Business Diary: Curse of Sky strikes again

Representatives from Sky will be out in force at the car-free day it is sponsoring in London tomorrow.

Let's hope the "Sky ride" round the capital is more successful than the pro cycling team into which Sky has been steering cash for the past year. After a lacklustre performance at the Tour de France in July, Team Sky had high hopes of a better showing at the Vuelta, the national tour of Spain, which is the world's second-most prestigious bike race. Sadly, most of the team were struck down with a mystery illness in the early stages of the race this week.

Cable still on a mission in Rio

The toughest gig in government continues, with the latest missive from the Secretary of State for Business's trade mission to Rio entitled "Vince Cable ushers in decade of sporting partnership with Brazil". Sadly, Mr Cable does not seem to have been able to negotiate the loan of any Brazilian soccer stars to our variously ailing national teams, but we will at least be exchanging information regularly on hosting big sporting events.

A strange name to trade on

According to their publicity guff, Alexander Nall-Cain and Richard Dinan "have been tipped off [sic] by the Daily Mail and publications such as Tatler as being previously successful entrepreneurs". Strange then that the two of them chose to launch their latest venture, offering discounts to restaurant-goers, with an announcement entitled "Lord Brocket's son launches new business". Does Nall-Cain, the son in question, really want to be best known as the eldest child of the aristocratic insurance fraudster as he pitches his business skills?

Brighton targets business record

Business folk with a secret hankering to make it into the Guinness Book of World Records might like to call into the Brighton Metropole on Monday evening. It is hosting an attempt to crack the record for the biggest-ever business networking event. We're guessing this is a relatively new category in the great tome.

businessdiary@independent.co.uk