Pembroke: Out from the bonnet and back to broking

TIM HOLLAND-BOSWORTH, an ex-director of Kleinwort Benson who retired in August after 25 years with the firm, has hauled himself off the sofa to take a job at Henderson Crosthwaite.

Mr Holland-Bosworth, 55, took up the post as director of corporate finance at the Guinness Mahon-owned brokers yesterday. 'I had just been sitting about wondering whether I was too young to retire,' he says.

His return to full-time work will mean he has rather less time to indulge his passion for classic cars. He owns several bright red Ferraris and some Austin-Healeys and had planned to get to work under the bonnet. 'It will all have to wait now, I'm afraid.'

ONE MIGHT HAVE expected a sob story from Sir Michael Richardson, chairman of Smith New Court, over his exclusion from Margaret Thatcher's doorstop memoirs.

After all, in the Thatcher years, Sir Michael was a leading light at NM Rothschild and, many say, the brain behind the privatisations of British Telecom and chunks of BP.

But no blubbing, it seems. Though he once shared the royal box with the former prime minister at the first night of Placido Domingo's Otello at Covent Garden, and has enjoyed several lunches with 'her and Dennis', he has taken his omission on the chin. 'I'm not in the least bit miffed,' he says. 'If it had been Peter Walker's memoirs, it might have been different. But it's a political book and bits of tittle-tattle are just not her style.' He says he has seen Baroness Thatcher twice since the launch (not bad - it has only been out a couple of weeks) and they remain on the best of terms.

INTERESTING semi-literate job advertisement in the current issue of Campaign, the ad industry's magazine. Statacom, which describes itself as 'the fastpacket company', whatever that means, is on the hunt for a public relations manager (Europe/Pacific Rim).

The job certainly sounds splendid. There is lots of travel and press trips around Europe and the Pacific Rim. Regular trips to the American office in San Jose, California, also seem to be on the cards.

What's the deal like then, you might ask? Statacom does not sell itself too well here. 'This position includes salary and benefit package.'

WHAT DO Julie Christie, Melvyn Bragg and Kenneth Baker have in common? The answer is that they are all fans of Roger Woddis, the satirical poet who died earlier this year.

The trio, along with a host of other celebs, will take part in a celebration of the poet's work in London tomorrow night.

Mr Baker's devotion is odd as he was often the butt of Mr Woddis's barbs. But the former Conservative Party chairman, who fancies himself as a bit of a poet, has responded with his own collection of poems parodying Mr Woddis's own parodies.