Q&A
What made you become a press officer? I started my career on my local newspaper then moved to trade press, and was looking for a new challenge when the opportunity to become the first communications officer at the British Skin Foundation charity arose.
What other job have you done? My first paid job – and probably my favourite ever job – was on a supermarket fish counter. My colleagues were brilliant fun, and I also learned how to scale, gut, skin and fillet any fish. As a keen cook, I still enjoy using those skills.
en ew he n
And the best place you’ve worked? The TUC. It’s a privilege to work with so many committed, passionate people who have dedicated much of their lives to campaigning for better conditions for working people.
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What advice would you give someone starting out in journalism? Be prepared to work hard. Follow your instincts and retain your integrity. And join the NUJ!
When did you join the NUJ and why? I got my first press card as a trainee sub on the Kent and Sussex Courier newspaper in 2000. I moved to Amicus (Unite) when working as a press officer at ChildLine and the NSPCC – as the union recognition agreement was with them – then returned to the NUJ when I started working at the TUC nine years ago.
Are many of your friends and family in a union? My dad was a committed member of the NUT. He was the first to talk to me about unions and gave me a passion for our movement’s core values. My friends are a mixture of union and non-union members.
What’s been your best moment in your career? The TUC’s March for the Alternative in 2011 was definitely one. Seeing well over 100,000 people marching peacefully and powerfully through London to protest against government spending cuts was inspirational.
What was your worst job? In my mid-20s, I took an evening job in a call centre, ringing people who didn’t want to be rung to sell them products they didn’t want.
Who is your biggest hero? My biggest unsung hero is my secondary school English teacher Patricia O’Brien. She had a real passion and energy for the English language. She inspired me to want to read and write for pleasure as well as purpose.
And villain? The child catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang terrified me as a little girl.
NUJ & Me Elly Gibson is
campaigns and media officer at the TUC
What was your earliest political thought? Why did some of my friends not have the money for school trips or a new uniform? It didn’t seem fair. It still doesn’t.
Who (alive or dead) would you invite to a dinner party? With two toddlers I would love to have a dinner party full stop! Nelson Mandela, Michael Sheen, Susan Sarandon, Alan Johnson, Guy Garvey and Alicia Vikander – eclectic but entertaining.
What are your hopes for journalism over the next five years? That we will stop seeing scantily clad women in national newspapers and that quality journalism will come to the fore once again.
And fears? That independent and left wing media outlets will be consumed by the Murdoch empire.
How would you like to be remembered? As a committed press officer who wore her heart on her sleeve and a smile on her face who never gave up. And a mum who did a half decent job!
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© ALLSTAR PICTURE LIBRARY / ALAMY STOCK PHOTO
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