When you’re in trouble with the bank, it’s probably not the best idea to reveal your game plan on the Late Late Show.
Bill Cullen and Ryan Tubridy in conversation last month.
From: 02:42
Ryan Tubridy: “And how are you fixed financially? Are you good? Is it a mess?”
Bill Cullen: “Oh ho ho! Wait ’til I see. Who’s ah..? Anyone got a taxi here?”
Ryan Tubridy: “Ah like do you owe an awful lot of money or…?”
Bill Cullen: “Well ye see you know when you’re growing..I’ve put anything we’ve made and we’ve made a lot of money back into the business.”
Ryan Tubridy: “Yeah. Of course you did.”
Cullen: “..when the banks took over we…four years ago our assets were worth 70 million.”
Tubridy: “Yeah.”
Cullen: “That was written down over three or four years to 20 million.”
Tubridy: “OK.”
Cullen: “Still only owe the bank 10 million.”
Tubridy: “That’s what you owe?”
Cullen: “That’s all. And they closed it up and they’ve to sell the assets and get their 10 million back. I’ve 20 million cash put into the company and I don’t list. I’m Paddy Last-go-away.”
Tubridy: “OK”
Cullen: “So their job now is to sell the assets and ah get their 10 million back and they’ll be fine. If they don’t they have what they call a personal guarantee on me for anything that there’s a shortfall on so I’ll have to take that as it goes.”
Tubridy: So will you pay it all back?
Cullen: “No. Haven’t got it.”
Tubridy: “So what are you gonna do?”
Cullen: “What am I gonna do? I’m just gonna go on working and see you can’t get blood out of a stone? Can ya?”
Tubridy: “Well there’s lots of people in smaller..”
Cullen: “And there’s lots of people here ye know..”
Tubridy: “….in the very same boat…who are struggling.”
[Audience applauds]
Tubridy: “That’s it.”
Cullen: “I don’t know what you have to say.”
Tubridy: “Well what can they do?”
Cullen: “They can only lose so much. I’ve argued out….ye see banks or mortgage societies taking back a house from a guy who couldn’t pay 800 quid a month and giving it to someone else at 400 quid a month or sell it off. Why didn’t they leave him in it?”
Tubridy: “Yeah.”
Cullen: “That’s the thing. Why can’t they leave someone who can’t afford it in it for a while, build up the rent and then do a deal on it? And that’s the way I think…I hope it’s going to work.”
Bill Cullen and Jackie Lavin lose bid to keep running Muckross Park Hotel (Irish Independent)
High Court refuses appointment of examiner to Muckross Park Hotel – RTE
