Page 13: Illegal parties against Covid lockdown rules are raging

Speakeasies, Range Rover parties in lock-up garages, topless waitresses at all-night house parties and illegal gatherings on the Bellarine are all happening under the nose of Dictator Dan.

The high life of our rich and famous is in for some serious rehab when the lockdown is lifted.

Speakeasies, Range Rover parties in lock-up garages and topless waitresses called in to bump and grind at all-night house parties are happening under the nose of Dictator Dan.

But it’s what’s going up noses that’s bumping everyone along. WhatsApp groups are on high rotation for “rippers” to make house calls.

“It’s an essential service,” said one cashed-up bogan with plenty of $50 fun tickets in his pants.

No social distancing is one thing, but sharing a pineapple to hoover up your line Nadia-style is said to be bad hygiene for the bare-chested gals, who require a new crisp note for every bump (they charge more for the grind later).

That’s out in Melbourne’s Wild West. Let’s move on down the coast to a different milieu and the ladies who play bridge on the Bellarine.

They are still clutching their pearls to their throats after receiving nasty notes in their letterboxes saying, “We know what you are up to.”

Turning up at houses with upturned collars and pastel sweaters tied over their shoulders, accompanied by a terrier or miniature dachshund, with a batch of cheese biscuits in the basket, is a dead giveaway.

One of our biggest household names is rumoured to be staging a speakeasy at a multi-million dollar pile on Brighton’s Golden Mile. Picture: Stock Image

Back up to Bayside and one of our biggest household names is rumoured to be staging a speakeasy at a multi-million dollar pile on Brighton’s Golden Mile.

The group gathered on the front lawn for drinks at six-thirsty under the supposed cover of a “business meeting.”

But the gig was up after a nosy neighbour ratted them out to the rozzers.

Oh dear!

But not to worry, the sprawling mansion has a rear entrance, with beachfront views, and the parties keep on a rockin’.

A hop, skip and, yes, a bump to the Toorak 3142 heartland and the rumours are raging about THAT grand final party.

Even a head chef from one of Melbourne’s fine dining establishments was called in to cater.

Jolly good!

Suffice to say the squillionaire hosts have rule-flouting form.

When you have planes, super yachts and automobiles at your disposal it must be hard not to get your engine revving and getting outta Dodge like a Wuhan bat outta hell.

Some proudly flaunt their escapades, with one tale doing the rounds about a high-flyer crouched in a cupboard at an illegal gathering when the coppers came calling.

The fingers are pointing and the tongues are wagging. But one thing is certain, Dan’s harsh curfew will do nothing to stop our social sets from getting their wide open noses out of joint. Dahling, most of them have already had them out of joint on the surgeon’s table.

But not only is the high life of our rich and famous in for some serious rehab when the lockdown is lifted.

The famed Brighton Savoy Hotel has been hit so hard by Covid restrictions it was forced to close last year. Picture: Tim Carrafa

There is some serious rethinking ahead for the businesses caught in Covid.

Such as the famed Brighton Savoy hotel, loved by there older social set, which is considering turning itself into a drug and rehabilitation centre.

Come again?

The iconic hotel on Beach Rd, where you can sip a G&T while watching the sun go down over the bay, has been hit so hard by Covid restrictions it was forced to close last year.

Owner Michael Lee says he’s not sure how to rebuild the business.

“We have just come through 19 months of hell. We have been restricted from trading for literally 15 months out of the last 20.

“We have been locked down, in-and-out for six months. But we are expected to pay land tax bills,” Lee told Page 13.

“We are expected to pay council rates, we are expected to pay our utilities, we are expected to pay our staff, we are expected to operate with literally no income.

“We are working within an environment where interstate borders have not been open, where international borders have been closed, where there is a curfew of 10 km, and 5km.

“How, just how is a hotel expected to operate with no income for 18 months?”

Lee says his father, DeS, who started in the kitchen at the Brighton Savoy as a Hungarian refugee before buying it in 1967, was hit hard by the closure.

“The toll is on people’s mental health, not knowing if their business will survive. My father effectively killed himself last year because his business was shut and he decided there was no point going on.” Lee says his father took himself off dialysis.

Turning the popular wedding and events venue into a wellness retreat is another option, as well as the drug rehab idea.

“We are a venue of celebration. It’s ironic isn’t it,” Lee lamented.

“If mental health and wellness is the way to go wouldn’t that be a much better thing than a really unattractive apartment block because then we can still serve the community, just in a different way.”