Mark Comments in the Press.
With a keen eye for cultural trends and a depth of insight honed through years of experience in the public eye, Mark stands as a beacon of clarity in a world often shrouded in confusion.
Mark’s commentary is both thought-provoking and incisive, inviting audiences to see beyond the surface and engage with the complexities of our times.
Danny Boyle and the Power of Risk
Picture the scene: mad lefty Irishman Danny Boyle speaks to a panel of landed prime ministers, landed wannabe prime ministers, bureaucrats, eurocrats and Seb Coe, a menswear salesman pretending to be a Lord. His proposal? That, as the eyes of the world rest on London and a thousand dignitaries deliberate where to put their cash, we open our hard-won Olympic games with a kind of New Labour Cirque Du Soleil. There will be Mike Oldfield, there will be peasants, sheep, fluorescent bird costumes and the Arctic Monkeys. The NHS will be celebrated, the Empire ignored. Mark Rylance will figure more…
My Thoughts on The Olympic Torch Fiasco from Early June
The Mail’s furore at the Olympic torch sponsor-gate is misplaced. It’s emerged that, whilst a large proportion of torch bearers are the promised saintly examples of youthful attainment and inspiration, a few are portly middle managers called Kevin, whose achievements stretch little further than turning up to work for a company whose coffers are helping fund the relay. To which I say, what did you expect? It’s reasonable to want to have a go on a toy you’re paying for. The issue here isn’t sponsorship in sport, it’s the way that sponsorship is sold to the public. According to official…
Mark to Debut ‘Adventure Capitalism- a User’s Guide’ At Solo Theatre Festival
Mark will perform a brand new talk on the concept of adventure capitalism- from Kittenger to Ken Dodd, from Pony Express to Startup Billionaires- as part of London’s first festival of Solo Theatre. Joining an illustrious bill of star performers from stage and business alike, Mark will explain and elucidate how to preserve a sense of purpose and suppress the bullshit in the world of extreme entrepreneurialism.
Tuesday 22nd May: Mark to Lend Storytelling Expertise to Unilever
Mark is to speak at Unilever’s forthcoming event, ‘telling stories in a digital world’. Enlisted for his famous- and occasionally infamous- track record of creating stories which inflame public conversation, Mark will be advising and educating global marketing teams on how best to craft brand stories through digital platforms. In the new economy, information arises and alters at an incredible rate. Mark will demonstrate how to form, shape, deliver and respond to these digital stories. The event will take place on Tuesday 22nd May at 11:20
Thursday, June 14th, 2012: Mark to Sell in the Apocalypse with Marcus Brigstocke
As part of the Cheltenham Science Festival, Mark will be taking part in a panel discussion, titled ‘Marketing the Apocalypse’ and chaired by comedian and popular commentator Marcus Brigstocke, on the marketing methods of environmental movements. Alongside prominent environmentalist Tony Juniper and Climate Scientist Mark Maslin, Mark will lend his insights on the importance of creative communications strategies in the new economy to this uniquely pertinent and highly controversial debate. The event will take place On Thursday, June 14th, 2012 at 12:00
O2 takes Priority over BT
I was tipped off the other day to a scandalous instance of brand karaoke. As those readers involved with the marketing or events worlds, or anyone who simply likes going to gigs, may know, O2 are pioneers in the priority ticketing space. O2 Priority is a fantastically successful scheme (brainchild of the fantastic head of music sponsorship Jasmine Skee) which, when combined with highly impactful online material like Academy TV, is a recipe for inspirational ticket sales. The other day, BT decided, bizarrely, to attempt to take ownership of this much-beloved brand, with promoted tweets advertising advance tickets to LondonLive…
22nd November: Mark Borkowski to Deliver Presentation at Microsoft's Imagine 2011 London
This November 22nd, Microsoft will seek to excite and entice key customers with a major, thought-leading conference: Imagine 2011 London, featuring a 40 minute presentation from Mark Borkowski. Microsoft are taking major shifts towards constructing and presenting a clear brand narrative, and Mark will be helping them on their way with a presentation about how true and truthful narratives can boost brands, build profiles and shift units. This will be packaged with insight on the history of storytelling and examples from Mark’s years in the thick of celebrity and the media to deliver a resounding, thought provoking and thoroughly entertaining…
21st November: Mark Borkowski to Feature as Expert Speaker at 'Handpicked Media Gets Social'
On 21st November, Mark will feature as an expert speaker at Handpicked Media Gets Social, Handpicked Media’s largest blogging event to date, at RIBA in London. Mark will be helping hordes of top bloggers grow their profiles- and their readership- with an innovative and entertaining presentation on the power of the brand narrative. Mark will provide the perspective of a seasoned PR professional and current industry thought leader to drive the ambition and understanding of these talented writers to new heights.
10th November: Mark Borkowski to Speak at Gateshead 'Marketing- The Art Of' Conference
On November 10th, Mark will be delivering a Key Note speech at this year’s ‘Marketing, the Art Of’ conference in Gateshead, where he’ll be unleashing a powerful address on the true, transparent brand narrative. The conference this year focuses on the rise of digital marketing. Mark will argue that, with the rise of social media and other online forums, everyone is now a commentator. As such, it has never been more important to co-ordinate communications strategies into the kind of coherent, flexible, responsive narrative that PRs understand better than anyone. Illustrated with examples from the arts, and backed up with…
Murdoch in a spin cycle.
From the start, apologies and contrite statements fell out of the mouths of Rupert and James Murdoch, but father and son were at times incredibly shaky before the parliamentary committee. “The head honchos of News Corp looked somewhat ill-prepared, and with Rupert Murdoch struggling to answer some of the questions put to him, one began to feel sympathy for the octogenarian. Thoughts that this was a deliberate tactic seem ludicrous. I am not sure any crisis specialist would have suggested Rupert should play the befuddled role. “Rupert became stronger as the hearing reached its end, but the story that keeps…
PR Fail of the Week: Dyer Straits
Danny Dyer’s been cut from his role as Zoo magazine’s Agony Uncle after apparently dishing out a receipe for vengeance instead of advice – his column advised one dumped correspondent to “cut your ex’s face, and then no one will want her” if all other options failed. So is this a “regrettable production error”, as the magazine insists, or a full-scale PR fail? Dyer claims he was misquoted, but his protestations have been lost in the tsunami of complaint – and, unsurprisingly, Dyer’s lost his job. What grabs me, though, is the possible conspiracy theories implicit in this. Did someone…
Looks Like We Got Ourselves a Reader!
A pal sent this snap to Borkowski Towers. I am excited and delighted to have discovered evidence of the person who bought my book – now, I wonder who she is?
Celebrity, Brands and Risk
I’m taking part in a couple of debates in the next few days. First up is Risky Business: Risk and Reputation, an early morning debate on the nature of risk, this Thursday, February 11th, at the Cass Business School. Given the year just gone and the way the financial crisis has played out, it should be an interesting and possibly heated debate
Rage, machines and hopes for 2010
Joe McElderry has lost out to Rage Against the Machine – it seems that a significant proportion of the British record-buying public really have turned on Simon Cowell and given him a festive slap under the miseltoe. It’s an upset, but its significance lies in what the power of the Internet might achieve next. Motivational balladry versus an old, shouty agit pop record should cause a few smiles and quite a few more spluttering grannies in front of Top of the Pops on Christmas morning, but it won’t change the world. But the methods to get said agit pop record…
A Day in the Life of Tony Kaye in a Nissan Cube – the movie!
Here are two brilliant three minute films of highlights from last Friday’s adventures through London with Tony Kaye in a fleet of Nissan Cubes. Everything was filmed on Flip HD cameras. Read the blogs, linked here, for more information.
Tony Kaye's Cube-top Concert
A perfect close to the day, before zooming off to the Cube Store in Brick Lane; Tony Kaye gives a Cube-top show atop a Nissan Cube outside the Tate. Cue startled passers-by, unfazed cabbies, bewildered Big Issue sellers and a few arched eyebrows. In the Nissan Cube, an interesting conversation ensues about how to walk the line between art and commerce. Bob Dylan knows how to do it, according to Tony, but Lennon stepped too far towards art and politics for comfort. Also intriguing was the discussion about Marlon Brando’s acting lessons at Michael Jackson’s Neverland ranch. There’s recordings of…
Installed at Tate Britain
From the comfort of a Nissan Cube straight to anarchy at Tate Britain! Here are the photos of Tony Kaye installing himself at the gallery that the Tate’s wardens of policy were loath to allow! Plus one message of hope at the entrance to the Tate…
On the way to Tate Britain
Kabbalah, Tony claims, has given him the technology of creativity. “The Kabbalah has a very healthy attitude towards sex – it’s an important thing!” Now we’re on the way to Tate Britain in the Nissan Cube. The Tate is a mystical place for Tony. He took a homeless man called Roger off the street and installed him there. The first place of Roger’s installation was at the Saatchi gallery – he was thrown out of there so Tony housed him at Tate Britain. People came looking for him, were intrigued by the idea – and at times outraged. A homeless…
Stage invasion at the NFT
Tony pretty much lived at the NFT in the early 80s. “This was my film school! I’d spend all day here – it was fantastic. It took me a ling time to understand the structure of a film. He was weaned on Hollywood biblical epics, so the experimental films were a steep, exciting learning curve We skate into NFT screen 1, unsettling the woman who’s just about to open it for a screening. Everything seems bigger in memory, according to Tony as he stands on the stage, watched by bewildered members of a gathering film audience. This memory of hugeness…