Interim Results

CAMELLIA PLC
14 September 1999

                            INTERIM STATEMENT

Largely due to the disappointing interim results of Lawrie Group subsidiaries
engaged in the growing and manufacture of tea, your Group's operations
incurred a loss of £1.469 million after tax and minority interests in the six
months ended 30th June 1999, compared to a profit of £6.26 million earned in
the comparable period in 1998.

Shareholders should be aware from the wide annual variations in the interim
figures that they are not necessarily a guide to the full year's results.  The
Board, however, is quietly confident regarding the outlook for the balance of
the year.

Scheme of Arrangement to acquire the outstanding shares of Lawrie Group Plc

Shareholders will find enclosed a document entitled 'Supplementary Listing
Particulars'.  This is required by the Financial Services Act 1986 to ensure
that shareholders are made aware of any matters considered significant that
have occurred since the Extraordinary General Meeting but before admission of
the new shares on the London Stock Exchange.  This interim statement is such a
significant matter.

On 15th July 1999 the shareholders of Lawrie Group Plc voted in favour of the
Scheme of Arrangement.  The Scheme remains subject to the sanction of the
Court, which is anticipated to take place on 4th October.  The new shares are
then expected to be admitted to the London Stock Exchange on 11th October, and
immediately following this date, assuming the Scheme is sanctioned and the new
shares are admitted, it is the intention of your Board to declare an interim
dividend in respect of the year ending 31st December 1999.

Art Galleries
During the six months to 30th June 1999, Lumley Cazalet Limited experienced
particularly profitable trading, and prospects for the balance of the year are
considered encouraging.  

Additional modest progress has been made with the orderly disposal of the JPL
Fine Arts Limited inventory, but once again further provision has been made
against the carrying value of this inventory.

In view of the experience of Lumley Cazalet in the year to date, it is
expected that the year will show a continuing overall improvement in
profitability for the Group's art businesses.

Prospects
The commercial and industrial interests of Lawrie Group have generally
performed well, as described by Mr. FitzGerald in his interim statement to the
shareholders of Lawrie Group.  The outlook for the remaining months of the
current year will be dominated by Lawrie Group's very substantial tea
operations.

Mr. Dieter Johr
It is with the greatest regret that the Board reports that our colleague,
Dieter Johr, has recently passed away.  Dieter Johr was a tower of strength
with his unswerving friendship and good counsel over a period of 25 years. 
Everyone who knew him will miss him deeply.

Lawrie Group Plc
As is our custom, we include an extract from the Chairman's Statement of
Lawrie Group for the six months to 30th June 1999:

The Group's negative results to 30th June 1999 are very
disappointing,especially when compared with the exceptionally profitable first
half of 1998. 

The downturn is primarily attributable to the severe impact upon our tea crops
of unusually adverse weather conditions reported in my statement to
shareholders dated 1st June 1999, accompanied and exacerbated by an unexpected
continuance of depressed tea price levels.  Under these unfavourable
circumstances the operating results at interim stage of our tea companies in
India and Bangladesh have inevitably suffered, as for similar reasons have the
extensive tea and coffee interests of our principal subsidiary, Linton Park
Plc.

UNITED KINGDOM

Walter Duncan & Goodricke Limited
In Duncan Lawrie Limited, deposits have remained static during the first half
year, but funds under management have increased.  Certain personnel changes
were initiated during the first half of 1999 and a new and younger management
team is now in place.  Duncan Lawrie has now completed all the checks and
testing necessary to ensure that its systems and those of the suppliers on
whom it relies are year 2000 compliant.

With the exception of one small London flat still on the market, W.D.G.
Properties' portfolio is now fully let.

Linton Park Plc
Linton Park's pre-tax profit for the first six months amounted to £3.58
million, compared to £17.82 million for the same period last year.

The following is an extract from the Chairman's Statement dated 2nd September
1999:

'The substantial decline in the profits for the six months ended 30th June
1999 as compared to the same period last year was foreshadowed in my statement
to the Annual General Meeting in May.  The main contributing factors to this
decline were as follows:

-  A serious drought in Kenya resulted in tea production being some 40 per
   cent. below the same period last year and tea prices declined by 15 per
   cent. compared with the same period last year.

-  A substantial decline in the prices realised for our Malawi teas, which 
   were over 33 per cent. lower than the corresponding period last year.

-  A substantial reduction in the sales price for Kenyan coffee.

-  Orders for our offshore oil related engineering activities in the United
   Kingdom remained at a low level as a result of the low price of oil at the
   beginning of the year.

-  Substantial restructuring costs incurred by Siegfried, our Swiss
   pharmaceutical associate, in relation to meeting Federal Drug
   Administration requirements in America.

The trading performance of the agricultural operations was exceptionally
strong in the first half of 1998.  However, excluding Siegfried, group profits
in the first six months showed a modest improvement on those achieved in the
last six months of 1998.

Associated Cold Stores & Transport has benefited from the increased capacity
in its new cold store in Wolverhampton and continues to make a very positive
contribution to profits.  Abbey Metal Finishing again made useful profits and
has successfully launched additional services to its aerospace customers,
including plasma spraying and non destructive testing.  Highland Fuels has
also enjoyed satisfactory profits in the first part of the year.

South Africa suffered from high interest rates and low table grape prices, but
the sale of the first vintage from our wine cellar has been encouraging. 
Yandilla Park in Australia enjoyed good results with an excellent wine grape
harvest, good throughput in the citrus packing operations and reasonably high
citrus prices.

Despite the restructuring costs incurred by Siegfried, their underlying
trading performance remains encouraging, although earnings for 1999 before
restructuring costs are anticipated to be below the previous year.

There had been some recovery in the level of tea production in Kenya, but
unfortunately recent severe hailstorms will reduce crops levels in the second
half of the year.  Tea prices remain very disappointing.  There is little
doubt that, apart from Australia, all our overseas agricultural interests will
have a poor year.  It is also unlikely that our UK engineering interests will
recover the ground lost in the first six months.  The board nevertheless
remain cautiously optimistic about the medium term prospects of the group.'

British Mohair Holdings Plc
Since the half-year results of this company have not yet been announced a
break-even outcome for the period has been assumed in the context of the
Lawrie Group's interim results.

INDIA

The damaging effects of prolonged drought have extended well into the tea
growing season in North India.  About half the crop's production is located in
the Dooars where the 1999 crop is currently 21 per cent. down on 1998. 
Production on our Assam gardens has been even more drastically affected. 
Price levels are only marginally less than last year's at this time but are
nevertheless disappointing since some increase could reasonably have been
expected in response to the lower crops.  The half-year results of our tea
estates in North India have therefore been considerably impaired.  However, in
the context of the year as a whole, the interim results of our estates in both
India and Bangladesh have absorbed much of the expenditure attributable to the
total annual crop, while the bulk of the year's sale proceeds will be realised
in the latter half of the year.

BANGLADESH

Drought conditions over several months severely reduced the country's tea
production, and in the case of our ten Longbourne estates, crop is currently
28 per cent. behind 1998.  The market for Bangladesh teas has also been much
weaker, with prices averaging 24 per cent. below those of last year at this
time.  It is encouraging to report, however, that since the beginning of
August contemporary production on our tea gardens has been catching up with
last year's levels.

United Insurance Company Limited is under pressure from newly established
rival companies, but the pre-tax profits of United Leasing Company Limited
show a very satisfactory improvement over 1998 at the half-year.

                                                         By Order of the Board
                                                                     P.E. Hill
14th September 1999                                                  Secretary



                            INTERIM RESULTS

                                     Half year to  Half year to    Year ended
                                        30th June     30th June 31st December
                                             1999          1998          1998
                               Notes        £'000         £'000         £'000

Turnover-continuing operations            108,816       117,235       237,987
        -discontinued operations 1              -         8,006         9,471
                                          -------       -------       -------
                                          108,816       125,241       247,458
                                          -------       -------       -------

Operating profit                                
 - continuing operations            1,897        17,222        31,506
 - discontinued operations              -            (6)           87
                                    -----        ------        ------
                                            1,897        17,216        31,593

Share of results of associates
 Profit before interest and 
  restructuring costs               2,984         3,919         6,765
 Restructuring costs             2 (2,568)            -             -
                                    -----         -----         -----
                                              416         3,919         6,765

Investment income                             417           336           554

Profit on disposal of fixed
 asset investments                             36           324            31

Profit on disposal of
 subsidiary undertakings         3      -           491           327
Attributable goodwill
 transferred from reserves              -        (1,182)         (880)
                                    -----         -----          ----
                                                -          (691)         (553)
                                            -----        ------        ------
                                            2,766        21,104        38,390
Net interest payable and 
 similar charges including
 share of associated
 undertakings net interest       4          2,821         2,694         6,103
                                            -----        ------        ------
Profit/(loss) on ordinary
 activities before taxation                   (55)       18,410        32,287

Taxation                         5          1,279         6,955        10,538
                                            -----        ------        ------
Profit/(loss) on ordinary
 activities after taxation                 (1,334)       11,455        21,749

Interest of minority shareholders             135         5,195         8,781
                                            -----        ------        ------
Attributable profit/(loss)                 (1,469)        6,260        12,968
                                            -----        ------        ------

Dividends:
  Interim for 1998 of 19p per share             -           469           469

  Final for 1998 of 28p per share               -             -           690

Earnings/(loss) per share        6         (59.59)p      253.85p       525.92p



                                 INTERIM RESULTS

Notes
1.  The discontinued operations relate to J. Bennett (Billingsgate) Limited, a
    fish wholesaling company, which was sold on 7th August 1998.

2.  Restructuring costs are those incurred by Siegfried AG in relation to
    meeting Federal Drug Administration requirements in America.

3.  Profit on disposal of subsidiary undertakings relates to Duncan Lawrie
    Pension Consultants Limited which was sold on 13th March 1998 and J. 
    Bennett (Billingsgate) Limited and Grant and May Limited which were sold
    on 7th August 1998.

4.  Net interest includes £202,000 (1998 first half year: £174,000 - full
    year: £487,000) in respect of the Group's share of associated
    undertakings' net interest.

5.  Taxation includes overseas taxation of £1,447,000 for the first half year
    (1998 first half year: £5,267,000 - full year: £8,796,000) and share of
    associated undertakings' taxation credit of £249,000 (1998 first half
    year: charge £944,000 - full year: charge £1,240,000).

6.  The calculation of earnings/(loss) per share is based on attributable
    profit/(loss) divided by the weighted average of ordinary shares in issue
    in first half year which was 2,465,125 (1998 first half year: 2,466,000 -
    full year: 2,465,781).

7.  Year 2000 - Planning for the year 2000 issues relating to the Group's
    information systems is well in hand and action has been taken to eliminate
    all significant problems in advance of the year end.  Operational and
    financial systems are regularly upgraded and replaced and the cost of
    compliance with year 2000 is not expected to be material.

8.  The first half year figures are unaudited and have not been reviewed by
    the company's auditors.  The figures for year ended 31st December 1998 are
    an abridged statement from the Group's accounts which have been delivered
    to the Registrar of Companies.  The Auditors' Report on these accounts was
    unqualified.

9.  Supplementary Listing Particulars and the Interim Statement for the six
    months ended 30th June 1999 are being posted to shareholders today, copies
    of which, together with this Announcement, can be obtained from the
    Company's Registrars:-

                        IRG plc.,
                        Balfour House,
                        390/398 High Road,
                        Ilford,
                        Essex IG1 1NQ.

    or from the Company's registered office:

                        25 Upper Brook Street,
                        London, W1Y 1PD.