Mulcahy Conway Associates 
Mark Townsend
Mark Townsend is the award-winning Home Affairs Editor at The Observer. He joined the newspaper in 2002 and has since covered many of the world's major stories since. He has won or been short-listed for more than 12 journalism awards during his career. His dispatches from Afghanistan with Kenny Meighan's platoon were described by the Foreign Press Association's judging panel as "breathtaking" and highly-commended (runner-up) in the international features category. Kenny is the central character in Mark's new book Point Man, published by Faber & Faber in April 2012.Mark was a chief contributor to the book accompanying Ken Loach's 2011 film, Route Irish, which explored the domestic legacy of the Iraq war. He also wrote the environmental satire 'Fifty Ways to F**k the Planet', published by Collins UK in 2008. The book was described by Nick Cave as “wickedly amusing” and received praise from Zac Goldsmith, Rosie Boycott and Alexander McQueen, among others.
Other awards include British environmental journalist of the year, specialist reporter of the year, young reporter of the year and FPA 2008 winner for the Observer's reports on Iraq honour-killings. Previously he has worked for the Western Morning News and Daily Express.
News
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Mark Townsend shortlisted for the Paul Foot journalism award
The Observer journalist Mark Townsend was nominated for his investigation into modern-day slavery and exploitation of women and children trafficked into the UK. Townsend is credited with prompting a public outcry so great that it influenced the government pledge to support child victims in its proposed anti-human trafficking strategy. Mark Townsend's new book Point Man tells the story of Kenny Meighan, who was the longest-serving point man in Helmand province. Based on Townsend's own reportage from the war and extensive interviews with Kenny and his family, Point Man vividly conveys the terror and intensity of the life of an ordinary soldier and the heart-wrenching struggle to adjust to civilian life, while exposing the wider political implications of the war. Faber and Faber publish on 5th April 2012.
http://guardian.co.uk/media/2012/feb/21/paul-foot-journalism-award-shortlis…
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Mark Townsend wins Foreign Press Association award
Mark Townsend, Observer journalist and author of 50 Ways to F**k the Planet, has won The Foreign Press Association's award for Print/Web News Story of the Year along with Afif Sarhan and Caroline Davies for "The Iraqi teenage girl killed for loving a British soldier".
http://www.foreign-press.org.uk/showarticle.pl?id=293;n=14