According to a report in the Sunday Times, the plan was supported by shareholders holding 25% of Emap and was presented in July to Cathcart and senior independent director David Rough.
At the meeting Cathcart, who has been acting as executive chairman since the resignation of Tom Moloney as chief executive in May, promised to turn the company around himself.
Soon after the meeting he triggered the sale process, which has resulted in bids for all three parts of the company and is expected to raise around £2.5bn.
The shareholders looking at dislodging Cathcart wished to remain anonymous, according to the Sunday Times, but one said: "It's a great shame to be breaking up this company. It's actually easy to do that than grow it and create more value."
They want Arculus, currently a non-executive director of O2, to come in with a mandate to stimulate revenue growth with new business launches and a focus on fewer, stronger consumer brands and on motivating staff.
Emap's auction process has passed the first round, with second round bids due in mid-November. Hearst, the US media group which is after the £700m consumer magazines division, is tipped to team up with one of the private equity bidders, either Exponent or Quadrangle.
On Friday a Morgan Stanley analyst, Patrick Wellington, issued a sceptical research note saying he expected the field of bidders to thin out rapidly and there was a risk bids would not meet value expectations.
Emap shares slid 2.28% to 857p this morning albeit the whole market was hit by a slump in US share prices on Friday.
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