Edinburgh mum presents George Clooney with personalised Scotland strip at glitzy lunch

The 64-year-old actor Mr Clooney is in Scotland as he continues to show his support of Edinburgh-based charity Social Bite, having first visited the cafe in 2015.

He is also the special guest at the British Business Awards, which are being held at the EICC tonight (April 30). The event is aiming to raise £1 million for the charity, founded by Josh Littlejohn MBE, which aims to end homelessness through practical support and systemic change.

A red carpet was set up outside the EICC ahead of the event, with some eager fans having started gathering outside from 2.30pm in the hopes of catching a glimpse of the star.

Earlier in the day, Mr Clooney was pictured at the Gleneagles Hotel where he met with Edinburgh mum Claire Phale, who won the chance to dine with him after entering an itison competition.

The 35-year-old events manager, who was announced as the winner of the Social Bite competition earlier this week, presented Clooney with personalised Scotland strips for the actor, his wife Amal and their twins.

Claire, a long‑time supporter of the charity, donates to Social Bite every year through itison’s Christmas fundraising campaigns, which have raised over £4.75 million to date.

Describing herself as “nervous but excited”, the mum of one was one of thousands to enter the competition before being randomly selected as the winner. She was collected from her home by chauffeur and treated to a decadent overnight break and makeover before meeting the actor and director.

Speaking earlier this week, Claire said: “My mum and I are both huge George fans and I honestly don’t think it’s sunk in that I’ve won the itison prize and I’m actually going to meet him. I’m nervous but so excited — the only thing I’ve ever won before is a hamper in a raffle.”

Claire’s mum was also given the chance to meet the film star after he invited her to have her picture taken with him.

Stay ahead of what’s happening in the Capital – get Edinburgh’s top news stories, sport, culture and what’s on in our daily email briefing

On Wednesday, Mr Clooney was shown prototypes of homes from the new Social Bite Village alongside Sir Bob Geldof before his address at the 4th annual Gleneagles Gala Dinner for Social Bite.

Josh Littlejohn MBE, who is also event director of the British Business Awards, said: “George made such an incredible impact to Social Bite when he visited our café 10 years ago and we’re honoured to have him join us again at these events which help us raise much-needed funds to help end homelessness in the UK.

“Last year’s British Business Awards were a triumph. Not only did we recognise and celebrate some of Britain’s biggest success stories, we also smashed our target and helped to raise over £1.3m for Social Bite, alongside a special fundraiser at Gleneagles Hotel. This year’s awards are set to be even more exciting, and we couldn’t be more delighted to welcome back George Clooney to Scotland.”

Mr Clooney is set to appear as a guest and in-conversation during the event, which aims to celebrate British businesses while raising vital funds for Social Bite. Last year’s event saw a stripped back performance from Sting and a keynote speech from Sir Bob Geldof. It raised more than £1 million for the charity.

Last year’s British Business Awards’ finalists included blue-chip companies such as Dell Computing, HP, The PureGym Group, Scottish Power and Miller Homes alongside entrepreneurs and leaders from across the UK.