Rachel Walker
Dep Head of Celebrity & VIP , Marie Curie
Working within charity is a second career for Rachel, who spent nearly 20 years working in the music industry before moving over to not-for-profit. "I had very transferable skills" she explains. "Getting a well-known actor to a TV interview on time is not dissimilar to getting a rock band on stage - just with less guitars." At Marie Curie, the UK's leading end of life charity, Rachel amplifies their work through celebrity engagement. "Marie Curie is a historic charity and a hugely loved organisation - it's an honour to work for them. Our celebrity supporters really appreciate how vital the work is. I love coming up with new and innovative ways in which they can support us – whether that's promoting our campaigning or helping to raise funds. The pandemic was a huge challenge, but with tenacity I managed to increase our celebrity fundraising by a 900%. We were also proud to win the Third Sector Awards Celebrity Charity Champion Award both in 2021 with actress Alison Steadman, and in 2023 with singer Claire Richards, for their support of Marie Curie". In addition to the regular day job, Rachel is also Co-Producer of the celebrity-filled podcast On the Marie Couch, which won two awards at this year's Lovie Awards, celebrating the best in European internet. It has also been nominated for a British Podcast Award as well as being a Sunday Times Podcast of the Week.