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The Fuller File


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An article in Sunday Times 4th June. I have highlighted the Fuller bit

Television: Playing to the crowd

Could footballers be the next reality TV stars, asks Stephen Armstrong

The two things that really get under Gary Neville’s skin,” Rio Ferdinand grins mischievously, “are scousers and policemen. A few months ago, he put yoghurt all over my brand-new car. He thinks I’ve forgotten it. I haven’t.” Ferdinand is crouched in a grubby room festooned with technology, watching on a tiny monitor as Neville, his Manchester United team-mate and England defender, swings his shiny black SUV into an underground car park. Then the payback prank unfolds.

Neville and buddy Ryan Giggs clamber out of the 4WD just as a police car, complete with uniformed Merseyside copper, pulls up. The bobby gently needles Neville — producing a list of red-light-jumping, speeding and generally dubious driving behaviour — with a tone of such mocking arrogance that the footballer is infuriated. Ultimately, says the boy in blue, you have a choice: come down the station under arrest, get six points and a criminal record or ... pose for a photo with me. Neville’s pride just won’t let him take the easy option. “Give me the six points,” he grunts, his face set with rage, “just give me the six points. I’m not negotiable.”

Neville isn’t alone. In total, six England players are pranked in the unimaginatively titled Rio’s World Cup Wind-Ups, a soccer Candid Camera that goes out on ITV1 on Saturday. Dog-lover Wayne Rooney inadvertently fails to save a dying pooch and has to tell an adoring fan his pet has snuffed it. David James is caught out at an art gallery. Ashley Cole accidentally erases a charity single, forcing the sponsors into bankruptcy and facing violent threats from a hip-hop producer. Peter Crouch is caught up in a bogus property deal. Shaun Wright-Phillips is involved in the vicious sacking of an impoverished waiter. At the time of writing, the Beckham scam hadn’t happened — but it’s probably safe to say he won’t spot the signs.

What is interesting about the show isn’t the standard-issue stunts or even the glimpse of the unguarded soccer superstars as they face calamity. In the long term, it’s the 27-year-old presenter and co-producer, Rio Ferdinand. He is an unusual footballer, not because of his skills on the pitch or his occasional brushes with the tabloid press, but in his attempt to become a bona fide entertainment player in the glorious US tradition.

In the States, the dividing line between sports stars and the entertainment industry has been blurred for a while. Wrestlers, basketball players and US football players have all moved effortlessly into Hollywood. Then there’s OJ Simpson, of course, rejected for the lead in The Terminator as the American public thought him too nice to be a killer. Over here, we have Gary Lineker’s crisp ads.

Ferdinand’s bid to reverse this began when he set up White Chalk Records, a dance music label. Last year, while securing the usual autobiography, he met Jordan’s agent, Chris Nathaniel, and the pair set up a production company, Next Generation. Rio’s World Cup Wind-ups is a co-production with ITV. There’s a film in the pipeline, and Ferdinand has plans for more telly. Of course, he’s also launching a clothing label, the first thing any self-respecting American celebrity does these days.

“Football is the most important thing in my life,” he says, “but I do have a life outside football, and this is one part. The TV, the music, the fashion — it all goes to make up Rio Ferdinand. There are a few series in the pipeline — a big reality show in development, an MC talent search show and a number of youth documentaries. There is a mini bidding war going on between the networks for the reality show, which is exciting. For most of them, I want to be behind the lens, producing and directing. I do enjoy the presenting, but I want to give new talent the chance to shine — DJs, presenters, actors, musicians.”

“When he first came to us, we were very sceptical,” says ITV talent executive Mark Wagman. “Footballers are usually unreliable and aloof, whereas telly is all about being reliable and warm. But he came across really well on camera, so we’re getting him to do the voice-over, which we hadn’t planned to before. And he delivered every player he said he would, which would have been impossible via the FA or their agents.”

Ferdinand’s charge may start a far wider cultural assault by the sporting world. Last spring, 19 Management’s Simon Fuller, the Pop Idol and Spice Girls svengali, took over Team England, with a contract due to start in August. Team England is the old England “players pool”, a cute hangover from the jumpers-for-goalposts era of football. Under the players-pool system, any money earned directly by an England player as an England player went into a joint fund to be divided up equally at the end of the year. Given the status of the players involved, it seems astonishing that the pool took a scant £3m in 2005.

Fuller plans television shows, music releases, branding opportunities, a whole wall of commercial exploitation designed to increase Team England’s revenue tenfold around a major tournament. He’s even set up a special company to handle the contract, called 1966. Fuller, of course, has been looking after the Beckhams since 2004, and his 90-minute broadcast of their pre-World Cup party on ITV last weekend shows the kind of media spectacle he pulls off when working with sports stars. Fuller has also signed the Honda Formula One Team and the Muhammad Ali estate.

All of this is fine if you love sport. If you don’t, however, now might be the time to worry. Anybody who has been in America during Superbowl Sunday knows just how deeply a sports event can penetrate the culture. So enjoy the brouhaha around this World Cup. You ain’t seen nothing yet

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  • 1 month later...

Hmm. Helping out the Little Britain crew http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/5230832.stm

Little Britain's stars aim for US

The stars of TV series Little Britain have recruited the man behind the Spice Girls and Pop Idol to try to win over viewers in the United States.

Simon Fuller was approached by Matt Lucas and David Walliams to "develop" the show for an American audience, Fuller's spokeswoman confirmed.

She would not comment on whether the Bafta-winning comedy might change its characters or format for the US.

The first three series have already been broadcast on BBC America.

Fuller began his career by identifying up-and-coming talent for record company Chrysalis.

He named his company 19 Entertainment, after the 1985 number one single by Paul Hardcastle, whom he discovered.

Although Fuller did not bring together the Spice Girls, he secured the record deal which would see their debut hit Wannabe top the charts in 37 countries.

He also launched pop group S Club 7 and then doubled his fortune with the TV talent show Pop Idol.

The show brought fame to UK artists including Will Young and Gareth Gates, with US singers such as Kelly Clarkson and Clay Aitken emerging from the US version, American Idol.

Mainstream appeal

Lucas and Walliams took their first show to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 1995 and developed character-based comedies for TV through the series Sir Bernard's Stately Homes and Rock Profile.

Little Britain began as a radio programme five years ago and has gone on to become a stage show since the characters gained mainstream recognition on BBC television.

The BBC has now signed the comedy duo to an exclusive deal which means they cannot work for any other broadcaster.

It has announced they are planning a sketch show for next year which could incorporate Little Britain characters.

However, it is unclear whether this is the programme intended to launch them to a wider US audience.

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  • 1 year later...

According to Digital Spy:

American Idol creator Simon Fuller has landed a pilot for a new, real-time medical drama.

Each episode of Austin Golden Hour follows a team of young emergency room surgeons in the 60 minutes following a major trauma.

The project is being developed for The CW, with Mal Young (Brookside, Doctor Who) writing the script.

Can anyone tell me what the CW is please?

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  • 2 months later...

Another 10 facts about Simon Fuller Click Here

Who knows the Mirror newpaper may have plucked some of the info from this great thread. Actual article:

Secret svengali: 10 facts about Simon Fuller

Simon Fuller has just been named as the most successful British music manager off all time. Worth £450m, he is an intensely private man and shuns the limelight. So, here's 10 things you may not have known about svengali Si.

By Beth Hardie 19/05/2008

(What's this?)1. He is obsessed with the number 19 after the success of his first hit record, the Vietnam song 19 by Paul Hardcastle. His management company, houses and phone numbers carry the number.

2. He once dated Baby Spice Emma Bunton and Nuria Fernandez - a friend of Geri Halliwell's.

3. He will marry his long-term girlfriend Natalie Swanston in a three-day ceremony this summer in California.

4. Hastings-born Simon created the Pop Idol format.

5. When he founded S Club 7, he insisted on having the letter S in the name for Simon.

6. He introduced Victoria Beckham to husband David and created their fashion label DVB. He also managed David's move to LA Galaxy.

7. His company discovered Amy Winehouse and produced her first album, Frank.

8. He won a Green Award in 2007 for his environmental efforts, which included persuading Honda to produce a green Formula 1 racing car - the Earth Car.

9. He sold 19 Management three years ago in a deal worth £100 million, but remains CEO.

10. His company 1966 handles commercial licensing for the England football team.

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  • 1 month later...

David Beckham dominates the current Nat West Business magazine and included in the article is a summary of "The Brains behind the Brand", devoted to Simon Fuller.

His credits are as in the previous post, with the addition of " When he worked at Chrysalis, he was responsible for signing up Madonna with what became her first hit, Holiday".

This is where I hope Gareth remains a priority for Simon Fuller too.

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  • 9 months later...

A little bit more about Simon Fuller in his Rich List credits HERE

RESULTS FOR 2009

Ranking: 178=

Worth: £300m

Down: £150m, 33%

Source of wealth: Entertainment

Late last year, when British tennis hope Andy Murray decided it was time to boost his international profile, he went to 19, the transatlantic management company founded by Fuller. The music impresario and creator of the Spice Girls — not to be confused with that other svengali, Simon Cowell (qv) — has his hand in sports management, too, and it’s not hard to see why Murray and his brother, doubles expert Jamie, have looked to him to organise sponsorship deals. Fuller, 48, helped make David Beckham (qv) the richest footballer in the world; other sports clients include the England football team and Formula One driver Jenson Button. His roster also boasts Claudia Schiffer and Victoria Beckham, who has evolved from popster to Wag to designer (her new frock line has been well received by fashionistas on both sides of the pond). Fuller helped create the Beckhams’ fashion label, DVB, now one of the most successful celebrity lines in the world. It seems likely Hastings-born Fuller will be stepping up to run CKX, the company he sold 19 to, since his activities generate the vast bulk of the firm’s profits. Last year he lifted its operating income to £53.4m. His Pop Idol and American Idol formats dominate the small screen, generating an estimated $500m-$900m in advertising for Fox. Fuller, pictured with country singer Carrie Underwood, winner of the fourth series of American Idol, announced in February that he was devising a show based on the compilation albums Now That’s What I Call Music! “It will be a new take on music programming,” he said. “This show will unite the music industry and give it one voice.” He is also devising six “projects” for ITV. Fuller found time last June to marry the American interior designer Natalie Swanston in a £2m Napa Valley ceremony. Despite being sacked by the Spices for being “over-controlling”, he went on to mastermind several of their solo careers and to engineer the band’s world tour last year. Fuller received a reported £75m from this alone. Past earnings, share sales and his worldwide property portfolio take him to £300m.

RESULTS FOR 2008

Ranking: 184=

Worth: £450m

Source of wealth: Entertainment

His wealth is down by 150m. Could have been an expensive wedding?

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Another 10 facts about Simon Fuller Click Here

Who knows the Mirror newpaper may have plucked some of the info from this great thread. Actual article:

Secret svengali: 10 facts about Simon Fuller

Simon Fuller has just been named as the most successful British music manager off all time. Worth £450m, he is an intensely private man and shuns the limelight. So, here's 10 things you may not have known about svengali Si.

By Beth Hardie 19/05/2008

(What's this?)1. He is obsessed with the number 19 after the success of his first hit record, the Vietnam song 19 by Paul Hardcastle. His management company, houses and phone numbers carry the number.

2. He once dated Baby Spice Emma Bunton and Nuria Fernandez - a friend of Geri Halliwell's.

3. He will marry his long-term girlfriend Natalie Swanston in a three-day ceremony this summer in California.

4. Hastings-born Simon created the Pop Idol format.

5. When he founded S Club 7, he insisted on having the letter S in the name for Simon.

6. He introduced Victoria Beckham to husband David and created their fashion label DVB. He also managed David's move to LA Galaxy.

7. His company discovered Amy Winehouse and produced her first album, Frank.

8. He won a Green Award in 2007 for his environmental efforts, which included persuading Honda to produce a green Formula 1 racing car - the Earth Car.

9. He sold 19 Management three years ago in a deal worth £100 million, but remains CEO.

10. His company 1966 handles commercial licensing for the England football team.

I wonder if that is why Gareth song was 19 Minutes?

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  • 3 months later...
  • 5 months later...

There's been LOADS of stories about this, but typically, I can't find any of them right now. There's a bit about it here.

Essentially, CKX acquired 19 some time ago, with Fuller getting a place on the board. He has now left the board, but will continue to consult for them. In return, they will part-finance his new deals which includes a 'Popstars' type search for a boyband (in conjunction with Perez Hilton(!))and a new web-led TV search for talent called 'I Dream'

Basically, he's going to be even more rich than he currently is. :D

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