The A-List: 2008

Born

1st January 1968

Job

Managing partner

Company

Kitcatt Nohr Alexander Shaw

Work Telephone

+44 (0)20 7012 3980.

Address

48-50 St John's Street, London, EC1M 4DG

Fantasy business partner

Joanna Lumley.

How do you off-set your carbon footprint?

Swimming wherever I can.

Greatest influence

My late father.

Clubs

Football club, health club and private members club.

Favourite gadget

iPod.

Desert island objects

My drums, The Talmud, my wife.

Most-admired politician

Nelson Mandela, for his courage and his shirts.

Favourite media

The Times, Private Eye, Choice FM, Amazon.

Biggest risk taken

Mortgaging my house to set up an agency.

Perfect day

Sunday.

Who should play you in the film of your life?

Daniel Craig or Woody Allen, I can't decide.

Career highlights

Child actor and presenter on TV, on radio and in theatre. Post-university, became a broadsheet feature writer. Then a freelance copywriter. I entered agencies as an account handler, rising to board level, before converting to the creative department. Rose to creative director and then managing director (Burnett DM). Lauched and floated UK's first digital music download site. Then co-founded Kitcatt Nohr.

Fictional hero

Too many to mention. But it is currently Fix-It-Duck (I read a lot of small children's books).

Hidden talent

Cooking (my wife claims it's very hidden recently).

Best job outside advertising

Playing drums with The Temptations

Lowdown

As a martial arts instructor, it's no surprise Nohr has been knocking down the opposition this year and scooping up lots of new business. However, his aggressive growth strategy has created mixed feelings in the DM arena. People either admire him, or there are those who are sceptical (and even a tad jealous) of the agency's success.

Most expensive purchase

.

Why are you good at what you do?

Passion, determination (and modesty).