PR Week (UK) articles from January 2007

PR Week (UK) archives from January 2007

Freuds' Thykier to leave PR for films.
January 12, 2007... Freud Communications vicechairman Kris Thykier is leaving after 15 years for a career in film production. Thykier leads Freuds' entertainment and film division and is widely seen as chairman Matthew Freud's right-hand man. He will...

Pakistan plans major tourism activity.
January 12, 2007... Pakistan, recovering from a major earthquake and deflecting claims it harbours terrorists, is planning to rebuild its reputation with a major tourism campaign. PRWeek understands Pakistan officials are in talks with agency Weber Shandwick...

Camelot staffer exits after complaint to NLC.
January 12, 2007... A Camelot media relations team member has resigned after admitting soliciting information under an assumed name from a lottery consultant. Camelot told PRWeek it launched an investigation after it was contacted by the National Lottery...

Secure your spot in 2007's Top 150.
January 12, 2007... The search for the UK PR industry's top 150 agencies 2007 starts this week. If you were listed in last year's Top 150 ranking, look out for this year's form in your inbox this week. For other agencies, the form can be download direct...

Anheuser-Busch hands entire consumer PR to Frank.
January 12, 2007... Anheuser-Busch has handed its entire UK consumer portfolio to Frank PR. The move means the end of its three-strong consumer 'informal roster', which also included Consolidated Communications and Shine Communications. Anheuser-Busch...

C&W's Doherty exits for global Diageo position.
January 12, 2007... Stephen Doherty is to leave Cohn & Wolfe for a senior role at the world's largest alcoholic drinks group. Doherty, only promoted from a corporate MD to a director of operations at the WPP agency late last year, will join FTSE 100 firm...

Laing O'Rourke in comms chief hire.
January 12, 2007... Construction group Laing O'Rourke has brought in its first group director of communications. Tony Maguire started work in the job this week, having joined from Financial Dynamics where he was MD of its commercial property arm FD Tamesis....

Poll: breast cancer campaign the 'best of 2006'.
January 12, 2007... The Think Pink breast cancer campaign was the most positive 'PR story' of 2006, according to a poll commissioned by tech agency Rainier PR. Research firm YouGov questioned nearly 3,000 people to compile the ranking. The Breast Cancer...

ITV to shortlist for broadband brief.
January 12, 2007... ITV's consumer division is planning to bring in its first retained agency to manage the nationwide launch of a broadband portal at the end of March. The account, which is worth at least pounds 100,000, will be put up for pitch early next...

PressWatch sells up to TNS Media.(TNS Media Intelligence acquires PressWatch Media )(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... TNS Media Intelligence has acquired London-based media information provider PressWatch Media for an undisclosed sum. Eleven-year-old PressWatch's 42 staff and around 130 of TNS Media Intelligence's 208 UK staff will move into new premises...

Yahoo! to consolidate UK work.
January 12, 2007... Yahoo! is to streamline its UK agency arrangements amid concern that it lacks a cohesive global vision. The world's most visited website plans to use a single agency to cover UK corporate, trade and consumer for all Yahoo! services. A...

Elliott returns to fray with top FD-LLM role.(Simon Elliott appointed as managing director at LLM Communications )(Fiona Mason promoted to MD of operations)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Former Burson-Marsteller PA chairman Simon Elliott is to resurface in a newly created MD role at Financial Dynamics' lobbying practice LLM Communications. Elliott will slot into LLM's senior team alongside MD Craig Leviton, plus...

Barratt Homes hires Centrica man.(Barratt Homes appoints Patrick Law)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Barratt Homes has enlisted its first director of corporate affairs as the company seeks to establish itself as the future of UK housebuilding. Patrick Law, former director of the CEO's office at Centrica, joins with a remit to build the...

News Brief: The CIPR is to advice PROs.
January 12, 2007... TECH: The CIPR is to advise PROs on how to deal with sending 'freebies' to bloggers in its planned social media guidelines, which are under consultation until the end of the month. Edelman recently caused controversy by sending laptops to a...

News Brief: Sara Keene to step down.
January 12, 2007... AGENCY: Sara Keene is to step down as CEO of Premier PR to take up a new role as a non-executive director, acting as consultant to the board. Joint chief executives Charles McDonald and Jonathan Rutter will take over.

News Brief: Penthouse Magazine relaunch.
January 12, 2007... CONSUMER: Penthouse Magazine is using IncrediBull Ideas to promote its re-launch into the British and Irish markets this month. The magazine, published by Trojan Publishing, is hitting newsagents' shelves after an absence of 12 months that saw...

News Brief: Tony Yorke to join Shell.
January 12, 2007... SPORT: Watford FC director of comms and corporate sales Tony Yorke has left to join Shell in an interim 'downstream communications' role. The Watford comms function has been reshuffled with media relations officer Iain Moody leading the team.

News Brief: RAM PR bought out.
January 12, 2007... AGENCY: Harrogate-based RAM PR has been bought out by one of its clients - venture capitalist Acceleris. Ram PR managing director Peter Davenport heads a new entity called Acceleris Marketing Communications.

News Brief: Ian Johnson promotes show.
January 12, 2007... ENTERTAINMENT: Ian Johnson Publicity is to promote new primetime TV show The National Lottery People's Quiz launching on BBC One in March. It will be presented by Jamie Theakston.

News Brief: TheFishCanSing appoints.
January 12, 2007... AGENCY: TheFishCanSing has hired Alex Williams as an associate director to head its global Motorola work. Williams joins from The Red Consultancy, where she previously worked for Nokia.

News Brief: Hill & Knowlton appointed.
January 12, 2007... CONSUMER: Norwich Union has taken on Hill & Knowlton's sports marketing and sponsorship division to publicise its UK Athletics sponsorship. H&K won a competitive pitch (PRWeek, 8 Dec 2006).

Harrison Cowley and Trimedia join forces.(Harrison Cowley and Trimedia UK PR agencies join to form Trimedia Harrison Cowley)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Huntsworth plc has merged its Harrison Cowley and Trimedia UK PR agency brands to create Trimedia Harrison Cowley (THC). The merger creates a combined company with annual revenues of more than pounds 11m and 147 consultants. Harrison...

Coors plans lunch gigs for C2 brand.
January 12, 2007... Coors Brewers is to use Launch Group to handle consumer campaigns for its low-alcohol lager brand C2. The two per cent ABV beer from the Carling stable is being positioned as a lunchtime tipple. Launch will run a programme of lunchtime...

Wood leaves Four to be 'own boss'.(Matt Wood resigns from Four Communications )(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Former Joe Public Relations MD Matt Wood has left his Four Communications consumer PR role after just seven months. Wood - who has worked for four different agencies since 2005 - cited a desire to 'be his own boss', as well as the success...

Bollywood comes to Yorkshire.(International Indian Film Academy hires Beattie Communications to promote 'Bollywood Oscars)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Beattie Communications has been hired to promote 2007's so-called 'Bollywood Oscars', an international touring awards ceremony that will this year be held in Yorkshire. The ceremony - formally titled the International Indian Film Academy Awards...

News Brief: Carbon Trust agencies.
January 12, 2007... CORPORATE: Blue Rubicon, Fishburn Hedges, Four Communications and Octopus Public Relations are to become 'preferred' agencies for The Carbon Trust. The appointments will span the next four years.

News Brief: Eazyfone to hire.
January 12, 2007... CONSUMER: The Eazyfone Group is planning to hire its first consumer agency for Envirofone.com, an initiative that allows people to trade in old mobile phones for cash. The contract will begin in mid- to late-January.

News Brief: HSD Communications hired.
January 12, 2007... HEALTHCARE: HSD Communications is handling the launch campaign for an 'interactive' computer-based staff training programme being targeted at pharma sales reps. The agency has landed a six-month contract.

News Brief: Evans Cycles PR in-house.
January 12, 2007... CONSUMER: Bike retailer Evans Cycles has taken its PR in-house after almost two years with London agency Brandnation. The move follows the appointment of Stuart Clapp as PR manager.

News Brief: Gregory pro-vice-chancellor.
January 12, 2007... EDUCATION: Professor Anne Gregory, director of Leeds Metropolitan University's Centre for Public Relations Studies, has been made pro-vice-chancellor of the university.

News Brief: Miele reviews strategy.
January 12, 2007... CONSUMER: German domestic appliance manufacturer Miele is reviewing its consumer PR strategy as it cuts back spending on external support. The firm, which has recruited two UK in-house PROs for the first time, has used EHPR for more than five...

News Brief: The Surgery enlisted.
January 12, 2007... CONSUMER: Denim-brand Wrangler has enlisted The Surgery to handle all UK PR and press activity. The consultancy has also been handed a pan-European agency co-ordination account, after winning a pitch held at Wrangler's European HQ in Belgium.

Inchcape swaps Hogarth for FD.
January 12, 2007... Auto-trader Inchcape has hired Financial Dynamics as it looks to position itself as a market-leading company. The move brings an end to six years with The Hogarth Partnership, which repitched for the financial PR contract (PRWeek, 24 Nov...

Public affairs supremos unveil agency Open Road.
January 12, 2007... Four well-known figures in PA and corporate comms consultancy are setting up an independent agency called Open Road. The founder directors are Nick DeLuca, former MD of APCO UK; Graham McMillan, former head of PA at Fishburn Hedges;...

Burberry names UK comms chief.
January 12, 2007... Iconic British clothing brand Burberry has appointed Justin Cooke, ex-Stella McCartney worldwide PR manager, as head of its UK PR. Cooke reports to V-P of PR worldwide Sarah Manley, and oversees a team of four UK press officers. He replaces...

The Lounge wins SABMiller brief.
January 12, 2007... Youth marketing agency The Lounge has been hired by SABMiller to promote its beer brand Miller Genuine Draft to 18 to 24-year-olds. SABMiller thus becomes London-based The Lounge's first PR client. The consultancy, founded in January...

Dyble to exit Ford for top sports role at Fuller's 19.
January 12, 2007... Stuart Dyble, the well- respected V-P of comms and public affairs at Ford of Europe, is leaving the corporation to join Simon Fuller's 19 Entertainment in the newly created role of head of sport. As first revealed on PRWeek.com before...

Burns relocates to Gulf for Etihad Airways post.
January 12, 2007... ABU DHABI: Former British Airways PR chief Iain Burns has resurfaced at United Arab Emirates national carrier Etihad Airways. As reported on PRWeek.com before Christmas, Burns has joined the airline as V-P of corporate comms, reporting to...

Edelman/JCPR snare Xbox's European account.
January 12, 2007... Microsoft's pan-European and UK Xbox account has been handed to Edelman and its consumer agency Jackie Cooper PR. As reported on PRWeek.com before Christmas, the move ends almost six years with incumbent Manning Selvage & Lee and comes as...

Seafood industry bids for 'balance'.
January 12, 2007... Edinburgh-based industry body Seafish is mounting a comms offensive to 'bring some balance' to media coverage of the fishing industry. The group is to use start-up Stripe Communications, also based in Edinburgh, to highlight the...

TCS appointed to Aquascutum job.
January 12, 2007... Luxury clothing brand Aquascutum has taken on The Communications Store as it cranks up its global communications. The move comes four months after global comms director Charlotte Thomas joined from Pringle of Scotland (PRWeek, 1 Sep 2006)....

Surguy to depart Results Int'l post.
January 12, 2007... Jim Surguy, the veteran marcoms sector mergers-and-acquisitions adviser, is retiring from M&A consultancy Results International this month. Surguy, who holds the position of senior partner and has worked at Results International for 11...

Gazprom nets Dewhurst to spearhead UK comms.
January 12, 2007... Former Weber Shandwick UK chief executive Philip Dewhurst has left British Nuclear Fuels to join Gazprom. As first revealed on PRWeek.com before Christmas, Dewhurst has left his group director of corporate affairs role at BNFL and joined...

Twigg exits Nexus creative position.(Alan Twigg resigns from Nexus Communications )(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Nexus Communications creative director Alan Twigg has left the agency after nearly four years. Twigg said he was considering his options, but expects to 'finalise a new role shortly'. Nexus chairman Jonathan Choat said he and other...

Twinings uses GS for speciality tea.
January 12, 2007... Tea brand Twinings has signed up Golley Slater on a project basis to promote its speciality ranges. The agency was brought in by the company to help promote Twinings' product lines such as Earl Grey and Winter Chai. The brief involves...

PM drama in campaign.(Mischief PR promoting More4 drama spoof)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Mischief PR is running a guerrilla marketing campaign to promote More4 drama The Trial of Tony Blair, which airs on Monday evening (15 January). In the one-off spoof, Gordon Brown is Prime Minister, Hilary Clinton is US President and Blair...

Public Sector: Mears signed up to Outdoors expo.
January 12, 2007... Midnight Communications has signed up survival expert Ray Mears to help promote this year's Ordnance Survey Outdoors Show. The show - which takes place at the NEC Birmingham in mid-March - is in its sixth consecutive year. Promoting...

Public Sector: Schools group in Disney dance bid.
January 12, 2007... The National Schools Partnership has teamed up with Disney to encourage primary school children to choose dancing in their PE lessons. Based around Disney's High School Musical film, the agency is promoting resource packs created to urge...

Public Sector: The Bar Council retains WS as legal reforms loom.
January 12, 2007... The Bar Council and Bar Standards Board (BSB) have handed Weber Shandwick a three-year brief as they prepare for the implementation of the Legal Services Bill. WS will advise on the radical overhaul of services expected as a result of the...

Public Sector: Partnerships for Schools to fill void with Leonard.
January 12, 2007... The Government agency overseeing the pounds 45bn school rebuild programme, and the delivery of city academies, has snared the Financial Services Authority's Amy Leonard. Partnerships for Schools - a non-departmental government body - has...

Public Sector: South Yorks education project calls in 3 Monkeys.
January 12, 2007... The South Yorkshire Educational Project is using London-based 3 Monkeys Communications to launch vocational programmes Primarily, the campaign will promote the courses - created specifically for the region - to year nine students and their...

Public Sector: 'Superbugs' body hires for top role.
January 12, 2007... The body responsible for stamping out hospital superbugs such as MRSA has enlisted the South Central Strategic Health Authority's head of comms. Sandra Phillips started a three-month secondment as acting head of comms with the National...

Public Sector: Ex-Brown aide Milner to take NHS Yorkshire post.
January 12, 2007... NHS Yorkshire and the Humber has recruited a former Gordon Brown aide to its top comms role. As broken on PRWeek.com on 2 January, Karl Milner - a well-known lobbyist - is to join the NHS Strategic Health Authority as director of comms and...

Public Sector: Glasgow cleans up for 2014 bid.
January 12, 2007... Glasgow City Council has hired The Big Partnership to encourage residents to help clean up the city to assist its bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games. The one-year contract - worth between pounds 30,000 and pounds 40,000 - will see Big...

Public Sector: Royal Mail confirms roster.
January 12, 2007... The Royal Mail Group has unveiled its new agency lineup as it mulls further Post Office closures. Porter Novelli, August.One Communications and Cohn & Wolfe have been dropped, but Blue Rubicon and 3 Monkeys Communications have made the...

Public Sector: We must innovate to reach minorities.
January 12, 2007... Research last month by the BBC on the cost of translating public sector comms turned into a debate about whether it would be better instead to spend the money on English lessons for newly arrived immigrants. But a legitimate question about...

Voluntary Sector: Mercy Corps hires to bolster profile.
January 12, 2007... Humanitarian charity Mercy Corps has named a full-time senior comms officer as it bids to raise its profile across Europe. Anna Clarkson joined the charity's five-strong Edinburgh-based European fundraising and marketing team last month....

Voluntary Sector: Poverty group brings in Amazon.
January 12, 2007... Elizabeth Finn Care (EFC) has brought in Amazon PR to raise its profile. The charity and care home operator helps more than 5,000 people each year who have unexpectedly ended up living in poverty, and has briefed Amazon to highlight its...

Voluntary Sector: Gyde quits M&F for Forster social marketing role.
January 12, 2007... The Forster Company has lured Munro & Forster Communications' public and voluntary sector chief for a social marketing role. Ed Gyde, who has taken up a position of director on Forster's board, said his remit was to apply social marketing...

Voluntary Sector: Surfers to help in skin cancer fight.
January 12, 2007... Killing Cancer is to use professional surfers and skiers in a 12-month campaign to warn young people about the dangers of skin cancer. Charity director David Longman said that the first phase would focus on winter sun - which can harm skin...

Voluntary Sector: Somalia and the climate dominate NGO coverage.
January 12, 2007... Coverage of the Red Cross' s work during the latest bloody conflict in Somalia pushed it to the top of December's NGO Watch table. The head of its Somalia delegation was quoted as saying the organisation was 'very concerned about civilians...

Voluntary Sector: Second Life meets Third World.
January 12, 2007... Development charity World Vision is promoting its alternative gift catalogue in the virtual arena. It is using Second Life to demonstrate how its campaigns help the developing world. PR manager Fiona Cole said the campaign would help the...

Public Affairs: Voluntary body NCVO enlists Atkins to oversee PA.(National Council for Voluntary Organisations appoints Liz Atkins )(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) has hired Liz Atkins for its top lobbying job. Atkins was previously director of strategy and comms at the National Housing Federation (NHF), a role she left at the end of October....

Public Affairs: Smeeth takes up Quintus position.(Quintus Public Affairs hires Michael Smeeth )(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Quintus Public Affairs has hired Michael Smeeth as an associate director. As reported on PRWeek.com before Christmas, Smeeth - who has previously worked for Good Relations and Fleishman-Hillard UK-is to run the agency's leisure division as...

Public Affairs: Former Labour Party promoter Milner joins Four.
January 12, 2007... Four Communications has recruited former Labour Party corporate relations, endorsements and fundraising manager Darren Milner. Milner will be working on clients including the Energy Retail Association's (ERA) Home Heat Helpline, an account...

Public Affairs: Refoy quits Stansted to aid Asda's growth plans.
January 12, 2007... Stansted Airport's top lobbyist has quit after just seven months to head Asda's property comms team. Jonathan Refoy is to join the Wal-Mart-owned retailer on 22 January, a move that heralds a quick return to the supermarket sector. Before...

Public Affairs: Portland loses Aitkens to Sky.(British Sky Broadcasting Group PLC appoints Lucy Aitkens )(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... BSkyB has appointed Portland PR account manager Lucy Aitkens to the role of public affairs manager. Aitkens has worked with Sky - a long-standing public affairs client of the agency - since she joined Portland in July 2005. Prior to that,...

Public Affairs: Ex-Kennedy aide takes Insight job.(Olly Kendall joins Insight Public Affairs)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Olly Kendall, the former deputy press secretary to ex-Lib Dem leader Charles Kennedy, has joined one-year-old consultancy Insight Public Affairs. Kendall worked in Kennedy's office for around two years, latterly reporting to his then press...

Healthcare: Jarman exits De Facto to launch consultancy.
January 12, 2007... De Facto Communications consumer director Paul Jarman has quit less than a couple of months after being installed in the role. He left the Chime-owned life-sciences specialist last month and plans to launch his own consultancy within the...

Healthcare: Rockliffe unveils own recruitment business.(Richard Rockliffe launches Chemistry Search & Selection recruitment agency)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Former Burson-Marsteller joint London practice head Richard Rockliffe has launched a healthcare comms recruitment agency, Chemistry Search & Selection. The move will see him challenging established marcoms recruiters for business and comes...

Healthcare: Ketchum nets ex-Wyeth staffer as Wilkie exits.
January 12, 2007... Ketchum has recruited Sarah Beyrath (nee Taylor), a former comms manager at pharma firm Wyeth - an agency client - to the role of account director. Beyrath will join the company in early February from Hammersmith-based medical comms agency...

Healthcare: Bioscience group to stage seminar.(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Tips on corporate comms, media handling and investor relations are to be shared at a one-day event convened by the BioIndustry Association (BIA). The Best Practice In Communications seminar on Monday 15 January will offer advice to comms...

Healthcare: At a Glance - Government and brands in anti-smoking campaigns.
January 12, 2007... - Is this to do with those fish-hook ads? Yes, the gruesome billboard, TV and online ads - depicting people with a fish hook through their cheek - were launched as the new year dawned as part of the Department of Health's campaign to stop...

City & Corporate: Baxter exits College Hill role.(Standard Chartered Bank PLC appoints Tim Baxter)(College Hill Associates appoints Terence Gibbons)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Standard Chartered Bank has recruited College Hill's Tim Baxter to the new global role of head of external comms. Baxter, who joined College Hill two years ago, will start work at the bank before the end of the month. He will report to...

City & Corporate: Brunswick in hire for Italian office.(Brunswick Cos. appoints Marco Palocci )(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... MILAN: Brunswick has lured Marco Palocci from Milan-based bank Unicredit Group to open its first Italian office. Palocci joins as senior partner to launch the Milan bureau in February. He was Unicredit head of corporate communications and...

City & Corporate: Even top agencies can self-destruct.(grave corporal mistakes by top PR firms can lead to their own downfall )
January 12, 2007... Throughout my working life, the first half of each decade has seen the emergence of a dominant financial comms consultancy, and the second half has seen its collapse. Few PRWeek readers will remember John Addey Associates, and John himself...

City & Corporate: Maitland top of new year table as FD double-dips.(Maitland Consultancy tops the best public relations firms countdown)
January 12, 2007... Maitland tops PRWeek's first Deal Watch of 2007, having advised on M&A deals worth more than pounds 16bn last month. The agency's headline deal was its representation of UK cigarette manufacturer Gallaher after Japanese company JTI...

Technology: Brands2Life loses Goddard to EA job.(Electronic Arts Inc. appoints Jon Goddard )(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Former Metro journalist Jon Goddard has left Brands-2Life after a year with the agency to join Electronic Arts as UK PR manager. Goddard started at EA last week, having left a senior media consultant role at the agency before Christmas....

Technology: Mantra readies new Cloud foray.(Cloud Communications Inc. chooses Mantra Public Relations for GuestBridge campaigning)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Mantra PR is to run a UK campaign for GuestBridge, a new division of pan- European urban wireless network firm The Cloud. GuestBridge will officially launch in February, offering secure wireless networks in offices for visitors to use the...

Technology: F5 Networks on hunt for European comms supremo.(F5 Networks Inc. hires Text 100 for analyst relations programme)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Nasdaq-listed tech firm F5 Networks, which manufactures hardware and software to manage internet traffic, is seeking its first European comms director. Whoever lands the newly created role - which its based in Chertsey, Surrey - will...

Technology: Text 100 and WS in battle for Gartner's UK account.(Weber Shandwick and Text 100 PR firms to compete for UK comms account )(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... IT consultancy Gartner is reviewing pounds 120,000 worth of UK agency support after two years with Bite Communications. Bite has chosen not to repitch, paving the way for sister Next Fifteen Group agency Text 100 and Weber Shandwick to...

Technology: Sarian Systems picks Johnson King for router work.
January 12, 2007... Sarian Systems, a Yorkshire-based company that makes wireless routers, has signed up Johnson King PR. The agency picked up the business, which involves UK analyst and media relations, after working on a project basis to launch the...

Technology: SECpay turns to start-up Babel.
January 12, 2007... Secure online payment specialist SECpay has brought in start-up tech outfit Babel PR after a competitive pitch. Babel - founded by former Hotwire PR staff Narelle Morrison, Ian Hood and Alexia Sciplino last summer (PRWeek, 4 Aug 2005) - has...

Media Relations: What the papers say - Rivals put Next in shade over Xmas.(christmas marketing stunt of Next PLC gets mixed reactions)(Brief article)
January 12, 2007... Next, the first major clothes retailer to present a post- Christmas trading statement, attracted mixed reviews from City analysts. While some were 'pleasantly surprised' by the company's results (Richard Hunter of Hargreaves Lansdown,...