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Well done Tom Winsor.

You might remember he was the rail regulator a few years ago, and thus subject to many media grillings.  These days he comments on regulatory issues, turning up on programmes like Radio 4’s Today.

What a wheeze he had recently when he appeared live in the studio to be quizzed by James Naughtie about the BP oil disaster. Naughty Tom decided to pack a set of his own home-made crib cards, but didn’t deploy them on cribbing. Instead he displayed them to the puzzled presenter during the course of the interview. One card taunted: “Don’t rush me, I’m almost finished.” Another proclaimed: “You don’t really expect me to answer that, do you?” And a third simply yawned: “I got up a 5.30 for this?”

James Naughtie is reported to suffered a sense of humour failure as Winsor ploughed on through the deck, answering oily questions along the way. Ever the professional, Naughtie ensured a seamless interview, with no listeners the wiser of any studio antics. Even Winsor’s card: “I’ve had enough of this, I’m off,” didn’t cause Naughtie to spill the beans to his audience. Nor did: “I’ve lost the power of speech; carry on without me!”

The cards now adorn the walls of the Today production office. No news yet on whether Tom Winsor is ever to be invited back, nor what his next trick will be. It’s a risky media relations strategy, to say the least. But rather fun too.

John Francis Crowley (born April 7, 1967) is an American biotechnology executive and entrepreneur. He is best-known as the founder of several biotech companies devoted to curing genetic diseases. After his two youngest children were diagnosed with Pompe Disease, Crowley became the CEO of Oklahoma City-based Novazyme, a biotechnology start-up that was conducting research on a new experimental treatment for the disease.

In April 2009, CBS Films began filming this major motion picture about the Crowley family's quest to save their children's lives. The film, titled Extraordinary Measures was released nationwide on January 22, 2010. Directed by Tom Vaughan, Extraordinary Measures stars Brendan Fraser as John Crowley and Keri Russell as Aileen Crowley, and also executive producer Harrison Ford as "Dr. Robert Stonehill" who is a character based on Dr. William Canfield. John Crowley has also written a personal memoir entitled Chasing Miracles: The Crowley Family Journey of Strength, Hope and Joy, coauthored with Ken Kurson. It was published by New Market Press in January 2010 to coincide with the release of Extraordinary Measures.

SAV Media's recent interview with John Crowley make compelling viewing

[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vMDg8m38LaI 373x226]

Exeter-based SAV Media, the video production and media training company headed by former ITV news and sport presenter Mark Tyler, has created a series of short films for a major international business that works with some of the world’s most influential business leaders.

The “Five-Minute Mentor” videos, for London and New York-based consultancy Merryck & Co, feature world-class speakers, including a former vice chairman of the US intelligence agency the CIA, the head of a pharmaceutical company whose story has just been turned into a feature film starring Kevin Costner, and a professor from London Business School who helps companies thrive in difficult economic times.

Mark Tyler says: “We filmed the whole two-and-a-half day conference, as well as making the “Five-Minute Mentor” films, which will be used to explain how business leaders can face the challenges of the future.”

You can watch the films on the MerryckTV YouTube channel, but here's an example featuring Herb Meyer, a former CIA strategist. Herb's views on the 'new normal' are fascinating

[video:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9n7iMlWAJY 373x226]