This is guest post by Mervin Straughan who is a communications and corporate social responsibility consultant

Off the rails? Branson’s PR stunt slated by employees.

What connects Richard Branson and Joanna Lumley? The answer is trains.

One went off the rails with a planned publicity stunt while the other derailed a government minister in a majestic display of dignified PR during an impromptu press conference.

Branson, the tycoon almost loved by everyone, went off track with a clumsy portrayal of a rail worker while promoting his West Coast train services. Dressing up in dirty clothes, having teeth blackened and being covered in temporary tattoos was never likely to go down well with the workforce.

No surprise, then, that rail staff and their national union of railwaymen accused him of patronising them.

It was business expert Nigel Piercy who wrote: “Treat employees like customers for they will treat customers like employees.” This is good advice for business tycoons.

Meanwhile, Lumley shunted immigration minister Phil Woolas into the climb down  sidings during a chaotic press conference called at a minute’s notice to discuss the latest development in the fight for the Gurkhas who had been refused entry to the UK under the present rules.

Lumley’s hopes had been high after a meeting with Gordon Brown earlier that week but it turned out the prime minister was unaware about the latest rejections. How’s that for good communications? The signals were not good.

But she was conciliatory, dignified and graceful, listening carefully and offering the minister ample time to state the case. He attempted to take the opportunity but by then, it was too late. For Woolas, the PR train had left the station.