An internationally renowned tailor to the Royal Family has been disqualified from acting as a director for 10 years.

David Saxby a bespoke tailor in Fulham was disqualified by the High Court following an investigation into a missing £1.7million of takings paid into a friend's bank account.

The court was told he had failed to maintain proper accounting records by the Insolvency Service.

Mr Saxby, 64, is now banned from acting as a director or in any way managing or controlling a company until October 2023.

Commenting on the disqualification, Mark Bruce, a chief investigator at The Insolvency Service said: "Directors of companies experiencing financial difficulties have a duty to act in the best interests of its creditors including keeping proper records of the company’s trading activities.

"Directors like Mr Saxby who disregard such basic duties must expect to have their ability to be a director removed for a significant period. The Insolvency Service will use its powers to protect the business world in this way.“

David Leslie Saxby was the sole director of David Saxby Ltd, bespoke tailors who specialised in sporting–tweed and formal wear, for the rich, famous and royal.

On a promotional website David Saxby recently said: “I started in menswear and tailoring in the 1960's, the tail-end of the glory days of British tailoring  When I produce a new garment, it has to be at least up to the high standards of manufacture and materials that marked those years.”

Investigations found that Mr Saxby failed to ensure that David Saxby Ltd maintained and delivered up adequate accounting records to its liquidator, after the firm became insolvent in September 2011.

As a consequence it was not possible to ascertain that sales revenue of £623,037 paid into the bank account had been spent on genuine company expenditure, or what happened to debit and credit card takings of £1,700,470 paid into a friend’s bank account between September 1 2009 and September 6 2011.

Mr Saxby also failed to ensure that David Saxby Ltd accounted for VAT collected in sales, or that it made payments to Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs for its entire trading period.