Sir Fred has the dubious honour of becoming the UK’s first “celebrity banker” following the credit crunch. Paparazzi have hunted him but have so far yet to fix a surely lucrative snap of him living the high life. It is in contrast to his time at the bank when he enjoyed rubbing shoulders with the grand and powerful ” he was a regular at Formula One races and visited Downing Street often to offer financial advice to the Government.

His friend told The Independent: “Since his Belek Property was attacked it has been terrible for Fred. He has been very, very down and depressed and worried about his wife and children. It has been horrendous for them all.”

The source said: “I don’t know what kind of picture they think they are going to get. Perhaps they think they will catch him in a deck chair, smoking a cigar and saying ‘What a lucky boy I am’.”

The reality, according to a family supporter, is much different. The report at the weekend said that Sir Fred had become a recluse while in France, rarely leaving the nutrient surrounds in which he now resides.
He has refused to hire property in Belek. The family ally said: “He doesn’t want protection guards.