YO!
Back in the early Noughties, I was looking to edge out of my sportswriting pigeon hole and noticed that the new men’s magazine, JACK, had a regular business Q&A slot,…
Read moreTwo Willie Thornes
I was very sad to hear about the passing of Willie Thorne. As a young man studying at Loughborough University but dreaming of becoming a snooker player at the…
Read moreHello Monkie Kid!
A brand-new LEGO theme was launched in China yesterday and worldwide today: LEGO Monkie Kid. I wrote all the product texts you’ll see on LEGO.com for this theme and I love…
Read moreThe Biannual Barnes Blog
When I finally got around to building my website a year ago, I asked a few friends and work colleagues to take a look before taking it live. I made a number of…
Read moreAnd it’s all LEGO…
So, the first of my two major seasons of LEGO copywriting is drawing to a close. Over the past three months, I’ve written sales copy for precisely 96 products across…
Read moreHustlin’ with Pagulayan
In the early Noughties, I spent some very enjoyable times travelling around the world reporting on 9-ball pool events. As a former professional snooker player (a highly unsuccessful one, I…
Read moreDirecting Ronaldo
It was and remains the most expensive photo shoot I’ve ever been involved in. It also represented a huge act of faith. Not only because of the money involved…
Read moreGiggs will tear you apart
Ryan Giggs announced his retirement for playing today. I was lucky enough to spend over a decade – from the early Nineties to the early Noughties – working in various roles for…
Read moreMurray nomination
Nice to hear Headline’s Sunday Times bestselling book, Seventy Seven, by 2013 Wimbledon champion Andy Murray, has been shortlisted for Illustrated Book of the Year in the 2014 British Sports…
Read more(One of) Two Boys in a Boat
Aside from work for publishers and copywriting agencies, I occasionally get asked to help out on personal projects. Last winter, I got chatting to a neighbour, Rod Sparks, at our…
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