The Fuller File

[Maggiemags]

OK - the first couple of posts are going to be long - I'm bringing over all that's been posted over on ggates so far ...

We’ll kick off with an odd little snippet from The Telegraph in a pre-Pop Idol article about media mogul, Didier Belens:

Despite his relative modesty, Belens shares many of his rivals' characteristics. He can make a career here and smash one there. He has just axed Popstars, the show that manufactured the group Hear'Say and was sold by RTL to ITV. "We think it will be better to focus on one person. The new show is going to be called Pop Idols. We have already recruited Simon Fuller, who used to manage the Spice Girls, to help work on it."

:confused:

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Anyway – on to the articles – I’ve pulled them together in chronological order starting with the oldest first. Unfortunately, I seem to be having some problems with a couple of the sites I usually visit – so it’s just The Telegraph and the BBC at the moment, I’m afraid, but I’ll add others as I find them.

From The Telegraph

Spice Girls' creator looks for another Glenn Miller

By Oliver Poole

(Filed: 22/04/2001)

THE pop music impresario who launched the Spice Girls is recruiting musicians for a "big band" in the style of Glenn Miller in the hope of taking the sound of 1940s swing to the top of the charts again.

Simon Fuller is hoping to repeat his success at manufacturing pop sensations by reviving the era of the dance hall and the jitterbug. He has teamed up for the project with Nigel Lythgoe, the man behind ITV's Popstars series.

The pair have proven track records in creating artificial pop groups with tailor-made mass teenage appeal. While the Spice Girls have been one of the most commercially successful pop acts ever, Hear'Say, the group created during the Popstars series, reached number one in the charts with the fastest-selling debut single of all time. Mr Fuller and Mr Lythgoe are hoping to pool their talents to create a market for the old-fashioned big band.

Mr Fuller, 38, is combing Britain and America for singers with the right look for the band, which will be launched next year but has yet to be named. It will be backed by an estimated budget of £6 million, and will appear in its own television series.

The decision to promote big band music is a new direction for Mr Fuller, who has also managed the Eurythmics. He believes that teenagers are bored with dancing by themselves to disco and rave music and are ready to take the floor arm in arm with partners again. The popularity of Latin American dances such as the salsa and tango convinced him. Typical big bands include up to 20 musicians, with a large brass section.

Mr Fuller set up a company called 19TV as a launch pad for his future projects, poaching Mr Lythgoe last month to run the business. The big band will be one of the firm's first ventures. It is not the first time Mr Fuller has launched one of his pop groups with its own television show. His chart-topping band S Club 7 had its record releases accompanied by a 13-episode BBC1 series.

Max Beesley, the actor and percussionist who appeared in the BBC's version of Tom Jones, has been approached to join the new big band group. However, his inclusion could anger his girlfriend, Melanie Brown, the Spice Girl known as Mel B, who no longer talks to her former manager. The group sacked him in 1998 when they decided to take control of their own careers.

A spokesman for Mr Fuller said that it was unlikely any music would be heard from the band before the start of next year.

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From The Telegraph

Back on the big band bandwagon

Filed: 04/04/2002)

As TV's Pop Idols hit the road, the surprise winner is a style of music that dates back to the Fifties, says Caspar Llewellyn Smith

EIGHT thousand fans at the Scottish Exhibition Centre have spent the interval recovering from the excitement of seeing their Pop Idols made flesh and refuelling at the pick'n'mix counter with bags of sweets and pints of Irn-Bru. By the start of the second half they are so pumped up on E numbers that they instantly start shrieking and moaning when a chap emerges from behind the safety curtain playing an instrument they won't recognise as an upright double bass. And shriek and moan they continue to do throughout the rest of this Pop Idol Live show, no doubt to the quiet satisfaction of the shadowy figure behind this concept and phenomenon.

Record-breakers: 'we're going to bring the big band feel back, but make it more contemporary, more poppy'

This could have been the point at which the Pop Idol bubble burst. The Thames TV series was a huge ratings hit and the spin-off book and videos have sold impressively. Winner Will Young and runner-up Gareth Gates have enjoyed record-breaking number one singles. And this sell-out arena tour featuring the 10 finalists has been continually expanded (the 21st and final date is this Saturday at the London Arena, in aid of the Prince's Trust). But the second half of the live show, as well as the inevitable group album (released on Monday), feature the last kind of music you would expect children raised on the fizzy delights of modern pop to appreciate: big band music.

Yet listen to the familiar ritual of hysteria when Rosie Ribbons takes the stage in Glasgow to sing Cheek to Cheek with the 19-piece Big Blue band behind her; when local boy Darius Danesh essays a number right up his street, Let There Be Love; when, surreally, Gareth snaps his way through Weill and Brecht's Mack the Knife; when Will breezes through Charles Trenet's Beyond the Sea.

"That music has supposedly been really unfashionable for such a long time," says 28-year-old Ben Castle, son of the late Roy Castle and leader of the Big Blue. "So for Will Young to say, 'The next song was made famous by Bobby Darin', and for the crowd to erupt The first night, we were all looking at each other thinking, this can't be happening!"

It wouldn't have come as a surprise to one man. While Nicki Chapman, who hosts the live show, and her fellow television judges Simon Cowell, Pete Waterman and Neil Fox are the public face of Pop Idol, the man really pulling the strings is former Spice Girls manager and S Club 7 creator Simon Fuller, a pop svengali in the mould of Larry Parnes, who managed Britain's first pop idols.

It was the 40-year-old Fuller who, three years ago, before dreaming up Pop Idol, thought that big band music might make a comeback, and his management company, 19, started scouring the country for a suitable group of musicians.

By the time Pop Idol was on air, Fuller had found the Big Blue, and a show on which he featured them beat every previous episode in the ratings. He knew then that they were going places.

According to Chapman, Fuller has "always had a great love of big band music - an encyclopaedic knowledge of it - and he felt he wanted to get back to basics".

"He's always been a fan," says Castle, "and he thought big band music would come back because you'd had the Eighties revival, the Seventies, the Sixties" So why not the Fifties?

It seems to have been pure coincidence that the same idea occurred to Robbie Williams and his record company at about the same time, but rather than bemoan the success of Swing When You're Winning, Fuller took encouragement from the fact that Williams's album of big band music sold equally strongly to every age group. There is an element of kitsch appeal to the idea of a new big band record for older listeners, but even pre-teens seem to appreciate the fact that, as Chapman says, "quality music will always come through".

The big band format also provides a perfect showcase for the 10 pop idols' talents. It is easy to be cynical about the process by which the finalists were discovered or sickened by the inevitability of their success, but there is no denying their ability when you see them singing live with a 19-piece group.

Ben Castle also expresses the view that the sight of real people playing real instruments might encourage an audience weaned on teeny pop to pick up a sax or a trumpet. "When my dad was on Record Breakers," he says, "he played a little bit of jazz at the end of the programme, and some of the people in the Big Blue have told me they were turned on to music just by that. I'm hoping that this will have the same effect on kids wanting to learn music."

Rather neatly, Roy Castle himself made a couple of big band albums in the late Fifties and secured a deal through Frank Sinatra to make a record with Reprise. "But," Ben says, "just at the time he was becoming popular in America, Elvis Presley came out, and all of a sudden it was really unfashionable to be into big bands. He always felt really hard done by, so it's nice to be doing this now."

The interesting point is that Roy Castle's rather staid contemporaries in the late Fifties provoked the same reaction from teenage fans as the rock and rollers who followed them. Singers such as Johnny Ray and, from this country, Dickie Valentine and David Whitfield sent the girls wild.

'Usually, they are 'unescorted'," a Picture Post reporter wrote of these native bobby-soxers in 1954, "sitting hunched forward, half-open mouths emitting a strange, continuous symphony of sound. When the song is ended, the arms go into action, flapping and tearing the air. Hands are whipped together. And above the shrieks and the moans, and the sighs, you hear the frenzied appeals: 'Oh Frankie!'; 'Oh Dickie!'; 'Oh-!' "

It was really the start of the pop era and for those names, now substitute Will and Gareth and Zoe Birkett. She is the youngest of the Pop Idol finalists at 16, and, by pleasing circumstance, she is the one chosen to take the big band concept forward once the Pop Idol juggernaut stops rolling (though, inevitably, another series is scheduled for next year). There are plans to release her version of Get Happy! from the album with the Big Blue as a single, and then for her to work with the band on a new record.

"We're not just going to do all old music," she says. "We're going to bring the big band feel back, but make it more contemporary, more poppy."

It's hard to imagine that 50 years since the publication of the first pop chart, big band music really is the future. But, if Simon Fuller has his way - and to date, he has - we'll all soon be swinging again.

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Interesting article from the BBC shows just how diverse his business interests are:

19 Entertainment teams up with BBC Worldwide for educational venture

28.08.02

Pop Goes English featuring S Club

Children all over the world are to be encouraged to learn English through the formation of a very unusual partnership:

BBC Worldwide, one of the world’s leading English language teaching companies, and 19 Entertainment, whose pop act credentials to date have included S Club, Pop Idol stars Gareth Gates and Will Young, and the Spice Girls, have announced an exciting new joint venture, Pop Goes English, that promises to revolutionise the international English language teaching market.

19 Entertainment is the UK’s No.1 music and TV company and is renowned for its global innovation and cross platform entertainment properties.

Drawing on a universal fascination with the world of showbiz and pop music to teach English was originally the brainchild of 19’s Simon Fuller. The dynamic partnership will create a series of TV programmes and other learning materials to encourage millions of children around the world to learn to speak English. The first 19 Entertainment band to feature in Pop Goes English will be chart-topping S Club, one of the best-known pop bands on the planet. Music from new bands and artists will follow as the Pop Goes English format develops.

BBC Worldwide is a leading innovator in the English language teaching market, with its football-themed Goal TV programme and learning materials, launched to coincide with the 2002 World Cup, proving a huge international success. For Pop Goes English, BBC Worldwide will develop a series of multi-media materials using the S Club brand, including mini TV programmes, videos, books and CD-ROMs, all featuring an engaging combination of lyrics, dance steps and karaoke graphics to make learning English simple and fun for children aged seven to 11.

Young local music artists will host Pop Goes English, acting as interpreter and teacher alongside live S Club performances and songs, including international hits, ‘Bring it all Back’ and ‘Reach’. The first development is already underway in China and Taiwan, with national pop artist e-Vonne, provided by Universal Music, Taiwan. Further developments of the concept with new and existing BBC Worldwide broadcasting and publishing partners around the world are anticipated shortly.

Rupert Gavin, Chief Executive, BBC Worldwide, commenting on the joint venture with 19 Entertainment, said: “Pop music is a major motivational trigger for children around the globe to learn English. Our collaboration with 19 Entertainment, with its unrivalled reputation for discovering and developing new entertainment talent, will result in a ground-breaking realisation of the full potential of pop music as an English learning tool.”

Simon Fuller commented: “There is nothing so universally appealing and motivating to young people as pop music. At 19 Entertainment, we have always been aware of the potential of pop music for learning purposes and we are delighted that this new educational focus will now be added to the global success of the S Club brand. This project continues 19’s incredibly successful partnership with BBC Worldwide, which has led to S Club programming being broadcast in over 100 countries around the world.”

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From The Telegraph

The star-maker

(Filed: 28/09/2002)

With Pop Idol and American Idol and his plans for a 'virtual' superstar, Simon Fuller will change the face of modern entertainment. Caspar Llewellyn Smith meets the elusive impresario in Las Vegas

There couldn't be a better place to celebrate the success of American Idol than Las Vegas, the spiritual home of ersatz entertainment, the city where everyone thinks they'll go home a winner. It also feels right that Simon Fuller, the enigmatic Englishman behind the Spice Girls, S Club 7, Pop Idol, and now the American version of that concept, should base himself at the farthest extremity of the Strip, at the Four Seasons. This is the only hotel in town where the lobby isn't filled with slot machines and bovine herds of pleasure seekers. From his penthouse suite, the 41-year-old entrepreneur and star-maker has an unrivalled view of these neon-lit temples to Mammon but this is a place of relative calm, a place to hatch plans.

Chart-toppers: Simon Fuller's roster include Pop Idol winner Will Young, Geri Halliwell and the Sprice Girls, and Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates.

Pop Idol proved a dizzying triumph in Britain. A record 8.7 million phone votes were received on the night of the final in February and the show launched two million-selling stars in Will Young and Gareth Gates, both managed by Fuller. Their new joint single, a cover of the Beatles' The Long and Winding Road, is certain to enter the charts at number one tomorrow. But when Fuller first took the concept to America, the response he met was lukewarm.

"America doesn't understand pop music at the moment," he tells me. "The last time it really did was when the Spice Girls were number one. It's because people in the industry are musical snobs: it's all about being cool. That's always baffled me. Because pop music is popular music."

American Idol has been the surprise TV hit of the summer, with more than 40 million people watching some part of the series final last month (in its last half hour, almost half the female teenage viewers in the country were tuned in). It will net Rupert Murdoch's ailing Fox network £200 million. RCA records are also celebrating, because they have released winner Kelly Clarkson's debut single, which itself is now shooting to the top of Billboard Hot 100.

But Fuller is the real winner because, as ever, he has a finger in both pies. As manager of the Spice Girls, he broke new ground by turning the band into a brand (striking sponsorship and advertising deals with Pepsi, Walker's, Impulse, Asda, Polaroid, Cadbury's, Unilever, Sony and Chupa Chupa sweets). With S Club 7 - and now the diffusion range, S Club Juniors - he has developed that operating principle, selling the idea of a TV series based around a group of singing kids around the world. The actual music is almost an incidental part of the cash equation.

Pop Idol is even more lucrative because Fuller shares control of the TV show and the careers of the winners (he has an option on managing all the finalists). Plus there's the money to be made from the merchandising and further exploitation of the brand. In the new year, Kelly Clarkson and her fellow finalist Justin Guarini start shooting a Hollywood movie together.

It's not surprising that a Real Rock fan - the musical equivalent of a member of CAMRA - should therefore look at Fuller as if he's got two stumpy horns growing out of his head. It probably hasn't helped his image that he does keep journalists at arm's length.

But the Fuller I first meet at the Bel Air mansion he is renting in Los Angeles for the foreseeable future (American Idol 2 hits US screens in early 2003) is charm itself. And he has surrounded himself not with the neighbours (Liz Taylor, Harrison Ford) or pop wannabes, but with friends and family from England. As he shows me around, we interrupt his older brother, Kim, a comedy scriptwriter, story-boarding the American Idol movie. OK, he has brought his cook from France with him, and there's idle conversation about how he has 10 cars but never the time to drive them. But the man I meet is genial, attentive and prone to fits of childish enthusiasm which remind you that he is the grandson of a music-hall comic and acrobat. He raves, for instance, about his idea of creating the "Mahatma Gandhi of pop".

Two nights later, the recording of Fox TV's American Idol Special takes place in a 5,000-seat arena in the bowels of the MGM Grand, the largest hotel in the world, in Las Vegas. The judges on the US series were former pop star Paula Abdul, producer Randy Jackson and the British nation's favourite, Simon Cowell. He isn't here tonight but there are boos when this dastardly English villain speaks in a pre-recorded video clips and alongside the pre-teen kids in the crowd waving "Justin is a hottie" placards, five middle-aged black fans have brought in a "S-I-M-O-N" banner.

The other Simon sits unrecognised throughout the arm-waving, in careful contemplation.

At school, Fuller ran the music club and managed a class-mate's band. Instead of going to university, he started running local discos, before graduating to pop management. His first client was synthesizer whizz Paul Hardcastle, who had a catchy hit about the Vietnam war in 1985, from which Fuller took the name of his company, 19. He has always planned his campaigns like a military operation. "I consciously, methodically did my homework for weeks," he once said of his launch of the Spice Girls, with whom he sold 21 million records before Ginger et al foolishly sacked him.

Five years on, he is more successful than ever. Next year, as well as American Idol 2, he will have at least two new shows on American TV: Supergirl (though the title may change), which involves the search for a multi-talented American teen; and The Monkees, which will see him revive the 1960s series with a bunch of new kids.

Fox will grab the new American Idol series and movie, but two of the other American networks, NBC and ABC, have picked up those other formats. That's typical of the way Fuller works. At 19 he employs a staggeringly slim staff of 80, and says that if that number reaches 100, he will tear up the business plan and start again. That means he can make decisions more quickly than the global media conglomerates that end up helping realise his dreams.

In other words - and to the horror of his rivals and surprise of his critics - Fuller does this for fun. He spends part of the party after the MGM show chatting up the families of the talent, and charming the young singers themselves. He will be managing Kelly Clarkson, an all-American girl (former cocktail waitress from a broken home in small-town Texas with a voice the size of the state) and is talking here to some of the others.

But he is also knocking back the fizz and gossiping. In Bel Air he had talked about how far he could take the Pop Idol format and outlined his plans for creating The Greatest Show on Earth (that title may change) in which winners of national competitions will compete against each other to become the world's pop idol. Now he explains the lure of the challenge: with sky-rocketing marketing costs and the drift of geo-politics, it will become increasingly difficult for pop stars to cross into different national market-places. But with this scheme, he could create his mini-skirted Mahatma.

If all else fails, he will develop his plan to create a "virtual" star, some kind of extra-terrestrial creation. He says this with a laugh, but I'm sure he is deadly serious. Certainly the idea of an artist who can work in any medium appeals, he says, because "I'm not interested in niche entertainment. I revere and respect it - but I want to reach as many people as I can with what I do."

The irony of Fuller's position at the heart of modern entertainment is that he's not personally interested in celebrity. "There's no upside to fame that I can think of," he says. "If I have a girlfriend, I want her to be my girlfriend. I don't want the rest of the world to know if we've gone to the shops." But you live in a world where people are desperate for fame, I tell him. "And it's so weird!" he replies. "In the modern world, celebrity is even afforded to business people, executives. To Simon Cowell - for chrissakes!"

In fact, he's successful because unlike lesser operators in the industry, he's really resolutely ordinary. He understands popular tastes better than anyone. But he has the vision and the gambling instincts to see his dreams through.

Thanks to American Idol, Simon Fuller is currently worth about £200 million, but when he arrived in Vegas he still put a dollar bill in the first slot machine he saw. It paid out out two hundred bucks.

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From the BBC

Simon Fuller: Guiding pop culture

18th June 2003

Simon Fuller with the first American Idol winner, Kelly Clarkson

Performers managed by pop svengali Simon Fuller have claimed the top three spots in the United States charts. BBC News Online looks at his career.

When music fans look back on the charts of the last 10 years, they will see the unmistakable handprint of one man - Simon Fuller.

Described by some as the man with the Midas touch and by others as an evil genius, the pop impresario has swept the globe with his creations from the Spice Girls to Pop Idol.

Estimated to be worth £90m ($150m) and rising, there is no disputing that he has his finger on the pulse of youth culture, and knows how to exploit it.

He began his career at record company Chrysalis, climbing through the ranks to become an A&R scout, finding new talent.

SIMON FULLER'S UK AND US TRACK RECORD

Number one singles - 96

Top 40 singles - 358

Number one albums - 79

Top 40 albums - 224

Source: 19

When he discovered Paul Hardcastle in the mid-1980s, he set out on his own and propelled Hardcastle to number one with his Vietnam war song, 19. Fuller named his company 19 to mark the success.

His next discovery was singer-songwriter Cathy Dennis, who was guided to a string of global hits in the early 1990s.

He still manages Dennis, who has moved behind the scenes to write songs like Can't Get You Out Of My Head for Kylie Minogue.

Spice success

Fuller also took former Eurythmics singer Annie Lennox onto his books, helping her revive her career to become the UK's favourite solo female.

He became known to music fans for managing the Spice Girls

He still manages her too, and her latest album, Bare, has gone into the top five in the US and UK without any single releases.

But he first hit the headlines himself with the Spice Girls, whose carefully constructed brand of bubblegum pop swept through the global charts like a whirlwind in the late-1990s.

He did not bring them together, but took over their reins at the start of 1996, months before they hit the big time.

"On the first day I sat down with the girls, before we had a deal, and it was agreed that we would go for it on a worldwide basis," he said.

Fuller embarked on a strategic campaign to create excitement among record companies and the media, enticing them with their slick pop and energetic, appealing personas.

By July 1996, their debut single, Wannabe, had gone to number one in the UK and went on to do the same in 36 other countries.

S Club 7 were one of the UK's most successful pop groups

Fuller's plan was so successful that there were few places in the world where the Spice Girls name was not known.

But they grew unhappy with his style and sacked him less than 18 months after finding success.

Fuller stumbled with his first attempt at a comeback, launching another group, 21st Century Girls - "a female Slade for the millennium" - who soon sank.

S Club hits

But success was not far away, launching S Club 7, a young men and women who went on to have 11 UK top five hit singles.

Their success spanned music, TV and movies, with the success of each strand propelling the others.

When S Club (they dropped the 7 after one member left) split earlier this year, Fuller already had a ready-made replacement to pick up the mantle, the younger S Club Juniors.

Ruben Studdard (right) beat Clay Aiken to win American Idol 2

"My business is creating fame and celebrity, and I'm one of the best in the world. I know it to the finest detail," he said recently.

It is his TV venture Pop Idol that has doubled his fortune in the last 12 months.

The programme - sold to the US as American Idol - has helped redefine the TV talent show, making viewers a vital part of the process by asking them to vote, and bringing the glamour of the pop world to screens.

The top artists, such as Will Young and Gareth Gates in the UK, and Kelly Clarkson, Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard in the US, were then taken under Fuller's wing.

Singles that were rushed out to capitalise on the hype broke sales records.

Future projects

For those wary of Fuller's hold over popular culture, there is much more on its way.

Second Chance Idol is expected to give former stars the Pop Idol treatment, while American Juniors - a TV show to create a US version of S Club Juniors - has just launched.

There have been rumours of a UK prime time quiz show where one million viewers could compete on the phone at the same time, and a new version of The Monkees is in the pipeline.

He has talked about reinventing the beauty pageant with a show called All American Girl, and even rolling Pop Idol out to China.

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From Yahoo

Simon Fuller outshines Epstein!

18th June 2003

Pop mastermind Simon Fuller has become the most successful British pop manager since Brian Epstein.

The reclusive genius who gave the world the S Club franchise, the Spice Girls and Pop Idol (to name just a few) will today cement his position as the most successful British manager when it's announced that three of his acts - Clay Aiken, Reuben Studdard and the American Idol Final 10 - have snagged the top three chart positions on the US single sales charts.

If that wasn't enough, over on the album countdown, he has three entries, including Annie Lennox's new album, Bare, which is sitting comfortably in the Top Ten.

This year alone, Fuller's charges have sold well over 10 million records worldwide and his acts are currently dominating the three biggest music territories in the world -- the UK, USA and Germany.

Back home, the man can do no wrong either. This week, Annie Lennox and S Club's Greatest Hits are sitting in the UK's Top Ten, while his other stars Will Young, Sarah Whatmore and Gareth Gates are currently prepping their new albums.

Meanwhile, on June 30th, Fuller's S Club 8 (formerly the Juniors) release their new single Fool No More, which is set to see them continue where their predecessors left off. Last year, their debut single One Step Closer outsold most of pop's biggest stars including Oasis!

Fuller is also involved in TV production, responsible for Pop Idol, American Idol, American Juniors, the S Club series and also has his hands in film (Seeing Double, SpiceWorld and the newie From Justin To Kelly).

Despite all his success, Fuller appears to be an incredibly humble man and admits he just wants to "empower people" and make "their dreams come true!"

"I'm just like a child," he told The Guardian recently. "I get so enthused, and if people get empowered, they have to take responsibility for it. I agree, short-termism is killing the industry. If it were up to me, I'd rather create things that last long-term, but my thrill comes from reflecting what's going on now."

Speaking about the worldwide success his artists have been enjoying recently, he said: "I'm grateful that my artists and projects are succeeding globally in such a phenomenal way. I'm particularly thrilled by the success that Annie Lennox is achieving with her new album, Bare."

If you still can't get your head around just how successful Simon Fuller actually is, here's a breakdown of just how many hits he's achieved in the UK and US since 19 Entertainment began in 1985:

96 No. 1 singles

358 Top 40 singles

79 No. 1 albums

224 Top 40 albums

Not bad, eh?

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From The Telegraph

Pop Idol's 'insatiable' impresario craves cash

By Damian Reece (Filed: 22/06/2003)

Simon Fuller, the driving force behind the hit show, tells Damian Reece he is looking for an investor

For sale: a stake in Britain's most successful music company with a proven track record of manufacturing hits. Only investors with deep pockets, truly global ambitions and a desire to worship at the altar of Simon Fuller need apply.

So bidders should start forming an orderly queue outside the London offices of 19 Entertainment, the music and media group owned by Fuller, the pop music impresario behind the Spice Girls, S Club 7 and, most successfully, the Pop Idol television show.

He has picked a good moment to sell. Last week, he became the first British music magnate since the Beatle's manager, Brian Epstein, in 1964 to control acts holding the top three slots in the US singles chart.

Now, in the first interview he has given on his business affairs, Fuller has disclosed to The Sunday Telegraph that he wants to dispose of a substantial holding in his business to fund the next stage of expansion plans.

"As my ambitions grow they become limited by the size of the company," he says. "I don't want to float the company on the stock market because it wouldn't allow me the freedom I need. But other options are certainly in my mind."

Those expensive ambitions include the next Pop Idol format, which will be "World Idol", a global pop music contest between the winners from 20 odd countries which have bought the Pop Idol format for their national TV markets.

"When you keep achieving your goals, you are insatiable. It's very exciting," says Fuller, a former Hastings art school student who, as well as dominating the US singles market, also has three acts with albums in the stateside top 20.

So how much will the hopeful bidders for a stake in 19 have to cough up? Fuller values the company at £200m and the size of the stake he eventually sells will depend on the partner he chooses.

He mused last week that he may dispose of as much as 75 per cent. "It's not simply about money," he says. "It's a much bigger game to play. This is not about me becoming a big corporate, that wouldn't work. If anyone bought it [the company] they would have to let me get on with what I do."

Fuller's company is behind a string of successful acts including Kelly Clarkson, winner of the first American Idol, whose single, Miss Independent, is currently America's most played record.

His company does everything from discovering artists and managing them to writing songs and arranging TV and merchandising spin-offs.

The relationship with his stars is - famously - not always cuddly. He took the Spice Girls from zero album sales to 42m in 18 months but the band fired him anyway (although not before Fuller had netted about £30m from the band.) Meanwhile, S Club 7 recently walked out of a BBC interview after being asked how much they had earned from their four years with him compared to Fuller.

But if Fuller has made millions from previous acts, Pop Idol, which spawned Gareth Gates and Will Young in Britain, is by far the biggest money spinner he has dreamt up so far. The programme starts a second run this August, while the US version is in its third series. It has generated $500m of advertising revenue for Fox, the American TV company that bought the US rights.

At a time when most big record companies are complaining about falling sales, the results of the Pop Idol formula are impressive. What's the secret?

"The idea behind Pop Idol was to create a way of finding new talent and launching them through television. I thought that if I could create a show that makes new stars by the public choosing them, then it would become a self-fulfilling prophecy. If they choose them they are going to buy them."

And what can any new investor in 19 Entertainment expect from him? "I can turn my hand to anything. It is about being diversified. Pop Idol and American Idol are doing very well but my head is way ahead of that. I'm interested in what's going to be happening in five years' time."

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From the BBC – 15th July 2003

Fuller is 'music industry leader'

Fuller's acts are among the world's best selling pop artists

Pop Idol creator Simon Fuller has been named the most influential person in the UK music business in a top 50 chart of the industry's key decision-makers.

Fuller's Popstars colleague Simon Cowell also features high on the list published by industry magazine Music Week.

The top ten is made up largely of chief executives and managing directors of music labels, as well as the entertainment manager for the Asda supermarket chain.

Broadcaster Jonathan Ross (38) and Daily Mirror gossip columnists the 3am Girls (50) were more familiar names in the top 50.

U2 singer Bono was the only artist to appear in the list, at number 11. He was included largely for his humanitarian efforts, which include a campaign to try and end Third World debt, rather than his band's music.

Simon Cowell, who become a household name as a Pop Idol judge after a career as an A&R man was at number six in the list.

The Beatles held the top three in the US nearly 40 years ago

Fuller, who runs the management company 19 Group, was the man behind enormously successful pop acts such as the Spice Girls and S Club 7 before creating Pop Idol.

The ITV1 pop talent show, first aired in 2001, has created three pop stars, Will Young, Gareth Gates and Darius Danesh.

Fuller recently became the first British music manager since The Beatles' Brian Epstein to hold the top three positions in the US singles chart.

The man who steered the Spice Girls and S Club 7 to success was in charge of best-selling artists Clay Aiken and Ruben Studdard, together with the American Idol 2 Final 10.

The Beatles, managed by Epstein, held the top five spots in 1964.

Since Fuller's 19 Entertainment firm began in 1985, he has had 96 number one singles and 79 top-placed albums in both the US and UK.

He has managed the artists behind 358 top 40 singles and 224 top 40 albums in the two of the world's biggest music markets.

He is reputed to be worth as much as £90m, according to a recent Sunday Times Rich List.

Music Week, the UK music industry's trade magazine, compiled the list with the help of several music industry figures.

=======================

From here

'American Idol' Dances With 'American Bandstand'

19 Entertainment and dick clark productions to Bring Classic Program Back to the Dance Floor

LOS ANGELES, May 24 /PRNewswire/

In a symbolic passing of the torch from entertainment icons Dick Clark to Simon Fuller, 19 Entertainment has joined forces with dick clark productions to relaunch "American Bandstand," the longest running network television show in history.

"American Bandstand" will be executive produced by 19 president Simon Fuller, Dick Clark and Allen Shapiro, the architect of the deal and president of Mosaic Media Group, which is the controlling shareholder in dick clark productions. A nationwide search for a host will immediately begin for the new "Bandstand" competition, which aims to debut in Summer 2005.

"'American Idol” is one of the very few music formats to have been successful on network television in the U.S. for many years. 'American Bandstand' was the first and longest running," stated Fuller. "Dick Clark is the father of American music television, and the prospect of the two of us working together to bring 'American Bandstand' back to all its former glory, whilst giving it a 21st century twist, is very exciting indeed."

"The 'American Bandstand' brand is one of the strongest in the history of television and remains, in the hearts of millions, the quintessential American show," said Shapiro. "We are thrilled to be working with Simon Fuller, who has his finger on the pulse of music television. His success with 'American Idol' and the vision he brings to television programming is a perfect fit to work with Dick Clark to continue the Bandstand legend."

Commenting on the new "American Bandstand," Dick Clark offered, "Bringing back an American tradition like 'Bandstand' has always been a dream of mine, and I can't think of a better person to partner with than Simon Fuller, whose foresight in trend-setting television shows and music will surely bring the show new luster and then some."

"American Bandstand," which ran on ABC-TV for an unprecedented thirty years (1957-1987), allowed musical artists to perform live or live-to-track, which inspired the writhing of a stage full of young male and female dancers. With a format that was often imitated, its impact on fashion and establishing trends was unmatched. The prominence of "American Bandstand" as a social and cultural phenomena was profound in other ways as well, its name and image finding their way into popular song lyrics, television shows, board games and record collections.

Simon Fuller is represented by CAA.

=======================

About 19 Entertainment / Simon Fuller

Simon Fuller has had a profound influence on global pop culture. At 21, he scored his first hit by signing the then-unknown song "Holiday" - Madonna's first hit to Chrysalis Music in the UK. His career as a manager started in 1985 when he set up "19". He has gone on to become one of the most respected and influential forces within the global entertainment industry. He managed the development of Oscar and Grammy winner Annie Lennox's solo career and he created and managed the Spice Girls, who went on to sell 40 million albums and became a global phenomenon. This was followed by the international television and music success of S Club 7. The group sold over 10 million CDs while their four television series were sold to over 100 countries around the world.

In 2002 Simon Fuller created and launched the incredible global success story that is the Pop Idol television property. All the artists discovered through the show are contracted to 19 Entertainment. This includes Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Clay Aiken, Will Young and Gareth Gates to name just a few. The company has built up an unprecedented roster of top music producers, songwriters and artists playing a fundamental role in the creation of hit records for artists including Madonna, U2 Oasis, Celine Dion, Eurythmics, Kylie Minogue, Janet Jackson and Britney Spears.

Today, 19 is recognized as a leading creator, provider and promoter of globally successful, music based entertainment, or "Entertainment Brands". 19 has attracted a unique collection of expertise in people who work together to integrate and leverage activity across television, music film, merchandising, music publishing, recording, artist/writer and producer management, sponsorship and promotion. To date, 19 has been involved in the creation of 101 Number 1 singles and 81 Number 1 albums with an impressive tally of 233 To 40 albums and 389 Top 40 singles.

=======================

From seattlepi.com:

Saturday, May 29, 2004

Contracts for 'Idols' have strings attached

By RODNEY HO - COX NEWS SERVICE

"American Idol" is a monstrous moneymaker -- for creator Simon Fuller, for the judges, for Fox, for virtually anyone who touches it.

Except, perhaps, for the once-unknown singers who become stars.

"Idol" producers 19 Entertainment won't talk about the details of the contracts finalists must sign, and they won't let contestants talk about them either.

But some who've seen them say this much is clear: 19 exercises greater control over the careers of its stars and takes a bigger chunk of their earnings than do typical managers. The new "American Idol," Fantasia Barrino, will have a career that isn't quite her own. Fuller, the man behind 19, can tell her where to appear, what to record, even how to dress.

And according to The Associated Press, he'll take 25 to 50 percent of all her earnings, significantly more than the 15 to 20 percent most managers collect. But then Fuller is no ordinary manager. Ordinary managers function as personal assistants and advisers, taking care of travel and recording arrangements and helping artists make major business decisions. Many also possess important industry connections that can jump-start careers, but they don't have the "Idol" machine at their disposal.

Fuller exacts a heavy price, but he can turn his clients into stars before they even step into the recording studio. He can guarantee them (the winners, anyway) a contract with a major label. He can bring them back to promote their albums in front of 20 million or so viewers.

As Atlanta entertainment attorney Monica Ewing, who hasn't seen the "Idol" contracts but is familiar with some of their details, said, "(Nothing) even comes close to 'American Idol' when it comes to marketing and promotion. The exposure for one of their one-hit wonders far outpaces most seasoned artists out there. In a struggling music industry, they've cracked the code."

And so you don't hear many complaints from the big three -- first season winner Kelly Clarkson, second season winner Ruben Studdard and second season runner-up Clay Aiken -- who among them have sold more than six million albums, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

On the other hand, first season runner-up Justin Guarini has complained bitterly about his treatment by Fuller. 19 and RCA signed and then dropped him after his record sold only 140,000 copies. He has said that the companies forced him to record songs he hated, then abandoned him when the record didn't sell.

=======================

From The Telegraph:

Channel Four to launch radio station with Pop Idol creator

By Guy Dennis (Filed: 30/05/2004)

Channel 4 is set to launch a national radio station as part of a joint venture with the former manager of the Spice Girls, the pop group.

The broadcaster is close to signing an agreement with Simon Fuller, who has a fortune estimated at £220m. Fuller is best known for creating the Pop Idol television series, which has been sold around the world.

Channel 4 and Fuller are planning to turn Popworld, a Sunday morning pop music television show created by Fuller, into a commercial brand that can be exported.

But they are also planning to launch a Popworld radio station in the UK, which would mark Channel 4's first move into the radio industry.

It is understood that the joint venture will also involve a radio company, thought to be UBC Media, the listed group. UBC has stated that it aims to boost the popularity of digital radio using major media brand names.

A deal with Channel 4 and Fuller would tie in with this strategy.

The plan is said to have been masterminded by Rob Woodward, a former investment banker, who heads 4 Ventures, the commercial arm of Channel 4. An initial agreement is expected to be signed within the next two weeks.

Woodward has been credited with helping Channel 4 to almost triple its pre-tax profits last year to £45m after he slashed costs at 4 Ventures.

Channel 4 has since made £90m available to Woodward for investment in commercial ventures, such as the Popworld deal.

=======================

To be continued ...

[Maggiemags]

He pops up in a chart featured in The Independent. He's at 15 and SC is at 54:

The music industry's 100 most influential people

We all know the names that sell albums, but who are the figures behind the names? And how powerful IS Kylie? Ciar Byrne reports

29 June 2004

He started life in a trailer park, has been sued by his mother for claiming she smokes more dope than he does and strikes curious poses with chainsaws.

It might not be the typical profile of a mogul, but in a new survey Marshall Bruce Mathers III, aka Eminem, has been voted the most powerful person in the music industry.

The famously foulmouthed rapper burst onto the music scene in 1999 with his Slim Shady album, but away from his bad boy image Eminem has shown cool business prowess, launching Shady-wear clothing.

He recently used his massive popular appeal to persuade 75,000 young people to register to vote for the first time at the Hip Hop Summit Action Network in Detroit in May.

"There's a generation of people who listen to what he has to say in the same way as the great spokespeople for previous generations, such as Bob Dylan and John Lydon," said Gareth Grundy, the deputy editor of Q magazine, which has compiled a list of the 100 most powerful people in music.

"These are the kind of people who can get what they want just by making a phone call. How much can they get just by picking up the phone? With someone like Bono - he can get through to the White House," Mr Grundy added.

Bono, who combines managing the U2 mega-brand with campaigning on global issues - he recently testified to the US Congress on why President George Bush should put more money into fighting Aids - is at number nine.

Americans dominate the list, with about half of the top 100 hailing from the US.

The highest placed Brit, at number eight, is Sir Howard Stringer, the rugby-loving, Oxford-educated Welshman who is the chairman and chief executive of the Sony Corporation. But Sir Howard, whose next big task is to oversee the launch of Sony's online music store in the UK and Europe, moved to the US in the 1960s.

"It reflects the state of the global music industry, which is dominated by US multinationals," Mr Grundy said.

Traditionalists will be relieved to see Sir Paul McCartney, who headlined the main stage at Glastonbury on Saturday night, at 16; Bob Dylan, who recently played the London Fleadh 42 years after the release of his debut album, at 23; and David Bowie at 45.

John Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono, also makes it onto the list at 32, because "without her there'd be nobody to say 'No' to Paul McCartney". Keith Richards and Mick Jagger, who have generated $750m from Rolling Stones tours since 1989, are ranked at 53.

The cream of the British music scene is recognised, including Coldplay frontman Chris Martin (10), Radiohead's Thom Yorke (30), Dido (40) and her producer, co-writer and brother, Rollo, placed at 98.

Mainstream pop artists including Kylie Minogue (79), Madonna (27), Britney Spears (17), George Michael (56) and Robbie Williams (55), are also included.

The list was drawn up by a 17-strong panel of rock royalty, including the Primal Scream frontman Bobby Gillespie, Universal Music's UK chief, Lucian Grainge, the hop-hop DJ, Tim Westwood, the Glastonbury founder, Michael Eavis, and School of Rock star Jack Black.

Perhaps one of the greatest surprises is the presence of the Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, and his creative sidekick Jonathan Ive at number two on the list. The high positioning of the computer industry executives reflects the burgeoning online music sales industry, with the recent relaunch of Napster and Apple's iTunes.

"Their move into the music business is what everybody's looking at," Mr Grundy said. "They've really shaken things up with iPods and iTunes. It looks as though they're going to turn out to be as important as the compact disc. It seems to be a seismic shift in the way we consume music."

1 Eminem Bad-boy rapper Marshall Mathers III has sparked controversy with his extreme lyrics and courtroom battles with his former wife and mother (for lines such as "my mother smokes more dope than I do"), but he is an astute businessman with his own range of clothes. He also used his influence to persuade 75,000 young people to register to vote. And he doesn't do cheesy endorsements - he sued Apple for using one of his songs without permission.

2 Steve Jobs and Jonathan Ive The co-founder of Apple and his creative sidekick have revolutionised the music industry with the invention of the iPod. The iTunes music store has been heralded as the saviour of the industry.

3 L Lowry Mays As the chief executive of the world's largest media conglomerate, Clear Channel, Mays employs 60,000 people in 66 countries. A former associate of George Bush, Mays owns more than 50 per cent of rock radio in the US.

4 Doug Morris The chief executive of Universal has been in the music business for more than 40 years, starting out as a song writer and penning hits such as the Chiffons' "Sweet Talkin' Guy". Wields huge power in the industry.

5 Edgar Bronfman Jnr As chairman of the Warner Music Group, the 49-year-old father of seven oversees artists including Madonna and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. But he is planning to cut 1,000 jobs.

6 Andre 3000 The frontman of OutKast, Andre "3000" Benjamin is refusing to play the music industry's game and has threatened to quit music for film.He is about to star in Be Cool, the sequel to Get Shorty.

7 Jimmy Iovine A former producer, Iovine built up Interscope records, whose artists include Eminem and U2 in America. His recent contract with parent company Universal Music was worth $50m.

8 Sir Howard Stringer Chief executive of the Sony Corporation and highest placed Brit on the list. The saviour of Columbia Pictures and CBS Television, his next task is to launch Sony's online music store.

9 Bono The Irish rock legend has forged a second career as a campaigner on global issues, including Aids. When he is not managing the U2 brand, which nets about £35m a year, he is doing good deeds.

10 Chris Martin One minute the Coldplay frontman was a geek in an anorak, the next he was a world famous singer with two albums and a Hollywood star, Gwyneth Paltrow, on his arm.

11 50 Cent The bullet-scarred gangsta rapper signed by Eminem and Dr Dre has his own line of trainers. His new album and an autobiography about his upbringing in New York are out in the autumn.

12 Rick Rubin The most influential producer working today, he co-founded Def Jam, worked with Run-DMC and Aerosmith, made albums with Johnny Cash and produces the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

13 Rolf Schmidt-Holtz Chairman and chief executive of BMG, he oversees Avril Lavigne and Pink. Currently masterminding BMG's merger with Sony and expected to become chairman of the group.

14 Clive Davis The head of BMG North America was axed in 2000, and retaliated by setting up his own label and discovering Alicia Keys. BMG then offered him $150m to rejoin the company.

15 Simon Fuller The creator of Pop Idol and former manager of the Spice Girls owns 19 Entertainment, managing artists such as Gareth Gates. The Pop Idol format has been exported to 18 countries.

16 Sir Paul McCartney The 62-year-old former Beatle, who headlined the Glastonbury Festival on Saturday night, is currently on a summer tour of Europe and also has a new album on the way.

17 Britney Spears The show is not over. She duetted with Madonna and her last hit, "Toxic," was her first number one since "Oops! I Did It Again". She has a greatest hits album coming out next year.

18 Jack White Fans of the White Stripes frontman range from Iggy Pop to Joss Stone and he is dating the actress Renée Zellweger. He turned down $1m for a Gap advert.

19 Dr Dre The founding father of gangsta rap with NWA in the Eighties was behind artists including Tupac, Snoop Dogg and Eminem, and can claim much of the credit for the success of 50 Cent. Dr Dre recently decided to abandon recording the final album of his career, which was to be called Detox. He is currently producing Busta Rhymes' next album, due for release next year, and continues to work with rappers including The Game.

20 Van Toffler The president of MTV is credited with reviving the career of Ozzy Osbourne by bringing his dysfunctional family to the small screen. He also brought the wacky gore-fest Jackass to MTV.

21 Lyor Cohen - The new chief executive of US recorded music for Warner Bros.

22 Kanye West - The producer-turned rapper dubbed "the new Pharrell".

23 Bob Dylan The rock legend whose debut album was released 42 years ago.

24 Michael Gondry Music video director behind Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind.

25 Dave Grohl Lead singer of the Foo Fighters.

26 Alan Levy The Frenchman who runs EMI.

27 Madonna The pop legend who now wants to be known as Esther.

28 Beyoncé Knowles Solo artist and former member of Destiny's Child.

29 Michael Bebel The boss of Napster, the now legitimate former music pirates.

30 Thom Yorke Radiohead frontman.

31 Rich Harrison R&B producer whose clients include Janet Jackson and Usher.

32 Yoko Ono John Lennon's widow and the chief curator of his legacy.

33 Terry McBride Head of Nettwerk Productions and manager-mogul to Dido

34 R Kelly R&B legend who is facing child-porn charges.

35 Spike Jonze Music video producer for the Beastie Boys and Fat Boy Slim

36 Antonio "LA" Reid R&B hitmaker turned Def-Jam chairman.

37 Linda Perry Grammy-nominated songwriter who penned Pink's "Get the Party Started".

38 Pharrell Williams & Chad Hugo, The Neptunes Music producers behind Justin Timberlake..

39 Jay Berman Head of the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry.

40 Dido The British female solo artist who has enjoyed huge international success.

41 Rod Smallwood & Andy Taylor Heads of music management group Sanctuary.

42 Usher America's favourite R&B singer.

43 Jeff Kwatinetz Chief executive of The Firm whose clients include Limp Bizkit.

44 Kevin Weatherly Head of Los Angeles radio station KROQ and the Infinity radio network.

45 David Bowie The rock star is recording an album.

46 Justin Timberlake The former boy-band member who has made it as a solo star.

47 Red Hot Chilli Peppers: Anthony Keidis, Flea, John Fruscianti, Chad Smith Californian rockers who have recently enjoyed a revival.

48 Jay Z Hip-hop legend who turned the Roc-A-Fella label into an urban lifestyle brand.

49 Prince The pint-sized artist is touring the world with his new album Musicology.

50 Norah Jones Ravi Shankar's daughter has sold more than 25 million records in her own right.

51 Korda Marshall Managing director of East West UK and the executive behind The Darkness and Muse.

52 Beastie Boys The rappers have now turned into political activists.

53 Mick Jagger & Keith Richards The pair have made more than $750m out of Rolling Stones tours since 1989.

54 Simon Cowell Pop Idol presenter and music tycoon.

55 Robbie Williams Former Take That member is planning new singles and a greatest-hits album.

56 George Michael The most-played artist on UK radio over the past 20 years.

57 Gwen Stefani The frontwoman of No Doubt

58 Tim Armstrong Californian rocker and songwriter.

59 Christina Aguilera US pop diva.

60 Big Boi Andre 3000's partner in OutKast

61 Bruce Springsteen Rock veteran whose tours still sell out.

62 Cliff Burnstein & Peter Mensch A&R men at Q Prime Management behind Metallica, Def Leppard and Shania Twain

63 Martin Dodd Senior vice president Worldwide A&R, Sony who masterminded Britney Spears's success

64 Timbaland R&B producer who made Missy Elliott and Aaliyah

65 David LaChappelle Pop photographer who was given his first job by Andy Warhol.

66 Cathy Dennis Former 90s pop singer turned songwriter.

67 Courtney Love The key custodian of Kurt Cobain's back catalogue

68 Metallica: James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Kirk Hammet, Rob Trujillio Veterans of heavy rock.

69 Axl Rose The front man of rockers Guns'N'Roses.

70 John Silva The manager of Nirvana who now oversees the Foo Fighters and the Beastie Boys.

71 Sharon Osbourne The power behind Ozzy.

72 Alex Jones Donnelly Editor of music policy, Radio 1

73 Missy Elliott Hip-hop singer who starred in a Gap advert with Madonna (sorry, Esther).

74 Nigel Godrich Record producer favoured by Radiohead and Travis.

75 Kelly Jones Stereophonics frontman.

76 Beck Individualistic artist whose record contract allows him to do whatever he wants.

77 Morrissey The iconic former frontman of the Smiths.

78 Noel Gallagher Oasis singer-songwriter.

79 Kylie Minogue Australian pop singer who has enjoyed enduring success.

80 Irving Azoff Manager whose clients include Christina Aguilera and the Eagles.

81 Russell Simmons The head of a $300m hip-hop empire.

82 Matt Bellamy The frontman of West Country indie band Muse, who headlined Glastonbury on Sunday.

83 Josh Homme The front man of Queens of the Stone Age.

84 Geoff Travis The indie mastermind behind the Strokes and the Libertines.

85 Janet Jackson Still going strong despite her "wardrobe malfunction" on stage this year.

86 Marilyn Manson The weird-looking rocker and bane of US Christians.

87 Joseph Kahn MTV video director who made the video for Britney Spears's Toxic.

88 Lil' Jon Rap DJ and producer.

89 Sean Paul Jamaican R&B star who has duetted with Beyoncé.

90 Alicia Keys Singer-songwriter who rose to fame as a teenager.

91 Danger Mouse Producer behind the Grey Album, a mix of Jay-Z and the Beatles.

92 Michael Parkinson The Saturday night chat-show host and Radio 2 DJ.

93 Vince Power The head of the Mean Fiddler Group, the festival promoters behind Glastonbury, Reading and Creamfields.

94 Jack Black Star of the film School of Rock.

95 Tim Westwood Veteran hip-hop DJ.

96 Liam Howlett The mastermind of The Prodigy.

97 Ryan Adams Singer-songwriter whose second album Love is Hell was rapturously received.

98 Rollo Armstrong Dido's producer, co-writer and brother.

99 Michael Eavis Founder of Glastonbury.

100 Mike Skinner The voice of The Streets, credited with capturing Britain in 2004.

=======================

This was on Ananova today - very interesting.

Simon Cowell in court battle with Simon Fuller

27/07/04

Pop promoter Simon Fuller is reportedly heading for a court showdown with bosses at former business partner Simon Cowell's record company BMG.

The Mirror says the record company is trying to stop Fuller's company 19 signing a deal with Universal for American Idol winner Fantasia Barrino and runner-up Diana DeGarmo.

BMG owns the rights to distribute singles and albums from winners of the Pop Idol show.

BMG has issued a writ ordering 19 to give it access to the artists.

It is also seeking an injunction preventing Fuller from offering rights to the singers to anyone else.

A BMG spokesperson told industry bible MusicWeek: "We are in dispute with 19, but we are confident we will resolve this minor dispute."

[/b]

I can't find it in the online Mirror, but they are often behind so it might be up later.

=======================

Well, erm ... it would appear that our Mr Fuller is now being debated in the New Zealand Parliament :shocked:

The full transcript's here and it's very very long, but something of a row seems to have kicked off :crazy:

Here's the specific bit, but click on the link above for the full row - it's quite comical. You might be best doing a search (Ctrl+F) on 'Fuller'.

Katherine Rich: Has the New Zealand On Air chief executive officer, Jo Tyndall, received the full reports that she was expecting “shortly” from TVNZ back in April; if not, when are those full reports actually expected to be made?

Hon STEVE MAHAREY: As I said in the House yesterday, all of the arrangements around that programme have not been completed yet, such as knowing whether overseas sales will take place, and the report has not been completed yet. But she will get one. It is a very normal process.

Deborah Coddington: How does he square his answer yesterday, when he said “… if NZ Idol generates more revenue than it has cost to produce, then New Zealand On Air is entitled to repayments on a first-out basis against its investment.”, with a letter from the New Zealand On Air chief executive officer, Jo Tyndall, dated 15 August 2003, which states: “The board will contribute to NZ Idol in the form of a loan, with the requirement that this loan is first out in the event that any revenue results from the programme.”; and given that commitment, why has New Zealand On Air not got its money back?

Hon STEVE MAHAREY: The arrangement made here is an equity investment, which allows the organisation to get first-out status if there is money to be paid back. As I said, that is something that has happened with other programmes. TV3 has two programmes currently running of that sort. Originally, the question was one of a loan, because of the difficulties of using the Idol format in New Zealand. South Pacific Pictures, which eventually made the programme, could not get access to that format and make it itself, because of contractual obligations. TVNZ asked for a loan to be able to do it. That did not work, so it moved back to a normal contractual arrangement with the kinds of things we have talked about here today. In other words, it reconciles extremely easily.

Deborah Coddington: Which statement on the payback threshold is correct: his answer yesterday that New Zealand On Air would receive its money back if there were sufficient profits, or an internal New Zealand On Air email dated 16 March 2004, which states: “The agreement was that it remains the same’’—that is, the payback threshold—“regardless of the increase in the overall budgeted costs. Therefore the draft still refers to New Zealand On Air’s funds being repaid once the programme revenue exceeds [blanked out figure].”?

Hon STEVE MAHAREY: At the risk of trying the House’s patience, let me answer again. The loan arrangement that was originally discussed did not go ahead. What did go ahead was an equity investment arrangement with a first-out arrangement. That is what I said yesterday, that is what I am saying today, and that is the arrangement that prevails.

Rodney Hide: Is it not the case that this $450,000 of equity investment in TVNZ has been entirely eaten up by payments to the franchise holder, Simon Fuller, and that this money has just served to line the pocket of a multimillionaire international music tycoon, or is this Minister prepared to say that New Zealand On Air is first out, before Simon Fuller?

Hon STEVE MAHAREY: This money went to make a programme watched by 1 million New Zealanders. There were 300 performers, and 10,000 people were involved in the programme. It was fantastically successful. We back young people. That member may not, but we will carry on doing so.

=======================

Just having a little browse around - as you do - and found this. It's from the Guardian, Tuesday January 21, 2003 - Snowdrop first posted it at the time

Henry makes Hollywood connections

Julia Day

UK public relations company Henry's House is hoping to move closer to Hollywood's big-hitters having joined forces with one of Los Angeles' most influential agencies.

The London-based entertainment PR agency is to handle the account for TV show American Idol alongside Beverly Hills-based BWR Public Relations.

The two agencies hope the partnership will be the start of a transatlantic client-sharing arrangement.

Henry's House and BWR have been in talks about working together for the past few months.

BWR counts Hollywood A-list stars Brad Pitt, Ben Affleck, and Golden Globe winner Renee Zellweger among its clients.

And Henry's House has handled PR for clients including Pop Idol, Big Brother, The Big Breakfast and pop act S Club.

But the two companies have another link in 19 Entertainment's Simon Fuller - the former Spice Girls manager and creator of Pop Idol.

Fuller is a director of Henry's House and BWR represents the US business of Fuller's company 19 Entertainment.

The partnership between the two agencies is part of a strategic initiative developed by Julian Henry, founder of Henry's House, and Paul Baker, the co-chief executive of BWR, a subsidiary of Ogilvy PR Worldwide.

With a goal of encouraging two-way client traffic, the agreement is aimed at BWR's other corporate, TV and talent clients being promoted in the UK by Henry's House, and vice-versa.

"At least 60% of our client base - including brands such as Orange and Schweppes - is involved in entertainment and celebrity culture, and so it makes sense for us to strengthen our ties with US studios and the big west coast agencies," said Mr Henry.

Mr Baker added: "We are excited to have Henry's House as a UK entertainment partner on American Idol and see great potential for expanding this relationship."

Henry's House talent director Jo Milloy and publicist Cat Halsby will work with BWR executives Eric Green and Dvora Vener to provide UK media with stories, information and interviews around American Idol.

And the US version of the UK show that made Will Young and Gareth Gates stars will be broadcast on ITV2 on Friday nights, starting on January 31.

=======================

NEAL JUSTIN: The 25 most important players in TV this fall

From The Minneapolis Star Tribune

(September 8, 9:38 am )

Choosing the most important person in television is simpler than pressing a clicker: It's you, dear viewer.

You'll decide if "Clubhouse" strikes out or whacks a homer. You'll decide if Joey Tribbiani has to have friends. You'll decide if Mark Cuban can buy some good publicity. You'll decide if Jason Alexander will finally shake the "Seinfeld" curse. You'll decide who will be the big stars of the new season and who will be future housemates on "The Surreal Life."

The bigwigs who thrive in Hollywood are those who do the best job of guessing what you want - and have the best chance of doing it again in the 2004-05 season. We're calling them the 25 Most Important Players in Television, but you and I know better.

22. Simon Fuller & Simon Cowell Ages: 43 and 44 Title: American Idols Why they're hot: Fuller's mind created "American Idol"; Cowell's mouth put it on the map. Why they're not: This phenomenon can't last forever. Can it?

=======================

Pop Idol mogul sues Simon Cowell

From the BBC

Music mogul Simon Fuller has launched legal action against TV host Simon Cowell, claiming his X Factor ITV1 show copies his Pop Idol format.

Fuller's company 19 TV, which created Pop Idol and American Idol, is taking action against producer FremantleMedia, Cowell and his firms Simco and Syco.

It is claiming breach of contract and breach of copyright.

"19 TV will be pressing for a speedy trial to resolve the matters as swiftly as is possible," a 19 spokesman said.

Cowell became a household name after appearing as an outspoken judge on ITV talent show Pop Idol, which first aired in 2001.

The show, which helped create pop stars Will Young, Gareth Gates and Michelle McManus, attracted 12 million viewers for the final of its second series in December 2003.

He was also a judge in the show's US equivalent, American Idol, which won more than 31 million viewers during its final in May.

He has now set up a production company, Syco, and appears as a judge in its first show - The X Factor.

A talent show in which wannabes face Cowell and fellow judges Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh, The X Factor's first episode was broadcast on Saturday.

As well as claiming copyright infringement, 19 TV is suing for breach of contract because it claims a number of X Factor's production team also worked on Pop Idol and signed contracts that restricted them from working on rival shows.

Cowell and FremantleMedia did not comment on the legal action on Friday.

Simon Fuller, who runs management company 19, was the man behind enormously successful pop acts such as the Spice Girls and S Club 7 before creating Pop Idol.

Last year, he was named the most influential person in the UK music business by industry magazine Music Week.

He also became the first British music manager since The Beatles' Brian Epstein to hold the top three positions in the US chart, with singles by artists from American Idol.

=======================

Nothing to do with the music, but interesting nonetheless ... from Scotsman.com

Eastenders Boss Quits

By Anita Singh, Showbusiness Editor, PA News

BBC soap boss Mal Young, the man responsible for EastEnders, is quitting to join the company behind Pop Idol, it was announced today.

Young is leaving to become director of drama at Simon Fuller’s 19 TV.

As the BBC’s controller of continuing drama series, he oversaw the likes of EastEnders, Holby City, Casualty, Doctors and Waking The Dead.

The announcement comes only a week after the EastEnders audience slumped to an all-time low and executive producer Louise Berridge handed in her notice.

Young said his decision to join 19 was “a no-brainer”.

Hmm ...endless source of interest, that Mr Fuller. Wonder what his plans are for this guy.

OK - that's the story so far ... watch this space

[eternal]

All interesting reading Maggie and a usefull source of information on here.

I particularly like this bit:

He has talked about reinventing the beauty pageant with a show called All American Girl, and even rolling Pop Idol out to China.

hmmm. makes you wonder!!!

[Khelda]

and even rolling Pop Idol out to China.

It certainly does make you wonder.

and thanks for the interesting read.

[Snowdrop]

Well done for copying it all across. Very useful

[Floz]

Great to have it all in one place over here. He is a very interesting man

[Yorksheather]

Just read all that,thaks Maggie very interesting

luv Heather

[Maggiemags]

Took the following extracts from the article on Rachel Stevens posted in full in Other Music here.

Rock and Pop from The Times

October 02, 2004

One's more fun

S Club siren she may have been, but Rachel Stevens is no pop puppet when it comes to reinventing herself for a solo career, says Angus Batey

Sometimes, being a pop star looks as grim as having a job. If the effort Rachel Stevens puts into promoting her fourth solo single were to be reflected in its chart position, her cover of the 1970s disco hit More More More — out on Monday — will be No 1 until November; but it’s not that simple.

She and the team of people who work for her are attempting to redefine the Rachel Stevens brand — to accomplish the transition from teen pop princess to serious solo artist.

The task has been under way since her debut solo single reached No 2 last year. Sweet Dreams My LA Ex showed that she could appeal beyond the pre-teen fanbase of her old group: since then, with a string of provocative poses on the covers of lad mags and a risqué piece of glam-styled, self-aware pop in the shape of this summer’s Some Girls hit, she has made steady strides forward.

But convincing a sceptical world that she’s something other than a manufactured pop puppet is proving troublesome; and it doesn’t help that she remains managed by S Club’s inventor, Simon Fuller, whose roll-call of pop projects includes taking the Spice Girls from half-formed idea to biggest group in the world and conceptualising the globe-conquering Pop Idol TV show. But getting her to discuss any of this in any detail is like trying to bottle smoke. Likeable and friendly, she’s nevertheless so guarded you wonder whether she’s thinking of a move into politics.

Yet you can see why. It’s tempting, and inevitable, for outsiders to seek to drive a wedge between a star like Stevens and a manager with the sort of reputation Fuller, rightly or wrongly, enjoys.

…

So the next stage of the evolution is for Stevens to be involved in writing the songs she sings. Although “manufactured” pop has a long and glorious history — Motown’s production line formula produced some of the greatest pop made; half the Beatles’ first album consisted of cover versions; the Sex Pistols were put together by a backroom Svengali; Elvis and Sinatra didn’t sing their own songs — today’s stars are often derided if they don’t take an interest in writing their own material. One thinks of Jamelia, who is enjoying critical plaudits despite still singing off-the-peg hits written by others (Superstar) because her own writing, derived from actual experiences (Thank You, which recalls an abusive relationship; See It In a Boy’s Eyes, co-written with Coldplay’s Chris Martin) is challenging the one-dimensional view.

…

From someone so established in the public view, this sort of newcomer-speak comes as a surprise. But despite being a star since 1998, it’s only now that Stevens is really getting much of a chance to be herself. She got the S Club break by pure chance, the pop producers Mike Rose and Nick Foster spotting her while she was in a record company cafeteria in 1998, cadging a free lunch from her brother who worked there. They introduced her to Fuller, who asked her to join six other putative pop stars who had been chosen in auditions from a field of around 10,000 hopefuls.

The group starred in their own Monkees-style children’s sitcom, set in Miami, and began recording with Elliott Kennedy, the writer/producer behind early Spice Girls hits such as Wannabe. Their best song, the perfect disco pop of Don’t Stop Movin’, had two separate spells at No 1 in 2001. They won a brace of Brit Awards, made a movie, and sold more than 16 million CDs worldwide.

…

The band split in April last year, and Stevens didn’t waste any time. Striking before the iron was even out of the fire, she signed as a solo artist to Polydor, the label S Club were with, and immediately recorded My LA Ex, written by Cathy Dennis, a fellow Fuller charge and former teen pop idol. It was one of the year’s finest, sassiest pop singles, yet its follow-up, the title track to the album Funky Dory, barely scraped the Top 40, despite Stevens’ s soaring tabloid profile.

And from the supplementary article...

AND THEN THERE WAS ONE . . .

Paul Connolly warns of the perils of going solo

The odds are against Rachel Stevens enjoying sustained solo success away from the cosy environs of S Club 7. The pantomime season is strewn with those who attempted to break free of the bonds of a manufactured teeny band before realising that they have neither the charisma nor the talent for a career of their own.

After all, why do young hopefuls, with their permagrins and flawless complexions, agree in the first place to join acts put together by gentlemen of a certain age? If they had the ability to string two words or chords together then they wouldn’t need marketing muscle or the assistance of external agencies.

[Maggiemags]

Extract from an article in The Herald posted in full here:

Beckham’s £20m pay deal (but only £5m from football)

PAUL ROGERSON October 08 2004

Beckham signalled a change of direction last year when he severed a 10-year relationship with SFX, the British sports arm of American entertainment giant Clear Channel. SFX had shared representation rights to Beckham with another agency, the Outside Organisation.

Prompted by his wife, Beckham quit Outside and signed with 19 Management, the company owned by pop impresario Simon Fuller, founder of the Spice Girls.

Fuller has set about turning the Beckhams into the world's most powerful celebrity brand, but suffered an early setback when news emerged of Beckham's alleged affair with Loos – a former employee of SFX.

[Francine]

That made very interesting reading Maggie.I'm wiping my brow after ploughing through it.

The possible deal between Simon Fuller and Cannel 4 sounds full of promise.Never know what may come out of it re Gareth or could I be in cloud cuckoo land/

Love Frankie.

[Maggiemags]

Bits and pieces about the Cowell -v- Fuller court case brought over from Heather's thread

First Pop Idol Court Battle Is Bloodless Skirmish

Thu 14 Oct 2004 11:24am (UK)

by Stephen Howard, PA News

from Scotsman.com

There was a bloodless first skirmish today in what is being billed as a multi-million pound High Court battle between Pop Idol creator Simon Fuller and its star Simon Cowell.

The main action is expected to reach court early next year when Mr Fuller sues Mr Cowell over his new show, The X Factor, which he claims breaches an agreement between the two pop entrepreneurs.

Today Ronagold, a company set up in 2000 by Mr Cowell and German music company BMG to exploit records by the original Pop Idol stars, was due to bring an action against Mr Fuller’s company, 19 Entertainment, after claims that it was seeking new record companies for future Pop Idol winners.

But the dispute was settled on “amicable” terms outside court, said a spokesman for Mr Fuller’s company.

This action was believed to have been dropped after a new record agreement was negotiated between the two rivals.

Ronagold splits the profits from recorded music rights of Gareth Gates and Will Young with Mr Fuller, who was believed to get 50%.

This high percentage was justified, Mr Fuller claimed, because Pop Idol was central to the success of the stars.

Mr Fuller, who made his first fortune managing the Spice Girls, and Mr Cowell were once big friends.

They are believed to have fallen out after Mr Cowell’s success as the acerbic judge of the Pop Idol series which was exported to America as American Idol.

Mr Cowell’s treatment of would-be stars brought him more fame and made the show a major hit on US television.

====================

From the Daily Mail

9th October 2004

They are two of the most powerful and successful men in the entertainment world. Simon Cowell and Simon Fuller - both 44 years old and with matching tans, manicures, capped teeth and fortunes - have known each other for 20 years as rival music executives.

In that time they have battled several times over the transient affections of equally transient pop stars and developed a relationship which is either 'akin to sibling rivalry' or 'downwright strange', depending on who you speak to.

For years it has been knockabout stuff, with the pair - both known for their enormous egos - indulging in good-natured competitions about cars, homes and jets.

But next week their rivalry reaches the High Court, in a case which is just the start of something larger.

If Cowell's friends are to be believed, the series of legal actions which have been launched recently by Fuller aim at nothing less than destroying his rival for good -and are motivated by jealousy, pure and simple.

The imminent showdown is anticipated with relish by the showbusiness community, as it is likely to be explosive stuff.

It concerns the delicate issue of who should profit the most from Pop Idol, the wildly successful talent show developed by Fuller which has now run for two series and which Cowell helped boost to global recognition.

It all started when Simon Fuller enlisted the services of Simon Cowell - he of the high waistband and acid put-downs -as a judge on Pop Idol.

On the face of it, this was surprising because although the two men have always been cordial about each other in public, it is no secret that privately they do not get on.

At first it all worked better than expected, but now the pair have fallen out spectacularly - and apparently for good.

Cowell's decision earlier this year to make his own TV talent show, X Factor, provoked Fuller into launching no fewer than seven different legal suits which will roll out between now and next Spring.

There seems little hope of it being settled out of court. 'It's a love- hate relationship, but it's mainly hate', said one of Cowell's camp this week.

Fuller's aides were equally candid: 'Because of the money involved, it has become pretty sour', one said.

'They have been competing with each other for most of their adult lives,although it's never been exactly personal - they have always got on'.

'I know they spoke to each other on the phone a few weeks before Simon Fuller issued the writ' says a friend of Fuller's.

They have a sort of quarterly dinner in London or in Los Angeles. But it's one of those arm's length friendships - when they go out to dinner,they are always trying to get details about what the other one is doing.

Cowell's team paints a less rosy picture. 'I have never known Fuller to be invited to a social occasion by Cowell', reveals an insider.

Indeed, the details of some of their fallings-out show both are capable of surprisingly immature behaviour. Fuller recently let slip to Cowell over dinner that he was on the waiting list for a £3000,000 Mercedes Maybach - an extremely exclusive super-limo.

By the next time they met, Cowell had jumped the list and bought one for himself. It's the kind of friendship which has driven their 'friendship'.

The first round of the legal battle begins next week Fuller is suing BMG, the German music company of which Cowell is an executive over a long-standing deal that has turned sour.

That particular dispute, which may be resolved by an agreement on Tuesday, can be regarded as a curtain-raiser to the main event in February, when the two Simons will give evidence in a battle over whether Cowell's new talent show X Factor ripped off Fuller's Pop Idol format.

Fuller says that everything about X Factor - the logo, the music, the panel, the interviewers - is a copycat of Pop Idol.

The Cowell camp say Fuller's case is 'utter rubbish' and point out that the X Factor features older contestants, and groups as well as individuals.

They say the case has been brought because Fuller wants a share of the money which Cowell is making from X Factor, and because he is jealous of Cowell's positive public profile.

At stake is not only Cowell's pride, but his future career. He is canny enough to know that his on-screen fame is a passing fad, and that real money is to be made behind the scenes in devising and owning popular shows.

Their moment in court draws near. Now that the TV rights are at stake, it has all got a bit nasty.

Let battle be joined.

====================

Taken from the Sun

15 Oct

A High Court battle between pop titans Simon Cowell and Simon Fuller was over in just 30 seconds yesterday - after they agreed a deal.

The pair, both 44, were due to clash over recording rights from telly mega-hit Pop Idol, which they both helped launch.

But judge Mr Justice Peter Smith was told they had reached an agreement.

The spat is not over for the two, who have known each over for 20 years. They will clash again in February over Cowell's new TV Show X Factor.

Former Spice Girls' manager Fuller claims it is a rip-off of Pop Idol.

[Maggiemags]

A couple of articles about Mr. Fuller's latest venture:

From Reuters:

Fox planning U.S. version of "Eastenders"

Wed 17 November, 2004 08:59, by Nellie Andreeva

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Fox Broadcasting has ordered six scripts for an American version of the BBC soap "EastEnders."

The project will be shepherded by "American Idol" creator/executive producer Simon Fuller. The primetime soap genre is hotter than ever this season in America with the breakout success of ABC's "Desperate Housewives."

"EastEnders" has run on BBC1 since 1985.

The American version, said to chronicle the lives of blue-collar families in Chicago, hails from Fuller and "EastEnder's" head writer and story consultant Tony Jordan.

Jordan, who has penned about 250 episodes of "EastEnders" in the past 15 years, is writing the scripts and is executive producing the Fox project with Fuller.

This article seems to suggest that he's involved with Desperate Houswives, although I can't find any other evidence of it:

From This is London:

EastEnders is heading west with US version

By Evening Standard, 17 November 2004

A new version of EastEnders is being specially created for American TV viewers.

The scripts are being prepared by the BBC soap's creative consultant Tony Jordan with former Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller, who is on a winning streak in the US after the success of Desperate Housewives and American Idol.

It was Fuller who proposed the idea to broadcasting giant Fox, which has commissioned the scripts.

In the US version families like the Mitchells and Slaters will be replaced by blue-collar families in Chicago.

Another bit from Scotsman.com:

Walford-Based Soap Set for 'Windy City' Remake

By Mark Sage, PA, in New York

Albert Square could be re-locating to Chicago it emerged today, as plans are made for a US version of EastEnders’.

Six scripts for an Americanised version of the popular programme have been ordered by TV producers, keen to cash in on a recent boom in the popularity of soaps.

The project will be led by Simon Fuller, creator of the Spice Girls, S-Club 7 and Pop Idol, according to the LA-based Hollywood Reporter newspaper.

EastEnders’ head writer and story consultant Tony Jordan is also reportedly on board.

The show, which would be shown on US television network Fox, would feature families in a working class district of Chicago.

But moving Walford to Chicago is far from guaranteed success.

The original EastEnders’ was pulled from the BBC America cable channel in the US last year.

A spokesman said at the time that the programme “continued to under-perform compared with the rest of our schedule”.

The US version of Coupling, also set in Chicago with an American cast and a script nearly identical to the British original – lost its prime-time spot on NBC after disappointing ratings.

Hollywood trade paper, Variety, said of the show: “The cast has no likeable characters, motivation for every act is sexual, and the theme of moronic men versus wily women has been played out.”

It was a disappointing result for a show which producers hoped would be a replacement for Friends, which came to an end as Coupling began in the US.

But other British entertainment has impressed US audiences.

The Office, starring Ricky Gervais, became a cult classic, and Da Ali G Show has won good reviews after being shown on the HBO channel.

And finally, this one explains why Mal Young left to the BBC to join 19TV:

From Media Bulletin:

Fox TV plans US version of EastEnders from UK talent

Sam Matthews, Brand Republic 15:30 17-11-2004

LONDON – Fox TV is planning a US version of 'EastEnders' to be executive produced by 'Pop Idol' creator Simon Fuller and 'EastEnders' writer Tony Jordan, who will also pen the scripts.

The as-yet-to-be named US version has been greenlighted by Fox, which has asked for six scripts from Fuller and Jordan. The show will centre on blue-collar workers in Chicago, familiar to UK viewers as the setting of 'ER'.

As well as being the creator and executive producer of 'Pop Idol' and 'American Idol', Fuller owns 19 Management and has signed artists including the Spice Girls, Will Young and Rachel Stevens.

Jordan has written more than 250 episodes of 'EastEnders' during his 15-year stint on the show.

In June, Brand Republic reported that the BBC was planning to make a "working class drama" in what would be an 'EastEnders' style but with a distinctly American take.

BBC drama chief Mal Young was understood to be working on the idea, which would recreate an Albert Square-type community in Denver, Colorado, the ex-gold mining town in the middle of the US known as the nation's baby boomer capital.

The BBC abandoned its plan after the UK show took a ratings nosedive.

Although 'EastEnders' has not proved to be massively popular in the US, BBC America ran into a storm last year when it dropped the show. In June this year, 'EastEnders' made a return to US screens following an outcry from fans.

Primetime soap operas in the US are achieving huge audience ratings and demand for quality drama series is high. ABC's current drama series 'Desperate Housewives' has been a major hit this autumn while '24', 'The Sopranos' and 'Six Feet Under' were all hot property last year.

[Khelda]

He seems to have his fingers in all sorts of pies. Intersting articles, thanks.

[Snowdrop]

As soon as I saw that he was planning a US Eastenders I thought - that's why Mal's left. Fascinating stuff.

[Khelda]

As soon as I saw that he was planning a US Eastenders I thought - that's why Mal's left.

Who is that?

[Maggiemags]

He used to be the 'BBC Drama Chief' Khelda. If you take a look at the last article in the second of the very long threads, his departure from the Beeb is written up there

[Khelda]

thanks Maggiemags.

[Maggiemags]

From a very interesting article about Australian PI posted here.

Industry pros might snipe at Idol, but the fact is, three of last year's contestants have had No.1 albums. The show has undeniably contributed to Australian artists' bigger cut of the CD market this year, up 9 per centage points to 27 per cent.

The trickle-down benefits don't end there. Thirty-second ad slots for tomorrow night's final were auctioned by Ten for $62,500. The man who dreamed up the Idol formula, British music producer Simon Fuller, continues to rake in licensing fees from spin-offs around the world; London's Sunday Times has estimated his personal wealth at $215 million.

[Guest]

Thanks Maggie.

Shame he can't share it about a bit.

[Maggiemags]

The scripts are being prepared by the BBC soap's creative consultant Tony Jordan with former Spice Girls manager Simon Fuller, who is on a winning streak in the US after the success of Desperate Housewives and American Idol.

Just posting to say that I've seen this advertised as coming to C4 on January 5th. Could be worth a look - they might have Gaz playing in the backround if Fuller really is involved

[Maggiemags]

Can't find anything to back this up, so I'm thinking it may be published in the Sunday Times this week. It's about their Rich List, and doesn't really make a lot of sense, but still:

The entertainment industry features strongly for the first time in the list with pop manager Simon Fuller of 19 Entertainment in seventh place.

[Maggiemags]

From The Guardian:

Simon Fuller fronts £20m indie move

Dave Simpson

Thursday February 24, 2005

Simon Fuller, the creator of Pop Idol, has teamed up with other music industry figures and investment/ advisory company Ingenious Media to launch a new venture capital fund offering 20 independent bands £1m each to help launch their careers.

The idea - which reflects the growing shift towards independent-style music - is that bands will be able to approach major labels armed not only with talent, but with a pot of money for marketing and recording. The band does not sign to the major label as such, but gains access to its global distribution network. In turn, the majors can minimise the risks and finances involved in signing and launching a new act. They will also make money back from sales.

According to Ingenious, the ideal is a situation where both sides win. There is always a limit to the amount of money even companies as big as Sony and Universal can put into launching new bands. "Because Ingenious brings both talent and finance to the table, the majors can spread their investment across more new acts," says Patrick McKenna, chairman of Ingenious. "So more bands can get into that distribution network and hopefully succeed."

Ingenious will spend the next 12 months raising capital for the scheme and the following year investing it. Bands will be chosen by a committee, including McKenna - former chief executive of Andrew Lloyd's Webber's Really Useful outfit - and Fuller. Although Fuller is just one of the advisors, it is a shift in direction for the man most associated with manufactured pop in the UK.

Also - found this little snippet from an article in The Mirror about Cheryl Tweedy which explains the Brilliant 19 (Darius' Management) set up a little:

Feb 21 2005

By Eva Simpson

Before being picked to be in the band she was signed to Nikki Chapman's management company Brilliant - now part of Simon Fuller's entertainment powerhouse 19.

[Floz]

Interesting. Is that the sort of deal that Emma Bunton has with Fuller then do you think?

[Maggiemags]

Not sure to be honest - I don't know much about her

From Sunday Times Online today:

Pop Idol boss aims to sell for £100m

SIMON FULLER, the media mogul behind the Spice Girls and the Pop Idol TV format, has put a £100m price on his production company, 19 Entertainment, writes Mark Kleinman.

Fuller, who paid himself nearly £4m last year, could be in line for a windfall of almost 20 times that sum if he completes negotiations to sell the company, which also represents the commercial interests of David and Victoria Beckham.

Sources close to 19 Entertainment said Fuller had been trying to sell the business for several months, and was close to securing a deal with an unnamed American company.

Fuller, who is being advised by Ingenious Media, the advisory boutique that owns a 25% stake in 19 Entertainment, is thought to have held talks with Germany’s Bertelsmann.

“A deal is close, it’s just a case of thrashing out a price along with the finer details,” said a source.

The company made a pre-tax profit of £10.1m in the year to June 30, up 6% on a year earlier.

[Maggiemags]

This has been reported in a separate thread, but I'm putting it in here for completeness. There's masses of articles about it on the internet, so I've picked three of the better ones.

From the BBC:

Music mogul Fuller sells company

Pop Idol supremo Simon Fuller has sold his 19 Entertainment company to an US entrepreneur in a $156m (£81.5m) deal.

Robert Sillerman's Sports Entertainment Enterprises, which is to be renamed CFX, recently also bought an 85% share in the estate of Elvis Presley.

Mr Fuller has been appointed to the CFX board and will plan and implement the company's creative strategy.

The 19 firm handles a roster of music artists, TV shows and PR strategies for stars including the Beckhams.

The deal sees Mr Fuller receive £64.5m in cash and about 1.9 million shares in Sports Entertainment.

There will also be a further £19.2m in either cash or stocks by the end of the financial year in June.

Mr Fuller has signed a long-term agreement with the company which will see him continue to expand and develop entertainment brands.

He said: "This is a hugely exciting new partnership for myself and 19 Entertainment.

"CKX will provide 19 with a powerful platform for global growth and allow us to fully take advantage of all the amazing opportunities that lie ahead. I cannot wait to get started."

Canny marketing

Mr Fuller was the creative drive behind Pop Idol and its US offspring American Idol.

19 Management runs the careers of many of its successful contestants including Will Young, Gareth Gates and Kelly Clarkson.

The company was set up 15 years ago by Mr Fuller, taking the name from his first successful single - 19 by Paul Hardcastle.

Fuller was the driving force behind the Spice Girls phenomenon, using canny marketing and catchy pop songs to secure their place as the most lucrative girl group in history.

He then put together S Club 7, who had their own TV show as well as a music career.

Mr Sillerman's deal to buy the Presley estate sees him control the operation of Graceland, as well as money from the late star's music and films.

Presley's daughter Lisa Marie retains possession of Graceland and many of her father's "personal effects".

and from the FT, reported on MSNBC:

American Idol impresario sells business

CKX to buy 19 Entertainment for about $192 million

By Tim Burt

Updated: 2:36 p.m. ET March 18, 2005

Simon Fuller, the music entrepreneur behind the Spice Girls and Pop Idol, has sold 19 Entertainment, his privately-owned company, to CKX of the US for about $192 million.

CKX, the New York-based entertainment business, sealed the takeover within weeks of listing on Nasdaq and only three months after its high-profile acquisition of Elvis Presley Enterprises, which controls the assets of the Presley estate.

Fuller will become a senior director of the group which controls the commercial use of the Elvis name and likeness. CKX also operates the Graceland Museum, and earns revenues from the rock icon's TV shows, films and some of his music recordings.

"From the very first day we met it was clear that we shared the same dynamic vision for the direction of the entertainment industry," said Fuller.

The impresario shot to fame as the creative force on Pop Idol, the talent show contest that became a worldwide phenomena and spawned American Idol, the top-rated show on Fox in the United States. He also managed artists including Annie Lennox and Will Young, a former Pop Idol winner.

19 Entertainment also boasts a branding joint venture with David and Victoria Beckham, one of Britain's best-known celebrity couples.

Recently, however, Fuller hit the headlines in a legal dispute with Simon Cowell, his one-time business partner and vitriolic Pop Idol judge, over Cowell's involvement in X-Factor, a copy-cat TV talent show.

Robert FX Sillerman, chairman and chief executive of CKX, said the takeover of 19 would help it increase its entertainment business internationally.

The U.S. company, which began trading on Nasdaq earlier this month, had previously vowed to acquire rival groups with existing entertainment content.

CKX is paying about $124.4 million in cash along with 1.87 million shares for 19 Entertainment, augmented by a further $36.9 million payment in cash or stock following delivery of the UK group's results for the year ending June 30, 2005.

In the last financial year, pre-tax profits at 19 rose 3.5 percent to $13 million even though sales fell from $102.5 million to $92.7 million, according to figures filed with Companies House.

Fuller owns 75 percent of 19 Entertainment, with the remainder held by Ingenious Media, the boutique media investment bank.

The disposal marks the first exit by Ingenious Ventures, the private equity arm if the Ingenious Group, since the fund was launched in 2001. The company also advised Fuller on the sale, from which he could earn $144 million.

And from Media Bulletin:

Pop Idol mogul Simon Fuller sells 19 Entertainment for up to £100m

by Jennifer Whitehead Brand Republic

18 Mar 2005

LONDON - Entertainment impresario Simon Fuller has sold 19 Entertainment, the company behind 'Pop Idol' and the Spice Girls, to the businessman Robert Sillerman, in a deal worth a possible £100m.

Sillerman has taken control of the company through CKX, which also owns Elvis Presley's name, image, films and the Graceland museum. It has paid £64.5m in cash and 1.87m shares to acquire 19 Entertainment, with a further £19.2m to be paid after results are delivered for the year ending June 30 2005.

The deal will see Fuller taking a role as a director of CKX as well as continuing to control 19 Entertainment, where he plans to continue world domination of popular culture.

"CKX will provide 19 with a powerful platform for global growth and allow us to fully take advantage of all the amazing opportunities that lie ahead," Fuller said.

His company, founded in 1985, is behind artists such as the Spice Girls, Annie Lennox, S Club 7 and former 'American Idol' participants such as Kelly Clarkson and Clay Aiken.

It also has deals with Victoria and David Beckham and owns the 'Pop Idol' franchise, which is now in use in more than 30 territories, including the fantastically successful 'American Idol'.

Sillerman said: "As we grow our business, the content that 19 owns, controls, is developing or develops in the future will become important elements in our effort to refocus the relationship between the creators of content and the distributors of that content."

Thought that last sentence was interesting