In the Driving Seat: Paul Clarke, Managing Director, Automotive Comms – and the NAA newsletter Editor
This is your chance to find out more about Paul Clarke, who runs Automotive Comms and Green Car Guide, and produces your NAA newsletter every month.
Name
Paul Clarke
Company
Automotive Comms
Position
Managing Director
Apart from that
Also run the (recently re-launched) website www.GreenCarGuide.co.uk
Member of the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership
Member of the Northern Group of Motoring Writers
Association with NAA
Have produced the NAA e-newsletter for around three years, also assist with other elements of NAA communication, including for NAA and BE member companies. Want to see the car industry thriving in the North West and the UK.
Personal
Partner is Sian, with five-year old daughter Mia. Spent 12 years as an officer with the Territorial Army (mainly in the transport bit). Hobbies used to be mountain walking, mountain biking, and generally staying fit – until everyone had children. Now spend most time ferrying five year olds to parties. If there is any other spare time, can often be found sneaking off to test cars, usually on some brilliant Welsh roads and off-road routes.
Favourite football team
Why would anyone watch football when motorsport (such as rallying, NOT Formula 1) is more interesting?!
Musical performer
Lots of excellent musical performers out there, but still hard to beat Queen (possibly showing my age…).
Movie
No question, The Lord of the Rings. Also, although it may not be a movie, recently discovered Homeland on DVD. If you’ve not seen it, stop whatever you’re doing and go and buy the box set, it’s amazing.
Books
The Lord of the Rings. If that answer isn’t allowed again, then Private Eye (yes they publish books as well as magazines).
Best motoring moment
Ah. We’ve come to this question. Very, very privileged to be a motoring journalist, even a part-time one, as there’s usually a best motoring moment every week. Recently spent two days driving the new BMW M235i and 435i Convertible (and the 60mpg ‘green’ diesel versions) through some incredible mountain roads in Spain that resemble racetracks. Relevant to this newsletter, drove a Jaguar F-Type V8S in the Cholmondeley Pageant of Power last year (see photo). Also spent a number of years playing with some of the military’s best off-road machinery. But even having done eight years of motoring journalism, and twelve years with the military, probably the best motoring moment was driving a Toyota Hi-Lux 4×4 across Kenya for three weeks. Nothing like being under your own steam, with such a capable go-anywhere vehicle, in such an amazing place.
Best business advice you’ve ever received?
A few years ago completed Anthony Robbins’ (the ‘guru’ with ‘banana hands’ in the film Shallow Hal) Mastery University (involves some American happy-clappy stuff). Could fill pages and pages with business and general life learnings from that course, but my own personal take on all this is that you spend around a third of your life working, so for goodness sake do something that you’re passionate about and where you can make a difference.
