CITY DIARY

The trouble in the world of rival rich lists continues. Last week, Philip Beresford, compiler of the Sunday Time's list, threatened to push his former co-researcher, Kevin Cahill, under a bus for jumping ship to the rival rich list at Business Age. Mr Cahill, however, is still very much alive and kicking. "This is the third time I have survived an attempt on my life," says Mr Cahill, who diced with death on several occasions as a young lieutenant in the armed forces.

He says he left the Sunday Times to research Business Age's list because of a matter related to the Queen's finances. Quite what, we cannot be sure, but it will be interesting to see if she makes it to the top of the Business Age list, having slipped from the Sunday Times listing summit.

Talk from Bob Quarta of BBA, the electronics to non-woven group, is all about "bolt-ons" right now. Having neatly restructured its Swiss acquisition, Holvis, and sold the bit it did not want to Arjo Wiggins, Bob has his sights set on growth, particularly in South America and the Pacific Rim.

Bob's bolt-on plan should be helped by BBA's new finance director, Roy McGlone, currently chief financial officer of BICC's US cable operation.

McGlone, 42, who succeeds a retiring Peter Clappison, should prove a dab hand at securing Bob's bolts. He was a financial analyst at Black and Decker in the 1980s.

Dogged by personnel losses, SBC Warburg has plans to bring in more new blood following its recruitment of the media analyst, Dr Katherine Pelly, from Kleinwort Benson two weeks ago. It also wants to build up its new pan-European equities research team. The recruitment drive has been in full swing for some time according to SBC'er Stephen Carr and desks are being shuffled for the arrivals.

Ex-Warburgers, traditionally leaders in the European research market, will be rubbing their hands in glee. The new team is to be led by two of their own - Tim Orchard, whose Italian team is rated number one by Extel, and number two Extel rated insurance analyst, John Chester.

Hard to believe but Yorkshire Water has done it again. While its customers labour under hosepipe bans in one of the driest summers ever, the company has sent out a missive to all businesses in the area containing suggestions on how they can save water.

Among the suggestions: temporarily move your business to an area without a hosepipe ban or, alternatively, give staff a longer summer holiday. "I don't think they are living in the real world," said one business.

The City has more than its fair share of would-be pop stars. The latest offering is The Reverend James Taste band, a seven-piece rhythm and blues band based in Chelsea, whose saxophonist, Jonathan "Jo'' Diamond, works in investment management for James Capel, advising private clients.

RJT can be found pounding away two night a week at a local recording studio in preparation for a gig at the Chicago Rib Shack in Knightsbridge next Wednesday. Diamond is keen the group is taken seriously. But naming your band after a British beer seems a bit of an extreme way to avoid being labelled "a have-a-go bunch of gin and tonics".