Roman prepares for £5m New Year party on luxury island

• zocoss

  28 Dec 11, 22:58

  Sure you don't fancy Chelsea v Aston Villa, Roman? Blues owner Abramovich prepares for £5m New Year party on luxury island
  

   

  

  Ready for a celebration: Roman Abramovich was spotted enjoying Boxing Day with his girlfriend Dasha Zhukova on the island of St Barts as he prepares for his legendary NYE party

   

   

   

   

  Millions have been spent on luxury food and drink, rock band the Red Hot Chili Peppers will entertain 300 guests and fireworks are expected to light up the Caribbean sky as midnight strikes.

  It can only be Roman Abramovich’s New Year’s Eve party, a glittering celebration on which the Russian billionaire is spending more than £5million with plans to eclipse even last year’s sparkling event.

  Mr Abramovich, 45, is back on the island of St Barts with his 30-year old partner Dasha Zhukova for the annual bash which is one of the most sought-after party invitations on New Year’s Eve.

  The party will still be going strong as his Chelsea team take to the field for their Barclays Premier League match against Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge on January 1.
  

   

  The event will run from 10pm until at least 4am at the Chelsea football club owner’s £58million estate in the hills overlooking the exclusive Gouverneur Beach.

  Guests have been told the dress code is ‘island chic’ and warned that security will be tight to ensure only those on the list will be able to get in.

  Last year, Mr Abramovich’s £5m party included a performance by the Black Eyed Peas and was attended by celebrities such as Demi Moore, actress and model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, model Stephanie Seymour, comedienne Ellen DeGeneres, movie mogul Harvey Weinstein and Star Wars creator George Lucas.

   

  

  Joining in: Abramovich was mingling with the locals on the island and even stopped to light some large candles

   

   

   

  In 2009, Mr Abramovich spent £3m treating guests such as Orlando Bloom and Kanye West to performances by Prince, Gwen Stefani and Beyonce.

  He traditionally cordons off an entire area of the island and guests can sleep on a number of superyachts owned by his friends that are moored in the harbour.

  It is understood close friends and family will stay at his estate, which was once owned by the American banking family the Rockefellers, and boasts a range of swimming pools, pavilions and Balinese bungalows with ocean views.

   

   

  

  The perfect setting: The 45-year-old billionaire invites 300 guests onto his mega yacht Eclipse to see in the new year

  

  Ready to party: Abramovich relaxes on his yacht with several friends

   

   

   

  Mr Abramovich and Miss Zhukova, the mother of his two-year-old son Aaron, celebrated Christmas on the island, spending time on his super-yacht, the 543ft Eclipse.

  The £300m nine-deck vessel boasts accommodation for 12 guests and five bodyguards, and features a cinema, library and restaurant. It is also reportedly installed with an anti-paparazzi shield, armed with infra-red lasers.

  The party comes at the end of a difficult year for Mr Abramovich – he was forced to come out in support of Chelsea manager Andre Villas-Boas after the team’s recent dip in form and is now looking to refresh the team. He has also been in the High Court in London to defend himself against a £3.7billion claim by exiled Russian oligarch Boris Berezovsky, who alleges he was cheated out of the true value of his shares in the Russian oil giant Sibneft and aluminium company Rusal.

   

  

  Hitting the waves: Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith was spotted at the beach in St Barts on Christmas day amid rumours that Abramovich has booked the band to play at his party

   

  

  Feeling nervous? Smith enjoyed some quality time with his son Beckett as they played in the sea

   

   

  In the ongoing case, Mr Abramovich has been accused of using blackmail and intimidation to force Mr Berezovsky to sell shares in the firms well below their worth in deals that took place in the late
  1990s and early 2000s.

  Mr Abramovich denies that 65-year-old Mr Berezovsky is owed anything or ever owned shares in the two companies. He denies blackmail and intimidation and says Mr Berezovsky was well paid to the tune of around £1.3bn.

  He said he had reimbursed Mr Berezovsky for acting as his political godfather to get the deals agreed by the Russian authorities.

   

   

  

  Ready to rock: (L-R) John Frusciantea, Flea, Anthony Kiedis and Chad Smith pictured here at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards in 2007 are rumoured to be performing at the billionaire's annual party

   

• The man who was death

  29 Dec 11, 14:34

  I dun blame him given the awful football villa have played this season...