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Tesco Mum of the Year 2012

By Spark and Fuse on March 14, 2012

Pixie Lott, Lee Ryan, Dionne Bromfield

It was our intention to blog throughout Tesco Mum of the Year. What on earth were we thinking? There was barely time to eat and sleep over the weekend, let alone write detailed accounts about exactly what we were doing. For anyone who missed the extensive press coverage, Tesco Mum of the Year took place on Sunday at the Waldorf Hilton in central London. It represented a year’s worth of work and by heck it was good, even if we do say so ourselves.

Our team arrived at the hotel on Saturday to meet the winning mums and their families and help get them prepared for the big day. We already knew the mums’ stories and there were moments when we genuinely struggled to hold back tears knowing what a few of these women had been through.

We worked throughout the day to finalise the finer details for Sunday and facilitate late celebrity requests, juggle room allocation and ensure our plans for the big day were precise.

When Sunday arrived we were beyond excitement – all our work was about to fall into place and everything would finally come together. It was full on from the minute we got out of bed and started zipping our way through the schedule – styling, hair and make-up, security, more rehearsals, gossiping with Fiona Phillips, photo shoots, sound checks, taxis, checking riders and table plans. And as soon as we saw the sheer volume of paparazzi waiting outside on the red carpet we knew it had all been worth it. TOWIE’s Amy Childs attended as did Pixie Lott with her mum and boyfriend Oliver Cheshire. Sinitta brought her mum (they are both absolutely gorgeous) and the legend that is Arlene Phillips came with her daughter. Denise Lewis and Cherry Healey were totally charming and think what you like about Lee Ryan, the kids loved him!

Highlights of the event included meeting the winning celebrity mum, Gabby Logan, who was just so lovely, seeing both Estelle and Dionne Bromfield perform live, and accidentally catching a celebrity’s dad in his pants (don’t ask). But ultimately, it was an absolute honour to meet women who have made such a big difference to the lives of others and to create a wonderful moment in which their achievements were recognised. Ladies, we salute you.

The fiX Factor

By Sarah Burns on December 6, 2010

Mary Byrne

Yet further X Factor controversy.  More accusations of vote fixing and rule breaking. As fans of the show, we recall that the finalists are ordinarily decided by the public vote. But the semi-final hosted a sing off between Tesco Mary and Dot Cotton (Cher) with the judging panel deciding on their fate rather than the public. Fans of the show are outraged with forums and certain newspapers claiming that the programme format was changed to ensure that Cher wasn’t booted off. On Saturday night Dermot told viewers that it was their vote alone that would decide the fate of the final and therefore fans now feel cheated. A show’s spokesperson commented, ‘as the show evolves there are always changes to format.’  

We always tell our clients that it’s unacceptable to change the judging criteria or rules of a live competition to affect its outcome, and that amends of this kind will attract criticism and bad publicity. The ongoing saga of The X Factor only proves this. While the column inches dedicated to its alleged vote fixing will fuel public interest, it will also generate further bad feeling amongst its fans.