In the carnage that followed incendiary comments by Sir Jim Ratcliffe, co-owner of Manchester United, a relatively rare phenomenon occurred in the world of crisis communications. Ratcliffe’s remarks that the UK has been ‘colonised,’ alongside inaccurate immigration statistics, fuelled a huge and very public backlash, dragging the club squarely into the storm. Less importantly (except perhaps for United fans), Ratcliffe’s interview with Sky News risked derailing a Manchester U

Christmas and new year can be a slow time for news. During the lull, stories which might otherwise pass under the radar are more likely to be picked up by media, especially reputational issues that journalists have been tracking or which might have a seasonal twist. If there’s a potentially problematic development on your horizon, the bar for ‘newsworthy’ drops and the risk of your well-earned break being sabotaged increases. But how can you tell which of the many issues bub

Should an organisation ever let a TV production company tell its story? I’ve been thinking about documentaries quite a bit recently, in particular their power to shape public perception. Netflix and Rogan Productions recently released Grenfell: Uncovered, a sensitive and insightful retelling of the terrible tragedy that unfolded on the night of 14th June 2017, resulting in the deaths of 72 people. Having worked with Crest Advisory to support the Grenfell Tower Inquiry’s commu

“In the nicest possible way, I hope we don’t see you again for ages!” It’s a joke I’ve heard more than once from my clients, and I always enjoy it. After all, crisis communicators generally only pop up when something has gone badly wrong. However much they might like me, no organisation would choose to experience the kind of incident, accident or reputation-threatening issue that might lead them to get in touch. This is especially true when I’m brought in to support an organi

No, I’m not talking about the surprise discovery of a long-lost relative (although if you like that sort of thing, you might enjoy The Gift, a compelling BBC podcast). ‘DNA crisis’ is my shorthand for a specific type of predicament that organisations sometimes stumble into, only to face an unexpectedly severe reaction. It’s the kind of crisis that links the following unconnected issues: · A 2019 report into internal culture at Amnesty International · The recent fa

The Government has announced that it will accept all 58 recommendations of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry, which published its final report in September 2024. Retired judge Sir Martin Moore-Bick was tasked with establishing the circumstances surrounding the devastating fire of 14th June 2017, which took the lives of 72 people, and with making recommendations to prevent a similar tragedy occurring again. For the seven-year duration of the Inquiry, I was privileged to be part of a