LONDON — Pagefield has strengthened its senior team with the appointment of three partners and a further five consultants, in its biggest single intake of talent since the agency launched in 2010.

Martin Townsend (pictured), the former editor of the Sunday Express, joins Pagefield as a partner after 40 years as a journalist, breaking stories including Prince Harry’s romance with Meghan Markle and establishing campaigns such as the paper’s Campaign for Better Mental Health. He was also the editor of OK! Magazine. Townsend will advise clients across all sectors and helping the agency grow its new Pagefield Brands offer for consumer brands, high-profile individuals and cultural institutions.

Celebrity doctor Dr David Bull, who has featured on numerous TV shows, joins Pagefield as a partner to lead the growth of the agency’s health and wellness portfolio in the UK and internationally. He founded 50-strong PR agency, IncrediBull, which had offices in London, LA and San Francisco before being bought by Next Fifteen and merged with Text100 in 2015.

The third new partner is Laurence Jones, who joins Pagefield from Dragon Advisory, where he was a partner and worked across real estate, government, corporate, crisis, campaign and sports briefs. He will lead the growth of Pagefield’s financial and investor relations communications, having started his career with J Sainsbury as an investor relations specialist before spending four years at Financial Dynamics (now FTI Consulting).

Five additional consultants will be joining Pagefield over the next few weeks: senior consultant Olivia Thornhill joins from real estate management firm Delancey where she ran marketing and communications; consultant Will Nelson joins from sports public relations specialists Soapbox London; Steph Croucher joins as a consultant from FleishmanHillard Fishburn; consultant Jack Crone joins from Teamspirit; and senior executive Jessica Alexander joins from Kaso Legg Communications.

Pagefield CEO Oliver Foster said: “As the Pagefield family welcomes our biggest ever single batch of brilliant new talent we’re all looking forward to 2019 with much anticipation – a year in which we will continue to bolster our brands, sport and financial communications work, alongside the corporate PR and public affairs campaigning which has run right through our bloodstream since we opened our doors in 2010”

In the past year the agency has launched the Pagefield Sport and Pagefield Brands divisions, as well as sister agency Pagefield Global, which specialises in disputes and crisis.