Biz Extra
Published: June 28, 2023 | Updated: 29th June 2023
Welcome to our first ever Hampshire Biz News 20 Questions.
Over the coming weeks and months we’ll be posing a number of Hampshire’s leading lights a series of part fun/part serious questions.
First up is Graeme Patfield, Director of Polymedia PR.
He’s a dad of two teenage daughters, he cooks a mean Sunday roast, and while he may tell you his first record was the Stone Roses, it was actually Keith Harris and Orville…
What is your favourite TV show?
I loved Succession. I came to it late – when the penultimate series came out I watched all of it. I really enjoyed that it was based on Murdoch and, being an ex-newspaper man, I loved seeing bits of real life in there.
Having said that, I’ve got two kids and secretly also really enjoy Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway. As a business we’ve occasionally been inspired by things we’ve seen on there – it’s really engaging and fun.
Who would you like to share a car with?
Honestly I prefer not to share the car at all, but if I had to then it wouldn’t be with anyone famous – I’d go with my daughters. Being in the car is actually a really good way to talk to teenagers. There’s something about driving along, listening to a bit of music, which gets them to open up.
The best bit of my job is..?
Getting out in the world and meeting all kinds of different people. For example, we’ve been doing a campaign for a law firm on farmers and food producers, and it’s fascinating to see the work they do.
I love to see the enthusiasm and passion about what they do, since I’m really enthusiastic and passionate about what I do.
It’s also great to work with businesses and help them become what they want to be – it’s really satisfying to make a difference.
And the worst?
Looking back over the last few years, the worst part of the job for me was lockdown. I do like the odd work from home day now and then, but being isolated and away from the rest of the team was horrible. I missed that collaborative spark.
Who was your childhood hero?
Batman. I’m a bit of a geek and while I loved Spider-Man and Superman, if you had enough money and time you could actually be Batman.
What’s your favourite smell?
The smell of a barbeque. There’s nothing like walking or riding a bike past a house and having the smell waft towards you and thinking ‘yeah, I’m going to have a barbeque later’. That, and a nice country pub – I love the smell of a good dinner and real ale.
Where’s your favourite place in Hampshire?
I love riding my bike around the area. The South Downs, for example, is beautiful. We actually have a website called South Sensation where, as a team, we write about some of the best places we visit.
What advice would you give to anyone starting out on a career
I’d probably say two things, but they’re linked.
Firstly, soak up everything you can from the people around you, particularly those who have been around a long time. When I started out as a journalist I was like a hoover, sucking up all the knowledge I could.
But secondly, remember that as a young person your experiences and worldview are insightful. That exchange of knowledge is a really important process.
What was your first record/CD?
If I was trying to seem cool I’d probably say something like the Stone Roses, but in truth my grandma used to buy me records and it was a song called ‘I Wish I Could Fly’ by Keith Harris and Orville.
What makes you angry?
People who are intolerant of each other’s views, and tribalism. On social media, people often pick out the very worst example of each side, they don’t take the time to listen to an opposing view.
Do you have a favourite piece of music?
Live Forever by Oasis. It came out just at the right time for me, and was really different to everything else around at the time. It was a great time to be the right age to enjoy it.
What qualities do you look for in a new employee?
Experience is great, but what we look for is the willingness and ability to learn – a can-do approach. You can train a lot of things into people, but what you can’t train is that enthusiasm and inquisitiveness about the world.
What’s your favourite food or dish?
I cook a really good Sunday roast. I love it because you’re taking your time and then get to sit down and have a good chat. It’s even better when someone else cooks it!
What three things would you take to a desert island?
My iPhone, a bike and a shaving kit. I can’t stand having any facial hair because I get itchy, so that’s my luxury.
What’s the best thing about living/working in Hampshire?
I live in Portsmouth, and I love that after ten minutes on a bike I can be out in the countryside surrounded by green.
It’s also great to be so close to the sea. I lived in London for a good fifteen years, which I loved, but I really missed the sea. You’ve pretty much got everything you could want on your doorstep in Hampshire.
If you were Prime Minister for a day, what’s the first thing you’d do?
I would ban overly formal school uniforms and homework. I think uniforms constrain their expression and homework is really unfair because a kid’s attainment is based too much on their home environment.
Also, working people have been given a better perspective on work/life balance in the past few years, and I think homework forces a pattern of working which we know isn’t good in the adult world, so why would it be good in the teenage world?
What’s your biggest frustration?
I get frustrated when I’m waiting for something so I can finish my work. It’s kind of positive because I’m relentless in seeing something through, but I probably should take a breath sometimes.
Where’s your favourite holiday location?
I love the Greek islands. It’s really different to here – very chilled, the people all seem to be lovely, I love Greek food like salads, cheeses and grilled fish. And I just love the sunshine.
Where do you see yourself in ten years’ time?
Hopefully I’ll be here, doing what we do, still with a great team behind us, I expect at that point I’ll have one eye on what happens ten years after that.
I’d love to travel when I retire – when I was younger I was straight out of school into training and college and working – so I didn’t get to see the world as much as I would have wanted.
What would you like to be remembered for?
This is going to sound really cheesy, but I’d just like to be remembered for being nice and helpful, and always trying to see the best in people.
That, and I’d like to be remembered as a good dad.
