RSC Italian Job competition shortlisted for national award

A Royal Society of Chemistry media relations initiative based on the film The Italian Job has been short-listed for a top British public relations industry award.

The RSC work was described by judges as being "amongst the best in the country".

The RSC asked the public to devise and submit ways in which stolen gold bars featured in the film might have been rescued from the end of a getaway bus overhanging the ledge of a mountain following a bank heist in Turin.

The resultant media coverage became a phenomenon, sweeping UK and international press, television and radio as well as having a massive presence on the web and blogosphere.

Two days ago the UK's Chartered Institute of Public Relations contacted the RSC Media Relations Manager, Brian Emsley, and media team colleague Jon Edwards, to say that it was up for an award in the Best Media Relations category in its awards for 2008-09.

The CIPR awards and the PR Week awards are the two national awards programmes each year in Britain.

The RSC has an unrivalled track record in awards from these bodies.

In 2002 the RSC was short-listed for a PR stunt that it initiated with the other (Shakespearean) RSC.

In 2003 and 2004 it was short-listed in the category of Best In-House PR team, based on its media output, mainly stunts.

In 2006 it was short-listed for its Media campaigning work to prevent closures of English university chemistry departments.

Dr Richard Pike, chief executive of the Royal Society of Chemistry said today: "This shows how innovative and creative ways of engaging the public can raise the profile of chemistry, the RSC itself, and wider scientific issues. 

"Like the bus on the edge of the cliff, we try to strike a balance between serious policy and issue-based work, and novel approaches that grab the attention of news desks, viewers and listeners. The great fun of this is that you never know exactly how any initiative will end - but this time we hope we have struck gold!"

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