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Willy-John wins them over
A packed Salon Bellevue in the Café de Paris could not fail to be won over by the wit, warmth and wisdom of Willy-John McBride.
Guest speaker at this year's first of four Celebrity Lunches, this master of the shaggy dog story seemed to hold the audience in the palm of his hand as he recalled the highs and lows of a glorious career in the Irish national rugby team, and a record 17 tests for the British Lions.
In those pre-professional days when national team players "had only one shirt and one pair of socks for the season", Willy-John was a legend who never lost his sense of humour. Like the true Irishman he is, Willie John has an ability to conjure up the atmosphere and draw people into the scene so that the punchline never fails to hit its target.
For Rob Rutter, First Vice President Merrill Lynch, it was a dream come true. Merrill Lynch is one of five sponsors for the lunches and Mr Rutter recalled asking for Willy-John to be a speaker three years ago when these events first took shape.
The business card draw at the end of the three-course gourmet meal won Christopher Beaumont of British Airways a magnum of champagne.
With the talk over by 3pm , many of the guests stayed on to network and quizz Willy-John and his wife, Penny, about the current Six Nations tournament. Both had nothing but praise for Pierre Berbizier , coach of the Italian Azzurris team, who is guest speaker at the first Celebrity Lunch in French on March 31st .
"He's doing a superb job," said Willy-John. "The results don't reflect how good the Italian team have been this year. It won't be long before they have a big win." An 18-18 draw with Wales the very next day (March 11th) appears to back his faith in them.
Extracts of an interview with Willy-John McBride on 10th March 2006 at the Monaco Celebrity Lunch for The Riviera Times
When one of Britain 's great rugby legends came to Monaco on March 10th, the Six Nations rugby tournament was at a crucial stage. Italy still had not won a match and the competition was wide open with France , England , Ireland and Scotland , all in with a chance to take the crown. Accompanied by his charming and equally rugby-savvy wife Penny, Willy-John McBride spoke eloquently of his opinion of this year's tournament.
On the French
"It's all up in the air which just proves that rugby-football is a game where anything can happen. France haven't really found their potential in this tournament but I would love to see them win the World Cup next year. They have more flair than the UK side at the moment. France is the one team that can really excite - and really disappoint the fans. The problem is they have never been able to concentrate for the full 80 minutes!" The French in the audience roared with laughter at this last comment.
On the Italians
On the valiant Italian Azzurris team, Willy-John had nothing but praise for their new coach, Pierre Berbizier. A rugby legend in his own right in France, Pierre is the guest speaker at the Celebrity Lunch en français on March 31st.
"He's doing a superb job with a team that has come along way in the last two years. They're playing as if they believe in themselves and they are close to a breakthrough." Asked if he thought they would take home, yet again, the "Wooden Spoon" for not winning a match, he said firmly: "They must not despair - the results don't reflect how good they have been this year. It won't be long before they have a big win."
And as if the team had been listening in on the Celebrity Lunch, Italy went on the next day (March 11th) to draw Wales 18-18 in a cliffhanger match that earned them a point.
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