Written by Khushi Mehta , Speed Intern, July 2026
My alarm went off at 4:30 on the morning of the 6th of July. Coventry to Bristol Temple Meads, first day of my internship at Speed, a bag full of jitters and a head full of questions – trains, timings, which way to the office, whether I’d remember everyone’s name.
And then my first train got cancelled.
Now, I’m someone who reads signs. My normal self would have sat on that platform and quietly decided the universe was trying to tell me something. But I’d already been to the Speed office once, for a group interview, and I’d left knowing that if the opportunity came, I would never say no to it. So, I let the cancelled train be just a cancelled train, kept my energy up, and made my way to Bristol.
Best decision I made all month. Here’s how the four weeks unfolded.
Day one was warm, smiling faces and a round of introductions that somehow didn’t feel overwhelming, including my first proper look at the two worlds Speed works across: Consumer, with Becky, and Business & Corporate, with Clare. As planned, I went for a lunch with Tara that settled every nerve I’d carried in and provided unwavering support of the whole month.
I started warming up on different tasks like magazine research, readership data research, researching product slots and reviews across consumer online and print for Revlon, and started pitching for Brabantia. I worked on a TikTok content calendar for Jakemans with Amy and also got to grips with the tools the team used every day – the ones quietly making half the magic possible.
WHAT I TOOK AWAY:
PR has a language of its own. Before you pitch anything, you learn the power of research (the outlet, the slot, the audience, a media list) which isn’t admin, it’s strategy.
A good agency speaks two languages at once, because positioning a household brand is nothing like positioning a technology business.
This was the week the craft clicked. I sat in on introductions to creativity with Sarah, culture with Nic, and the had an interesting chat about GEO with Julia, which reframed how I think about visibility entirely.
Now the work had really begun. I was researching regional slots and sell-in for Herta, started product pitching for Revlon and Brabantia across print and online slots, events research for Equals and more.
WHAT I TOOK AWAY:
A pitch is never a single act. You research the right slot, then write and rewrite the angle until one of them is genuinely compelling and timing, especially around events and seasonal hooks, can decide whether it lands at all.
By now I was moving between briefs with more confidence.
Then came the moment I won’t forget. There’s a bell in the Speed office. Every time there’s a win, the Speedster behind it gets to ring it, announcing the news, and sharing the happiness with the whole room. I didn’t expect to get mine, but a reply from a journalist and suddenly the bell was mine to ring. Easily, the highlight of my month!
WHAT I TOOK AWAY:
Coverage doesn’t appear, it’s engineered – through send-outs, seeding, well-built media lists and relentless follow-up.
Packing up is a strange feeling. By the final week, everything I’d touched – the campaigns I’d carried from day one and the tasks I’d only just picked up, was suddenly something to hand over. Passing journalist conversations to the right teams, making sure not a single thread would drop, leaving everything exactly where the next person could pick it up cleanly. I was now looking after the wrap up as it matters just as much as the work I did to start it.
WHAT I’M TAKING WITH ME:
What’s stayed with me is bigger than any single pitch. Every morning opened with a news conference: the team scanning the papers, trading stories and spotting opportunities together. A Pride sharing session spoke about far more than work, and told me everything I needed to know about how open, respectful and genuinely inclusive this culture is. Everything showed in the small things too: every task, half-done or fully done, was met with such appreciation that all I wanted was to do the next one better.
That, I think, is the Speed effect. Celebrate every win, out loud and together. Be proud of the work you do. And let kindness do the heavy lifting – it travels much further than you’d expect.
I’m writing this a little stunned at how quickly a month can disappear. I’m sad it’s over, and I’d have happily stayed longer, but I’m leaving more motivated than I’ve ever been, and walking out with far more than a CV’s worth of skills. I’m taking the values.
The train got cancelled on my first day. Turns out the only sign that mattered was the one I made myself – showing up anyway.
