Every summer, the business heavyweights of Knightsbridge gather at the Motcomb street party to drink Champagne, eat strawberries and celebrate their great wealth.

This year the mood has changed and it is not just the torrents of rain falling onto SW1.

“The atmosphere in the City is terrible,” said Richard M. Howell, a senior stockbroker for Intelli. “It’s as bad as I can remember and I have been in this business for a long time. We are in a recession now - the last time it was as bad as this was in the early 1990s.”

The annual party, held in one of London’s smartest streets, was sombre this year as British shares slid into a bear market, house prices continued to plunge and the British Chamber of Commerce warned that the UK faced a serious risk of recession.

Even Sir Alan Sugar, one of the UK’s most brusque and bullish businessmen, is concerned by the prevailing economic conditions.

Simon Ambrose, his third selection as The Apprentice and current Amstrad employee, was downcast at the sodden street party: “I think everyone is worried about the credit crunch - Sir Alan included.”

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