Brecqhou billionaire loses defamation battle with French playwright

Wednesday 03 July 2019

One of the Brecqhou-based billionaire Barclay twins will have to pay €56,000 in damages to a French playwright, after courts rejected the tycoon's attempts to ban a satirical theatre piece poking fun at his life story.

Sir David Barclay had filed a lawsuit against Hedi Tillette de Clermont-Tonnerre, author of 'Les Deux Freres et Les Lions' ('The Two Brothers and the Lions'), alleging that the French writer’s satirical play defamed him and violated his privacy.

Sir David was seeking €100,000 in damages and a ban on further performances of the small hall play.

Pictured: The play was performed at the 150-seat 'Theatre de Poche' in Paris up until March this year and depicts “the irresistible rise of two Scottish immigrants.”

However, the Financial Times reported that the court ruled instead that the artist's right to free expression outweighed any harm caused to Sir David, with the defence accusing him of having "excessive sensitivity" and an "exacerbated taste for secrecy".

He must now pay around €56,000 in damages to Mr Tillette de Clermont-Tonnerre, the playwright's publisher, and the theatres that backed the production as compensation for potentially damaging their reputations.

Sir David will also have to pay for a statement to that effect to be published in two French newspapers and two magazines.

Pictured: Mr Tillette de Clermont-Tonnerre celebrated the court case's outcome on social media by expressing his relief and thanking those who supported him. 

According to Mr Tillette de Clermont-Tonnerre's lawyer, success in "quieting a voice that displeased him" will have had wider implications for artistic freedom.

He lauded the "very severe decision against Mr Barclay". 

Sir David's lawyer, Christophe Bigot, said his client would likely appeal the ruling. 

Pictured top: The Barclay Brothers, who live on the Channel Island of Brecquou. (James Fraser)