Oxo

To the Oxo Tower on Monday for a "Meet the Specialist Press" event. I have to say that when we have run these in the past we have used awful halls, served fairly mediocre nibbles and lukewarm chardonnay and only ever attracted the real enthusiasts from less mainstream publications. So I trudged along with a sense of duty and a heavy heart but this time it was great. There were lots of people, edible food and drinkable drink and there was a real buzz to the occasion.
Spent some time talking to a Daily Mail specialist journalist and when I mentioned this to someone the response was, "Wow, that's great. We expect the Indy and the Guardian to come but it's a good sign if The Mail have turned up!!"

It was all very encouraging and the vibe is very different to four years ago. Clearly the party has a lot more money and a lot more support and being taken a lot more seriously by the media.