REBELLION of sorts is taking place among those benign all singing, all dancing minstrels over at tea and coffee distributor Lyons Irish Holdings. Believing themselves to be undervalued, the happy band have become somewhat temperamental, shaking their canes in the direction of multi national group Unilever which, they claim, wants to sign them up on the cheap. Trouble, dare one say it, is brewing and it could be more than a storm in a teacup if these once amiable characters play hard ball with one of the Fred Astaire's of the corporate firmament.

Unilever, having paid 323p per share to drinks group Allied Domecq to acquire its majority 75 per cent shareholding in Lyons, naturally offered the same terms to mop up the minority. But tidying up loose ends on the deal is proving less than a formality. The first rumblings of discontent came from an asset management group who wrote to the Lyons board expressing its unhappiness over the offer, a view later endorsed by Goodbody stockbrokers. Now the Lyons board, in the manner of Oliver Twist, has approached the Unilever top table with plate outstretched and asked for a larger helping.

Unilever, in the face of such effrontery, has so far not wielded the big stick, other than to point out that the price followed a lengthy auction process with majority shareholders and that it emerged as the successful bidder. The view in the market is that the Lyons case has some merit, with Allied Domecq, seen as a "distressed" seller, forced to unload its Lyons share holding below the true market worth. The stance by the Lyons board may be a delaying tactic to secure improved terms for its minority shareholders who can, of course, chose to ignore its advice. Success or failure of any refusal depends on the irritant value Unilever places on any roadblock in its path. The minstrels may yet be forced to dance to a different tune.