 | This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page . (Learn how and when to remove these messages)
|
Lynne Franks | |
|---|---|
 Franks in 2007 | |
| Born | 16 April 1948 London, England |
| Known for | Founded Lynne Franks PR, Campaigner for women's issues |
| Relatives | Josh Howie (son), Jessica Howie (daughter) |
Lynne Joanne Franks [1] OBE (born 16 April 1948) is a communications strategist and writer. She founded a public relations consultancy in the early 1970s.
Franks was born and raised in North London in 1948. The daughter of a Jewish butcher, Franks attended Minchenden Grammar School in Southgate, [2] leaving at the age of 16. She completed a shorthand typing course at Pitman's College and was a regular dancer on the popular music TV programme Ready Steady Go! [3] Franks initially worked in various secretarial jobs before taking a journalistic role at Petticoat , working under Eve Pollard and alongside Janet Street-Porter. [4] Whilst assigned to write and edit the Freemans in-house publications, she met Paul Howie, an Australian fashion buyer and designer, whom she later married. [5]
Following a brief period as a PR assistant, at the encouragement of the fashion designer Katharine Hamnett, Franks started her own PR agency at the age of 21. Her first clients included Hamnett's own fashion business, Tuttabankem, [6] and Wendy Dagworthy. [7] Working initially from her home, the new agency then moved to the Covent Garden area of London. [8] The agency subsequently worked with high street brands including Harvey Nichols and Tommy Hilfiger, [9] [10] and represented individuals such as Jean-Paul Gaultier, Annie Lennox, Lenny Henry and Ruby Wax. [2] [11] Franks PR also worked briefly with the Labour Party in 1986. [12]
In 1984 Franks used her relationship with the Murjani Corporation (owners of Gloria Vanderbilt jeans) to persuade them to sponsor a large fashion tent outside the Commonwealth Institute in Kensington. [13] This helped to grow the then fledgling London Fashion Week. [14] [15]
In October 1993, she stepped down as chairperson [16] [17] [18] to concentrate on broadcasting. [19]
It has been claimed [20] that the character Edina Monsoon in the British sitcom Absolutely Fabulous , created by Jennifer Saunders, a former client of Franks, was intended to be a satirised version of Franks during this period. [21] [22] The claim has been denied by both Franks and Saunders. [23] [24]
In July 1995, Franks chaired a consortium [25] that launched Viva! 963, Britain's first radio station for women, with Franks herself hosting a twice-weekly interview show entitled Frankly Speaking. [26]
In 1997, Franks published her autobiography, Absolutely Now!: A Futurist's Journey to Her Inner Truth, [27] describing Franks' emotional and spiritual journey since leaving the world of PR, including her spiritual experiences at locations such as the Findhorn Foundation in Scotland and the Esalen Institute in California and her ideas on feminism, environmental issues and ethical business practices.
Following the book's publication, Franks moved to California, and formed GlobalFusion, a cause-related marketing agency, working to promote environmentally-friendly fashion and cosmetic brands [28] and helping to launch The Big Issue in Los Angeles. [29]
In July 2011, Franks was awarded an honorary doctorate from Middlesex University in recognition of her career achievements in business and the media. [30]
Whilst in California, Franks developed the idea of SEED, an acronym for Sustainable Enterprise and Empowerment Dynamics, the principles for which she described in her book published in 2000, The SEED Handbook: The Feminine Way to Create Business. [31] [32] Franks later published Grow: The Modern Woman's Handbook [33] and Bloom: A Woman's Journal for Inspired Living. [34]
In collaboration with Tribal Education, Franks developed the SEED Women into Enterprise Programme, a blended learning course for self-employment. Aimed particularly at women from disadvantaged communities around the UK, [35] the programme has been delivered through local government agencies, training companies and charities. [36] [37] [38] In 2009, she launched the SEED Community Site, a social networking website to connect women entrepreneurs around the world. [39]
She was a member of the advisory board for McDonald's in the UK, helping to initiate their Women's Leadership Development Programme [40] and worked with Regus to create and develop the B.Hive network of women's business clubs. [41] [42]
Franks was the chair [43] of V-Day UK, a charity created by Eve Ensler, that campaigns to end violence against women and girls. In March 2009, she organised a Women of Influence Lunch at the House of Lords, to draw attention to the campaign. [44]
The following November, Franks organised the Great Congo Demonstration at the Royal Albert Hall calling for an end to the systemic sexual violence against women in the region. [45]
Absolutely Fabulous is a British television sitcom created and written by Jennifer Saunders, which premiered in 1992. It is based on the 1990 French and Saunders sketch "Modern Mother and Daughter", created by Dawn French and Saunders.
Dame June Rosemary Whitfield was an English radio, television and film actress.
Jennifer Jane Saunders is an English actress, comedian, singer, and screenwriter. Saunders originally found attention in the 1980s, when she became a member of The Comic Strip after graduating from the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama with her best friend and comedy partner, Dawn French. With French, she co-wrote and starred in their eponymous sketch show, French and Saunders, for which they jointly received a BAFTA Fellowship in 2009. Saunders later received acclaim in the 1990s for writing and playing her character Edina Monsoon in her sitcom Absolutely Fabulous.
Jacqueline Frances Stallone was an American astrologer, dancer and wrestling promoter. She is the mother of actor Sylvester Stallone, singer Frank Stallone, and actress Toni D'Alto, the latter by her former husband Anthony Filiti.
Katharine Eleanor Hamnett is an English fashion designer best known for her political T-shirts.
Patsy Stone is one of the three main characters from the British television sitcom Absolutely Fabulous, portrayed by actress Joanna Lumley.
Edina "Eddie" Margaret Rose Monsoon is one of the two main characters in the British television sitcom Absolutely Fabulous, created and portrayed by comedian Jennifer Saunders.
Julian Henry is a marketing executive based in London and Los Angeles. He has worked in PR and journalism since the 1980s. He founded the agency Henry's House in the 1990s and was appointed Head of Communication for Simon Fuller's 19 Entertainment in 2006.
"Absolutely Fabulous" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released by Parlophone and Spaghetti Records as a single for 1994's Comic Relief under the artist name "Absolutely Fabulous"; it is based on the BBC sitcom of the same name created by Jennifer Saunders and features sound bites taken from the first series of the show. The single peaked at number six on the UK Singles Chart and number seven on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. It was more successful in Oceania, debuting and peaking at number two in both Australia and New Zealand; in the former country, it is the band's highest-charting single, and in both, it was their last top-10 entry.
Betty Jackson, RDI is an English fashion designer based in London, England. She was born in Lancashire. In 2007, her success in British fashion was recognised with first an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours 1987 and later with a CBE for "services to the fashion industry." She is also known for designing many of the costumes worn by Edina and Patsy on the 1990s hit television comedy Absolutely Fabulous.
Graham Clifford Goodkind is an English businessman.
Lainey Keogh is an Irish fashion designer specialising in knitwear.
Kiki Byrne was a Norwegian-born, London-based fashion designer who is mainly remembered as Mary Quant's rival on the King's Road in the late 1950s and 1960s.
The first series of the British television sitcom Absolutely Fabulous premiered on BBC Two on 12 November 1992 and concluded on 17 December 1992, consisting of six episodes. The sitcom was created and written by Jennifer Saunders, who starred in the title role of Edina Monsoon, a heavy-drinking, smoking, and drug-abusing PR agent who has dedicated most of her life to looking "fabulous" and desperately attempts to stay young. Edina is nicknamed 'Eddie' by her best friend, Patsy Stone, a magazine editor who constantly takes advantage of Edina by living the life of luxury in Edina's extravagant home. Edina is a twice-divorced mother of two. Her eldest child, a son, Serge, left home many years before in order to escape his mother's clutches. Her long-suffering daughter, Saffron 'Saffy', whom Edina is reliant upon, is a sixth form student and remains at home. The series also includes Edina's sweet-natured-but-slightly-batty mother, whom Edina sees as an interfering burden, and Edina's dim-witted assistant Bubble.
Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie is a 2016 comedy film directed by Mandie Fletcher, written by Jennifer Saunders and based on the television series Absolutely Fabulous. It stars Saunders, Joanna Lumley, Julia Sawalha, June Whitfield and Jane Horrocks, reprising their roles from the series. The film finds the drug-addicted, alcoholic PR agent Edina Monsoon and her best friend/codependent Patsy Stone on the run from the authorities after it is suspected they killed supermodel Kate Moss. The film serves as a de facto series finale for the show.
The third series of the British television sitcom Absolutely Fabulous premiered on BBC One on 30 March 1995 and concluded on 11 May 1995, consisting of six episodes. The third series was originally intended to be the final series of Absolutely Fabulous. However, the following year, Jennifer Saunders decided to write a two-part special titled "The Last Shout", serving as an official finale to the third series. The series was later revived five years later in 2001.
Petticoat was a British weekly magazine for young women which was published from 1966 until 1975, in London by Fleetway/IPC, printed in 40-page issues by Eric Bemrose in Long Lane, Liverpool.
Debra Lysette Bourne is a communications expert, brand consultant and advocate for diversity in fashion. She co-founded All Walks Beyond The Catwalk, is a brand consultant, a former board director at Lynne Franks PR and Executive Fashion Editor at Arena Magazine and Arena Homme Plus.
Tanya Sarne is a fashion designer and entrepreneur. She originally gained fame in 1984 as the co-founder of the British label Ghost which went on to have international success for more than two decades and became known for its distinctive fabrics.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
