THE HAMPSHIRE private members club which recently launched a £50 cocktail has found high spending high rollers thin on the ground and has gone into administration.

"Internal management difficulties" are also said to be behind the decision by the £600-a-year Radcliffe Members Club and Dining Rooms in Titchfield.

Opened by glamour model Jordan in a flurry of publicity in December last year, more than £500,000 was invested in making the 17th century farmhouse a hot destination.

Despite high profile innovations such as the £50 a time Radcliffe Royale champagne cocktail, members have not signed up in the necessary numbers, forcing bosses to focus on simple survival.

The move into administration follows a spring management split from London nightclub owners The Embassy Group over differences in the direction of The Radcliffe.

Members, who pay £600 or £1,500 a year for corporate use, are to be informed by letter this week.

Club insiders say a series of management failures meant the venue was never well promoted and many potential clients were unaware of it.

Portland business and Financial Solutions Ltd has been appointed as administrator and has secured increased promotional funding.

Portland director Carl Faulds, pictured inset, said: "Internal management difficulties have prevented the owners from being able to concentrate on developing the growth of membership and this has meant that the anticipated level of trade has not materialised. As administrator my role is to focus on taking steps to ensure that the company is able to survive and I have a strategy in place for this purpose."

The exclusive Grade II listed Whiteley Lane venue, which has two AA rosettes, is now to offer free taster memberships to encourage customers to try out the service.

Radcliffe owner Nigel Nieddu said: "I firmly believe that there is a requirement for a place where people can go for a night out in comfort, eat top quality food with exceptional service, be well looked after and enjoy a sophisticated bar atmosphere without the usual hassles of a traditional bar and restaurant.

"I look forward to working alongside Portland and implementing the changes that we hope will make this business the success it deserves to be."

The first date in the club's new events schedule, on August 6, is the launch of a business networking meeting intriguingly titled The Radcliffe: the Inside Story.