RANK GROUP, the Mecca Bingo to Hard Rock Cafe operator, is understood to have selected Ron Perelman, the billionaire American owner of the Revlon cosmetics empire, as preferred bidder for its Deluxe Film arm.

The group has also chosen a preferred bidder for its Deluxe Media arm, which makes and distributes videos and DVDs. The suitor’s identity is a mystery, although Canada’s Cinram, a rival, is known to have been interested.

The film services division is expected to fetch more than £400 million while the smaller media business is expected to go for about £23 million, the recently written-down book value.

Rank, which has been trying to off–load the Deluxe businesses for more than year, refused to identify the bidders. It said it was making “steady progress”, adding: “We have preferred but not exclusive bidders for each business.”

In a trading update for the 48 weeks to November 25, the group said second-half trading had followed “similar trends to those witnessed in the first half”. While revenues had increased, operating costs had risen and margins in Blue Square, its online bookmaker, had remained weak.

It said that, as a result, pre-tax profits excluding exceptionals for the full-year would be “slightly lower than in 2004”.

Its Mecca Bingo clubs in the UK reported flat revenue on the back of a 6 per cent fall in admissions while operating margins were hit by labour and energy costs.

Hard Rock reported a 4 per cent increase in like-for-like sales.

Turnover at Rank’s Grosvenor Casinos arm was up 3 per cent thanks to a 9 per cent rise in admissions.

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