Thursday, November 27, 2008 The Rich list

Like all PR bloggers, I'm a sucker for a good list. This list, from my US colleague Rich Young and published on our corporate blog, is a good one.

Bonus seasonal Rich Young fact: I introduced Rich to bread sauce at the LEWIS 2005 Christmas party. I do a good impression of his reaction.

Saturday, November 22, 2008 Whitney is Undefeated

This has to be a hoax.

Despite one of my fave blogs Photoshop Disasters picking it up and showing us the drastic special effects supposedly used for the album art, it just seems too ridiculous to be real. (Hope it is though.)

clipped from photoshopdisasters.blogspot.com

Thursday, November 20, 2008 Look Lively

Google has shut down it's Second Life-style virtual world service Lively. It'll be gone by December 31.

Not a massive deal really - at some point Google was going to have to start shutting things. I imagine the open / shut rate is still 100 / 1.

clipped from www.lively.com

Saturday, November 15, 2008 Star Trek movie looks *quite good*

Enough to give a geek a heart attack - akin to when the Transformers trailer came out...

Via Gizmodo.

Thursday, November 13, 2008 Accepting our Computing award

How dare they blatantly leave me out of their picture caption... I'm the fourth most influential UK PR person on Twitter!



Thanks to Computing and the judges for the award by the way. Well done to all the other shortlisted agencies, and a huge 'thanks!' to everyone at our place. We had a great night and were thrilled to win.

Sunday, November 09, 2008 Mince pie tryouts

We had five different types of mince pie in the house today. (This was thanks to the fact that our kitchen was playing host to a festive photoshoot, not because we are greedy.)

For your Christmas convenience, here are my thoughts on this year's crop of mince-filled morsels:

Asda: Featuring a detailed snowflake design on the pie lid, Asda's effort promises a lot from first glance. The result isn't bad – under a well-balanced crust is plummy mince with a nice variety of fruit and porty taste. I tried it hot and cold just to make sure. 7/10

Tesco: As you'd expect from Britain's biggest supermarket brand, the Tesco pie is all things to all people. The crust is average, the filling is nothing special and the overall experience is inoffensive. This is the safest bet when it comes to your Christmas pie choice. 6/10

Mr Kipling: The most disappointing of the bunch, this 'exceedlingly good' effort just isn't. The filling is sparse, verging on mean. The pastry is dry, and disintegrates instantly in your mouth, merging with your saliva and forming wallpaper paste. Sorry Mr K - you lose. 3/10

Waitrose: Posh people shop at Waitrose, so they pay more for quality. But their mince pies are a little alienating for me. While the filling makes the most of fancy ingredients like nuts and peel, the pastry's butteriness is overpowering and ruins the entire experience. 5/10

Selfridges: This is one tiny pie. It's a third smaller than any of the others in the test, and a bit beaten-up looking. But one taste and you're instantly won over - the pastry literally melts in the mouth, while the mince is generous, fruity and sweet. Happy Christmas. 9/10

Friday, November 07, 2008 Fun House. It's a whole lot of fun.

I'm watching the MTV Europe Music Awards 2008. (To be honest, it's no Computing Awards for Excellence 2008, but no matter.)

Anyway, I didn't realise Pink's new album – home to the Worst Song Ever Made – is called 'Funhouse'. This is because I am old. It reminded me of wonderful 80s UK children's game show Fun House, hosted by the... erm... irrepressible Pat Sharpe.



Taking part in the fake go-kart challenge was one of my dearest childhood wishes. (Aside from meeting the Fun House twins, Melanie and Martina.)



It never came true.

Tuesday, November 04, 2008 Mouse? What mouse?

Full marks to the PR person at Arnold's Bread for their crisis management strategy of 'relentless denial'. Read the wonderfully detailed report here.

clipped from www.wcnc.com