Jamie Oliver puts his cards on the table

While the rest of Britain sweltered in the early Summer heatwave, seven celebrities risked their shirts in a charity poker tournament. Read our play-by-play account of their flops and flushes.

Last week, while most of England stripped off in the sun, seven celebrities led by Jamie Oliver were trying to keep their cards close to their chest. They were competing in a Texas Hold 'em tournament at exclusive London restaurant Sketch, in aid of the One2One Children’s Fund which supports social and educational projects all round the world, and sponsored by one of Britain’s most popular 3D poker websites, PKR.

Players had stumped up £350 a head to play with the celebrities, with an extra £100 to buy new chips if they ran out, and each table had one star to the left of the dealer.

“Sorry,” joked Jason Flemyng at our table when this was announced, after looking over his shoulder in a pantomime of seeking the real celeb. Clearly the actor realised that his star wattage would not power quite as many flashbulbs as Jamie Oliver, or Teddy Sheringham.

I’ve played against celebrities before. Patrick Marber, who wrote the poker play Dealers’ Choice, was an excellent player, ruthless and inscrutable; by contrast Roger Lloyd Pack, who played the poker shark in the play’s recent West End revival, was in real life hesitant and unsure. Nancy Dell’Olio used her low-cut top to devastatingly distracting effect, but clearly couldn’t play, so no surprises there; while Sir Clive Sinclair was a careful better, calculating the odds, but lacking flair.

UK Times Online

News Added: 14 May, 2008

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