Tightening up

ITV's latest rescue job seems to be Loose Women - down from peaks of around 2m to 700,000. The turn-round guy is former GMTV reporter-turned-news editor Martin Frizell, aka Mr Fiona Phillips.

Martin (Hillhead School, Glasgow and NCTJ, Napier University Edinburgh) left GMTV in December 2009, when ITV moved in on the ailing beast. He spent two years as UK correspondent of Sunrise on Channel 7 in Australia.

Two years ago, he emerged at PR firm Golin Harris UK, as executive director of media in charge of its "connector" team of 16 dedicated media specialists. You could tell he was chuffed: ‘I see the team of connectors at GolinHarris as journalists because they all have that gut instinct for a good story and have a deep understanding of the media landscape.’

This appointment, taxing though it may have been, still left room for the odd appearance on Sunrise down under; here, hirsute Martin is discussing the Loch Ness monster, in August last year. Can he still do this, and save Loose Women ?

• In 2011, Mr and Mrs Frizell scraped together £900k to buy out the Greyhound Inn, in Sydling St Nicholas, Dorset, bringing a new management team to run the gastro-pub with rooms.