Passions in full flow at Biba conference

Passions were in full flow at this years Biba conference, not least in the boisterous late night atmosphere of Brighton's Grand Hotel.

Brokers used to competing fiercely at a safe distance found themselves in close quarters - add to that copious quantities of alcohol and the scene was set.

At some hours after midnight one broker, who had been staring murderously at a Scottish broker all evening, eventually cracked, stormed over to him and, after grabbing him firmly by the throat, erupted "stop nicking my f****** business!". Unfortunately, the Scot broker's grinning response is unpublishable in its full glory. Suffice to say it contained references to the complainant's grandmother, an intimate act and his willingness to combine the two for the exchange of a small sum of money.

Fellow Scot Chris Giles was also in attendance, and told Professional Broking he is planning a move to Surrey with his flamboyant and charming wife Audrey - obviously the real driving force behind Giles insurance brokers - in the not too distant future. No doubt more fun and games will ensue when that insatiable pair hit broker haunts in the Home Counties.

Many thanks to Royal & SunAlliance for their hospitality on the pier on Thursday evening, which, after a slap up fish and chip supper, treated guests to a firework display - launched from the water - plus full access was granted to the funfair. Men in dark suits quickly regressed at the prospect, not least corporate strategy and development director Tesh Patel and commercial director Brendan McManus who were getting very competitive on the dodgems.

There was much to enlighten brokers about marketing at Biba and, given the splurge of posters and signboards around Brighton advertising the conference, Biba had obviously taken its own advice.

However on arriving in Brighton, the PB team was struck by the unfortunate positioning of some of the posters promoting the conference. One Biba poster was sandwiched between other posters advertising the Ladyboy's of Bangkok Full Moon Party Tour 2006. Overheard didn't take note of the details but would advise interested persons to see local press for details.

Finally, many thanks to QBE for their hospitality at Bar Ha Ha, also at the Biba conference on Wednesday night. It seems that QBE staff spend a good deal of time 'playing word games and fighting desk monitors.' Brokers should also look out for a habit of QBE's liability team, who try to incorporate randomly selected words into presentations to brokers.