Royal wedding? Screw the recession, there's dosh to be made…
And so the day has come! Prince William is to marry Kate Middleton. Be of good cheer, Britain, there’s new blood being drafted into the old firm! It really is fabulous news, in such tough economic times, that the cuts will not affect everything. In 2011 there will be something for the whole nation to […]
Looking to the Future of PR
The recent story in the papers about Geoff Baker, the former gatekeeper for Sir Paul McCartney who now dresses as a dustman to give tours of his home-town, should act as a salutary lesson for all entertainment publicists. I first met Geoff at the height of his journalistic powers, as a showbiz reporter for the […]
How to Build on Past Protests
It was fascinating, on Wednesday, to watch the streets of London step back 20 years in time to the sort of violent protests that marked the anti Poll Tax movement. I admire the energy and the zeal of the students but, in an age where everything is being re-drafted, reinvented, challenged and overturned, I wonder […]
Gordon Ramsay: Frying Pans, Fires and Open Letters
There is a mood of incredulity in the media at Gordon Ramsay’s latest PR faux pas; an open letter to his mother in law, published in the Evening Standard. “This has to be one of the most painful letters I’ve ever had to write,” writes Gordon. “Listening to Tana in floods of tears reading your […]
Edward Bernays and the Suffragette Movement
On the 18th of this month, a vigil will be taking place to mark the memory of the two Suffragettes who died 100 years ago on that day whilst attempting to enter Parliament to demand a debate on the Conciliation Bill, a bill that would have given some women basic voting rights. They were part […]
50 Years of Psycho Stuntsmanship
As the nights draw in faster and faster, it’s worth remembering that, 50 years ago, Alfred Hitchcock dreamed up two things that have defined the horror film industry ever since. The first was the film Psycho. The second was a publicity stunt for the film that was so successful that it has come back time […]
Putin on the Ritz: PR Russian Style
I went to the opening of The Expendables recently, in the mood for a little bit of escapism, and was bowled over by the crowd’s whooping, hollering love for Sly, Lundgren, Arnie, Bruce et al. There seemed to be more love than you could have ever expected for a formula, and a set of stars, […]
Stephen Fry in the Firing Line
DIY PR was back in the news over the weekend, when Stephen Fry landed in hot water with the broadsheets for comments he made about women’s sexuality and then took to Twitter to try and resolve the furore. It’s a perfect way to highlight the dangers of do it yourself PR; like some hapless DIY […]
The PR Week Condensed
Conde Nast Traveller survey out this week. Usual world’s overall travel top 100 stuff – Top islands: Mykonos, Skye. Do people ever get bored of these research PR stories? Charlie Sheen: rock and roll! Hooker, coke, fighting. Just like John Entwistle dying at the Hard Rock Hotel in Vegas, with a hooker coke, JD. What […]
Dishing the Dirt at Peachy Coochie
Anyone wanting to know a little more about the dark practices of Hollywood in the early days of the 20th century should come along to Peachy Coochie at the Toynbee Hall at 7.30 p.m. this Thursday, October 28th, where I will be revealing more about Maynard Nottage, one of the publicists featured in The Fame […]
The Great Rooney U Turn
Wayne Rooney’s incredible decision to sign a new five-year contract at Manchester United has shocked the football world, just days after he made it clear he was looking to leave. The persuasive powers of Ferguson are legendary in football and he could well have played another blinder to keep Rooney on-side. Bear in mind that […]
Kanye Fix It?
There has been a lot of debate about the relevance of PR council to the stars since the Twitter revolution. Stephen Fry, Ashton Kutcher and Ross Brydon all do a pretty good job of managing to reach out to their fans. With these examples, and others, in mind, stars like Kanye West may wonder why […]
The Good, the Mad and the Twittery
This Sunday is the season finale of series four of Mad Men, and the web is alive with the sound of tributes and ‘best of the series’ video clips, including spoilers if you’ve not seen the entire run yet. Unless you’re in the UK, that is, in which case you’ll be watching episode seven of […]
Awards and Escapology
Another year, another PR Week Awards night. Winners love it, losers loathe it. My agency, Borkowski, ignored it for years. Truthfully, it’s a somewhat odd night. I met so many friends I just didn’t know I had. I don’t usually have the emotional stamina to stay the course and tend to slope off before the […]
Miners, Footballers and Owning the Story
Listening to yesterday’s Broadcasting House on Radio 4, my sense that the Chilean miners were set to be exploited to the hilt kicked into high gear, listening to the investigative journalist Jonathan Franklin being interviewed about his forthcoming book on the extraordinary experience the 33 men went through. He was slick and sharp – an […]
Chilean Miners and the Cold Light of Fame
It’s weird to consider the forthcoming global PR implications for the Chilean miners. It’s all too clear that this will be the biggest story in the world come Wednesday assuming that the men are released from the mine. It can’t be ignored – every news gathering organisation is surrounding the escape route as it nears […]
Spin and the Art of Stone Throwing
Margaret Thatcher’s great spin man Bernard Ingham knew a thing or two about pragmatism. He kept himself out of the Westland Helicopter Crisis as he knew that even a whiff of his involvement would damage Thatcher. And he was surely very glad of the off the record Downing Street briefings that kept his name out […]
Interesting Times for the X Factor
“May you live in interesting times,” says the old Chinese curse. Somebody seems to have willed interesting times onto the X Factor of late and much of it is to do with the ubiquity of social networking. Cowell’s money machine TV show has always trodden a fine line between seeking privacy for its big announcements […]
Leaders, Prime Ministers and the Next Generation
A couple of first nights have grabbed my attention in the last few days, and both of them have presented interesting conundrums to consider. The first is the production of Yes, Prime Minister that has just transferred to the West End. It’s a great show; very funny, very well acted and rather more radical than […]
In Conversation with CIPR TV
I gave an interview for CIPR website’s recently launched TV strand, which streamed live on the internet yesterday and is now available on demand. Click here to watch it. I spoke with Philip Sheldrake and Stephen Waddington; much was discussed, from the speed of change that technology forces on PR, how advertising is trying to […]