Backchat was hob-knobbing with insurance establishment in the House of Lords last Wednesday at a reception sponsored by Groupama.
The host, Lord Chalfont, entertained the assembled guests with a guarded attack on the scrapping of hereditary peers and a thinly veiled swipe at the Millennium Wheel, the London Eye, visible from the Lords' terrace. It was clearly more of a London eyesore to him.
Lord Chalfont explained that he had been at a conference discussing the risk of a ballistic missile attack on London and an US speaker mentioned that, having just walked over Westminster Bridge, he had noticed that London had already erected a target.
How we guffawed until we got home and heard that the MI6 Secret Intelligence Service building just down the river in Vauxhall had been hit by a missile. Perhaps Lord Chalfont wasn't joking after all.
Hosted by comedian and actor Tom Allen, 34 Gold, 23 Silver and 22 Bronze awards were handed out across an amazing 34 categories recognising brilliance and innovation right across the breadth of UK general insurance.
