Pandora: Stone's silks could turn into a little goldmine

The Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood has a history of reckless investments but he retains one useful asset which could one day provide for his pension fund.

The horse-racing mad guitarist, who in his autobiography claimed that he had to borrow 1m from his bandmates in 2003 to stay afloat, is the proud owner of a particularly valuable set of racing colours.

"The silks are plain gold," he told me recently. "I bought them for my wife Jo years ago in an auction at Sotheby's which Sabrina Guinness put me on to. We haven't used them for ten years but they must be bloody valuable by now."

Plain colours are always sought-after by wealthy racehorse owners but, being the sport of kings, all gold would be particularly precious. One expert estimates that Wood could get a "high five-figure sum" for them. "John Magnier asked after them once," Wood added. "I said 'John, you couldn't afford 'em, baby!'"