The acrobatic skills of the public relations industry were much in
evidence at last week’s PR Week Awards.
Tim Halford, Standard Chartered corporate affairs director, led the
field in the jumping up and down on the spot contest, such was his
delight at winning the award for Best Financial Campaign
The triumphant McDonald’s team, who walked off with PR Professional of
the Year, Best Crisis Management and Best Internal Publication stunned
the crowd with their graceful dance moves. The top athletic prize,
however, had to go to James Maxwell - the normally reserved managing
director of Scope Communications - who was seen catapulting himself into
the arms of colleagues on the central circular stage. In front of the
remaining revellers in the Grosvenor Hotel’s Grand Room, the diminutive
Maxwell clung on to work-mates while he was spun around the platform.
‘Since 1978 my party trick has been to leap into the arms of
unsuspecting colleagues,’ explains Maxwell. ‘I’ve covered most of the
board including Richard Aldwinkle [deputy chief executive] who
consistently drops me, and our clients. The idea is to catch me and
then throw me off. I then used to do a somersault’
No doubt his PR gymnsastics will continue in the office.
