The number of spinning plates, each one of which would warrant significant endeavour if I had time.
Name:
Andrew Fritchie
Title: General counsel
Company: PartyGaming
Lives: Gibraltar
Education:
1976-83: Chosen Hill School, Churchdown
1983-86: LLB (Hons), University College, Chichester
1988: Called to the bar, Inner Temple
2001-03: Executive MBA, London Business School
Work history:
1986-87: Group finance trainee, Courtaulds
1988-2000: Pupil then tenant, 1 Gray’s Inn Square
1989: Sabbatical, associate, Gray Cary Ames & Fry, San Diego
1994-95: Sabbatical, general counsel, Nicholson International, Sydney
1997-2004: General counsel,Marlborough Stirling
1998: Appointed commercial director
2002: Appointed to the board
2003: Appointed international managing director
2004-07: Joined FM Global International as corporate counsel
2005: Appointed to international board
2007: Joined PartyGaming as general counsel
What was your first-ever job?
Newspaper delivery boy.
What was your worst experience as a trainee?
Early in my pupillage my head of chambers was defending a nasty rape at the Old Bailey, when a question came from the jury. My head of chambers was nowhere to be found, and the judge made me deal with it despite my weak and increasingly anaemic protestations.
Where’s the best place to go if you want to find out what’s really going on in the office?
My PA Monica – she is a Gibraltarian born and bred, and has every inside track.
What time do you usually leave the office?
Usually by 7pm.
What do you do at weekends?
I have four kids, so I combine adult fun with theirs. We travel all over Andalucia and northern Morrocco looking for great restaurants. And when I need some down time, I head for the Sierras on my Triumph Rocket.
What’s your favourite restaurant?
The Retreat in Cheltenham; Boisdale in London; Thyme in Gibraltar.
If you weren’t a lawyer what would you have been?
A rock and roll guitarist.
Who’s your hero and why?
My mother, who sits in the Lords, is known for her extraordinary achievements. My father was an American submariner on the first nuclear submarine. He was decorated in two wars.
What’s the best thing about your job?
Great industry, great people, unexpected new challenges.
What’s the toughest thing about your job?
The number of spinning plates, each one of which would warrant significant endeavour if I had time.
What’s your biggest work/career mistake and what did you learn from it?
Leaving the bar is something I occasionally ponder.
What car do you drive?
Aston DBS on order for Spain; Merc S V8 for UK; Range Rover for school run.
What book are you reading?
Sir Robert Peel: A Biography by Douglas Hurd.
What’s on your iPod?
Spanish lessons and Flamenco guitar.
What’s your favourite children’s book?
The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien.
If you were stranded on a desert island, what two luxury items would you take?
Endless Marlboro Reds and a Gibson Hummingbird guitar.
What’s the longest you’ve worked without sleep?
Three hours, possibly four.
If a movie was made about you, which actor would play you?
Jack Nicholson – good attitude, if physically dissimilar.
Who would you least like to be stuck in a lift with?
My mother-in-law.
