According to an insider, who shall remain both anonymous and decidedly shadowy, Sir Bern had written to invite high-flying members of the PR fraternity to the Town Hall for some drinks, nibbles and gentle probing on Monday evening.

The probing was to gauge opinion, insight and help with the hugely laudable New Manchester Children’s Hospital Appeal, part of the wider £420m New Hospital Development for the city and its environs.

How-Do readers may expect that this would provide a great opportunity for PRs to get associated with a high profile local charity push – giving them column inches, kudos and warm cuddly feelings a plenty.

Apparently, however, this wasn’t the case.

According to the nameless informant, the great and the good of the city’s public relations glitterati pretty much failed to show up (apparently 60% were absent), leaving a “visibly annoyed” Sir HB, well, pretty visibly annoyed really.

Our mole proceeded to reel off names of the transgressors, which we’ll refrain from doing, but, if true, they did add up to some of Manchester’s best-known and most vocal firms.

“A fantastically moving address from Phil Neville’s wife put the gloss on a great evening,” they said. “The message was that the PR community had a unique network and could do a great deal to get the charity towards the £20m target. Just a pity so few people bothered to turn up and listen to it.

“We’re not often invited into the corridors of power and influence and I’d guess we won’t be again for some time!”

He/she added that the host was now set to write to the non-guests and ask for an explanation of sorts.

“The PR community’s shot itself in the foot here,” they noted in conclusion, before muffling something that could have been “with a fucking bazooka.”

http://www.newchildrenshospitalappeal.org.uk/

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