Some of Britain’s most famous broadcasters are blazing a trail in the Middle East, chairing conferences and hosting awards ceremonies in Dubai and Abu Dhabi.
Household-name television news presenters, such as former BBC HardTalk presenter Tim Sebastian and Channel 4 News Washington correspondent Matt Frei, have become highly sought-after comperes for corporate functions in the region.
The new trend comes as UK companies, especially publishing firms, increasingly stage events in the Middle East, where many of their readers are now based.
Places such as Dubai have also become “popular regional centres” for functions because it is now easy to fly there direct from the UK.
The popularity of some of the UK’s top, award-winning TV journalists has been revealed by Performing Artistes, one of Britain’s longest-established public speaker bureaux, who frequently deliver contracts in the Middle East.