A cup of tea with new trustee Charlotte Bush

We’re delighted to welcome a new addition to our board of trustees: Charlotte Bush brings to the board a wealth of PR experience. We caught up with her over a cup of tea to ask her a few questions.

ITT: Could you tell us a little bit about your background please? Is the world of PR terribly glamorous?

Charlotte Bush: I work at Penguin Random House book publishers – I’d love to say that my job is glamorous and there are some elements which are but for the most part it really isn’t – I’ve been known to mop up reindeer wee at a press call… I lead a team of publicists and our role is to generate interest in our books and authors, organise interviews and events.  I’ve worked in publishing for the last 20 years, initially as a Picture Researcher, before moving into PR.

ITT: What sort of projects do you most enjoy promoting?

CB: One of the best things about my job is the total variety – I have promoted books as diverse as Fifty Shades of Grey and Bill Clinton’s autobiography.  We publish a huge range of books and I’m lucky to work for a successful publisher alongside some amazing colleagues.

ITT: What made you agree to become a trustee?

CB: We have an excellent Learning and Development team at Penguin Random House and they put together a Creative Leadership Programme for staff.  The programme had three modules and one element was the opportunity to work with a charity over two days.  I chose the Irene Taylor Trust but to be honest didn’t really know what to expect.  I’ve worked for a variety of companies over the years so I know how lucky I am to have the support of a large organisation so I knew working with a charity would be a huge eye opener and it was!  But I was blown away by the team and the work ITT does and was so honoured when I was invited to become a trustee.

ITT: What are you excited about getting your teeth into with us?

CB: I’m really excited about the anniversary and really hope I can use my contacts to spread the word about the work the Trust does.  I’m also looking forward to understanding more about how the organisation works as a whole.

ITT: Are you musical? Is there a piece of music or song that has particularly inspired you?

CB: I have no musical ability whatever.  Inspirational music is such a tough question – I feel uplifted and inspired by all sorts of music – and you know what, I’m not picking one song!

ITT: What do you like to get up to in your spare time?

CB: I go to a lot of gigs so that’s my main nocturnal pursuit and my other main passion is art.  Well that and food – cooking and eating.

ITT: What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given? 

CB: Smile and the world will smile with you!  I suspect it is a but of a publicist thing but it is part of the job to be positive and I’m a strong believer in that kind of energy.

ITT: Thanks Charlotte, we’ll give it a try!