Deals of the week - 13.03.2003

Cheesiest deal: Berwin Leighton Paisner is acting for PizzaExpress on the recommended 263 million public to private takeover by ABN AMRO Capital, advised by Ashurst Morris Crisp.

Jones Day Gouldens is acting for the management team, and Clifford Chance for the banks.

Hairiest deal: Baker & McKenzie acted for Regis Corporation, the world's largest hair salon operator, on its purchase, for an undisclosed sum, of Haircare Ltd, which operates Vidal Sassoon hair salons in the UK, US and Germany.

The sellers of Haircare were advised by small London firm Richard Freeman & Co.

Speediest deal: City firm Howard Kennedy advised Justin Wilson plc on the issue of up to 1.2 million of shares.

Mr Wilson has recently become a Formula 1 motor racing driver with the Minardi team, and the company has been set up to manage, promote and market him.

It will receive all the income from his activities as a racing driver for ten years.

Most playful deal: Cheltenham firm Wiggin & Co acted for Telewest on a consultancy service and technology transfer agreement with Sony, advised in-house, to create premium gaming services for PlayStation2 broadband users.

Most acquisitive deal: CMS Cameron McKenna is acting for lead equity investor Guinness Peat Group (UK) Holdings and other members making up the Avenue Acquisitions consortium, which has made a 427 million bid for Coats, the world's largest thread manufacturer, advised by Slaughter and May.

Consortium members RIT Capital Partners and Chapman International Investments are represented by US firm Gibson Dunn & Crutcher and US/UK firm Jones Day Gouldens respectively.

Lovells is acting for the Bank of Scotland on a 248 million financing facility.

Softest deal: City firm Macfarlanes advised General Atlantic Partners on its 34 million investment in iSOFT Group, giving it a 12.8% stake, in one of the first PIPEs (private investment in public equity) in the UK.

Ashurst Morris Crisp acted for iSOFT.

Wordiest deal: The Oxford office of Manches acted for Oxford University Press on its purchase of the Grove titles - including the Grove Dictionary of Art - from Macmillan, which was advised by City firm Taylor Wessing.

Most congested deal: City firm Denton Wilde Sapte advised the Highways Agency and Department of Transport on a 33-year private finance initiative worth 245 million to upgrade 33 miles of the A1 in Yorkshire to motorway standard.

Mayer Brown Rowe & Maw advised the project company and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer represented the financiers.