DIFFRACTION ENTERTAINMENT LTD
💤Zombieactive
SC376502 · ltd · incorporated 2010-04-09
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Apr 2025
Net worth
£25.6k
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 32409
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: asset-holding vehicle with strong profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.
Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
3 officers (2 active, 3 linked, 2 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
34 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
75/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
60
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £25,550
Net assets shrinking
Down £3,400 YoY
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
£26k
↓ 12% YoY
Current Assets
£95k
↓ 5.0% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-04-30 | 2024-04-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £60.6k | £64.6k |
| Current assets | £95.0k | £100.0k |
| Net assets | £25.6k | £28.9k |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 address
Last 90 days
2
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 address
Last 180 days
3
filings
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 address
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (20 events)Click to expand
- 2026-04-22📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2026-01-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2025-01-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-01-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-12-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-01-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-01-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-01-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-01-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-01-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2016-04-11📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2016-01-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-05-26📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-01-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2011-03-25➖TEBBUTT, David resigneddirector
- 2010-04-09🏢Company incorporatedAs DIFFRACTION ENTERTAINMENT LTD
- 2010-04-09➕BANNERMAN, John appointedsecretary
- 2010-04-09➕BANNERMAN, John Martin appointeddirector
- 2010-04-09➕TEBBUTT, David appointeddirector
Owner dependency
85/100
Critical — business is the founderThe business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.
FACTORS
- +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 16 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
68/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 16 years.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 16 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
cleanNo red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)
Shareholders & ownership
1 active beneficial owner| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr John Martin Bannerman Individual · British · DOB 08/1970 · age 56 | 50–75% | 50–75% | board controlsig. influence50-75% shares · 50-75% voting · board control · significant influence · firm interest | 09/04/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
🔒Co-director network graph
Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Similar companies
Active · Manufacturing · DD postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AMBICO OFFSHORE LIMITED→ SC400323 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| B WHITT LTD→ SC489991 · est 2014 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| BAT ELECTRICAL SERVICES LIMITED→ SC599333 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BENE-TEK LTD→ SC272967 · est 2004 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 21y | — | — |
| BENTLEYS SHOPFITTING LIMITED→ SC107171 · est 1987 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 38y | — | — |
| BJ WELL SERVICES LIMITED→ SC313332 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| BLUE BOY SERVICES LIMITED→ SC541705 · est 2016 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| BROUGHTY ELECTRICAL LTD→ SC556395 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| BUICK OIL AND GAS OPERATIONS LIMITED→ SC703079 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| C.S. TRACTORS LIMITED→ SC146140 · est 1993 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 32y | — | — |
| CARSE SERVICES LTD→ SC350659 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| CENTRAL ROPES LIMITED→ SC406068 · est 2011 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
7 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →🔒Advanced scoring suite
Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.
Available from the Pro tier upwards.
See pricing →Company details
Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2010-04-09
Jurisdictionscotland
Primary SIC32409 — SIC 32409
Registered office
1 Lownie Road
Kingsmuir
Forfar
DD8 2RT
Scotland
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-31
Last made up to: 2025-04-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-04-23
Last: 2026-04-09
Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)
Active
BANNERMAN, John Martin→
Activedirector · ~56y · appointed 2010-04-09
View their other companies + combined net worth →
TEBBUTT, David→
Resigneddirector · ~67y · appointed 2010-04-09 · resigned 2011-03-25
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (34 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-04-22
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-04-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-01-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-01-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-04-10
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-01-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-01-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-04-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-12-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-04-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-01-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-04-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-01-19