Charles started his career in journalism – firstly on local newspapers in the North-East, before joining the BBC, where he worked on all the main news programmes, including the Today programme and Newsnight. In 1987 he moved to ITN, where he became Editor of News At Ten.

In 1992 he co-founded the UK communications and public affairs consultancy, Luther Pendragon – one of the first agencies to combine the two disciplines. Its success inspired him to invest in a similar consultancy in Brussels in 2000. He sold both in 2005/6 and then worked on a portfolio of clients, including a major project with the UK’s Office for Security and Counter-Terrorism on counter-radicalisation communications.

During this time, he was on the Advisory Board of the multi-award winning communications firm, Blue Rubicon, which he joined on a more permanent basis in 2012. He helped grow the firm, expanding it overseas and acquiring other compatible agencies. The company was eventually acquired by and became part of Teneo.

Charles has had a lifelong interest in politics and has served as a Trustee of the influential think-tank Policy Exchange and is now on the Business Leaders group of Onward. He has served as a trustee of two charities he helped found, The Romanian Orphanage Trust, which became EveryChild, and Merlin, now part of Save the Children. He is currently a Trustee of the Disasters Emergency Committee.