MEMO to Fiat’s marketing people: before embarking on the next expensive advertising campaign, try doing a little more research.

Had the carmaker taken the time to do a little digging on Richard Gere before casting him in the European ads for the new Lancia Delta, it would have found he is a practising Buddhist and an active supporter of the Dalai Lama.

They might also have discovered that he is chairman of the International Campaign for Tibet; that he was banned from presenting an Academy Award after using his appearance at the 1993 Oscars ceremony to condemn the Chinese government; and that he is banned from entering the People’s Republic of China.

And why does this matter?

Fiat is at present trying to break into the Chinese market, so when the actor recently spoke out against the regime, it had to put out a statement distancing itself from Gere’s “social and political views”.

Yacht a lot of ostentation

THE credit crisis doesn’t seem to be hurting our Russian friends.

Vladimir Potanin, the biggest single shareholder of Norilsk Nickel, hosted a christening party for his new luxury super-yacht, Anastasia, last week.

To celebrate the occasion, Potanin invited 100 of his closest friends, family and business cohorts to a party at the Monaco Yacht Club. Guests, including Daniel Bouton, the chairman of Soc Gen, a New York-based hedge-fund king and assorted members of the British aristocracy, were given lavish hospitality at the Hôtel Hermitage and Hôtel de Paris.

So, how do you baptise a yacht? Much like a baby’s christening, everyone has a good look at the star attraction, though frankly, this 75-metre, three-deck baby with helipad and Jacuzzi was far more impressive than any tot I’ve seen recently. The boat has six suites for the family and their guests, a games room (the Potanins love a good game of Scrabble) and 10 cabins for the crew of 20.

Most impressive of all, though, was Anastasia’s garage, which houses a 9.5metre limousine, a similar-sized ocean runabout and shelves stacked with jet skis and other water toys. The price was the only thing we couldn’t nail an exact figure on, but £100m-plus was whispered at the party.

Potanin named the yacht after his 23-year-old daughter, who was last year’s World Jet Ski champion, and he looked almost moved when Father Mikhail from the Russian Orthodox Church in Nice read the christening rites.

After the ceremony, guests, including Prince Albert of Monaco, who had rocked up by this time, escaped the blazing Mediterranean sun for the yacht club where canapés and champagne were served.

As the sun set, the Anastasia provided the backdrop for a dance and light show to Ravel’s Bolero. May God bless all who sail in her.

- ONE of the partners at Hugh Osmond’s investment firm, Sun Capital, received a cheeky phone call from his mother last week, asking whether she could get a free sofa.

Alas, there may be a little confusion, as Osmond is not usually in the habit of procuring bits of furniture, gratis, for his family.

As his mum may have learnt by now, there are, in fact, two Sun Capitals - the one founded and run by Osmond, and a similarly named private-equity firm in the US, which owns brands including Lee Cooper.

It is this outfit, rather than Osmond’s, that last week acquired SCS, the British furniture retailer. As for how the deal is progressing; well, sofa, so good apparently.

WHAT better way to take the mind off high-street gloom than bopping away to Duran Duran? Carphone Warehouse boss Charles Dunstone did just that with a group of chums at a gig at The O2 on Thursday night. He goes sailing with lead singer Simon Le Bon, who had his biggest hits when mobile phones were as big as bricks.

It was a shame that Roger Taylor couldn’t make it - Carphone’s finance director, that is, not Duran Duran’s drummer of the same name. So is Dunstone Hungry Like The Wolf for Tiscali, the broadband company still struggling to find a buyer? “No comment.”

Turner’s arresting humour

I HEAR Mike Turner, outgoing chief executive of BAE Systems, is going to take his life in his hands this week and travel to America.

Last time he went, Turner was detained and handed a subpoena as part of the US Department of Justice’s inquiry into alleged corruption in the UK-Saudi Arabia arms deal.

BAE would not confirm Turner’s visit for “security reasons”.

He’s unlikely to have another brush with the law, but even if he does, it’s unlikely to upset him.

“Fastest I’ve ever been through US immigration!” the BAE chief has told industry colleagues.

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