Client Case Study: Matthew Haywood

Turning a moment of national recognition into a long-term public profile takes more than maintaining visibility. Our work with Matthew Haywood brings together PR and communications strategy, personal brand development, strategic publicity, media relations, digital content, commercial partnerships and reputation management to build a profile with relevance well beyond the television programme that first introduced him to audiences.

Matthew Haywood

Matthew won BBC One’s Survivor UK at 21, becoming the youngest winner of the Survivor franchise globally. Born and raised in the Lake District, he has since built an engaged digital audience of nearly 255,000 TikTok followers and millions of likes, with content spanning travel, adventure, the outdoors, lifestyle and challenges.

The Prominence Collective works with Matthew across his wider communications and public profile, positioning him around the subjects and interests that genuinely reflect who he is. Travel, adventure and the outdoors are central to that, alongside wellbeing, entertainment, Gen Z life and positive male role modelling. The aim has been to build breadth around Matthew without losing the personality and authenticity that made audiences connect with him in the first place.

Media has played an important role in developing that profile. Since working together, Matthew has appeared across national and regional broadcast media including BBC Radio England, BBC Radio Cumbria, BBC Radio Manchester, ITV News, CBBC’s Saturday Mash-Up! and FUBAR Radio. Press and digital coverage has included the Daily Mail, The Mirror, The Sun, The Yorkshire Post and a wide range of regional and lifestyle titles, while magazine and podcast opportunities have included Absolutely Yorkshire, Cumbria and Lakeland Walker, On the Marie Curie Couch, Brew & Chat Podcast and Yorkshire Talks.

These opportunities have allowed Matthew to move between entertainment, travel, outdoor adventure, lifestyle and more personal conversations rather than being defined solely by his Survivor UK win. His appearance as a special guest on Saturday Mash-Up! was a particularly strong example, giving him another national television platform centred on his personality and ability to engage audiences outside the context in which he first became known.

Brand partnerships form another significant part of our work together. We have developed collaborations with organisations including Manchester Airport, AO, YHA, Nikwax, Propstore, G Adventures and MacBackpackers, connecting Matthew with brands across travel, outdoor adventure, lifestyle, entertainment and experience-led sectors. These partnerships are considered as part of his wider profile, with an emphasis on opportunities that make sense for his interests, audience and the content he naturally creates.

Purpose is equally important. Matthew has worked with Marie Curie and Andy’s Man Club, using his platform to support conversations around grief, mental health and encouraging younger men to speak more openly about how they feel. His work has included a 12-hour Talkathon for Andy’s Man Club, appearing on its podcast and working with Marie Curie on fundraising and awareness activity. He also speaks to schools and young people about outdoor adventure and wellbeing, bringing another dimension to his public-facing work.

Bringing these different strands together is central to our approach. Media appearances create opportunities for wider recognition, digital content maintains a direct relationship with Matthew’s audience, partnerships connect his profile with relevant organisations and purpose-led work reflects issues he genuinely cares about. Together, they create a much broader and more sustainable public profile than any one channel could achieve alone.

If you are looking for strategic communications support to develop a public profile, strengthen your positioning and bring together media, digital content, partnerships and wider opportunities, please get in touch to discuss how we can work together.