‘She would have hated this… he’s already made so much money out of her’: As Amy Winehouse’s millionaire dad loses £730,000 court battle against her friends, insiders reveal what’s REALLY motivating the ex-cabbie

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The dress symbolized a fresh start for Amy Winehouse. She wore the tight-fitting, bamboo-patterned dress on stage in Belgrade in 2011, shortly after finishing rehab and ending her difficult two-year marriage to Blake Fielder-Civil.

Naomi Parry, the singer’s stylist and the designer of the dress, hoped the outfit would symbolize a turn towards brighter days.

Sadly, all those hopes came to naught.

Amy’s hoped-for comeback turned tragic. Instead of a triumphant return to the stage, she appeared visibly intoxicated during her final performance, marking a relapse into alcohol abuse. Just a month and five days later, she was found dead, with empty vodka bottles nearby. She was only 27 years old.

Remarkably, the dress has become a symbol of even greater pain. It’s not an overstatement to say it has ruined Naomi’s life, and the life of her close friend, Catriona Gourlay.

For the last two years, Amy and her sister have been involved in a difficult and upsetting legal dispute with their father, Mitch, regarding ownership of the singer’s dress and other personal items.

Mitch, who used to be a London taxi driver but now sings, sued the couple after they auctioned off gifts his daughter had given them, including a dress made of bamboo.

He claimed they ‘deliberately concealed’ the items from him.

The amounts of money were significant. For example, a bamboo dress eventually sold for £192,000 in Beverly Hills five years ago – thirteen times what experts had predicted it would fetch at auction.

Mitch was so determined to get his money back that he pursued the case through the highest levels of the court system.

However, the court ruled against him this week, deciding his claims about his late daughter’s closest friends weren’t believable.

Judge Sarah Clarke ruled in favor of the women, stating that she didn’t believe either Ms. Parry or Ms. Gourlay intentionally hid anything from the claimant. Even if they had, she added, Mr. Winehouse could have easily found out what items were in question with a reasonable amount of effort.

Naomi and Catriona were incredibly close to Amy, considered part of her closest friends, and were so important to her that their names were included on her headstone with Mitch.

Despite any sense of victory, the situation is still difficult. The lawsuit has significantly affected the women involved.

So much so, say friends of the women, that they feel it’s payback time.

I’ve learned that Naomi and Catriona are seriously thinking about how to respond to Mitch’s damaging claims. They’re exploring all their options for what action they might take.

One pal says that they ‘simply cannot just sit back and take this’, despite him being Amy’s father.

It feels cliché to call it a war, but that’s essentially what’s happening. My source believes people feel like this is a time for getting even.

They’re exploring how to get Mitch to take responsibility for his actions, the pain he’s inflicted, and the harm he may have caused to their reputation.

Because many people doubt Mitch’s motives, it’s actually helped Naomi and Catriona’s situation.

It’s been incredibly difficult. They can’t grasp why he would do this to them, especially since he’s already taken so much of Amy’s money.

As a lifestyle expert, I often encounter complex financial situations, and this one is particularly poignant. It came out in court that Mitch actually inherited a substantial fortune from his daughter, who sadly passed away without a will. This means he’s already a multimillionaire, though the circumstances are, of course, deeply saddening.

Catriona’s lawyer informed the court that shortly after the initial auction in 2021, Mitch promised to hire London’s most skilled and forceful legal team.

He attempted to convince the police that his friends had committed fraud, but they quickly dismissed his request. It’s important to note that Mitch later retracted his claims of theft.

I’m told: ‘Right now, the girls are taking time to get over it and heal – but watch out Mitch.’

People close to the couple say the lawsuit has disrupted their lives and caused them significant stress, affecting their health and finances.

A friend of Naomi’s shared with the Daily Mail that the situation has been devastating. It’s severely impacted Naomi’s work as a stylist, as accusations of dishonesty and theft make it difficult for her to make a living.

This situation has been troubling them for a long time. It’s terrible how Mitch treated them both, especially considering it seems he only did it to profit from his daughter.

Another source tells me: ’Naomi and Catriona were furious when this began and they are still now.’

Mitch started a legal case in February 2024, claiming Naomi and Catriona sold Amy’s belongings without his consent.

I’ve been following this story for a while now, and it’s just heartbreaking. Apparently, this 75-year-old man found a way to make some money by selling dresses – can you imagine? And even more surprisingly, he was still using lipstick and eyeliner ten years after losing his daughter. It’s a really poignant detail that shows how much he still remembers her.

During a trial in December, his lawyers stated that the other party intentionally hid the sales information, and legal action was the only way for him to get the information he needed.

He claimed the women owed him as much as £730,000.

The lawyers representing Naomi and Catriona stated that Amy had either given them the items in question, or they already possessed them.

The singer was famously generous, always insisting on paying for her friends’ drinks when they went out. She was also incredibly loyal to those close to her, especially as she needed them more towards the end of her life.

Sadie Frost, an actress, and Kelly Osbourne, a TV personality, both provided statements supporting Naomi and Catriona. They explained that Amy frequently gifted her clothes to others.

A bamboo dress was among the items used to celebrate the life of a beloved friend, as part of a ten-year tribute project. After her friend’s death, Naomi created a book called ‘Beyond Black,’ filled with photos and memories of the singer. They also held an exhibition with the same name, starting at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles and concluding at the Design Museum in London.

Naomi and Catriona say Mitch co-operated with all of it.

Okay, so in 2021, after everything they’d accomplished – and honestly, it was amazing – they decided it was time to let some of their things go. It was a little heartbreaking, seeing pieces of their history up for grabs, but I totally understood. They’d finished what they set out to do, and it felt like a natural next step, even if it stung a bit as a huge fan!

They started selling some of Amy’s things – dresses, handbags, clothes, even personal items like underwear and makeup – along with her notes and sketches, in two separate auctions. These were items she’d given them over the years.

The auction included several notable items, such as the heart-shaped Moschino purse Amy Winehouse famously wore to the 2007 Brit Awards, which fetched £160,000. A Dolce & Gabbana dress sold for £20,000, and the iconic bamboo print dress was also among the pieces sold.

After seeing the sales, Mitch, who is managing his daughter’s estate, decided to take legal action.

He alleges Naomi and Catriona earned £3.3 million by selling 156 of Amy’s belongings, but the women claim his estimated amount is too high.

He subsequently backed down and later petitioned to claim back £730,000 of their profits.

Senator Mitch’s team has been publicly critical of the women involved, claiming he didn’t receive clear answers from Naomi and Catriona. However, Naomi and Catriona have consistently stated they did provide adequate responses.

It’s a sad postscript to Amy’s legacy, who achieved so much in a short, but deeply troubled, life.

Despite earning £5 million, friends say she always stayed humble and grounded.

A friend of the singer shared, ‘Amy would have been devastated by this. She always wished for everyone to be friendly, peaceful, and to simply love each other.’

She couldn’t stand conflict between the people she cared about. Everyone who met her agreed she was incredibly kind and sweet. It’s just heartbreaking.

As the fifteenth anniversary of Amy’s passing approaches, it’s heartbreaking to consider the impact this has had on the two people she loved most.

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2026-04-29 14:22