Dashwood: Saudi billionaire takes a not so princely sum Hear, hear, say the UK's shareholder rebels, who will be pleased to hear that the Middle East's richest man works 18-hour days, including six hours of "solid reading." Revision to Freddie's school conversion The Champagne is on ice at the home of energy tycoon and former Newcastle United chairman Freddie Shepherd. Late on Thursday, council planners discovered a "legal issue" with the multi-million pound development Mr Shepherd expected would be rubber-stamped on Friday, kicking the scheme into the long grass until January 4. The glitch is a formality, so the Shepherd Offshore boss will still get the green light to demolish Newcastle's former La Sagesse convent school to build 69 homes in the Jesmond Dene conservation area. Accusations of "token tweaking" to the plans, which were refused in August amidst "very considerable local anger" and resubmitted in October, must have fallen on deaf ears. Straight-talking airline chief Willie Walsh has been at it again. Not content with betting Sir Richard Branson "a knee in the groin" that Virgin Atlantic will no longer exist in its current form in five years" time, the boss of Iberia and British Airways has trained his sights on the Davies Commission's Geoff Muirhead. Despite his spell running Manchester Airport Group, Mr Walsh is unconvinced by the commission's sole flag-flyer for the airports industry. Mr Walsh said: "Your man Muirhead from Manchester, he's there to represent the air transport industry. He's not the guy I would have picked. We look forward to Mr Muirhead's response. Knee in the groin anyone?