Much has been written about Thierry Henry this week.

Has he forever lost his va va voom? Will his reputation recover from the ‘Hand of Frog’ drama?

Is he the new Maradona? Will the nation of Ireland ever forgive him?

(No, yes, no, no - as you ask).

It’s not been the best of weeks for the Frenchman, ain’t that the truth. But is it really Armageddon?

I think not.

In my opinion and as quoted in PR Week, the Thierry Henry brand is not irreversibly damaged.

Damaged? Yes for sure but he will recover.

Thierry is a hero in France whose football fans witnessed their captain play to the whistle and arguably use his nous to secure a victory for his team. The incident is a far wider indictment of the sport and what is at stake nowadays (in this case, national pride and a place in The World Cup); cheating is nothing new in sport unfortunately.

Henry would have preferred to have scored a controversy-free belter to secure his country’s fate. That goes without saying. But the unpredictable nature of sport throws up the unexpected. Like most rational sportsfans, I didn’t like what I saw and I wish the referee had seen, during the game itself, what the rest of the world has since watched over and over again. But he didn’t. C’est la vie.

For Thierry, his value to sponsors, and I am talking in the long term, will not irretrievably suffer although I would not envisage too many Irish companies beating down the door of Henry’s agent this week offering brand endorsements.

There will be those who don’t agree with me. Fine, great, I love a good debate but let’s put it in perspective shall we?

Henry is French, plays his football in Spain (for Barcelona), has global cross-gender appeal and as Arsenal’s greatest goal scorer, he will always be a legend in England. He is a gifted footballer and an eloquent individual. The 2010 World Cup is likely to be his last and he played a highly visible role in ensuring himself one last shot at the biggest prize in football. Gillette, for whom Henry is a global brand ambassador, has said on record the incident will not affect their relationship with him.

As a role model to millions and a footballer who was widely perceived to demonstrate true sporting values, his biggest crime was missing the opportunity to right a wrong and show genuine sportsmanship on the pitch immediately after the incident. His reputation may forever be tarnished by that decision but his commercial value in the long term, as one of the most dazzling players of his generation, I believe will hold firm.

By Stephanie Branston on November 20th, 2009

Tags: Football, Public relations, Sponsorship, World Cup

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Jenson Button had a dream last Friday night that he would have a bad qualifying session in Brazil but do enough in the race to win the F1 World Championship.
And so he did.

Button added his name to the history books over the weekend. The first ever English back-to-back world championship win the sport has witnessed. All of this happening in just the first season of Brawn’s existence, a fairytale for the team. The charismatic and handsome Button is now in an enviable position. With a wealth of experience, the support of a strong team around him, a model girlfriend on his arm, this year’s BBC Sports Personality of the Year a shoe-in and the likelihood of tens of millions of pounds to follow through sponsorship and endorsements, it all rounds off the year rather nicely for him.

And the best thing? He seems like a really nice guy to boot.

Jenson is a PR dream and a hark back to the old days of work hard, play hard F1 drivers. His earning potential is certainly set to rocket so long as he continues to perform on the track. As well as his success in the car, Jenson’s personality, charisma and good looks will help to make him a global bankable star. If he wins next year’s World Championship, he will almost certainly become the highest paid British sportsman.

Interestingly, he is not currently contracted to a team for next year. His negotiating powers right now are surely at a premium, especially having taken a severe pay cut to race for Brawn this season. For brands and future sponsors, Jenson is a very attractive investment. He is a popular figure, a leader amongst his team, speaks well, is well educated and glamorous and is also close to his family (his father attends every race). He is perceived to be more modest than Lewis Hamilton, more approachable and has a real sense of fun. Couldn’t have imagined writing this a year ago but Jenson could very well end up as the more successful of the two British drivers. It may have taken Jenson ten seasons to arrive at this stage (compared to Hamilton’s two) but Button is viewed by many as the more consistent and even tempered driver.

Certainly it will be interesting to watch what he does next from a sponsorship perspective. In F1, most brands are sponsors of the team, not the individual drivers. There are occasions of drivers having individual sponsors – Jenson himself has a personal deal with the (number 1 by volume-sales energy drink in the US) Monster Energy. However, what his manager may well be doing at the moment is looking at long-term opportunities for Jenson to take an ambassadorial role with existing team sponsors - something Lewis Hamilton has done very successfully with brands like Hugo Boss and Tag Heuer. We shall see.

For the time being, Jenson is back in the UK to fulfil sponsor activities (Virgin Media’s SpeedWeek50 campaign, as you asked) before the end of season finale in Abu Dhabi next month which will finish off one hell of a dream season.

By Stephanie Branston on October 20th, 2009

Tags: BBC, Formula 1, Jenson Button, Lewis Hamilton, Public relations, Sponsorship

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So there it is, all over. 100 days and 2400 people later; today marks the final day of Antony Gormley’s live art installation ‘One & Other’.

34,520 people applied; 1208 men and 1192 women aged between 16 and 84 were randomly selected to take part. People from every walk of life from across the UK, spent an hour alone on the empty plinth in Trafalgar Square creating a collective portrait of humanity.

And not a single ‘celebrity’ or former Big Brother contestant in sight.
Marvellous.

The project - the focus of articles, photos, tweets and blogs well before the first person took to the plinth on 6th July 2009 – has been deemed a success. In Gormley’s own words, “Whether you see the plinth as a protest or pole-dance platform; studio or stocks; playpen or pulpit; as a frame for interrogation or for meditation, it has provided an open space of possibility for many to test their sense of self and how they might communicate this to a wider world.”

So did we like it? The art critics did not.
Me? I loved it.

I first wrote about the project last July on this very blog. I didn’t get picked in the ballot but I have enjoyed watching those who did, including three people I know. ‘A snapshot of Britain’, the creation has been described as. Well certainly it showed off the great British sense of humour - as well as raising over £24,000 for charity through plinthers performances.

A brief snapshot of just a few of the plinthers who caught my eye:
- A modern day naturist Lady Godiva astride a child’s rocking horse in only a pair of boots (Gormley himself had said that ‘he would be very upset if somebody didn’t take their clothes off’)
- A 26 year old dressed as a giant turd in a plea for cleaner water, resulting in some nice PR & awareness for Water Aid
- A Stringfellow’s dancer whose pole dancing performance apparently caused the Sky Arts website to crash
- An 8ft Godzilla
- A bent over skin-tight morph suit
- A number of folk advertising themselves in a ‘Give me a Job’ bid to gain work most of which resulted in employment
- The girl who led an impressive flash-mob audience in a world-record bid for the most people dancing to Thriller (Michael Jackson, RIP, would have been proud).

The list goes on. Right up to the very final plinther, Emma Burns from Liverpool who used the last hour of the people’s plinth (08.00-09.00 today) to remember the victims of the Hillsborough disaster.

The good, the bad, the ugly and the downright bizarre have all been up there.

The art critics may not have raved about it.
Stuff ‘em.

Over 720,000 people watched online - a huge figure for an arts website - with 7.5 million page impressions during the 100 days. And the project will live on through a TV documentary due to be screened on Sky Arts; a book produced by Random House; and within the walls of the Wellcome Library who plan to store the footage and interviews with every participant for future historians and academics.

Antony Gormley never actually made it onto the plinth having been rejected four times in the public ballot (and refusing to insist on a slot). One suspects he won’t mind. Without a shadow of a doubt, he will be kept busy over the coming months regardless, his profile further elevated by the successful way in which One & Other has truly brought art to the masses. And if you need further persuasion, take 4mins out of your day - right now- and have a watch of the final highlights video on Sky Arts. It’s emotive stuff.

- Next month, Sir Keith Park, a Battle of Britain hero will take to the Fourth Plinth in a more conventional memorial statue format

By Stephanie Branston on October 14th, 2009

Tags: Blogging, Communications, Flash mobbing, Media, Public relations, The Arts

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If you’re fortunate enough to be flying First Class with British Airways this month, be sure to have a flick through the First Life magazine. This issue offers a truly unique opportunity to win a bottle (one of only 15 in the world) of the 35 Year Old Ballantine’s Championship blend.

For the world’s No. 2 Scotch whisky, the unique Scotch represents the first time in history that anyone outside the company’s expert team has collaborated with a Master Blender. Having won last year’s inaugural Ballantine’s Championship in South Korea, European Ryder Cup star Graeme McDowell (G-Mac as he’s known to his fans) was invited by Ballantine’s to help create an exclusive blend with their Master Blender Sandy Hyslop - to commemorate the second Ballantine’s Championship which took place last month. A great opportunity for McDowell to leave an impression within the whisky community and for Ballantine’s to really bring their golf sponsorship to life across their global markets.  

Of the limited edition bottles made, Graeme took one back to his home town of Portrush. One was presented to Thongchai Jaidee, the charismatic Thai golfer and eventual winner of the 2009 Ballantine’s Championship. Another was auctioned at the tournament’s Opening Ceremony on Jeju Island, South Korea, reaching a staggering $11,000. An anonymous businessman, based in Seoul, successfully bid for the bottle.

Only 15 bottles were made due to the scarcity of the whiskies contained in the blend which makes the bottle available in First Life all the more precious. If I hadn’t placed the promotion myself, rest assured I would be entering daily.

NB. Given Thongchai does not drink alcohol, I suspect that it’s highly unlikely there will be a Ballantine’s Jaidee blend ahead of the 2010 Championship…shame.

Thongchai Jaidee, winner of the 2009 Ballantine's Championship, South Korea

By Stephanie Branston on May 27th, 2009

Tags: Alcohol, Default, Golf, Public relations, Sponsorship

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In one of the most touching tributes to celebrate the life of children’s TV presenter Tony Hart, over 200 fans gathered outside London’s Tate Modern at the weekend. In recognition of Tony’s much-loved sidekick, the animated character Morph, a flash-mob of plasticene Morphs were displayed on the Southbank, drawing in large crowds throughout the day.

Hart’s legacy touched generations of children who were encouraged to paint and draw over a TV career that spanned 50 years, before his death, at the age of 83, earlier this year.

‘Morph Mob’ was a compliment to Tony’s unflappable “you can do it” approach to art and creativity. Morph was certainly capable of extraordinary feats of metamorphosis and spoke an unintelligible language that only he and Hart seemingly could understand. None of this mattered on Sunday. The event, organised on social networking website Facebook, involved members of the Hart family with Tony’s daughter, Carolyn Williams, invited to judge Best Morph in Show.

Fantastic; flash mobbing at it’s best and in true Tony Hart spirit; the doyen of DIY art.

PS. I’d love to say that Tony Hart inspired me to draw brilliantly from a young age but I have always been a rather hopeless artist and never quite made it into The (infamous) Gallery. I think I tried at least once, as did 6,000 other kids a week apparently. I had no chance.

PPS. One question and I do hope Tony will forgive me. Was Morph a man or a woman? Very difficult to tell on closer inspection…

By Stephanie Branston on March 3rd, 2009

Tags: Facebook, Flash mobbing, Television, The Arts

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I’ve never quite got all the hype around Banksy, the pseudo-anonymous British graffiti artist with an international reputation for his artwork. However, I still like the idea of owning one of his prints especially for the attractive investment of 1p. Thanks to a promotion running with Brahma beers just now, that dream could become a reality, all the more appealing given the current economic climate. Brahma, the most popular cerveja in Brazil which will celebrate its 120th birthday next year, has launched a promotion for one winner to buy, for £0.01, an original print of the ‘Trolleys’, currently being housed at 3, Newburgh Street, London.

Known for his headline making stunts, Banksy’s anti-establishment “cool” has certainly made him highly collectible. Celebrity fans include Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt and Damien Hirst. Always controversial (with no obvious links to Brazil that I’m aware of), it’s not known whether Banksy will be present to hand over the print to the lucky recipient at the secret location on 27th March.

I suspect he won’t but definitely worth a punt (and a pint) regardless.

By Stephanie Branston on March 2nd, 2009

Tags: Alcohol, The Arts

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As a chocolate eating child of the 70s, I’ve always been a fan of KitKat’s adverts. I suspect it’s the ‘Have a Break’ tagline, one of advertising’s most famous slogans. It innocently appeals to the procrastinator in us all. From the Dancing Pandas in the 80s to last year’s launch of the Senses range shamelessly plugged by Girls Aloud, the messaging has always been simple, impactful and memorable.

None more so than the launch of KitKat’s new website earlier this month; a neat idea to turn the increasing bombardment of brand messages, sponsor logos and digital clutter of 2009 on it’s head.

The aptly named www.thefirstworldwidewebsitewherenothinghappens.com does exactly what it says on the tin. No reams of text, video content or flash animation, the site somehow reminds me of the clutter free white England rugby shirts of old. I may not choose to frequent the website more than once or twice but it made me smile and I found it a welcome relief from messaging, pokes, tweeks, second or third lives, microblogging and whatever next threatens to saturate our virtual lives.

My favourite line on the website, and it won’t take you long to find, is at the bottom, ‘If you detect something happening (on this website), it’s probably a bug and we’ll try to fix it’. Joy. 

By Stephanie Branston on February 17th, 2009

Tags: Brand marketing, Digital marketing, Sponsorship, Viral Marketing, YouTube

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Steve Parry; ex-Team GB Olympian, bronze medallist, BBC TV pundit, Michael Phelps look-a-likey.

One of the funniest clips from the Beijing 2008 Olympics. Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy.

By Stephanie Branston on August 20th, 2008

Tags: BBC, Beijing 2008, China, Olympics

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You don’t find many articles that compare Stephen Hendry and Zara Phillips but this is one of the funniest I have read. Scratch the comedy surface and you’ll also find a considered and more serious take on the (much debated) topic of funding for our GB Olympic athletes:
http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/sport/2008/08/09/zaras_horse_sense_beats_allcon.html  

All hail the great and very funny David Mitchell.

By Stephanie Branston on August 11th, 2008

Tags: Beijing 2008, London 2012, Olympics

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There’s not much you can do in 0.028 seconds.

Am sure it takes me significantly longer than that to blink for a start. But for one athlete, that was the difference between reaching her eighth Olympics Games and staying at home next month. Which is sadly where she will be having just missed out on Olympic selection, in what must be her last opportunity at the impressive age of 48. No spring chicken in the world of sprinting. Seven Olympics down, training for her eighth. Sir Steve Redgrave stand aside, this woman means business.

Anyone who like me, used to devour athletics on TV as a young kid in the 1980s, will recall the name Merlene Ottey. The Jamaican-born sprinter is ranked 4th on the list of all time female athletes in the 100m, and 3rd in the 200m rankings. She was always up there on the podium, the Jamaican anthem playing loudly. Well that is until she switched allegiance away from her Caribbean roots (don’t get me started on that subject…choose your country and stick to it in my opinion, however…) Changing her nationality followed a number of controversial years for Ottey in which she fell out with the Jamaica Amateur Athletics Association (JAAA) against team selection disputes and fought to clear her name of suspected anabolic steroid use, charges that she was cleared of in 2000.

2002 was the year Ottey adopted a new country and began to represent her new home of Slovenia, training under Slovenian coach Srdjan Djordjevic. Then it was the Slovenian anthem that would belt out in athletics stadiums around the world. If you ever want to learn more about national anthems, note that Slovenian’s is taken from the 7th stanza of the poem ‘A Toast’ written by France Prešeren in 1844. No idea how the actual tune goes, less reggae undertones than Jamaica’s I imagine.

I digress.

Along with Swedish fencer Kirstin Palm, Ottey is the only woman to have competed at seven Olympic Games; her Olympic career commencing in Moscow in 1980. In five World Championships, she has won 13 medals (three gold, four silver and six bronze medals). In the Olympics, she has won two silver and five bronze medals; more Olympic medals than any other athlete from the Western Hemisphere. Not forgetting being the first female Caribbean athlete to win an Olympic medal. That was pre-Slovenia days mind. In her impressive medal collection, only an Olympic gold medal eludes her.

Call me sentimental but it would have been inspiring to witness Merlene run in Beijing - even had she not qualified for the semi final stages in the sprint events, a feat she succeeded in doing at the age of 44 in Athens. Perhaps I’m feeling particularly sentimental this month having personally witnessed the drama that unfolded at Royal Birkdale when Greg Norman, at the age of 53, threatened to claim one of the least expected sporting victories ever and take home the Claret Jug as Open Champion for a third time. A tournament he last won in 1993. Sadly for Norman, like Ottey, there was to be no fairytale ending in 2008 but regardless I applaud them both for their sheer grit and determination, physical excellence and the ability to (very nearly) defiantly roll back their glory years.

(Ottey failed by 0.028 seconds to reach her eighth Olympic Games, aged 48 in 2008).

By Stephanie Branston on July 29th, 2008

Tags: Athletics, Golf, Olympics

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