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Press Releases
Screen dreams: Inside Out turns the cameras onto cowboy broadcasters
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Inside Out on Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ One East Midlands at 7.30pm, Wedensday 8 October, offers a cautionary tale for anyone aspiring to become a TV presenter or voiceover artist.
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The programme's undercover investigation uncovers the Nottingham-based conman who claims he can get people into television.
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He works for Broadcast Support who charged a recently widowed woman Β£21,000 for a poor quality DVD showreel and website.
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Among the people in tears who talked to Inside Out, one woman says she's unable to sleep or tell her children she's lost her life savings.
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Broadcast Support advertises its services on banners, illegally placed on busy road junctions, and in some reputable magazines.
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Its website claims that absolutely everyone is suitable for the services it offers. It provides a DVD showreel for aspiring stars at extortionate rates.
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Inside Out reveals that the price for Broadcast Support's services depends on the individual. It can be hundreds of pounds. It can be thousands. One man spent Β£10,000 for a DVD and an unimpressive webpage.
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Agent Anne Sweeting had a stack of Broadcast Support's showreels sent to her and told Inside Out her heart sank when she saw most of them.
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She says: "These people are just not the sort of people you would ever put forward for a presenter's job or for voiceover work."
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The man behind the company is known to some clients as Carl Nicholas. When he appeared on the radio to talk about voiceover work he called himself Carl Mole.
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When someone took a County Court judgement out against him he became Nicholas Karl.
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Carl Mould has a reason for hiding his real name in Nottingham. He is well known to the police because he was jailed for three years in 2001 for deception. He was a cowboy builder then, rather than a cowboy broadcaster.
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Mould overcharged an elderly lady more than Β£30,000 for some dodgy building work.
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He keeps within the law on his website by saying he is not an agent. But he makes up stories to impress people.
Mould also carried Βι¶ΉΤΌΕΔ logos and other industry names on his website without permission.
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Since Inside Out alerted the companies most of those logos have been removed. Among them was The Drama House, run by an award-winning film producer, Jack Emery. In the programme he confronts Mould about trading on his name.
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Trading Standards say they are investigating Carl Mould. But he is still in business.
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The main message seems to be don't spend a lot of money on a showreel or be tempted by the promise of high future earnings.
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People in the industry have said it usually takes years of hard work and training to get that lucky break.
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Notes to Editors
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Inside Out is also available online via bbc.co.uk/insideout from 8.00pm, Wednesday 8 October 2008.
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