A journalist for 30 years, Phil Creighton’s career has seen him go from office tea boy to editor of two weekly newspapers. His work has been respected and appreciated by communities in Reading and Wokingham boroughs.
Over the years, he has broken a wide range of stories that others have followed up on. Among the first was a story for Spark, the student newspaper at the University of Reading: a hall of residence banned ketchup from its canteen after it was used to write a rude message. His story ended up in the Mail on Sunday.
Since then, he has worked on a wealth of exclusives that have got tongues wagging and helped bring about change in neighbourhoods.
Phil Creighton is also a respected and trusted voice, with many years of experience guesting on radio programmes, both local and national.
Now, away from the pressures of the weekly grind of local news, Phil is reinvigorated, working mainly on his Auracast news website Aurahear.com and arts and leisure blog Cheeselogs.co.uk, but also undertaking freelance commissions for a range of organisations and publications.
If you want Phil to write for you, lead training sessions, or offer consultancy, why not get in touch?
Editorial strategy and newsroom leadership
A champion of independent local news
For more than a decade, Phil has been involved with hyperlocal news: a hybrid between small press and traditional local news. His journey started with good news magazine Xn, which was then folded to launch The Wokingham Paper in 2015.
The latter was born after the Reading Evening Post and The Wokingham Times were closed in 2014. This left Wokingham without its own dedicated newspaper, and the entrepreneurial Phil stepped into the market with the launch of The Wokingham Paper.
It was renamed Wokingham Today to match the website that went alongside the weekly newspaper.
For The Wokingham Paper, Phil devised and launched the independent local newspaper from the ground up. This involved setting up the entire editorial infrastructure, from newsroom workflows to physical distribution. It was no small undertaking.
This has included:
- High-Stakes Stakeholder Management: Acted as the primary liaison for Members of Parliament and council leaders, managing sensitive briefings and building networks to ensure robust public interest reporting – even when that meant having uncomfortable conversations.
- Crisis Editorial Direction: Led the newsroom through major national-interest events, such as the 2020 Reading terror attack in Forbury Gardens. This required immediate coordination of live digital updates alongside the production of special print editions.
- Talent Pipeline Development: Mentored and developed severeal journalists who have since moved into roles at national outlets including The Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail, and the BBC.
Publication evolution and brand revamps
Modernising Heritage Titles
- National Revamp – The Baptist Times: Phil handled two total top-to-bottom revamps of this national weekly newspaper. At the time, it had limited full colour (front, back and centre pages) but Phil’s vision introduced colour on every page. A second revamp increased pagination while reducing postage costs and saw Phil take on the role of TV critic.
- Leisure & Features Specialisation: Devised and launched weekly leisure magazines for the Reading Evening Post and The Wokingham Times. This role involved planning high-impact content and conducting celebrity interviews to drive engagement.
Technical Consultancy & Visual Design
Typography-Led Communication
- Visual Hierarchy Expert: Drawing on a BA Hons in Typography and Graphic Communication, Phil can design grid-based layouts that prioritise readability. This includes expert management of leading, kerning, and tracking – essential for high-pressure news environments. It should come as little surprise that he specialised in newspaper typography while studying: His dissertation was on the Piers Morgan-edited Daily Mirror, and he staged an exhibition dedicated to the history of newspapers.
- Production Flow Management: While studying at the University of Reading, Phil worked in the pre-press department of the Reading Evening Post, setting adverts before moving on to the page planning department. This means he has a deep technical understanding of the “back-end” of publishing, from page planning and advert placement to “on the stone” copy-cutting in DTP systems and page management systems.
- Brand Style Guides: Phil has a proven ability to create master page furniture and style sheets that allow publications to refresh their visual identity without losing brand heritage. He is an expert in nested styles, tabs, and templates, ensuring every page is easy to navigate and a pleasure to read.
Global Tech Advocacy & Public Interest
The Auracast Evangelist
- Aurahear Launch: In 2025, Phil devised and launched Aurahear.com, a dedicated platform for the new Auracast Bluetooth LE audio assistive listening technology. This project involves translating complex technical developments into accessible news, reviews, and video content for end-users, and is based on his own experiences with the technology: Phil is profoundly deaf.
- Accessibility Advocate: As a journalist who is hard of hearing, Phil bridges the gap between industry innovation and user needs and is a regular conference speaker promoting accessible communication technology.
Broadcast and specialist commissions
The Expert Voice
- Radio Punditry: A regular guest and pundit on BBC Radio Berkshire for more than six years, discussing events taking place, local politics, newspapers and … well, anything that they wanted to talk about. Phil has also been a regular voice on Premier Christian Radio, talking about television and enjoying his own jingle. He also appeared on BBC Radio 4’s PM programme and Times Radio talking about the General Election, while BBC Radio 2’s Jeremy Vine show wanted to hear Phil’s views on Reading being snubbed for city status.
- National Specialist Writing: Undertaken a variety of commissions, including technical reporting for PC Pro and creative scriptwriting for DC Thomson’s The Sunday Post Fun Section. Several of his scripts featured Oor Wullie’s dog, Wee Harry.
- Published Author: In 2006, he was the author of How To Be Heard In A Noisy World, a highly-rated communications toolkit for grassroots organisations and churches.