Planes, pains and free events

Overheard can confirm that NU's chief executive Igal Mayer has now moved to London, an improvement on his previous lengthy commute from Canada undertaken while his son finished high school. Mayer has moved into a rather salubrious area in Chelsea and says that he and his wife are now free to enjoy the UK after his son found a place at his chosen university.

Meanwhile, the rivalry between Gallic counterparts Axa and Groupama is intensifying after Axa's new chief executive, Philippe Maso, accused Groupama of copying everything that Axa did. This comment was made after mentioning that his former colleague was settling in well as managing director of Groupama, perhaps showing his irritation at the defection? We caught up with Maso lunching at the Walbrook, which appears quintessentially English for a Frenchman and, probably not to the taste of most brokers. He says that he is extremely passionate about the market and is enjoying his job so far - still on the honeymoon period, then.

Meanwhile, Peter Cullum revealed his average week to Management Today magazine. Standard fare for a snooze-worthy semaine included: a trip to Monaco, a meal in Gordon Ramsay's Chelsea restaurant, raising £100m for his new IFA arm and a rejected bid for Norwich City FC. In between, Cullum managed to visit Bristol and Cardiff and reject the overtures of a private jet salesman. A Towergate spokesman was keen to downplay Cullum's lavish lifestyle, however, saying that it consisted ordinarily of "wall-to-wall boring meetings". Well, perhaps not this particular week, then.

Last but by no means least, a hugely important date for your diaries. The PB Management Event is taking place in Weston-super-Mare on 15 October, London (at Lord's) on 16 October, Bolton on 7 October, and Harrogate on 8 October. The morning events include a comprehensive roundup of the latest issues facing brokers, a panel discussion and interactive voting. The events are free and refreshments are complementary. For more information and to register, go to pb-managementevent.co.uk.