Big Brother supremo backs publishing float

Peter Bazalgette, the man who brought Big Brother to the UK, is backing a new company which joined the junior AIM stock market today with a value of £3million but ambitions to be worth £1 billion.

Critical Information Group was the first media company to float this year and has been formed by David Smith and Tony Foye, former chief executive and finance director of publisher Taylor & Francis which was taken over by Informa five years ago. Bazalgette ran the UK operations of Endemol until 2007 and created Ready Steady Cook and Changing Rooms. He has paid £100,000 for a 3.3% stake and is a non-executive director.

CIG wants to buy up struggling private and public media businesses concentrating on business-to-business publishing and conferences. The shares were placed with institutions at 100p and opened at 105p.