said the uptick in branded sales was 'driven by the strength of our innovation programme with new product ranges such as Mr Kipling birthday cake tarts performing very strongly, as we brought to Britain a trend that is particularly popular in the US'. 'We expect branded revenue growth to build through the year, as we launch further new products, such as Fuel10K yoghurt and granola pots,' he added. However, revenues from its grocery products declined by 2.7% over the latest period. Demand for items such as gravy, stock and soup were impacted by warmer-than-usual temperatures, Premier Foods said. It pointed to new product launches such as The Spice Tailor rolling out Mexican kits and Bisto bringing out peri-peri gravy to attract more younger consumers. Meanwhile, non-branded grocery revenues declined by 8.8% year-on-year, which Premier Foods said partly reflected consumers switching to brands. Premier Foods said it was expecting sales growth from its portfolio of brands to build throughout the financial year. It is also continuing to target cost-cutting across the business in a bid to bolster profits. Shares in the company were down by nearly 4% on Thursday following the update.
Glasgow Times
17-07-2025
- Business
- Glasgow Times
Shoppers flock to sweet treats inspired by US trends, Mr Kipling owner says
The St Albans-based owner of brands including Mr Kipling and Bisto said there were signs of shoppers switching back to brands. Branded sales across the group grew by 1.2% to £216 million over the 13 weeks to June 28, compared with the same period a year ago. This was driven by an 11.34% jump in sales of its sweet treat branded products including Mr Kipling and Cadbury cakes. Mr Kipling birthday cake tarts, inspired by snack trends in the US, and newly launched 'lunchbox' cake slices helped draw in new shoppers, the company said. Chief executive Alex Whitehouse said the uptick in branded sales was 'driven by the strength of our innovation programme with new product ranges such as Mr Kipling birthday cake tarts performing very strongly, as we brought to Britain a trend that is particularly popular in the US'. 'We expect branded revenue growth to build through the year, as we launch further new products, such as Fuel10K yoghurt and granola pots,' he added. However, revenues from its grocery products declined by 2.7% over the latest period. Demand for items such as gravy, stock and soup were impacted by warmer-than-usual temperatures, Premier Foods said. Premier Foods said it was attracting new customers to its Mr Kipling birthday cake tarts (Premier Foods/PA) It pointed to new product launches such as The Spice Tailor rolling out Mexican kits and Bisto bringing out peri-peri gravy to attract more younger consumers. Meanwhile, non-branded grocery revenues declined by 8.8% year-on-year, which Premier Foods said partly reflected consumers switching to brands. Premier Foods said it was expecting sales growth from its portfolio of brands to build throughout the financial year. It is also continuing to target cost-cutting across the business in a bid to bolster profits. Shares in the company were down by nearly 4% on Thursday following the update.
Rhyl Journal
17-07-2025
- Business
- Rhyl Journal
Shoppers flock to sweet treats inspired by US trends, Mr Kipling owner says
The St Albans-based owner of brands including Mr Kipling and Bisto said there were signs of shoppers switching back to brands. Branded sales across the group grew by 1.2% to £216 million over the 13 weeks to June 28, compared with the same period a year ago. This was driven by an 11.34% jump in sales of its sweet treat branded products including Mr Kipling and Cadbury cakes. Mr Kipling birthday cake tarts, inspired by snack trends in the US, and newly launched 'lunchbox' cake slices helped draw in new shoppers, the company said. Chief executive Alex Whitehouse said the uptick in branded sales was 'driven by the strength of our innovation programme with new product ranges such as Mr Kipling birthday cake tarts performing very strongly, as we brought to Britain a trend that is particularly popular in the US'. 'We expect branded revenue growth to build through the year, as we launch further new products, such as Fuel10K yoghurt and granola pots,' he added. However, revenues from its grocery products declined by 2.7% over the latest period. Demand for items such as gravy, stock and soup were impacted by warmer-than-usual temperatures, Premier Foods said. It pointed to new product launches such as The Spice Tailor rolling out Mexican kits and Bisto bringing out peri-peri gravy to attract more younger consumers. Meanwhile, non-branded grocery revenues declined by 8.8% year-on-year, which Premier Foods said partly reflected consumers switching to brands. Premier Foods said it was expecting sales growth from its portfolio of brands to build throughout the financial year. It is also continuing to target cost-cutting across the business in a bid to bolster profits. Shares in the company were down by nearly 4% on Thursday following the update.
