When It Hits the Fan - When Poachers Turn Gatekeepers

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What happens when you cross enemy lines and join the other side?

As King Charles hires a Sky Royal correspondent for a top comms job at the Palace, David Yelland and Farzana Baduel discuss what happens when journalists switch to PR.

Crucially, they need to learn how to go from broadcast to mute. No more fabulously indiscreet anecdotes involving the rich and powerful over dinner - they're now your clients and your job is to protect their reputation.

And that's just for starters. There are a whole load of different rules and shifts in power dynamics that can take years to fully understand.

Also, on the extended edition on BBC Sounds, why Harry and Meghan have a window of golden PR opportunity - that could slam shut if they don't get their timing spot on. As David and Farzana explain, it's all to do with something called 'brand adjacency'.

Producer: Duncan Middleton
Editor: Sarah Teasdale
Executive Producer: Eve Streeter
Music by Eclectic Sounds
A Raconteur Studios production for BBC Radio 4

Published on Wednesday, 25th March 2026.

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