The multiples on other recent deals are in a different stratosphere.”BRC takes more than 350,000 bookings a year and revenues are expected to grow by 26 per cent this year, with earnings forecast to rise 63 per cent.Analysts said they expected BRC to increase Holidaybreak’s earnings by about 4 per cent in 2005. “BRC makes margins, makes profits and generates cash, which is not the same for some other businesses in the same industry,” he said. “We have paid around 10 times earnings before interest and tax for BRC, which is growing strongly. An uptick in sales at the end of the year came to late to allow the group to hit forecasts, although overall losses will be no worse thanks to Pharmagene winning higher-margin work.. Holidaybreak, the camping and hotel breaks group, has become the latest company to snap up a dot business, paying £23m for a Dutch online travel agent. The drug will instead now be developed for smoker’s cough, but because this is an area where other drugs exist, it is unlikely to be rushed through regulatory approval.

A launch is not likely before 2010.Alastair Riddell, the chief executive, said: “We have not lost a product, just cystic fibrosis as a first indication for that product. Cystic fibrosis was the most expedient indication, but it would not have been the most lucrative.”A revenue shortfall in the drug discovery services division – which tests potential new drugs on human tissue that Pharmagene collects from hospitals – was blamed on cutbacks in early-stage research by big pharmaceuticals companies. Pharmagene, which uses human tissue discarded in hospitals to help pharmaceutical companies discover new drugs, has suffered a setback in plans to turn itself into a pharmaceutical company in its own right.
It said yesterday that trials of its first product had shown it was ineffective as a treatment for cystic fibrosis.Pharmagene shares tumbled 24 per cent to 31p, their lowest this year, because the company accompanied news of the product disappointment with a warning that sales in the its core business would miss forecasts.An 80-patient study showed Pharmagene’s drug was no better than a placebo in helping cystic fibrosis sufferers clear fluid from their lungs. If you are the highest bidder, but in the sole and unfettered judgment of the Editor you do not meet any such qualification, then the Editor shall be entitled without challenge or complaint to award the lot to the next highest bidder who does meet the qualification.Lots will lapse, and not be claimable, unless fulfilled within 2005.If you wish to give a lot as a gift, specific approval must be obtained from the Editor, via denise.thompson independent.co.uk, in advance of bidding.

Unless otherwise specifically agreed by the Editor, a lot can only be enjoyed by the winning bidder within the UK or as otherwise specified.Names of winning bidders will be published in The Independent and on the website on Friday, 24 December. By bidding for any lot, you agree that should you be a winning bidder your name can be used for publicity purposes associated with the auction.Winning bidders will, thereafter, be sent a letter setting out the details for claiming their lot which will include requirements relating to the due payment of the bid fee. It is the responsibility of all bidders to ensure that, should they be the winning bidder, they have the necessary permissions or authorisations to carry out the activity specified in the bid, including (by way of example, not limitation) appropriate indentification, clean driving licence and minimum age qualification, security clearance, and so on.If you want to know what qualification is required for the winner of any lot you should email denise.thompson independent.co.uk. If there are two or more bidders with equal claims to be the winning bidder, the Editor shall select one by drawing names out of a hat. All payments must be made by cheque payable to “Independent Christmas Appeal”. No other method of payment will be accepted, including, but not limited to, any credit card, CAF Charity Card/Voucher/Cheque or any other similar charity account payment.The editor’s decision in all respects as to the winning bid is final and cannot be challenged, nor will any explanation or reason be given.You are not able to retract any bid under any circumstances after it has been submitted to us.Before you place any bid you must ensure that you are legally able to bid for and to buy that particular lot. Join Pandora editor Guy Adams for a night out on the prowl in Celeb City (Not previously offered).Winning bid: £444.

All right, John? (Not previously offered).Winning bid: £1,100. Nihat Erol, London.Lot 34: Beadle’s AboutAs well as being a TV host and trickster, Jeremy Beadle is the nation’s top trivia hound and quizmaster. Offer the right bid and he’ll come round to your house, club or pub and host a quiz for you and your friends (Not previously offered).Winning bid: £920. Jeff Caplan, Cheshire.Lot 35: Trench MemoriesTake a sustaining lunch and a tour of the Somme battlefields and otherFirst World War landmarks with John Lichfield, our Paris correspondent and acknowledged expert on the war to end all wars (Not previously offered).Winning bid: £1,750. Denise Platt, Cheshire.Lot 36: Pandora NightThe lot of the modern newspaper diarist is tough indeed – a ceaseless round of film premieres, book launches, restaurant openings, first nights and drinks with discreetly tactless contacts hellbent on a good gossip. Martin Fielding, West Sussex.Lot 31: Bowled OverHow would you like to have Angus Fraser, England bowling superstar turned Independent cricket writer, turn-out for your club? Or perhaps you’d prefer him to coach your child’s team? It’s like having Sir Trevor Nunn dropping in to direct the primary school Nativity play (Last year: £545).Winning bid: £851. Jim Sloan, London.Lot 32: Making FacesHow about winning an insulting, Dorian-Gray-style caricature of your lovely features to hang in the downstairs loo? Or a lampoon of your most hated enemy in the office or pub? Dave Brown, the cartoonist who turned George W Bush intro a chimp, will happily oblige.. (Last year: £600).Winning bid: £650.