Lawson ‘not surprised’ as ex-PAs acquitted

TV cook Nigella Lawson said she was “disappointed but unsurprised” by the acquittal of her former personal assistants on fraud charges, adding that her experience as a witness was “deeply disturbing”.

She said the jury was “faced with a ridiculous sideshow of false allegations” about drug use which made focus on the actual criminal trial impossible.

Francesca Grillo, 35, and her sister, Elisabetta, 41, were each found not guilty of one count of defrauding Ms Lawson and her former husband, Charles Saatchi.