Charlie Charters
Encyclopedia
Charlie Charters is a former rugby union official and sports marketing executive turned thriller writer whose debut book Bolt Action was published by Hodder & Stoughton
in 2010. Charters was raised in Fiji where his mother was making a documentary film and met his father, a tobacco farmer. He is the son-in-law of well-known Fijian businesswoman and deposed Member of Parliament Mere Samisoni
. He and his wife Vanessa divide their time between a house near Barton-le-Willows
, North Yorkshire, and Suva
, Fiji.
, Downing College, Cambridge
where he was friends with former England cricket captain Mike Atherton
and author Toby Young
, and the Centre for Journalism Studies, Cardiff University, where his contemporaries included BBC reporters Dominic Hughes, Laura Trevelyan
, Simon Hall
and "The Dig Tree" author, the late Sarah Murgatroyd. While studying in Cardiff, he worked as a subeditor on the Western Mail (Wales) and DJ on South Wales radio station Red Dragon FM
. Charters was a stringer for United Press International (UPI) in Croatia, a TV presenter in Fiji and a freelance journalist in Hong Kong before embarking on a sports marketing career with Seamus O'Brien at the World Sport Group
. Along with Dale Tempest and Spencer Robinson, Charters was a noted part-time sports presenter for Hong Kong's ATV World
.
On 26 August 1995 the International Rugby Board
(IRB) declared rugby union an ‘open’ or professional game. Quickly teams within the resulting South Africa, New Zealand and Australian Rugby unions (SANZAR
) structure as well as Australian club and New Zealand National Provincial Championship
teams began offering lucrative professional contracts to island players forcing the largely amateur rugby structures in the Pacific into near-collapse as they tried to hold on to their best players and brightest prospects. It was in these conditions, with the three Unions playing fewer Tests and losing by larger margins as more of their top players were contracted in New Zealand, Australia, Japan or Europe, that the time was right for the three Unions to consider pooling their talent.
In 2001 Charters, then marketing manager of the Fiji Rugby Union
, attended a meeting in Auckland, which outlined possible governance structures for Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance
(PIRA) using the model of the four-country British and Irish Lions
. With his background in sports marketing. Charters was selected as PIRA’s first chief executive officer. The initial idea was to launch the Islanders in 2002 with lucrative first matches against the All Blacks
and Springboks. But, before the dates of the proposed Islanders’ Tests, the England rugby team were scheduled to tour Fiji, Samoa and Tonga individually and with the Rugby Football Union
refusing to accept the proposed tour dates because of the late-running of the then Zurich Premiership, the IRB were forced to adjudicate, refusing to sanction the proposed 2002 Islanders matches.
In April 2003, the IRB agreed to the concept of the Pacific Islanders with the first Test match against the Wallabies
the following year. For former All Black Michael Niko Jones
, then coach of Manu Samoa and assistant coach to John Boe
with the 2004 Islanders, it was dream come true: ‘We’ve always believed that once you did bring the best of the Samoans, the Fijians and the Tongans together, potentially it has the ability to be something very, very special.’
Although the 2004 Islanders lost each of the three Test matches they played (29-14 v Wallabies, 41-26 v All Blacks
and 24-38 v Springboks in Gosford, Australia), they scored 10 tries in three matches. By comparison that same southern hemisphere season, England and Scotland scored only three tries between them in their five Tests against the All Blacks
and Wallabies. In fact, the 2004 Islanders scored more tries in one Test against the All Blacks
(four) than the three tries the 2005 British and Irish Lions
would manage in three Tests the following year.
‘What a case they have made for their place at the game’s top table,’ said one report, after the final match of the 2004 edition. ‘If this was the death throes of Pacific islands rugby it was a pretty spectacular way to go.’
Charters was one of several closely connected with Pacific island rugby, like Bryan Williams (rugby), Rod MacQueen and Pio Bosco Tikoisuva
, to urge the IRB and SANZAR
to do more to create a level playing field, particularly by selecting a Pacific team for either Super Rugby or the Tri-Nations which was mooted to expand in the 2006 season. He even challenged rugby bosses in New Zealand or Australia to hold a referendum among fans to see if they wanted a Pacific team in an expanded SANZAR
structure or an additional side carved up from within the existing structure.
The issue of a better deal for Pacific island rugby cut into international politics when, immediately after the obvious success of the 2004 tour, Australian prime minister John Howard
and his New Zealand counterpart Helen Clark
said they would lobby their respective national unions about inclusion to SANZAR
.
In December 2004, SANZAR
announced two additional teams would be created for the 2006 season under a new USD323 million, five-year television deal with News Corporation
but neither would be from the Pacific. The Super 14
would feature a new Australian team based in Perth, the Western Force
, and a new South African team, the Central Cheetahs
. Additionally a third round of fixtures was added to the Tri-Nations.
Charters said he finished the script for Bolt Action listening to the commentary of the Pacific Islanders playing Italy on 22 November 2008. ‘When the whistle blew for full time, the first Islanders Test win [17 points to 25], I was within 10 minutes of finishing my script. And I knew then that Bolt Action would be blessed with good luck.’ Charters' agent is Charlie Viney of The Viney Agency.
On February 8, 2011, Charters became the first British debut author to be nominated for the Best Thriller category of Deadly Pleasures' Magazine's Barry Award (for crime novels)
.
Hodder & Stoughton
Hodder & Stoughton is a British publishing house, now an imprint of Hachette.-History:The firm has its origins in the 1840s, with Matthew Hodder's employment, aged fourteen, with Messrs Jackson and Walford, the official publisher for the Congregational Union...
in 2010. Charters was raised in Fiji where his mother was making a documentary film and met his father, a tobacco farmer. He is the son-in-law of well-known Fijian businesswoman and deposed Member of Parliament Mere Samisoni
Mere Samisoni
Mere Tuisalalo Samisoni is a woman from Lomaloma village on the island of Vanuabalavu in Fiji's Lau archipelago, She also is a Fiji business person and politician, she currently resides in Suva Fiji's Capital.-Politics:...
. He and his wife Vanessa divide their time between a house near Barton-le-Willows
Barton-le-Willows
Barton-le-Willows is a village and civil parish in the Ryedale district of North Yorkshire, England, situated by the River Derwent, about eight miles south-west of Malton. The parish had a population of 186 according to the 2001 census. The village is recorded as Bartun in the Domesday Book.The...
, North Yorkshire, and Suva
Suva
Suva features a tropical rainforest climate under the Koppen climate classification. The city sees a copious amount of precipitation during the course of the year. Suva averages 3,000 mm of precipitation annually with its driest month, July averaging 125 mm of rain per year. In fact,...
, Fiji.
Early life
Charters attended Rugby SchoolRugby School
Rugby School is a co-educational day and boarding school located in the town of Rugby, Warwickshire, England. It is one of the oldest independent schools in Britain.-History:...
, Downing College, Cambridge
Downing College, Cambridge
Downing College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1800 and currently has around 650 students.- History :...
where he was friends with former England cricket captain Mike Atherton
Mike Atherton
Michael Andrew Atherton OBE is a broadcaster, journalist and retired England international cricketer. A right-handed opening batsman for Lancashire and England,and occasional leg-break bowler, he achieved the captaincy of England at the age of 25 and led the side in a record 54 Test matches...
and author Toby Young
Toby Young
Toby Young, MA, FRSA is a British journalist and the author of How to Lose Friends and Alienate People, the tale of his stint in New York as a contributing editor at Vanity Fair magazine...
, and the Centre for Journalism Studies, Cardiff University, where his contemporaries included BBC reporters Dominic Hughes, Laura Trevelyan
Laura Trevelyan
Laura Trevelyan is a BBC journalist based in New York City. She was the BBC's United Nations correspondent from May 2006 until 2009.-Biography:...
, Simon Hall
Simon Hall (writer)
Simon Hall is the BBC's Crime Correspondent in the South West of England. He is also the author of the Dan Groves and Adam Breen detective novels, in which a TV reporter and a detective work together to solve crimes....
and "The Dig Tree" author, the late Sarah Murgatroyd. While studying in Cardiff, he worked as a subeditor on the Western Mail (Wales) and DJ on South Wales radio station Red Dragon FM
Red Dragon FM
Capital South Wales is a British independent local radio station broadcasting from Cardiff Bay . The station serves Cardiff, Newport and the surrounding areas, broadcasting to a potential audience of around 1 million people...
. Charters was a stringer for United Press International (UPI) in Croatia, a TV presenter in Fiji and a freelance journalist in Hong Kong before embarking on a sports marketing career with Seamus O'Brien at the World Sport Group
World Sport Group
Headquartered in Singapore, World Sport Group is Asia’s leading sports marketing, event management and media company, with a roster of golf, football and cricket events across the entire region...
. Along with Dale Tempest and Spencer Robinson, Charters was a noted part-time sports presenter for Hong Kong's ATV World
ATV World
ATV World , is one of the free-to-air English language television channels in Hong Kong, the other being its arch-rival TVB Pearl. Its sister station, ATV Home, broadcasts in Cantonese language...
.
Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance
The idea of combining the best rugby talent in the Pacific dates back to at least 1924, and the first tour by a Fiji side to Samoa. This visit proved so popular that a hybrid ‘inter-island’ team to play in New Zealand was proposed but never eventuated.On 26 August 1995 the International Rugby Board
International Rugby Board
The International Rugby Board is the governing body for the sport of rugby union. It was founded in 1886 as the International Rugby Football Board by the unions of Scotland, Wales and Ireland. England refused to join until 1890. The International Rugby Football Board changed its name to the...
(IRB) declared rugby union an ‘open’ or professional game. Quickly teams within the resulting South Africa, New Zealand and Australian Rugby unions (SANZAR
SANZAR
SANZAR is the body which operates Super Rugby and Tri Nations competitions in rugby union. It is a joint venture of the South African Rugby Union, the New Zealand Rugby Union and the Australian Rugby Union, formed in 1996.Created shortly after rugby's move to professionalism in 1995, SANZAR's two...
) structure as well as Australian club and New Zealand National Provincial Championship
National Provincial Championship
The National Provincial Championship, or NPC, is the major domestic rugby competition in New Zealand. The NPC has seen many alterations to its format and brand. Since 2006 the National Championship has been split into 2 competitions, the ITM Cup and the Heartland Championship...
teams began offering lucrative professional contracts to island players forcing the largely amateur rugby structures in the Pacific into near-collapse as they tried to hold on to their best players and brightest prospects. It was in these conditions, with the three Unions playing fewer Tests and losing by larger margins as more of their top players were contracted in New Zealand, Australia, Japan or Europe, that the time was right for the three Unions to consider pooling their talent.
In 2001 Charters, then marketing manager of the Fiji Rugby Union
Fiji Rugby Union
Fiji Rugby Union is the governing body for the sport of rugby union in Fiji. It is divided into over 30 provincial unions. The Fiji Rugby Union is a member of the Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance , along with Samoa and Tonga. There are approximately 80,000 registered players from a total population...
, attended a meeting in Auckland, which outlined possible governance structures for Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance
Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance
The Pacific Islands Rugby Alliance was set up in 2002 as a basis of co-operation between the Fiji, Samoa and Tonga Rugby Unions. Niue and the Cook Islands are also members of the Alliance, and while not members of the Pacific Tri-Nations competition, they can and do supply members to the Pacific...
(PIRA) using the model of the four-country British and Irish Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
. With his background in sports marketing. Charters was selected as PIRA’s first chief executive officer. The initial idea was to launch the Islanders in 2002 with lucrative first matches against the All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
and Springboks. But, before the dates of the proposed Islanders’ Tests, the England rugby team were scheduled to tour Fiji, Samoa and Tonga individually and with the Rugby Football Union
Rugby Football Union
The Rugby Football Union was founded in 1871 as the governing body for the sport of rugby union, and performed as the international governing body prior to the formation of the International Rugby Board in 1886...
refusing to accept the proposed tour dates because of the late-running of the then Zurich Premiership, the IRB were forced to adjudicate, refusing to sanction the proposed 2002 Islanders matches.
In April 2003, the IRB agreed to the concept of the Pacific Islanders with the first Test match against the Wallabies
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...
the following year. For former All Black Michael Niko Jones
Michael Niko Jones
Michael Niko Jones is a New Zealand former rugby union player and coach. He was nicknamed 'the Iceman' or 'Ice' because of the number of icepacks he needed for injuries. He has been voted by Rugby World magazine as the third best All Black of the 20th century after Colin Meads and Sean Fitzpatrick...
, then coach of Manu Samoa and assistant coach to John Boe
John Boe
John Boe is a New Zealand former rugby union footballer and a current coach. He played as a centre, before moving to fly-half....
with the 2004 Islanders, it was dream come true: ‘We’ve always believed that once you did bring the best of the Samoans, the Fijians and the Tongans together, potentially it has the ability to be something very, very special.’
Although the 2004 Islanders lost each of the three Test matches they played (29-14 v Wallabies, 41-26 v All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
and 24-38 v Springboks in Gosford, Australia), they scored 10 tries in three matches. By comparison that same southern hemisphere season, England and Scotland scored only three tries between them in their five Tests against the All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
and Wallabies. In fact, the 2004 Islanders scored more tries in one Test against the All Blacks
All Blacks
The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represent New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport....
(four) than the three tries the 2005 British and Irish Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
would manage in three Tests the following year.
‘What a case they have made for their place at the game’s top table,’ said one report, after the final match of the 2004 edition. ‘If this was the death throes of Pacific islands rugby it was a pretty spectacular way to go.’
Charters was one of several closely connected with Pacific island rugby, like Bryan Williams (rugby), Rod MacQueen and Pio Bosco Tikoisuva
Pio Bosco Tikoisuva
Pio Bosco Tikoisuva, born in Taveuni in 1947, is a former Fijian rugby player and diplomat.-Rugby career:Tikoisuva played 19 tests for Fiji between 1968 and 1979....
, to urge the IRB and SANZAR
SANZAR
SANZAR is the body which operates Super Rugby and Tri Nations competitions in rugby union. It is a joint venture of the South African Rugby Union, the New Zealand Rugby Union and the Australian Rugby Union, formed in 1996.Created shortly after rugby's move to professionalism in 1995, SANZAR's two...
to do more to create a level playing field, particularly by selecting a Pacific team for either Super Rugby or the Tri-Nations which was mooted to expand in the 2006 season. He even challenged rugby bosses in New Zealand or Australia to hold a referendum among fans to see if they wanted a Pacific team in an expanded SANZAR
SANZAR
SANZAR is the body which operates Super Rugby and Tri Nations competitions in rugby union. It is a joint venture of the South African Rugby Union, the New Zealand Rugby Union and the Australian Rugby Union, formed in 1996.Created shortly after rugby's move to professionalism in 1995, SANZAR's two...
structure or an additional side carved up from within the existing structure.
The issue of a better deal for Pacific island rugby cut into international politics when, immediately after the obvious success of the 2004 tour, Australian prime minister John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....
and his New Zealand counterpart Helen Clark
Helen Clark
Helen Elizabeth Clark, ONZ is a New Zealand political figure who was the 37th Prime Minister of New Zealand for three consecutive terms from 1999 to 2008...
said they would lobby their respective national unions about inclusion to SANZAR
SANZAR
SANZAR is the body which operates Super Rugby and Tri Nations competitions in rugby union. It is a joint venture of the South African Rugby Union, the New Zealand Rugby Union and the Australian Rugby Union, formed in 1996.Created shortly after rugby's move to professionalism in 1995, SANZAR's two...
.
In December 2004, SANZAR
SANZAR
SANZAR is the body which operates Super Rugby and Tri Nations competitions in rugby union. It is a joint venture of the South African Rugby Union, the New Zealand Rugby Union and the Australian Rugby Union, formed in 1996.Created shortly after rugby's move to professionalism in 1995, SANZAR's two...
announced two additional teams would be created for the 2006 season under a new USD323 million, five-year television deal with News Corporation
News Corporation
News Corporation or News Corp. is an American multinational media conglomerate. It is the world's second-largest media conglomerate as of 2011 in terms of revenue, and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009, although the BBC remains the world's largest broadcaster...
but neither would be from the Pacific. The Super 14
Super 14
Super Rugby is the largest and pre-eminent professional Rugby union competition in the Southern Hemisphere...
would feature a new Australian team based in Perth, the Western Force
Western Force
Western Force is a rugby union team based in Perth, Western Australia playing in the international Super Rugby competition. They first competed in the 2006 season and finished with the wooden spoon in that year, however their performances greatly improved in 2007. In 2008 they finished in 8th...
, and a new South African team, the Central Cheetahs
Central Cheetahs
The Central Cheetahs, known for sponsorship reasons as the Toyota Cheetahs, is a South African rugby union team that entered the Super Rugby competition in 2006. The franchise area encompasses the Free State and Northern Cape. In terms of Currie Cup unions, the Cheetahs draw from Free State...
. Additionally a third round of fixtures was added to the Tri-Nations.
Writing
Charters’ first script garnered media attention (but no deal) because it drew on his considerable experience of the seamy side of professional sport from his time working for the Swiss sports marketing company ISL, which collapsed in 2001 with debts of more than $300 million despite holding exclusive rights to major global sports governing bodies and their events.Charters said he finished the script for Bolt Action listening to the commentary of the Pacific Islanders playing Italy on 22 November 2008. ‘When the whistle blew for full time, the first Islanders Test win [17 points to 25], I was within 10 minutes of finishing my script. And I knew then that Bolt Action would be blessed with good luck.’ Charters' agent is Charlie Viney of The Viney Agency.
On February 8, 2011, Charters became the first British debut author to be nominated for the Best Thriller category of Deadly Pleasures' Magazine's Barry Award (for crime novels)
Barry Award (for crime novels)
The Barry Award is a crime literary prize awarded annually since 1997 by the editors of Deadly Pleasures, an American quarterly publication for crime fiction readers. From 2007-2009 the award was jointly presented with the publication Mystery News...
.