The Qatari Royal family may have taken notice of Prince Charles and abandoned plans for Chelsea Barracks.

But they took more notice of brother Andrew when it came to making up their mind to build the 1000ft Shard of Glass at London Bridge, where work is now under way.

Prince Andrew played a little-known behind-the-scenes brokering role in persuading the Qataris to back the Shard.

At one meeting with Andrew, someone raised the delicate question of what the Prince of Wales might think of the uncompromisingly modern tower thrusting into the London skyline. “Oh, don't take any notice of him” said Andrew. So they didn't.

• THE vultures are circling. Hansteen is the latest property investor to make its move in the UK, raising £200 million to snap up bargains from distressed sellers battered by the recession.

The firm was set up in 2005 by Ian Watson and Morgan Jones, after they sold Ashtenne to Warner Estates, and it has been shopping in Europe for the last four years.

However, Hansteen recently poached Mark Ovens and James Harvey from Ashtenne to lead a drive back into the UK, and they are now raising the necessary funds.

That is not the only connection Hansteen has with Ashtenne — as anyone who can spot an anagram knows.

Louis sees Red over Cross

LUXURY goods maker Louis Vuitton is suing the German branch of the Red Cross in a bizarre spat over a fake handbag.

The accessory company is taking a charity shop of the Red Cross in Marburg to court because it offered a knock-off version of an LV bag to customers. An LV employee bought the bag for €3.

Scrutinised by officials at a Louis Vuitton workshop in France, it was found to be a copy — and that's something the firm despises. Louis Vuitton is demanding €2600 compensation. Politicians are outraged.

“How dare this firm threaten the existence of a charity shop in this manner?” stormed MP Thomas
Spies. “The Red Cross is no counterfeiting band.”

The local director of the Red Cross said: “It's a conundrum now whether to keep open. It is hard for staff to recognise the difference between copies and the real thing when things are donated by people out of the goodness of their hearts.”

Elvis checks in to Memphis hotel

ELVIS will be back in Memphis in August. But don't go looking in Graceland — try the local Holiday Inn.

The mother of Andy Cosslett, chief executive of InterContinental Hotels, is called Elvis, and to mark the opening of its new hotel in Memphis, home of the first Holiday Inn, Mama Cosslett is going with him.

In case there are any doubters that a woman really can be called Elvis, she is taking her birth certificate.

• FRESH from running Jardine Matheson in Hong Kong, Percy Weatherall is to take up the reins at City wine merchant Corney & Barrow in September.

The former taipan steps into the hot seat as chairman. Bottoms up!

Blanked by Darling

WHO'S this turning up at No 11, finding no one at home and being led round the back by the police?

You might have thought that Sir Victor Blank would realise Alistair Darling tends not to come to the door in person, that No 11 is not quite like the neighbour's. But oh no.

The Lloyds Banking Group chairman marched briskly up Downing Street, piece of paper in hand, only to be shown, literally, where to go.

What was in the paper? Was it a letter enclosing a cheque for the first repayment of the £17 billion his bank has received from the Government?

Or was it an old receipt of Alistair's he found in a restaurant? Alas, despite it being London's sunniest day of the year, Victor was in no mood to share the contents with watching photographers.

Astaire's blues after Worthington

MORE on the scandal at Astaire (the recently rebranded stockbroker formerly known as Blue Oar): A City Spy-loving broker points out all was not well in the relationship between the broker and its client Worthington Nicholls long before the regulator's investigation which this week resulted in a £225,000 fine.

To recap, Blue Oar floated Worthington Nicholls on AIM and pushed out a host of misleadingly upbeat trading statements on its behalf.

Then, in November 2007, the company admitted to a £16 million black hole, destroying its inflated share price.

A month later, it emerged that Worthingon chief executive Mark Worthington gave Blue Oar salesman Gavin Haywood's wife a brand new Porsche. Nominated advisers are supposed to be independent of their clients …

• THE air is buzzing with talk of potential lawsuits against Astaire from those who backed the Worthington Nicholls fundraisers after the London Stock Exchange's damning report. City Spy hopes Astaire has good legal costs insurance.

• CHIEF executive at Astaire/Blue Oar at the time of Worthington Nicholls' flotation was Edward Vandyk. After the first of the flurry of glowing trading statements, he left to be replaced by Andrew Monk, who was in charge for the rest of the scandal.

Vandyk took control of Blue Oar again late last year, quickly launching merger talks with WH Ireland. When those failed, Vandyk launched a bid for another broker, Dowgate Capital, which is still up in the air. But where is Monk now?

Last week, he cropped up at a software business called Formjet, where he launched a placing to raise £200,000. Who was the broker? Dowgate Capital.

• DOWGATE could be set for a few nice advisory fees from Formjet.

A circular to investors yesterday stated that Monk has been brought on board to “expand the group by acquisitions”. It's certainly in his interests to build the business quickly.

Monk is being paid a nominal salary of £1200 until the board is satisfied that the company is big enough for him to deserve a proper salary.