Industry analysts diet for charity

Some analysts are just starving for press coverage at the moment, The Register has learned. Top staff at London investment bank Granville are losing weight in an effort to alert us all to the lean times ahead in the Millennium. Talk about taking your job seriously. Analysts George O'Connor and Roger Phillips, along with Richard Lucas from specialist sales, are trying to shed eight stone between them before the first week in December. "The IT market is going through a change, and companies need to slim down," said O'Connor, after swearing he only ate a plate of boiled fish and vegetables for lunch. "In order for them to get underweight, we intend to practice what we preach," he continued. The three are also being sponsored by city institutions and businesses, with all funds going to charity. Who said the City doesn't have a heart? When asked how much weight he personally intended to shift, Connor craftily commented: "All three of us certainly have a lot of face to lose." Fellow faster Phillips was keen to point out that Connor was not the "the slimmest and the prettiest" as was claimed in certain national newspapers yesterday. "Who's the heaviest? If you wanted to swerve around George to avoid him on the road, you would run out of petrol," said Phillips. Now that's not very charitable, is it? Don't worry George, we still love you. ®