Meeting my TV and movie idol? It’s all in a day’s work at our Scottish PR agency

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Katie Hogg recounts the day she spent with Hollywood star Michael Sheen during a successful PR campaign

Michael Sheen Castle Community Bank Katie Hogg Seb Regnier Successful PR campaign

A GLASS of celebration bubbly? Check. Clutching the hottest ticket in town? Check. Rubbing shoulders with a Hollywood A-lister? Check.

 Or as I like to think of it, just another day at the office.

In fact, when people think that #PRlife involves endless lunches, glamour and hobnobbing with the rich and famous, they are sadly mistaken. However, every now and then the misconception is actually true.

PR Photography shares images of Michael Sheen's appearance in Leith - Holyrood PRFor me that was the case when I got the chance to meet Michael Sheen – the actor I grew up watching as a fictional vampire in the Twilight series of films and as Lucian the werewolf in Underworld.

Given that I was already totally star struck by the Welsh actor, imagine how much he has gone up in my estimation after he brought a touch of Hollywood stardust to Leith – as part of a campaign to help root out real life bloodsuckers and horror figures.

It turns out Mr Sheen is a passionate advocate for stamping out costly credit and payday loans by championing more affordable credit for those on the breadline.  In short, he wants to help root out the evil of runaway debt in our communities. He recently even launched his End High Cost Credit Alliance, backing fair finance providers and not-for-profit loan organisations.

My chance to meet the actor came around because I was lucky enough to be part of the team working on behalf of the Edinburgh-based credit union, Castle Community Bank, when Sheen agreed to cut the ribbon at the opening of its new branch in Great Junction Street.


HOLLYWOOD star Michael Sheen helped Castle Community Bank to enjoy an outstanding selection of positive media coverage – after he officially opened its new branch in Leith, Edinburgh. Check out the results we achieved for this campaign


As you might expect, I was a bag of nerves as I was ushered into his presence and finally got the chance to meet Michael (as I now call him) in person. My jitters were not helped by his agent jokingly introducing me as a “super fan”, which I suspects sounds pretty much the same as “stalker” to famous folk.

PR Photography of actor Michael Sheen for our Scottish PR agencyHowever, the movie star – who has appeared in hits including Frost/Nixon and The Queen – was charm personified. In fact, he was everything you hope your famous role models will be.

During his visit to Castle Community Bank he was smiling, approachable, friendly and completely without the diva attitude which some celebs seem to think is essential.  On the street outside the new branch, Sheen was accosted by a variety of ordinary Leithers – and every time he smilingly stopped to chat, pose for selfies and chew the fat.

He was also a champ when it came to working with the media. A long list of reporters and photographers turned up, each wanting their moment with the actor – and he bent over backwards to oblige.

Despite the hordes of excited fans and busy proceedings, the Passengers star could not have been more down to earth. And while the day was a huge personal milestone for me, I’m delighted to say it was a triumph for all the parties involves.

Castle Community Bank gained a bucket-load of positive media coverage thanks to the phalanx of reporters and cameramen who turned up. Meantime, the team here at Holyrood PR were basking in the glow of praise from both Michael’s team and the dedicated team of staff and volunteers at Castle Community Bank.

PR Photography of actor Michael SheenIn a short period of just two weeks, we delivered a successful PR campaign which achieved at least 30 significant items of media coverage across print, digital and broadcast creating almost 3.5 million opportunities for people to see positive messages about the work of the credit union.

Even better though, Castle Community Bank saw a huge rise in the numbers of people coming through its doors to apply for loans and find out about its services. Result.

Of course, the biggest and best result of all was that lucky old Michael finally got to meet his number one fan. If you’re reading this Michael, there’s just one wee thing though – you still don’t seem to have accepted my Instagram request…

Are you in need of a successful PR campaign?

While we can’t promise you Michael Sheen, we can promise you access to our expert team of storytellers, who simply love putting your name in lights.

Best bit is, we do it in a way that boosts your bottom line and helps smash key business objectives, while making for a happier workplace.

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