CN at 150: former editors on triumphs, tragedies, recessions and Russians

Tom Fitzpatrick joined Construction News in 2011 and served as editor from 2017 to 2019. He has since returned to his roots in Cork, where he edits the Irish Examiner

My time at Construction News gave me an entirely new perspective on the importance of the industry and how it is both taken for granted and misunderstood.

For many, ‘construction’ has negative connotations: the builders who let you down, that noisy site down the road, or the people that women cross the street to avoid for fear of wolf-whistles and catcalls. All of which are fair, to an extent.

The industry has always been built on a particular demographic, and has been slow to modernise and embrace diversity. It’s not an easy business for employers to make appealing, given the unsociable hours and conditions on site.

It is only when you speak to people who are passionate advocates for change in the industry that the real picture emerges: the CEOs who invest in doing things differently or the people on site who show you around as if they’re introducing you to their new puppy.

That sense of pride – ‘I built that’ – was what resonated during my time at CN. Whether at home or at work, playing with our kids in the park, eating out in restaurants or watching sport in stadiums, we all rely on the work of the construction industry.

It is a powerful community, but one that needs to speak up. It used to frustrate me when I’d interview CEOs who had little of consequence to say, or who would avoid the media altogether. I still believe they ought to push themselves forward and get more (or maybe less?) media training.

Certain projects caught the public imagination. Projects like The Shard and Crossrail seeped onto TV and radio but, more often than not, the industry only ever seemed to hit the headlines for the wrong reasons.

Two incidents will always stay with me: the Grenfell tragedy and the collapse at Didcot Power Station. In the newsroom, we felt a huge responsibility at moments like those, particularly when reporters spoke with people who had suffered the worst loss imaginable.

“The thing I’m most proud of was our mental health campaign, Mind Matters, which brought this hidden issue to the fore”

Construction continues to count among the most dangerous industries. That needs to change to ensure people from different backgrounds, genders and ethnicities see it as a viable career choice.

The thing I’m most proud of was our mental health campaign, Mind Matters, which brought this hidden issue to the fore.

We also did as much as we could to promote and encourage diversity at all levels. And I had brilliant colleagues. Time after time, I saw new people arrive and develop a fondness for this industry that keeps our cities running.

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Rebecca Evans joined CN in 2010, as deputy editor, from Health Service Journal and Nursing Times, and was editor from 2011 until 2017. She is now director of content at political analysis firm DeHavilland

When I became editor of Construction News, I felt a weight of responsibility. It was my first time as editor and I knew little about construction. CN had a long and esteemed history, and I was now its guardian.

At that time, contractors were still very much feeling the after-effects of the financial crisis and were also adapting to the change of government in 2010. The transition from Labour to the coalition had brought a shift in emphasis and attitude towards the industry.

I knew CN had to change, too. It needed to align with the evolving needs and expectations of the construction industry and, at the same time, it had to operate in a vastly different digital publishing environment. I didn’t want to get it wrong.

Being a woman in charge meant I experienced first-hand some of the less edifying attitudes that still existed within parts of the industry. But it also gave me a platform to push and support much-needed action on diversity, and to begin to position CN as a champion of positive change.

The need to modernise ran as a theme throughout my time at CN – not only in attitudes and approach, but also in the operation of the industry itself. BIM was big, but digitisation overall was not big enough.

Of course, one of the perks of working at CN was getting behind-the-hoardings access to awesome projects, to witness work in progress high above the ground and deep below it.

But what I quickly realised was that construction isn’t just about the buildings or the infrastructure it creates, it’s all about people. I learned that CN readers are passionate and quietly proud because of the huge impact their work has on other people’s lives.

My greatest pleasure as editor was to be able to celebrate the best of the industry, on social media, using the #loveconstruction hashtag, as well as in person at the Construction News Awards and CN Specialists Awards.

Standing on stage at the CN Awards, two weeks before the great construction success of the 2012 London Olympics, or in 2014, at 38 weeks pregnant because I couldn’t bear to miss the awards, were not only career highlights, but memories that I cherish. Looking out and feeling the pride in the room, seeing how much it meant to people to be recognised for their achievements, was very special.

Being the guardian of CN for six years was a responsibility – but it was also a great privilege.

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John Pullin was editor of Construction News from 1991 to 1995. He had previously edited The Engineer and after CN took charge of Professional Engineering and Automotive Engineer. He is currently freelancing and researching for a PhD

Old men forget, and probably that’s a good thing.

I edited Construction News during what was seen as the industry’s worst recession since the 1930s. Big names shrank and closed as margins went from wafer-thin to paper-thin to non-existent, and a government that had run out of ideas ran out of money, too.

I was brought in as an outsider from The Engineer, which I’d edited for seven years. I took over from the legendary John D Allen, or JDA, who had assembled a hugely impressive news-gathering operation at CN. It was a time of transition in the wider industry as well, with an old guard of construction chiefs retiring. They were well-connected, many were knighted, and they were being replaced by men who were younger, more entrepreneurial, and often technically qualified.

They were almost all men, of course.

To my relief, along with the old guard went most of the bibulous lunches and formal evenings – I couldn’t cope with what seemed to have been JDA’s lifestyle.

Recession remained the backdrop of my years at CN, but there were shafts of light as well. The industry’s perennial sport of ‘subbie-bashing’ may never be entirely eradicated, but the report by former MP Sir Michael Latham was the first real attempt to control it. Big projects continued, began and concluded: Heathrow Express; the start of the Jubilee line extension; the Second Severn Crossing; the Øresund link.

Tunnellers did well at this time. On 10 December 1993, contractors handed over the Channel Tunnel to its owners. A French train sped through to England, and a rattly Thameslink train went in the other direction, with me among the passengers. There was a big party on the French side, quite a drunken one by the time we arrived. It would have been churlish not to have joined in.

During my stint, we moved from a cavernous but unloved office block at Swiss Cottage to tighter (but still unloved) premises at Waterloo. We replaced typewriters with desktop PCs. A drastic redesign changed the look, introducing the bright yellow banner and bold design throughout. We had outstanding journalism and we wanted to stand out at the newsagent, on the reader’s desk and on the construction site, too.

Survival was an achievement in itself – not all our rival publications endured. But by 1995, the clouds were lifting and Construction News was sold. I left, with several colleagues, when new owners came in.

It had been hard work, but we’d had fun, and I’d learned a lot.

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Graham Anderson worked on Construction News for just over 20 years, from 1984, and as editor from 2000 to 2005.  He is currently director of Anderson Business Media Ltd (ABML), an events and media services firm he founded in 2007

I don’t regret a single day at CN. Well, aside from the bitter legal disputes, ill-tempered rows, threats from disgruntled readers and a visit from two members of Special Branch.

Then there was the visit from the Russians – close associates of then-president Boris Yeltsin, apparently – who arrived unannounced with a briefcase containing a bottle of vodka, four glasses, and details of a magazine company they wanted to sell. In cash, preferably.

Somehow, it was symptomatic of the times.

"[Former editor] JDA did not want to know what we were working on. That way, he could tell furious CEOs he knew nothing about a story and would 'sort it out'"

I was editor for five years, taking over from John Pullin. With great respect to John, my mentor was his long-standing predecessor, John D Allen, who edited CN from 1963 to 1991.

JDA’s approach was extremely hands-off. He saw his role as keeping the great and good onside. So he did ‘big interviews’ with McAlpine, Costain, Laing and so on, saying it was good for the paper’s influence, reputation and circulation (because everyone at Costain would read an interview with their CEO).

These relationships were two-way. Senior figures would drop juicy gossip about rivals into his lap, knowing he would pass it on and never reveal his source.

Perhaps surprisingly, JDA did not want to know what we were working on until after publication. That way, he could tell furious CEOs he knew nothing about a story and would “sort it out” with the troublesome journalist. By which time the news was out.

I came in when CN’s owner at the time, Thomson Corporation, closed the healthcare division where I worked as a political reporter. It was CN or redundancy.

Shortly after my arrival, JDA called me in. The Channel Tunnel Group were holding a press conference, trying to restart a project last abandoned in 1975. It was a ridiculous idea that no senior journalist would waste their time on, so would I mind going along?

Over 35 years later, I am still writing about it, and a book I co-authored about building the Channel Tunnel is still in print.

Working on CN was a tremendous privilege. Many former colleagues and contacts remain good friends, and we were lucky to have had the resources to do great work.

Back in the day, CN sold 35,000 copies a week and claimed a readership of 100,000, as copies were passed along. We employed 24 full-time journalists plus stringers and freelancers. We had the freedom to spend days working on a story that might not pan out.

Today, that’s unheard of. Tim Berners-Lee and social media have destroyed most of the media’s business model.

It was also a time of great change for construction. After Sir Michael Latham’s review, the realisation was growing that the industry’s endless cycle of claims, disputes and bankruptcies was good for nothing but headlines. We tried to play our part, staunchly supporting Latham and his efforts to change the industry’s cut-throat culture.

Today, I’m most proud of CN’s contribution to safety. We had always covered the statistics for deaths and serious injuries, and how “we must do better”. But then we began publishing interviews with the families and colleagues of those killed or horribly injured. The impact was palpable.

As editor, I can’t really claim much credit. I took on talented people, let them get on with the job, and hoped that we could, in some small way, be a force for good.