How would you go about sourcing an elephant for a photoshoot? Just ask Debbie Hindle, who joins us today to discuss how she got her start in PR, the moment she realised she loved it (clue: it was the elephant procurement), an early career mistake, and her one golden piece of advice for PRs.

Debbie lends us her insight on how the industry has evolved throughout her career and why her word to the wise rings as true now as it always has.

Read on below!

Can you describe your job now?

I run and promote a non-profit called the International Centre for Responsible Tourism global (ICRT global) which delivers short masters-level courses in responsible tourism, runs free-to-enter awards; and acts as a hub for an independent network of like-minded professionals in Latin America, Europe, Africa, the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia.

I’m also:

• A non-executive director of the travel company Responsible Travel.

• A board advisor to the Travel Forward sustainable charity.

• An advisor for the Inclusive Travel Forum: a group which encourages more inclusivity in the travel sector.

• On the sustainability committee of the Institute of Travel and Tourism.

• A volunteer for the social enterprise Working With Cancer which helps people to stay in and return to the workplace.

How did you get your start in PR?

I fell into it completely by accident as I think many people do.

I’d intended to study journalism after my degree in English and American Literature. I’d enjoyed working on the student newspaper, but after studying in America during my second year, I needed to earn some money. I got a job at an advertising company in Birmingham which wanted to create a magazine for a recruitment agency. I wrote all the articles and did the artwork. And gradually I started receiving strange things called press releases which I didn’t understand because they often weren’t tailored to what I was writing about at all.

When I was approached by an advertising agency to join its PR team, I felt like a bit of an imposter. I decided to do my own research and I blagged time from some kind journalists. As I sat opening the mail at the Birmingham Post and then a local radio station for a few days (this was long before emails) I saw how journalists worked and how bad PR could be. Why on earth would anyone send a product press release with a picture of industrial piping to a radio station?

Several months on, I realised I was loving my new job in PR when I spent the morning interviewing the managing director of Pilkington Glass, and in the afternoon I had to find an elephant for a photo shoot.

What’s one mistake you made early in your career?

As a new manager I didn’t handle a staff problem early enough. I let an issue drift because I was uncomfortable tackling it, and then I realised how much it was affecting others. So I became clearer and more direct, and I acted when necessary. I made sure the whole team understood if there was a problem, and what needed to be done. I took that lesson into everything. In tough financial times, when travel was impacted by world events, my leadership team made sure everyone knew the problems, our plans, and how people could help.

Can you talk about one or more career-defining moment(s) that really stick out for you?

Well, I managed to find the elephant for that early photoshoot!

One of the most satisfying elements of my career in travel PR and marketing is probably working for destinations for a long time, seeing how the work we did genuinely made a difference to their economies. For example, I worked for the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO) for more than twenty years, and for Tourism Australia for more than eighteen years. I was tickled pink to be invited back to the CTO as an honorary member this year.

Oddly, when I had cancer and told people about it at a fundraiser, the messages of support and goodwill I got was a career-defining moment. It was like reading your own obituary without the inconvenience of having to die first.

What’s a surprising skill that you think is essential for success in PR? Your word to the wise.

This is a tricky question. I wouldn’t feel my experiences have thrown up any skills that any professionals today reading this haven’t already mastered. So maybe my word to the wise can just be one thing:

Put yourself in someone else’s shoes.

If you’re working with journalists, imagine you’re sitting at their desk. Don’t just understand their pages, or the programmes they are responsible for, understand them and their world. Not just their own likes and preferences, but what does their editor want, what’s happening around them, what do they need to survive and thrive?

If you want your clients to appear highly in AI responses then put yourself in the customers’ shoes. Try searching regularly in AI platforms to see what is referenced.

Surround yourself with people who will challenge you. It’s easy, running a business, to bring in people who are just like you. But then your brainstorms, reporting, and client solutions will always remain the same. Bring in troublemakers, creatives, drivers. It’s much more fun (and my former team members can decide where they fit in that list of characters). Then, crucially, put yourself in their shoes, give those different people time to express themselves.

Make sure to listen to the quiet, considered voices in the room. PRs as a tribe are naturally gregarious and outgoing, but some people need more time to contribute.

One of the best things I did was put in place a weekly coffee meeting outside the office. No agenda. I just gave each person in the company time to sit and chat with me, to know they’d get their turn and tell me what they liked and didn’t like. It was frequently eye-opening, sometimes mortifying, but always very rewarding.

Thank you for reading. Subscribe for bi-weekly missives from the industry’s leading journalists on the regular features they commission and from stalwart PRs on their advice to up and comers.

Welcome back! Today, we’re getting to know Lebby Eyres, the Head of Health and Deputy Head of Lifestyle at The Telegraph. She tells us how to pitch for the regular interview slot My Saturday in The Telegraph Magazine and the other stories she’s looking to write about now.

My Saturday is a long-running section of the Telegraph Magazine, which also runs online. It’s a basic premise – a celebrity chats to us about their perfect Saturday – but the idea is that we get insight into their life and personality via their timetable.

Although it was conceived as a print feature, it actually does very well online too, and I like to think it has a cult following. It’s similar of course to something like ‘A Life in the Day’ in (shall we say) a rival newspaper. It’s the same concept – that how one spends one day can reveal much about a person – but ours is more specific.

Perhaps I shouldn’t say this here, but sometimes a format interview can lull celebrities into a false sense of security, and they end up revealing something quite personal or telling without realising! I refer you to the viral Gregg Wallace interview from a couple of years ago, which caused quite a stir, as he admitted to spending two hours playing computer games every Saturday afternoon. Recently, a column about Julia Bradbury’s Saturday also did very well. Readers tend to snap a version of the print page and circulate it on X. That’s when we know it’s really hit the mark!

Ideally, celebrities pitched for this column will be household names, generally of a certain age (eg. 40 or 50 plus) and not suffer from “famous face, not famous name” syndrome. There are lots of really recognisable actors out there whose names we aren’t familiar with – generally they aren’t quite right for us as readers do need to be interested in people’s personal lives to enjoy the column.

We plan quite far in advance as the magazine requires a three-week lead time. So you really need to be pitching a couple of months before the interview would ideally appear. We like to have a fixed schedule about two to three months ahead, because during a holiday period we can quickly run out. And we need a balance of men and women, so that makes scheduling a little trickier.

When pitching, we need to know what the celebrity is promoting. We can usually run a footnote, but sometimes shoehorning a peculiar product into the copy can be hard, and so we try to avoid that scenario. Usually a campaign can be mentioned with grace and subtlety, however. No campaign images can be run in the print version, and it’s fairly unlikely we can feature them online if they are too pluggy. Aside from that, we just need the celebrity’s name and an idea of when they can be interviewed. We don’t tend to shoot people for this section.

For the celebrities themselves, of course we like them to be as open and amusing as possible! We find people actually love talking about their timetable on the weekend, and readers also love perusing them. It’s endlessly fascinating to find out how celebrities live their lives. Are they just like us? It seems so. Though of course we love to know if someone has an odd routine, like Belinda Carlisle and her 3.30am wake up time. An awful lot of celebrities support Arsenal, we’ve discovered.

Do I have any extra tips? Keeping in mind that lead time is really key – sometimes younger PRs forget that such a thing as a lead time even exists. And always remember no one wants to read something that feels like a plug. Briefing clients to expect some personal questions is really important – the last thing we want is copy that doesn’t have a standout headline for the online version. Everyone benefits if it’s a good, engaging read.

Finally, in the last few weeks I’ve handed the commissioning side of the column over to Jack Rear, our Senior Lifestyle Writer, but I’m happy to receive pitches for it which I can vet and pass on! He’ll run names past me that he’s not sure about, too.

The other stories that Lebby is looking for:

I’ve moved to health so the three things I’m really looking for now are:

• Great experts who can give insight into health conditions that are key to our readers, like cholesterol.

• Celebrities who will talk about their health and fitness – not necessarily a general chat, but if they have a particular condition to discuss, or are campaigning for visibility on a subject close to their heart.

• Finally, as ever, brilliant first person stories with a health angle are always gratefully received.

And her one top tip for PRs:

I do get a lot of emails, so standout subject lines always help to get my attention. And no journalist wants to receive a long list of conditions about featuring someone. Please be sensible and measure your client’s expectations.

Thank you so much for reading! We are going on a little hiatus for the rest of August but will be back with lots more from journos and PRs in September. Enjoy the summer and see you in a few weeks’ time.

Welcome back! Today we are talking to Kate McWilliams, the CEO of LOTUS, a PR and marketing agency representing some of the world’s biggest travel and tourism brands.

Though Kate got her start by ‘pure fluke’ and her first client was a bin company, she soon graduated to more glamourous work, even channelling her own wanderlust into establishing a LOTUS division dedicated to Latin America. Find out more about her story, an early career mistake, and her advice for PRs below.

Over to Kate!

Can you describe your job now?

I am CEO of LOTUS, a travel specialist agency that now sits within the W Communications Group.

We work across a broad spectrum of travel and hospitality clients from tourism boards to tour operators, airlines, hotel groups, travel associations etc.

My role is fairly varied. It’s about the vision, mission and success of the company, as well as having oversight of our team and clients.

I am also involved in running some of our flagship accounts.

How did you get your start in PR?

Pure fluke.

I was looking for a job in Barcelona as part of my year abroad whilst at university when someone suggested I rang every company that had registered with the British Chamber of Commerce. So, armed with a lot of enthusiasm, I did. I rang from top to bottom and eventually landed an internship in a PR company. At the time, I’d never even heard of PR and had no idea what it was.

My first accounts were Brabantia bins and a cement brand. Back then my toolkit consisted of a huge Yellow Pages equivalent of media contacts, a landline and a fax machine. My main role was to phone up journalists to pitch ideas in Spanish and then fax through the press releases.

I didn’t have the understanding or training around what makes a good pitch, and I most definitely didn’t have the level of vocabulary needed for a persuasive bin or cement sell-in. Looking back, I was spectacularly out of my depth.

Luckily, I soon graduated from bins and cement to also supporting the Jet2 Airlines account when they first launched into the Spanish market. This was my first taste of airline and destination PR, as part of my role was to convince Spaniards of the many delights of Leeds Bradford (the Jet2 base).

What’s one mistake you made early in your career?

In the early days, I asked a news journalist who I thought was a friend for some advice about a controversial client situation.

As the conversation progressed, I was surprised at the line of questioning and then the penny dropped, they were going to use this information for a story.

Sure enough, they ran a piece the next day and I was quoted as an “insider source”.

I was devastated but I learnt my lesson quickly.

Can you talk about a career-defining moment that really sticks out for you?

After almost 10 years at LOTUS climbing the ranks, I was starting to get itchy feet. I loved the company, but I knew I needed a new challenge.

I’d always worked very closely with Latin American and Spanish clients and at that time various destinations in Latin America were seeing an uplift in visitors, thanks to new direct flights and the ripple effect of the 2016 Rio Olympics.

Instead of jumping ship, I presented the idea of launching a new division within the existing business and LOTUS LATAM was launched in 2017. This was a dedicated area of the business aimed specifically at Latin American and Spanish-speaking travel and hospitality clients looking to attract inbound visitors from the UK and Europe.

Although the division has evolved since then, it’s still an important niche for the business.

Looking back, this decision was a pivotal moment for me and my career. It gave me confidence, delivered business growth, and perhaps most rewarding of all, has attracted some brilliant talent over the years.

What’s a surprising skill that you think is essential for success in PR?

If I had to choose one core skill for agency life, it would be adaptability.

The media landscape never stands still. When I started out, I was pitching stories over the phone and faxing press releases to journalists. Today, we’re navigating AI, social media algorithms, content creators and a news cycle that moves at lightning speed. The channels, tools and technologies may change, but the ability to adapt remains essential.

I’ve never considered myself particularly academic or excellent in one area. In fact, being reasonable at a lot of things rather than brilliant at one has probably served me well. Agency life can involve everything from creative brainstorming and crisis management to budget planning, new business pitches and client events, often all in the same day. Being willing to learn, embrace change and turn your hand to different challenges is invaluable.

What’s your ‘word to the wise’ for someone starting their career?

My advice for anyone starting out is to stay curious, keep learning and don’t underestimate the importance of relationships. Nurture your contacts, be generous with your time, take some risks, and above all, be nice. The industry is smaller than you think, and the people you meet at the start of your career may end up being some of your most important contacts later on.

Thank you so much for reading. Next up, we’ll be hearing from a Telegraph Editor about how she commissions her weekend regular slot. See you then!

Welcome back. Today, we’re talking to Samuel Goldsmith, the Senior Food Editor at Good Food and the host of the Good Food podcast, which recently won Best Consumer Podcast at the BSME Talent Awards 2026.

We’ll find all about the chefs, cooks, and food lovers that make for brilliant guests on the weekly podcast. And we’ll discuss the regular print slot called My Favourite Dish that’s taken directly from the podcast segment of the same name, and appears in the monthly Good Food magazine.

Over to Samuel!

My Favourite Dish is a regular segment on the flagship Good Food podcast, which I host. It celebrates the world’s best comfort food by asking guests from diverse backgrounds to talk about the dish they love and how they’ve made it their own.

The podcast audio becomes the basis for an interview that runs in the magazine too. It’s a format that works well because it feels natural and unforced; the best conversations happen when people aren’t thinking too hard about the fact that they’re being interviewed.

The ideal guest is someone our audience already knows, or someone we think they’d love to discover. We’re committed to bringing a diverse range of voices to our readers and listeners, and a visible public profile can be helpful, though it isn’t always essential.

We tend not to interview business founders or CEOs; this is a food-first feature, and the conversation works best with people who have a genuine, personal relationship with food and a story worth telling around it.

Planning is fairly flexible. For the podcast alone, around two to four weeks notice usually gives us enough time to edit the interview properly. If the piece is also going into print, we’d typically be looking at around four months ahead (though we have turned it around quicker), with the podcast going out around the same time the print feature lands.

Not all of the podcast episodes become My Favourite Dish. We do a pod episode once a week and a print feature once a month. If it’s a big name like Mary Berry or Rick Stein, for example, we have agreed to do both. Often it’s down to which interview was the most interesting and whether the recipe is seasonal for that time. Sometimes the interview will be featured in the magazine months, or even a year, later.

If it’s a big star then we would likely do both but if it’s a short lead time that makes it trickier. For instance, if a podcast guest is booked because they have a TV show coming out in a month we wouldn’t be able to get it in the mag in time.

A good pitch leads with the person and what they’re promoting. Links to their social presence are useful, as are any clips of them being interviewed; it really helps to get a sense of how comfortable they are in conversation. That’s particularly important given the format; some people who seem like great guests on paper can find the interview setting harder than expected, so anything that gives a sense of their on-camera ease is genuinely helpful.

Before the recording, we send a guest letter that outlines everything the interviewee needs to know. The podcast is filmed as well as recorded, and we do take a photograph of me with the guest, though there’s no formal photoshoot involved. We also send the formatted questions in advance, should the interviewee want to look over them beforehand. Most do, and it can lead to a better conversation, especially if the guest doesn’t like to be thrown off.

If you’re briefing a client, it’s well worth encouraging them to listen back to a few recent episodes first. It gives them a real feel for how the conversation flows, what kinds of questions come up, and what to expect on the day. Preparation makes a difference, and guests who’ve done their homework tend to be more relaxed.

The other stories Samuel is looking for right now:

I don’t write quite as much as I used to, but I’m always glad to hear about new products, restaurants, trends and news. It’s useful to stay across what’s happening in the food world, so do keep those coming.

Samuel’s top tip for PRs

The pitches that land best are from PRs who’ve actually looked at what we cover. If you’re after a product placement or review, it helps to have thought carefully about where it might sit within our output.

One email and one follow-up is usually plenty. I do my best to respond to as many as I can, but I won’t always manage every one.

Thank you so much for reading. See you soon!

Dear Regulars,

Welcome back to ‘Word to the Wise’, where notable figures in PR share their hard-won wisdom, how they got their start in the business, and the advice they’d pass on to those coming up.

Today, we’re speaking to Tanya Rose. Tanya founded Mason Rose, an international sales, communications and PR agency for luxury hotel and hospitality brands, thirty-three years ago.

More recently, she has reinvented herself as host and founder of Travel Secrets, the travel podcast where guests like Minnie Driver, Rupert Everett, Keeley Hawes, and Elizabeth Hurley share their travel wisdom – and, of course, their travel stories. It’s reached #1 on Apple Podcasts in multiple markets.

Here, she shares what she’s learned along the way.

Over to Tanya…

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Can you describe your current role?

I'm the Founder and CEO of Mason Rose, the PR, Sales and Marketing agency I started thirty-three years ago with my best friend Sarah Mason. Sarah moved on after five years to build something wonderful of her own – Mason Rose Private, a travel agency for high-net-worth clients – and she remains my best friend to this day, which I think tells you everything about how we operate.

I have the most extraordinary team around me, and I consider that the greatest achievement of my career.

More recently, I've been building Travel Secrets – the podcast and YouTube channel that grew out of a book I wrote a decade ago. It has become a second chapter I couldn't have imagined, and one I'm completely in love with.

How did you get your start in PR?

Somewhat accidentally, and through grief. I had been at La Sorbonne and was due to go on to the Lausanne hotel management school, but my father died and I needed to find work quickly. I landed at the St James Club in Paris, where my first boss – Nigel Massey – saw something in me. I spoke fluent French and English, I got on naturally with the clients, and he appointed me Head of Sales and PR. I was thrown in at the deep end and loved every moment of it.

It was there I met my long-time friend Pene Delmage – who later married the actor Albert Finney, who went on to become my son's godfather – which gives you some sense of how closely this industry weaves itself into your life. From Paris I came to London and spent seven years with the Savoy Group, before founding Mason Rose in 1993. I've never looked back.

What’s one mistake you made early in your career?

Not understanding a P&L. I came into this business as a people person – someone who thrives on making connections, building relationships, creating opportunities – and the financial architecture of running a company was not something that came naturally to me or, frankly, something that I particularly enjoyed learning.

What are some career-defining moments that really stick out for you?

Starting the podcast was the most unexpected reinvention of my life – and the most exhilarating. Ten years ago I wrote a book called Travel Secrets which became a bestseller. Looking back, the parts that resonated most were the insider tips shared by my friends: actors, entrepreneurs, people who had spent their lives moving through the world in extraordinary ways. A few years ago I thought: this should be a podcast.

And so I built it properly – brand architecture, twelve A-list guests confirmed, the suite at the Peninsula booked, production team hired. What I singularly failed to do was ask myself whether I could actually do it. In retrospect, that was a complete godsend. If I had stopped to think, I might have talked myself out of it.

My first guests were Mark Strong and Charles Dance – two of the finest actors of their generation, wonderful storytellers, total gentlemen – and they carried me entirely.

In Series 1, I had reams of notes and my glasses going on and off. By Series 2, I had everything I needed on a single card.

I am having more fun than at any other point in my career. My other great love, alongside travel, is theatre and film – I've sat on the boards of RADA, the English National Ballet, the Brit School and the National Youth Theatre — so finding myself in conversation with actors I have admired all my life feels, honestly, like the most extraordinary privilege. I pinch myself regularly.

And, finally, your word to the wise: what’s a surprising skill that you think is essential for success in PR?

My number one piece of advice to anyone starting out is this: surround yourself with people who are brilliant at the things you are not. Find an exceptional accountant, bookkeeper or FD and trust them completely. Hire people who can do the things you can’t do – or simply don’t want to do. I have never been drawn to the MD side of running a business, so I made sure I had people around me who were.

What I do instead is what I have always done best: go to the office, be with people, create.

I genuinely mean it when I say I have never once thought of going to work as a chore. It is a joy.

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Welcome back to The Regular Slot from Roxhill Media. This week, we’re in conversation with Tessa McCann, Head of Strategic Relationships at CNBC International, where she manages key editorial contacts across global events, podcasts and live TV news.

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She’s talking to us all about Executive Decisions with Steve Sedgwick, a podcast that offers a window into the minds of top corporate decision-makers.

Past guests have included Lloyd Blankfein, Dame Julia Hoggett, Jo Malone, and more.

NB: They’re actively looking for guests for Season 4.

Over to Tessa…

What began as an extension of our on-air work at CNBC has evolved into something much more personal.

Every day on CNBC, Steve Sedgwick speaks with some of the biggest names in global business about markets, company performance and strategy. But Executive Decisions was created to get underneath the headlines and ask: what are the moments that really shape a leader?

We don’t just look at the outcomes, but the choices behind them – the risks taken, the trade-offs, the pressure felt in the moment, and the principles that emerge afterwards.

Each episode is built around one clear, high-stakes decision. We start with the decision itself: what happened, what was at stake, and why it mattered. From there, the conversation explores the experiences, instincts and personal stories that shaped the way that call was made. We then explore how those same lessons or principles have resurfaced later in their career, often when the stakes were even higher.

The result is more than a profile interview. It’s an honest look at decision-making under pressure – part leadership conversation, part practical playbook. Senior executives, founders and ambitious professionals alike have connected with the series because it uses real experiences to show how judgment is built, tested and refined over time.

The ideal guest is a CEO or Chairperson with one defining decision at the heart of their story: a moment involving real consequences, real trade-offs and a principle they still use today.

While many guests come from finance and business, we’re equally interested in leaders from other industries who can speak candidly about defining moments and what they revealed about leadership.

Season 3 has already produced some incredibly candid conversations. Amanda Blanc, CEO of Aviva, spoke openly about the realities of leadership under scrutiny, saying: “Criticize me for doing a bad job, I have no problem with that – but for being a woman? That’s just crazy.”

Lloyd Blankfein, former CEO of Goldman Sachs, reflects on an early decision to stop trying to fit in – a lesson in authenticity that ultimately shaped how he led one of the world’s most influential firms.

Those are exactly the kinds of moments we’re trying to capture: honest, surprising insights that go far beyond the usual soundbites. We want to hear about the toughest calls, the moments of uncertainty, the lessons learned the hard way, and the principles leaders still carry with them today.

Personal anecdotes are at the heart of the show, but always in service of a bigger question: how does someone make the right call when the pressure is real and the stakes are high?

The feedback from guests has been hugely encouraging. One CEO recently told us: “This was probably the best interview I have ever done, and the best interviewer I have sat down with in my lifetime.”

Episodes are typically booked up to two months in advance, giving teams plenty of time to coordinate diaries. Filming takes around one hour and takes place at our London studios between 11:30 and 14:30.

For PR teams, the strongest pitches tend to focus less on the CV and more on the story. The best starting points are usually simple: What was the toughest decision they ever had to make? What made it difficult? What were the consequences? What did they learn from it? And where has that lesson shown up again later in their career?

We’re much more interested in authentic reflection than polished messaging. The atmosphere on the show is intentionally relaxed and conversational, encouraging guests to let their personality come through and speak candidly about experiences audiences don’t normally get to hear about.

We’re currently midway through Season 3 and already beginning conversations around Season 4, which we expect to record over the summer. As we shape the next season, we’re actively looking for guest suggestions from across the globe – leaders with different experiences, pressures and perspectives, but with stories that can genuinely help audiences think differently about leadership and decision-making.

Thank you so much for reading The Regular Slot. We’ll be back soon with our next instalment.

As a reminder, we host live events with the UK’s top journalists in our London offices and beyond – there are Q&As, networking sessions, and pub clubs where you can meet and mingle with the journalists you need to contact.

And The Regular Slot Substack Chat is now live. Why not ask your fellow PRs a question, leave us some feedback, or give a request for our next interview?

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Dear Regulars,

Welcome to our new series ‘Word to the Wise’, where we ask notable figures in PR to share their hard-won wisdom, how they got their start in the business, and the advice they’d pass on to those coming up.

They’ve been where you are – in the trenches, with hard-to-please clients and harder-to-please bosses – and lived to tell the tale.

We hope you enjoy hearing from them and take inspiration from their stories.

First up is Emma Cripwell, Head Publicist for The Pig and Consultant for Roxhill Media (that’s us!)

Over to Emma…

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Can you describe your current role?

I am the media lead for THE PIG Hotels and I also consult for Roxhill Media, helping with their journalist and PR events.

I also do a small amount of part-time PR for the English wine brand Sugrue South Downs and, in an absolutely fabulous vein, get paid in fizz.

I am geographically all over the place – The New Forest, London, Cornwall, Kent – but I love it and the variety it brings to my week.

How did you get your start in PR?

I did work experience in 1995 at Biss Lancaster in Covent Garden and was given the task of promoting the blue Smartie campaign – before blue Smarties were a thing. Cold-calling broadcast journalists was something I found great fun, though I know it’s most people’s idea of hell. I knew then that a career in PR would suit me.

What’s one mistake you made early in your career?

Only one? Let me see… When I was working at Berry Bros & Rudd in St James we sponsored the Cutty Sark Tall Ships Races. I’d booked 20 hotel rooms for colleagues in Lisbon which was one of the ports that the ships were docking in. Only five colleagues ended up going to Lisbon… and I forgot to cancel the remaining 15 rooms. The bill landing two weeks after the races was not a good moment.

What are some career-defining moments that really stick out for you?

The first was when I went from representing rather unknown small clients to suddenly (through good, old-fashioned word of mouth) landing Lime Wood, the most stunning luxe spa hotel in the New Forest. This was the hotel that all journalists were flocking to and was being run by the one and only Robin Hutson. Up until this point my emails went largely unacknowledged but suddenly, with a client like Lime Wood, journalists want to know you!

The second was landing THE PIGs as a client. At that time it was the new UK hotel group on everyone’s radar, but they only had THE PIG in the New Forest and THE PIG-in the wall in Southampton. We got to launch the subsequent seven PIGs but getting them as a client put my little PR agency, Angel Publicity, on the map and meant we were recognised as one of the leading outfits of the day, even though we were a team of just seven.

And, finally, your word to the wise: what’s a surprising skill that you think is essential for success in PR?

The first is that, as the PR, you are in charge of the story, so keep it front and centre.

The second is to keep it simple. As humans, we tend to have just one takeaway from any situation, meeting, party, or article. So don’t overly complicate the messaging. One strong message is far better than three diluted ones.

Thank you so much for reading. We’ll be back on Tuesday with an exciting regular slot – our first business podcast. See you soon!

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Welcome back! Today Jake Helm is in the hot seat. He’s the Digital Commissioning Editor at The Sunday Times and responsible for My Cultural Firsts in the Sunday Times Culture magazine.

He takes us behind the scenes of how he commissions, what he’s looking for now, and how your client can turn up the charm.

Over to Jake…

My Cultural Firsts is a Q&A-style feature that runs weekly (usually!) in The Sunday Times Culture magazine that invites prominent figures from the arts and entertainment world to reflect on their earliest and most formative cultural experiences. We created it as a light and fun way to reveal a different side of well-known names, offering readers something different beyond the usual interview format.

In terms of deciding who to feature, I’m looking for recognisable figures. The key question we ask is whether readers would want to know their takes; would they want to know the first film they saw at the cinema, or the first book they truly loved? Ultimately, it’s about choosing people whose cultural memories will reveal something new about them.

Ideally, I like to have the next month planned out, and the interview needs to happen at least 10 days before publication. The actual picks – the first film, album, book, TV show – provide the structure for the interview, but really the magic comes from the anecdotes surrounding them. That means interviews must be conducted in person, over the phone or via Zoom for at least 25 minutes. Written answers rarely have the same charm. We use pre-existing photography.

The best pitch is short and clearly explains why the individual is a good fit right now. It should include what they’re promoting and specify a preferred date. Flexibility on the run date is key, as things can shift around.

PRs can brief their clients by sharing a few examples and asking them to come prepared with their picks. We send the core questions in advance, with the understanding that the interview itself will involve a more natural back-and-forth based on their answers.

The most memorable guests are the ones who bring the unexpected or something personal: Sam Neill talking about auditioning for James Bond, or Geri Halliwell-Horner admitting she once wanted to marry George Michael.

Then there are the lighter, funnier moments: Ross Kemp admitting he sobbed over Bambi or Kaleb Cooper from Clarkson’s Farm saying the first book he read was his own. We’ve even had Basil Brush.

The other stories Jake is looking for right now:

• Film and TV with a strong hook that goes beyond a simple release; something with a clear angle, whether that’s a twist in the story, unique access or an interesting backstory

• Talent doing something unexpected or showing a different side to themselves

• Theatre with proper word of mouth – shows selling out, extending runs, transferring, or sparking debate.

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Jake’s top tip for PRs

Keep pitches friendly and personal. With the rise of AI, it’s getting harder to tell what’s real, so that human touch really matters. No text talk – but I want it to feel like an actual person has reached out with a clear idea and a sense of why it’s right for The Times and/or The Sunday Times.

Thank you so much for reading and good luck pitching! We’ll be back soon with our next instalment.

Welcome back! Today we are in conversation with Jess Jones, Senior Reporter at The Sunday Times. She’s telling us all about ‘How I Made It’, one of the longest-standing and most important business features in the weekly paper.

This regular slot is a high-profile interview opportunity for UK entrepreneurs. Readers love it because it shows the hard graft, personal toll and tough decisions that it takes to turn ‘a blank page into a real business’.

Her advice is detailed and contains all the information you need to nail the pitch and land exceptional coverage for your client.

Over to Jess…

How I Made It is one of the longest-standing and most important business features in The Sunday Times. It runs weekly in print and online and is widely read by both a business and general audience. It offers an in-depth look at how an entrepreneur has built their business, while also showing the human side and the cost of building something successful.

As the title suggests, it focuses on the nitty gritty of “how” someone went from a blank page to a business, including the tough decisions and setbacks, as well as the wins.

It’s one of my favourite features to write because it provides the space to go deeper than a standard interview. I always start with the entrepreneur’s childhood and early motivations, even if they didn’t found their business until much later. Alongside the highlights, we make a point of showing the difficult days, the mistakes and the reality of building a business.

The ideal guest is a founder or co-founder who owns, or has owned, a business and can clearly show they’ve “made it”, whether that’s through profit, dividends or an exit. To be considered, businesses have to be founded in the UK, be profitable, and be willing to share their turnover and pre-tax profit on the record.

We’re particularly drawn to people who started with very little, have a strong personal story, and got there against the odds. It’s a cliché, but the underdog angle works. A recent example of one of our highest-performing stories is my colleague Niamh Curran’s interview with Thuria Wenbar (gift link), founder of Evaro, whose family came to the UK as asylum seekers in 1999.

The most successful interviews tend to be the ones where people are open, slightly unfiltered, and willing to go into detail. Readers respond well to honesty. If everything is sugar-coated, it makes for an uninteresting story, and one the audience will see straight through. The sister founders of Steps Rehabilitation (gift link) were incredibly candid about how no one believed in their idea, which helped show the reader how hard-earned their success is.

It did, however, make my job harder because I ran out of space to include all the emotional details in the final cut. The challenge is often an excess of material. Even though it’s a generous slot, there’s always more we’d like to include than word count allows, so clarity really matters. Having the dates of key events to hand can make things easier and avoid muddled timelines.

We’re also interested in businesses that aren’t household names but have built something impressive. Take Paul Hamilton, founder of Halo (gift link), a lesser known software company that employs 230 people and has a £112 million annual turnover. Readers found him an inspirational figure.

We try to feature a broad mix of people from across the UK. That doesn’t mean it’s a no to a middle-aged, white, male founder, but it does mean the bar can be higher, especially if the story feels familiar. We’re also mindful that female and minority founders often face more barriers, such as access to funding and other forms of finance, so that context is always part of how we assess stories.

In terms of logistics, we aim to plan a few weeks ahead, but it varies depending on schedules. It’s usually myself or Niamh conducting the interviews, although we do occasionally commission out. We keep a longlist of people we’d like to feature, but if there’s a timely hook, for example an exit or funding round, it’s worth getting in touch at least a month in advance.

The ideal pitch is concise:

• Founder’s name and a sharp bio

• Why they started the business (a couple of lines)

• Key moments such as failures, risks or big decisions

• Financials — latest revenue and pre-tax profit, or deal size if they’ve exited

We’ll ask for the numbers anyway, so it helps to have them upfront.

The interview itself takes about an hour, plus five to ten minutes for the quickfire ‘Ask Me Anything’. I’m always happy to do interviews in person, but many happen over video call, especially when founders aren’t London-based. I’d generally avoid the phone where possible, as it’s harder to read meaning without seeing expressions.

The best way for PRs to prepare clients is to get them to think chronologically, as we usually tackle the interview in that way too, and encourage them to be open about the lows as well as the highs. Detail is what brings these pieces to life, so the more anecdotes, specifics and anything with a bit of colour they can recall, the better.

The quickfire round is straightforward to prep for, as the questions don’t change much and are available in previous versions of the feature. It’s also where personality can shine through. Do you have a strange morning habit or an unusual hero? The best interviews, overall, are the unrehearsed ones that feel like someone telling their story as they would to a friend.

Finally, on photography, we usually commission our own to make sure the images feel right for the page. We want to avoid a corporate headshot and give readers a sense of the business. That might mean shooting in a workspace, with products, or somewhere visually interesting. We recently photographed a couple who started a dairy business in a field of cows. Existing high-quality imagery is always useful, but it won’t determine whether we run the piece.

As ever, thank you so much for reading The Regular Slot. We’ll be back very soon with our next instalment.

Please do let us know in the comments if there’s a regular slot you’d love to hear about next!

We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming to bring you a special guest post from inside the world of PR.

It may be a well-trodden PR path to move from agency to in-house at a certain point in your career, but what are the real pros and cons?

Today, we’re speaking to Hugh Morris, who started out as a journalist and spent eight years at The Telegraph where he became Travel News Editor, before making the move to PR in 2019.

After four years on the agency side at Hanover, he’s now in-house at Rathbones as their Senior Corporate Reputation Manager.

Here’s his honest account of what should you take into consideration before you make the leap from PR agency to in-house comms.

Over to Hugh…

When I was looking to leave journalism for life on the dark side, I spoke to a number of PR contacts for sage advice. Some that stuck with me was to, “join an agency – it’s the only place to get a grounding in comms.”

Now I can testify that those four years at Hanover were invaluable in cutting my teeth. An agency is a fast-paced, full-on environment (where clients don’t care about how new you are to comms), and it was absolutely crucial in teaching me both the fundamentals of PR and how the sausage gets made in the corporate world.

I didn’t expect to go in-house immediately after learning my trade at an agency, though I know it is a well-worn path. The accepted wisdom is that it is the natural progression for most PRs to work hard and play hard at an agency early in their career, in the hope of getting rid of those pesky clients and accepting a cushy in-house role as they get older.

While it’s a familiar trope, it can be misleading. The shift from agency to in-house isn’t about choosing an easier life so much as choosing a different one. Before you decide it’s time to jump, it’s worth understanding what really changes.

The first thing to know is that in-house roles are rarely just communications jobs. When you work agency-side, communications is the product. In-house, it’s a tool, just one of many levers used to support a business’s wider objectives. I’d go so far as to say you have to learn again the purpose and values of PR, especially given the new set of stakeholders with whom you engage – and their knowledge and/or appreciation of PR.

You’re stepping into an organisation first and a comms function second, which means you’re expected to understand commercial priorities, internal politics and decision‑making structures long before anyone asks you to draft a press release. For PRs used to clear briefs and defined outputs, that ambiguity can be uncomfortable, not to mention the sign-off chain...

There is pay-off in the complexity. In-house roles are seen to offer depth, stability and the chance to see work through over months or years rather than weeks. They’re also perceived, rightly or wrongly, as more sustainable in terms of hours. I’d say the hours are no shorter but perhaps easier to anticipate – no last-minute pitches, for example.

As a result, competition for roles is fierce. Strong agency experience helps as it shows breadth of knowledge and experience as well as resilience and a high standard of work, but it’s no longer enough on its own.

You need to show that you understand the long-term need for consistency and growth and can move beyond drop-in, drop-out delivery, and that you can operate with judgement when there’s no client to defer to.

In agency, you may only speak to other comms professionals. That is not the case in-house where you need to be able to sell what you do with a different nuance.

As you’d expect, both roles have pros and cons. Agency life is intense but exhilarating. You’re exposed to a breadth of sectors, leadership styles and problems at a speed that’s hard to replicate elsewhere. You learn quickly, benefit from constant feedback and thrive on the camaraderie that comes from being in the trenches together.

In-house, the trade-off for that pace is focus and depth. You work on one organisation, one reputation, and are accountable for the long-term consequences of decisions. You miss the buzz and shared momentum of agency teams, but gain a more complete view of how communications fits into a business. You still celebrate the wins, of course.

Technically, the core skills don’t change much. Writing and messaging still matter, relationships still matter (perhaps more, as your stakeholders change less frequently) and strategic thinking is essential in both environments. What was once client-handling becomes stakeholder management, which requires a similar trust and choreography.

What does change is how often you have to rely on your own judgement. In-house, you are often the final voice in the room rather than one adviser among many. You’re expected to have an opinion, to be comfortable saying no, and to handle internal disagreement with diplomacy rather than escalation.

This comes with added responsibility. Agency‑side, even the most senior counsel ultimately hands decisions back to the client. In-house, there’s no one else to pass the baton to. You own the outcome, and sometimes the fallout. In agency, you can guarantee, too, that your client is bought into the value of comms (otherwise why would they be talking to you?), but in-house, you cannot even be sure that argument is settled.

At the same time, success changes. You stop measuring it by activity and start judging it by longer-term impact. Communications becomes less about hits and more about influence, which can feel unsatisfying if you’re used to tangible outputs and immediate recognition, but in time is more rewarding.

You might even change the way an entire business thinks about its reputation.

Thank you so much for reading this special guest post – please do let us know in the comments if you want to hear more from PRs in the wild.

See you in a week’s time for our next Regular Slot.

Welcome back! It’s May, the promise of summer is all before us, and our thoughts are skipping ahead to holidays just over the horizon.

Where better for destination inspiration – or armchair adventuring – than ‘My Hols’, the long-running regular travel interview slot in The Sunday Times?

We’re pleased to be talking to Claudia Rowan today, the Commissioning Editor for Travel at the Sunday Times, to find out how she puts the weekly slot together, and how PRs can pitch their clients.

Over to Claudia…

My Hols, The Sunday Times

It’s a joy to commission The Sunday Times Travel’s interview slot, My Hols, a weekly glimpse into a celebrity’s holidays from childhood to the present. The feature is a colourful first-person interview and each week it delivers on the feel-good front – who doesn’t like reading about where chefs, MPs and A-list actors go on holiday?

My Hols runs in print each Sunday and online the week beforehand, and is one of our most popular and longest-running regular slots, a weekly fixture since the Nineties. The celebrities we feature are no less interesting than they were back then – in recent months we’ve interviewed the likes of Richard E. Grant, Penny Lancaster, and John C. Reilly.

I fill the schedule a few months in advance, as publication dates are often timed to coincide with a project the celebrity is promoting (this is plugged at the end of the article).

If I’m turning down pitches for My Hols, from freelance writers or PRs, it’s usually because the celebrity isn’t a “household name” for Times readers – they have to be someone that readers across generations would instantly recognise and want to read about. And we have a rough 10-year rule, so do check before pitching that the celebrity hasn’t been interviewed for My Hols in recent years.

If you’re pitching celebrities for My Hols, do mention when the interview would need to run, and what the celebrity is promoting. It’s really helpful to have a browse through previous My Hols interviews we’ve done to ensure your client fits the profile.

While we tend to use stock location photos for the article, we also welcome any personal holiday snaps the celebrity is happy to include.

In terms of the interview itself, we generally need 30 minutes with the celebrity, over the phone, Zoom or in person.

Questions cover everything from early childhood trips to travels with work, down to travel disasters and favourite hotels.

The article itself has a non-linear narrative structure, and it should be as conversational, lively, humorous and detailed as possible (this Omid Djalili My Hols is a great example of the tone and structure I like).

The more granular details and unique anecdotes the better: as a reader, you want to feel completely immersed in the individual’s travel experiences.

The other stories Claudia is looking for right now:

1. Travel is my main beat. I love covering off-the-beaten-track places that deserve more attention, and up-and-coming holiday destinations that travellers should have on their radar. Ideally there will be a news hook, whether that’s an exciting new hotel opening or a new flight route.

2. I’m also interested in covering travel trends, so trend reports are really helpful: surprising new trends, social media phenomena, and interesting data.

3. I frequently cover travel news from a consumer perspective, whether that’s an explainer about the Middle East crisis to stories about new passport rules. It can be useful to quote industry experts who can share their insight on such topics.

4. I’m interested in writing about budget travel, as this is something our readers are keen to read about just as much as luxury hotels.

5. Alongside travel, I sometimes write features for different sections of the paper, for example London and News Review.

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Claudia’s top tip for PRs

Always lead with what’s new, and why I should cover something now. And if you’re pitching a hotel or destination, do check that we haven’t already covered that place recently.

Thank you so much for reading The Regular Slot! See you in two weeks for our next instalment.

Welcome back!

Today, we’re featuring Anna Moloney, Deputy Comment and Features Editor at City AM – she’ll be telling us all about the paper’s long-standing interview slot called Square Mile and Me. The interview “digs into the memory bank of the City’s great and good” and appears in print and online every Thursday.

Over to Anna…

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Square Mile and Me is a Q&A-style feature which asks City figures how they got to where they are today, from their first job to their most memorable City lunch, while also sharing a few personal anecdotes.

The column has featured C-suite execs, hospitality tycoons and startup founders, as well as more eclectic figures, like the St Paul’s Cathedral Dean’s Virger and the Keeper of the Jewel House (two of my favourites).

In terms of deciding who to feature, I’m looking mostly for established business figures. There’s no hard and fast rule, but usually this means C-suite, with a few decades of experience under their belt. Those who have taken an unconventional route to where they’ve ended up (like Chiara Caldwell or Alex Cooper) are always interesting.

I am always keen for more unconventional subjects too, so long as they have a strong City link – whether that be a pub landlord, a chef, shoeshiner, florist, whatever!

Most important is that they have a substantial and authentic connection to the Square Mile specifically – the most common reason I reject candidates is the lack of a link to the City. When the feature says ‘City’ it means City of London (not just London). Ideally, the company office is in the Square Mile. If not, you will need to make a case for their connection in the pitch – maybe they worked here for years before, maybe they’re always taking meetings in the City, etc. The feature is meant to feel local – we want readers to know the pubs they’re talking about.

One exception: we do run a ‘Canary Wharf & Me’ spinoff – so feel free to pitch Wharf clients too!

In an ideal world, I’d like to always have the next month planned out, but realistically, I am often working one to two weeks ahead. If you have a client who can do a speedy turnaround, definitely put that in the pitch!

The ideal pitch is short and sweet – give a brief bio of your proposed interviewee and outline their connection to the Square Mile. Specify if you have a preferred date.

As it’s a set questionnaire, it is conducted entirely over email. I just need to have the copy and pictures by midday the day before print (though I love anyone who files earlier).

We’ll also need at least two high-res image options of the interviewee: one portrait and one landscape (for print and online). The images ideally need to be more than just a headshot (i.e. more than shoulders), and an interesting background is always welcome.

PRs can brief their clients by showing them examples and encouraging them to inject as much personality as they can into their answers. If they have a timely opinion on the City, it’s also a good opportunity to express that – the best performing interviews usually express a strong opinion (whether that’s on politics, sexism or even that they love Pret).

The best interviewees are willing to make fun of themselves a little bit – so don’t give cop-out answers for the ‘biggest City faux pas’.

Also, put ‘PITCH: Square Mile and Me’ in the email subject line – often I might reach out months after the pitch, so it’s helpful if I can search through my inbox.

More stories Anna is looking for right now:

• At the moment, I’m keen to lean in to local Square Mile stories and trends – whether that’s hidden history in the City or a new business reflecting a worker trend (this story on wellness bros bringing in new smoothie shops is a great example).

• Any fun City events that might work for a diary slot (e.g. Investec recently celebrating their annual Zebra Day) are also welcome. If a story can lend itself to a video too, even better.

• Separately, I’m always on the hunt for stories on trends related to luxury (this breakfast article for example), employment and office culture.

Anna’s top tip for PRs:

SEO your subject lines! I am always searching through my inbox and following up pitches months (sometimes years) later, so always put keywords in the subject line.

Thank you so much for reading this edition of The Regular Slot!

We’d also love to hear from YOU about the publications and profile slots you’re trying to target – your input could help shape our upcoming newsletters and could give you the inside track on your most-wanted coverage.

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Welcome back! Today, we’ve got a brilliantly bookish edition of the newsletter with Joanne Finney, Books Director at Good Housekeeping.

She’s talking to us about ‘Books to Turn to…’, in which an author chooses four books that they’ve turned to at a certain stage of their lives. It appears in the Cultural Menu section near the end of each issue.

Over to Joanne…

The ‘Books to turn to…’ slot was introduced to Good Housekeeping in the April 2025 issue and it’s become a firm favourite with readers. Its appeal lies in the fact it’s more of a read than the usual book recommendation pages as it fuses memoir with review.

Each Books to turn to… column is based on a theme – previously, we’ve covered loneliness, anxiety, baby loss and menopause, but also reads for raising courageous daughters and those for when you feel like rebelling.

The recommendations can include fiction, memoir, lifestyle or narrative non-fiction, but the common thread is accessibility and warmth rather than showing off about what you’ve read. I think of the list of books given each time as a reading prescription for what ails you or you need help with.

The slot is planned in our monthly conference meeting around four months before the issue hits the newsstands and because of this forward planning, pitches are rarely reactive. I’m happy to be pitched quite far in advance and I also keep a spreadsheet of upcoming titles by month and look for potential writers among the authors who have books coming out the month of the issue.

What I’m looking for is someone with the potential to write a moving and beautiful piece of memoir. This isn’t always a non-fiction writer and it doesn’t need to be a household name. In fact, the slot often works best when it introduces readers to voices they may not yet know. A debut novelist writing about family relationships, for example, can work beautifully. What matters is that the column has a clear emotional takeaway and a defined reader benefit.

The theme works best when it’s personal to the writer and so they have to be happy to share a little of how it relates to their own life, alongside their recommendations. When pitching authors, please include a couple of theme suggestions and why the author is best placed to write them. When pitching, please take a look at the subjects we have previously covered – all the columns appear on the GH website.

In terms of photos, existing headshots can be used, so please provide those, too.

Pieces are commissioned rather than compiled by interview and the writer will be provided with a brief of what we are looking for in terms of word count (usually 600 words), format and tone.

More stories Joanne is looking for right now

• Accessible self-help – we’re looking for experts who can write in an engaging and non-jargony way about mental health, positivity, coping with overwhelm, or any other issues that would affect women aged 30+.

• Moving memoirs – we’re looking for first-person pieces from 30+ women who have experienced something life-changing and have learned from it.

• Talking points – this can be a report on something everyone is talking about or that’s been in the news, like women’s safety for example, or opinion pieces on something controversial.

• Wellness – our focus is currently on wellbeing, accessible exercise and boosting health.

• Reinvention – again we’re looking for first person pieces from 30+ women who have reinvented their lives, whether that’s their careers or personal lives.

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Joanne’s top tip for PRs

Good Housekeeping has changed quite a lot in the last year so it’s well worth taking a look at the latest few editions and getting a good grasp on the new feel and tone before pitching.

Thank you so much for reading this edition of The Regular Slot. See you in two weeks for our next instalment.

Welcome back!

Today we are very excited to be hearing from Georgina Quach, Newsletter Editor at the Financial Times. She’ll be telling us all about My Financial Life which appears in the Money section of the FT Weekend.

This regular slot takes a peek at what’s shaped the success of UK entrepreneurs and iconic public figures.

If you’re a UK PR looking to place an up-and-coming CEO or exciting entrepreneur, this one is a must-read.

Over to Georgina!

My Financial Life is a unique, intimate interview with Britain’s top entrepreneurs, giving readers insight into the turning points, decisions and personal finance lessons that have shaped both their personal and professional success.

Readers say it is a source of inspiration, bringing the founder’s story to life and allowing them to discover homegrown businesses they may not be very familiar with.

We plan about three weeks ahead. But in terms of pitching – the earlier the better. We don’t always know exactly when a piece will run, because news can shift things around.

Having a bit of a backlog really helps us, so pitching well in advance is always appreciated.

In terms of the ideal interviewee, I’m looking for someone UK-based with clear brand recognition and a strong story – ideally a founder or entrepreneur that readers will already have encountered in some way. They doesn’t have to be celebrity-famous, but it should be someone people recognise and are curious about, and who’s willing to talk thoughtfully about money.

The ideal pitch is clear, concise, and shows that you’ve actually looked at the slot before. It helps to explain why this person would appeal to FT readers, and what makes them interesting beyond their career achievements.

I’m much more interested in someone who’s a bit under the radar or at a pivotal moment in their journey than something that feels overly seasonal or promotional.

The interview itself usually takes about an hour, and then there’s time for photography – roughly another half hour to an hour. It’s a relaxed conversation, ideally somewhere quiet in person. I’m happy to have a discussion about whether a PR sits in during the interview.

From the first pitch to publication, it can take several weeks, sometimes longer, to put the slot together. Diaries need to line up, photography needs to be organised, and occasionally pieces are held if bigger news takes precedence.

Don’t over-media-train your spokesperson. This interview works best when people are themselves. I often like to talk about how upbringing can shape someone’s philosophy around money. It’s helpful if clients think in advance about key moments in their career, how they’ve approached money, and what they’ve learned – but authenticity is much more important than polished soundbites.

We also ask that PRs help with preparing a “CV” for the article which lists the entrepreneur’s big career moments and education.

Photography is a really important part of the piece. We usually organise a proper shoot, often on location, and the images take up quite a lot of space in print. There’s no video requirement – it’s all about strong, characterful photography that reflects the person.

The Johnnie Boden interview really stands out. It resonated hugely with readers and ended up being the most-read My Financial Life. It worked because he was open, reflective, and talked honestly about his journey, including the role his family played.

The other stories Georgina is looking for right now:

• Tax, pensions, and inheritance – any changes to regulations that might not have been picked up by other papers.

• How AI is changing work and employment

• Property and housing issues

These are all areas our readers care deeply about.

The Financial Times is also really big on data – if you have carried out rigorous research that illustrates a broader trend, or a surprising development, we are particularly interested in that. And we will ask you for as much detail as possible so that we can investigate and visualise it ourselves.

Georgina’s one top tip for PRs

Read the FT and be clear about the “FT Money” angle (we don’t cover things like best savings accounts or pet insurance, for example). And if something really is exclusive, make that obvious from the start. Access to key experts and senior managers – particularly when big news has broken – is worth flagging. It makes it easier to pitch to editors if someone knowledgeable can talk to us.

Thanks so much for reading The Regular Slot! See you in two weeks for our next instalment.

Welcome back! We are so thrilled to be building an audience here and were so pleased with the response to the launch of the newsletter.

Apparently PRs really love Substack! We knew it was true, but it was amazing to see it in action (and we’ve loved delving into the other Substacks you’re all reading, too).

Today, we’re back with Brooke Theis, Commissioning Editor at Harper’s Bazaar. One of the regular slots she commissions for is ‘How I Got Here’ which appears in the magazine’s Bazaar at Work section, providing career advice and inspiration.

Recent interviewees have included Anna Nash (the President of Explora Journeys, a luxury cruise line) and Sandra Ojambo (the CEO of UN Global Compact).

So, if you’re a PR with an fearless female leader to promote, read on.

Over to Brooke!

‘How I got here’ runs in the At Work section of Harper’s Bazaar, and involves a question-and-answer-style interview with a range of inspiring female leaders. The column serves to motivate and intrigue our readers by providing insight into the many different paths to success. Our interviewees reflect on pivotal moments and, crucially, reveal how they overcame obstacles.

Highlights have included the actress, writer and producer Issa Rae, whose dynamic career is a testament to her creativity and perseverance – she was candid and witty, which made for a great read. Also, the campaigner and business owner Gina Miller, whose honesty around failures and vision for women’s financial education was particularly inspiring.

We typically work three months in advance, but I often plan thematically based on upcoming issues (such as the November Art issue or the September Fashion issue).

The interviewee could be from a multitude of disciplines – tech, science, music, design, art, sport, beauty – but must have a unique perspective to share. Our focus is UK-centric, given the magazine’s British heritage, and the ideal interviewee will have an interesting career journey that they can discuss in a way that reveals something about themselves. As with most interviews, we’re looking for great details and things you haven’t heard a thousand times before.

The ideal pitch will come from someone who is familiar with the print format of this story, and will include key information: where this figure is based, what they do, what they have achieved in their work, where they started, where they’re heading and why we should be interested!

It definitely helps if they are a somewhat recognisable name – but, equally, they could be someone who does incredible work behind the scenes of a notable company. It’s best if the interview can be timed with something significant such as a book launch, a product launch, or a major cultural event, like the Olympics or a significant political moment.

It’s helpful to know from the get-go when the person will be available for an interview, too. Interviews can take place via phone or video call and we normally require about 20-30 minutes. Imagery-wise, we need a selection of headshot options to run alongside.

The best way to brief a client for this feature is to share previous examples, and ask them to spend some time reflecting on their careers. Think about any personal challenges and successes, how they’ve handled rejection, what’s important to them in their leadership style, what they initially set out to achieve (and whether their definition of success has changed), what their first job was, how they reached where they are today, and advice for their younger self.

The topics I’m most interested in writing about now

I’m always looking for culture features to commission for Bazaar.com/uk, particularly related to new and compelling TV shows and films, forthcoming theatre productions, art exhibitions and exciting book releases.

My top PR tip

It’s always incredibly helpful when PRs front-load their emails with key information, and include lots of imagery, too – it means we’re able to visualise a story and make a well-informed decision quickly.

Regulars – which profile slots or publications would you like to hear about next? Please do let us know in the comments.

See you all in two weeks for the next instalment!

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Welcome back! Today, we’re featuring the lovely Megan Conner, Deputy Editor of Red Magazine.

Megan’s regular slot, ‘My Life In…’ appears in the Culture section of Red. It’s a one-page Q&A with a writer, actor or musician (the page is either called My Life in Books, My Life in Film, My Life in Television or My Life in Music, depending on the artist). Recent guests have included Reese Witherspoon, Emma Thompson and Tayari Jones.

Keep reading to the bottom to find out about the pitches Megan’s actively seeking out right now, plus her one hot tip for every PR.

Over to Megan!

Originally a one-page magazine slot in which a high-profile author cited the books that have stayed with them throughout their life, ‘My Life In Books’ got a glow-up in 2024, when Red’s monthly ‘Reads’ section shifted to ‘Culture’ and it was decided that musicians, artists, actors and directors could also share the music, films, TV shows, theatre productions and art they hold dear.

Our first interviewee in the new ‘My Life In…’ format was Candice Carty-Williams, who remembered the small-screen dramas, reality shows and sitcoms that have shaped her (‘My Life in Television’). Carty-Williams was promoting the Channel 4 adaptation of her prize-winning novel, Queenie, and fondly recalled watching Keeping Up Appearances with her grandmother, her entire family stopping whatever they were doing to catch The Real McCoy, and how Sex and The City became the fabric of her 20s.

Next up was Keeley Hawes (‘My Life in Television’, with an end credit for her drama series Miss Austen), who reminisced about The Waltons on Sunday mornings and watching Dexter with her daughter.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor (‘My Life in Music’), Emma Thompson (‘My Life in Books’), Toni Collete (‘My Life in Film’), Zadie Smith (‘My Life in Books’), Reese Witherspoon (‘My Life in Books’), Diane Kruger (‘My Life in Television’), Suranne Jones (‘My Life in Television’), Taylor Jenkins Reid (‘My Life in Books’) and Miriam Margolyes have all since followed (with Margolyes settling on ‘My Life in Culture’, given her diverse body of work).

There are two things about the slot that make it particularly joyous to commission: first, the anecdotes prompted by the 8-10 set questions, which range from the character from a book/TV/film the interviewee most relates to (Squirrel Nutkin for Emma Thompson) to a line, scene or lyric that will remain imprinted on them forever (everything from ‘Only connect’ to ‘I’ll have what she’s having’). And second: it’s so straightforward to complete. Many interviewees opt to send their beautifully written answers over via email (we ask for 2-3 lines per question) while others prefer to whizz through their choices in 20 minutes on the phone.

To illustrate the page, an existing headshot, plus images of their selected books/films/albums/TV shows are used.

So far, we’ve attracted an enviable line-up of talent (men and women) and have been delighted to support projects they are promoting in return (we offer an end credit, and often an image of the book jacket/album cover makes it in, too).

As well as in print, the piece appears digitally, where it can perform brilliantly… perhaps going some way in proving our hunch that nobody tires of a good story and a handful of great recommendations!

The stories Megan is looking for now

I’m always looking for amazing first-person stories that will resonate with women in their 30s, 40s and 50s for our two-page ‘Reflections’ essay. We get pitched lots of the same themes and so the hard work is in finding a fresh angle/topic! We commission established writers and will also take the odd ghosted piece if the story is right.

Our readers also love self-improvement and expert-driven pieces on sex and relationships, and I’m personally a sucker for a good ’stunt’. I’d love to hear from PRs about new retreats, courses or life-changing experiences that we can send out a writer to try.

Megan’s top tip for PRs

I generally don’t have time to get back to very open-ended pitches, so getting in touch with a couple of specific angles and a particular slot or section in mind is really useful.

I also don’t have tons of opportunities to meet in person but if you can be upfront about what you’d love to chat about and there’s something I think could work, then a 10 or 15-minute chat on Zoom can be all that’s needed to thrash out coverage.

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We are thrilled to be kicking things off with the brilliant Amy Beecham, Senior Features Editor at Stylist. She told us all about the stories that work best for Work/Life, a page that appears in every issue of Stylist, featuring a professional woman with an interesting job.

She also highlighted the pitches she’s interested in receiving now and her top tip for PRs.

You can find Amy on Substack and Instagram.

Over to Amy!

With just 11 slots running in print per year, Work/Life is one of Stylist’s most recognisable, well-loved and competitive pages to be featured in. Because the page can be seasonal (a festive job for the December issue) or tied to a wider theme (such as a fashion or women’s sport special), it is usually one of the first pages we plot into the flatplan, at least one or two months before we start working on the issue as a whole.

Because of the sheer amount I receive each week, pitches are something I tend to keep on file and come back to as and when I need them – I might not be able to feature your female astronaut client that month, but if she has a great story, then it’s absolutely one I’ll keep in my back pocket for the future.

Because it’s the story, not just the person, that makes this page special. With Work/Life, it’s important to remember that it’s less of a corporate business profile and more of a peek behind the curtain for our readers at jobs they either didn’t realise existed or have always been curious about.

The best subjects are sometimes notable figures (Patricia Field, Bernardine Evaristo, and Law Roach have previously featured) but are more often than not ‘regular’ women with fascinating, unexpected, or essential jobs – from tattoo removalists and mammogrammers to beekeepers and proposal planners.

The anecdotes and granular details are the most essential part of the piece, which means that interviews must be conducted in person, over the phone, or on Zoom for a minimum of 45 minutes; it simply cannot be done via written answers or in a shorter time frame.

interview itself typically involves standard questions about the person’s daily routines, surprising aspects of the role, and favourite memories, alongside job-specific questions that touch on their career journey and what they’ve learned along the way, which is where the colour and personality really come in.

Visuals are also a very important aspect of this page. Existing headshots can sometimes be used, but we also have a photographer who is sent out to capture subjects in situ at their workplace.

In pitches, I want to be surprised, moved, shocked, or empowered by someone’s career story, because that’s what our readers want, too. It’s less about being aspirational and more about the pure nosy intrigue of what other people do at work every day.

The stories Amy is looking for now

Amy’s core content areas at Stylist are careers, personal finance relating to women, relationships, and social issues.

She’s actively looking for relatable, real-life finance stories that have a human angle and affect women in particular, so anything about wage gaps or women’s attitudes to money.

Amy loves pitches around new buzzwords or phrases like ‘career cushioning’ and topics that will resonate with the average woman – so always pay attention to what you are your friends are talking about in the group chat.

She also puts together ‘Stylist Loves’, which is the shopping/things to do vertical at the title. These pages recommend products across fashion, beauty, books, interiors, food, and drink as well as some ‘what’s on’ content.

Amy’s top tip for PRs

Demonstrate ‘why Stylist’ in your pitch: what makes your story right for their audience?

Even better? Suggest a headline in their house style.

Welcome to The Regular Slot, a newsletter for PRs, created by the Creative Content and Brand team at Roxhill Media.

In this Substack, we’ll be asking the UK’s top journalists and editors at nationals, glossy magazines and online outlets how they commission their regular slots.

What does the feature involve? How far in advance do they plan it? How do they conduct the interviews? How can PRs brief their clients?

They’ll also be revealing the topics they’re interested in right now, and their one top tip for PRs.

Our aim is to get you into the good books of your most-desired commissioning editors – and then hopefully a full-page interview (accompanied by a beautiful image, naturally) for your client in the pages of The Sunday Times, The FT, Harper’s Bazaar, Red, Stylist, and more.

So, if you’re a PR based in the UK, we hope The Regular Slot becomes your fortnightly must-read.

We’re thrilled to have you here and to be starting our own community for PRs on Substack.

- The Roxhill Brand Team