Friday, May 04, 2007

My 300th Blog Post. Unfortunately I Have To Report Yet Again About the Sexual Escapades of Powerful Closeted Gay Men

Oh how weak affairs of the cock and sometimes, heart are. But seriously, couldn't this have been handled differently? Is hiding a boytoy and then getting caught and exposed worth all the scandal, financial loss, and scrutiny?

As many of you may have read or heard, Lord John Browne, the former Chief Executive Officer of British Petroleum (BP) has been implicated in a corporate scandal involving his former gay lover, which has forced the 58 year old Lord Browne to resign his position in the company.

The following are exerpts from an article appearing in the publication, This Is London.

Dressed in Prada and housed in luxury, the young gay lover of Lord Browne, the shamed ex Chief Executive Officer of British Petroleum.

Lord Browne fell for the charms of Jeff Chevalier, (pictured above), a young Canadian computer operator, in 2002.

It is unclear how their paths crossed - Lord Browne originally claimed it was a chance meeting while he was "exercising" in Battersea Park, near his luxury London home, but later admitted that this was a lie. The truth was recently revealed that the two met courtesy of a male excort service. (More of this below).

However, it is clear that the pair became partners for four years and during that time Chevalier "adopted Lord Browne's [the Claimant's] lifestyle and was provided by him with food, travel, clothes and accommodation at a fairly luxurious level.

According to reports, the end of the affair came in 2006. According to court papers, when the relationship ended, Mr Chevalier went home to Canada but "found himself in financial difficulties and also having to adjust to a drastically reduced lifestyle".

Lord Browne helped his former lover by giving him money to help pay for a 12-month lease on a flat in Toronto and to buy furnishings after promising Chevalier "that if needed, [he] would assist in the first year of me transitioning from living in multi-million pound homes around the world, flying in private jets, five-star hotels, £2,000 suits, and so on to a less than modest life in Canada."

But Chevalier soon fell on hard times, the computer business Lord Browne bankrolled, now bankrupt, and by the end of 2006 was asking Lord Browne for more money.

On Christmas Eve, he emailed his ex-lover on holiday in the Caribbean, telling him: "I have nothing left to lose ... I am facing hunger and homelessness after four years of sharing your lifestyle ... the least I am asking for is some assistance ... please respond ... I do not want to embarrass you in any way but I am being cornered by your lack of response to my myriad attempts at communication."

It was after this missive, which Chevalier denied was intended as a threat, that he decided to make the affair public and Browne reached for his lawyers.

http://www.mailonsunday.co.uk/pages/live/articles/news/news.html?in_article_id=452194&in_page_id=1770

But as more of the story unfolds, the two met up, thanks to the website, http://www.suitedandbooted.com

It is not known what drew Lord Browne to the site or when he first visited. It could have been idle curiosity, or perhaps it was word of mouth.

But at some point in 2002, it apparently led the multi-millionaire to Jeff Chevalier.

The site has a gallery of 100 male 'escorts'. Some appear in leather outfits and chains, others in a string of provocative poses some with faces visible, others hidden to disguise their identity. Underneath each image is a name. These include Romeo, Beloved and Big Alex.
Users can click on the image that takes their fancy and find individual profile pages with personal information and the promise of more pictures.

The homepage opens with the welcome 'Thank you for choosing to visit our site' and the offer of a first-name, friendly and personal service.

It claims to be the UK's first and largest web-based agency and an award winner, set up in 1998.
Bold lettering proclaims that all models featured on the site are over 18.

Suited and Booted is advertised with a string of similar agencies in listings columns on the Internet. One advertisement reads: 'Stunning, educated guys with great personalities and friendly attitude. One call to us and we make all the arrangements.'

Another promises 'discrete, friendly service from guys who enjoy their work'.

Curiously suitedandbooted.com appears to have a social conscience. A £1 charity donation is promised for every booking.

Yesterday the agency did not respond to phone calls or e-mail. Visitors to the website saw a message stating: 'We apologise that suitedandbooted.com is down due to technical reasons.'

I guess this source for boytoys won't be providing any outcalls this weekend in London.

So where is our boy Jeff hiding? According to the Toronto Globe and Mail, the whereabouts of Jeff Chevalier remained a mystery yesterday with his former lover suspecting that the 27-year-old Canadian, who single-handedly brought down a British oil tycoon, is holed up somewhere until his story is published in a London tabloid newspaper that bought it.

"I'm sure [The Mail on Sunday] has got him out of Toronto so no one can talk to him," John Trickey, ( an appropriate name, especially if they had ever gotten married), Mr. Chevalier's 48-year-old former lover, said yesterday from his Toronto home.

Mr. Chevalier's brother, Blair, also said he was not in the city. "I don't want to speak with you," Blair said before hanging up his cellphone.

The young Canadian is at the centre of a British scandal. Lord John Browne, the chief executive officer of BP PLC, abruptly resigned this week after losing a court battle to keep secret the details of a four-year affair with Mr. Chevalier. Now, The Mail on Sunday can publish details of the relationship.

Our boy Jeff has been described by his former lover as someone who loved a life of privilege that included whirlwind trips to London and New York and shopping sprees at Holt Renfrew.

Mr. Trickey said the young man left him when his Internet business was starting to collapse. He left for London and later met Lord Browne through an escort agency.

Mr. Trickey said he kept in touch with Mr. Chevalier. "Lord Browne lavished him with clothes and exclusive restaurants and trips," Mr. Trickey said yesterday.

Mr. Chevalier's sister, Courtney, did not respond to multiple requests for an interview yesterday. A woman who picked up the phone at the number listed for Mr. Chevalier's relative hung up when told it was a reporter calling. No one answered the building intercom buzzer for a Rexdale apartment listed as belonging to "Tom Chevalier."

After Mr. Chevalier's relationship with Lord Browne ended last year, he threatened to embarrass the oil tycoon, according to a court ruling. Mr. Chevalier alleges that Lord Browne used BP money to support him and shared company secrets.

Lord Browne denies those allegations. BP chairman John Sutherland said in a statement that the company has investigated the allegations and found them baseless. The scandal has left the blogsphere buzzing with theories and opinions about the relationship between the business tycoon and the Canadian.

But on a sadder note, why is this surprising? So Lord Browne (LB) wanted to act as a "daddy" to a young gay lad. Acting with his cock and on the downlow, LB, by not, first publically acknowledging this relationship, affair, early on, could have prevented the scandal by showing the public one side, or at least, pretending that Jeff was his assistant. But it seems that LB was hooked by the candy between the sheets and not necessarilyby the brains of the boy.

Like the "good, gay and horny" former governor from New Jersey, James E. McGreevey, LB chose to hide this from the press and the public. By being outed, LB faces the same shame as McGreevey did, before he could put a positive spin on it, and proclaim himself to be a "proud Gay American".

There is nothing wrong with older guy, younger guy relationships. But all of these men have handled them very badly. It takes a special kind of commitment to make them work. The boy has to have respect for the man, and the man has to have respect for the boy. Money and power, just seems to complicate matters.

5 comments:

A Lewis said...

What is it about the incredibly ruthless power of the dollar -- combined with the beauty of young men -- it's a winning combination....done at the right time and place.

Anonymous said...

Fascinating. I had not heard any of this.

psyther said...

boy was obviously overwhelmed with his instant status

Sh@ney said...

Seems to me like the young lad wanted the fortune & fame but not the 'old fad' I'm sorry but it wreaks of 'Golddigger'...I have seen it happen before, have been told stories from young men who exploit themsleves & others for the sake of gaining a commendable position in society...Or simply "freeloading"...I just feel for the older gents, who pay the ultimate price for allowing their hip pocket to control their love life &/or happiness...No matter the age difference - finances should never be a consideration when contemplating ones happiness in love...You cant 'BUY' either one...

TOS said...

Content aside - Happy 300th Blogposting!