The Global Media Business Weekly and organiser of significant events

Colin Morrison is founder of Flashes & Flames: Global Media Business Weekly, which began as a blog and became a weekly newsletter in 2016.

It’s read by CEOs, senior executives and entrepreneurs in the media, digital, business information and events industries, principally in the UK/Europe and North America .

Ahead of its 10th anniversary in 2026, last year was one of significant expansion for Flashes & Flames, including:

• Acquisition of the business of the successful, 10-year-old podcast, events and newsletter publisher MediaVoices®.
• Awarded a Warrant by the 600-year-old Worshipful Company of Stationers & Newspaper Makers (‘Stationers Company’, the UK’s historic pioneer of copyright legislation). The Warrant was in recognition of Flashes & Flames’ “excellence as a media industry commentator”. Flashes & Flames has again been awarded a Warrant, for 2026.
• Organised the first “Monetising B2B Information & Events” conference in London, with the participation of major companies including RELX, The Economist, Financial Times, Informa, Business of Fashion, and Clarion Events. The sell-out event was widely acclaimed, including by Greg Hitchen, CEO of Terrapinn Events, who said: “This was an outstanding event that only Colin Morrison could have created. The speaker quality was peerless and the ideas abundant. So pleased to be a part of it and looking forward to next year!” The second Flashes & Flames event, “The Definitive AI Forum for Media, Information & Events“, took place in November 2025. The second edition of Monetising B2B took place in May 2026. The next Definitive AI Forum takes place in London on 18 November 2026, with participation included from the leaders of Daily Mail, RELX, Informa, CloserStill, Easyfairs and PA Media Group.

The second edition of “Monetising B2B Information & Events” takes place at Stationers’ Hall, London, on 13 May, 2026.

“Monetising B2B is where forward thinking media executives and industry leaders go to candidly discuss the trends shaping their businesses now and in the future. It has become a ‘can’t miss’ event for B2B information and events professionals,” Sean Griffey, co-founder, Industry Dive

Colin started out with an undemanding post-school job in a newspaper cuttings library for the BBC in London, while developing a career as a freelance journalist, writing about music, broadcasting and entertainment. He subsequently became a newspaper, radio and magazine journalist variously in London, Dublin and New York.

At IPC / Reed Publishing, he was a journalist and successively became editor, publisher and managing director of B2B and specialist consumer magazine and events. He subsequently became CEO/ managing director of media, information, events and broadcast companies in the UK, Continental Europe and the AsiaPacific, including for: Axel Springer, Australian Consolidated Press (ACP), Publishing & Broadcasting Ltd (PBL), EMAP Plc, Future Plc, Reed Elsevier, and Hearst Corp.

Colin has been chair and non-executive director of media companies variously under public, private and private equity ownership. He has also been an investor in media, tech and investment companies in the UK, Europe, US and Australia. He has been a keynote speaker at recent conferences in the UK, US, India, Italy, South Africa, Italy, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Hungary, Spain and Portugal.

He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and of the UK Industry & Parliament Trust; and a Freeman of the City of London and Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Stationers & Newspaper Makers. He has been chair of Magazine Publishers of Australia, and of British Business Press, and a director of the UK Professional Publishers Association, and of The Media Society. He is a graduate of the executive program of Stanford University.

Colin has been honoured as an “Influencer” in the Folio:100, in the US, and was awarded CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) by Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III, in the UK. For 15 years, he was chair of a national children’s charity, and was an adviser on education to successive UK governments.

Wikipedia listing

LinkedIn profile

MediaVoices interview

What our readers say

Arnaud de Puyfontaine, CEO, Vivendi SA: “Flashes & Flames is the most inspiring media newsletter I ever read. It’s a must-read every week.”

Mark Shashoua, CEO, Hyve Group: “Flashes & Flames has quickly become essential reading on all things media. I enjoy the mixture of reporting and opinions. Short, concise and full of information – there isn’t a week that I don’t learn something from reading it. Keep up the great work!”

Sean Griffey, co-founder, Industry Dive: “Flashes & Flames provides an in-depth look at the business of media simply not found anywhere else.  It’s the first thing I read every Friday morning.”

Gabriel Brotman, Media Investor, Soros Funds : “Flashes & Flames is one of the few industry reads that actually makes me feel smarter and better informed about the ever-changing global media business. Colin brilliantly connects dots across markets and models, and I’ve found him to be always one step ahead of the conversation.”

Justin Smith, CEO and co-founder, Semafor: “Flashes & Flames brings sophisticated narrative, analysis and flair to global trade media and has, therefore, become both an indispensable and enjoyable read.”

Orson Francescone, managing director, FT Live: “Colin Morrison just gets how the media world really works. Smart takes, no fluff.”

Philip Soar, Chair, Nineteen Group: “Flashes & Flames is essential reading for those of us working and investing at the intersection of trade shows, events and private equity. It is the only regular source of useful and accurate information on those increasingly prominent parts of the media world.”

The team

Tech: Steven Wilson-Beales manages the Flashes & Flames technology. He is an SEO, AI visibility and content strategy consultant and has previously worked with brands such as Global, Microsoft and Ministry of Sound.. He can be found at https://www.stevenwilsonbeales.com/

Content, podcasts and events: Esther Kezia Thorpe (Editorial & Events Director) and Peter Houston (Publishing Director) of Flashes & Flames Media were co-founders of MediaVoices, the producer of podcasts, newsletters and events.

Events: Cobus Heyl is a former journalist and media business executive who is a highly-experienced organiser of events. He is producer of the Flashes & Flames and MediaVoices events portfolio.

Circulation: David Greene is a UK-based specialist in subscriptions, consumer marketing, and media readership. He has been an executive director of IPC Media, The Independent, and Telegraph Media Group.

Consultant: Ian Findlay has managed M&A, fund-raising, investment, and strategic development for some of Europe’s largest media groups including: RELX and EMAP.

Flashes & Flames Media Ltd

Flashes & Flames® and MediaVoices® media, digital services and events are owned, published and organised by Flashes & Flames Media Ltd., a company registered in the UK. Company no. 12865884. Registered address: 8 Hampstead Gate, 1A Frognal, London NW3 6AL, UK.

Please note: Flashes & Flames®, MediaVoices® and Monetising B2B® are registered trade marks, owned by Flashes & Flames Media Ltd.