DIARY: Stories we could tell ... Territorial Harrow, a mini movie maker

Never mind that clients are chopping and hoarding budgets. Never

mind that ad sales have hit the floor and are unlikely to scale last

year's lofty heights for a long time to come.

It's that time of the year again when the media industry can behave

publicly the way we presume it does privately the rest of the year.

Check out back issues of media if you're new to the antics of Hong

Kong's media and advertising set. Yes, we're speaking of the SOPA Ball,

or as it should be renamed, the Sodom and Gomorrah bash. This year's

theme is Bollywood, after Bombay's over-the-top movie-making

machine.

But it's The Economist team, led by Rupert Harrow - how does he manage

to look dashing even if he's wearing what appears to be a woman's

sari?

- that has the head's up on SOPA. Their CD invitation for the November

10 gala is something of a mini Bollywood production. Harrow has roped in

ad industry mates - from OMD's turbanned Mike Cooper and Euro RSCG's

David Morgan to M&C Saatchi's Ian Thubron incarnated as Durga, the

multi-arm goddess - in starring roles.

Then again, no one would ever accuse Harrow of doing things by

halves.

On a recent outing, we hear the man bounded up Kota Kinabalu in a flash

and then proceeded to mark his territory.