It’s most qualified members include a man who climbed to the top of Everest and ran out of oxygen, an ex-army major who seized a truck full of sheep instead of IRA arms, and an explorer who led his team into the jungle with 24 bottles of wine, but no food. Yes, it’s true, and to celebrate these almighty clangers, www.cockupclub.co.uk, the official website for the Cock-Up Club, will be launched at the Travellers Club in London’s Pall Mall on May 14. Members will enjoy an awards ceremony led by Cock-Up Club founder Anthony Willoughby, a 56 year old business entrepreneur from Ramsdean, Hampshire, and a self confessed “Doctor of cock-ups”. His finest moments include paralysing himself by falling 20 feet out of a window in China while trying to impress a woman, and organising a mountaineering expedition in Africa having never even set foot on one, subsequently finding himself lumbered with a group of people suffering from severe altitude sickness.  “We all had a wonderful time, though,” he is adamant. The whole point of cock-ups is that we learn from them.  And they’re funny.  So what better way to rejoice the nature of these inevitable ‘mishaps’ than to belong to an online community of professional cock-up-ers?  “It’s a bit of a no-brainer, really,” admits Anthony.  “The world is so full of people who are obsessed with achievement and being the best.  I wanted to create something which celebrates the exact opposite of that. The essence of the Cock-Up-Club is about celebrating the value of life experience, not measuring your success. Our motto is ‘No cock-up, no wisdom.’ It all began 5 years ago in a wine bar in Hampshire.  Depressed, unmotivated and downright miserable, Anthony confessed all after a few Merlots to fellow Cock-Up-Club founder Richard Vaughan-Griffiths, and was pleasantly surprised to find that he was not the only one who felt this way. With more than 100 existing members, the Cock-Up-Club is ready and waiting for your enrolment and participation in what promises to be an enlightening and entertaining experience, with plenty of stories like this one:

Fifteen years ago, Cock-Up-Club member Rod Cornwell decided to let the lady in his life know the true extent of his feelings for her.  Not one for the subtle approach, he had everything in place for the perfect proposal in a well-chosen restaurant.  The ring was in his pocket, and the jazz-quartet was standing by.  After silencing the entire venue for his moment of glory, he asked her marry him.  “She said no,” he recalls. “Well, in fact, she said ‘God no’ and ran as fast as she could.”

You’ll be pleased to know that Rod is happily married now (to someone else). The point is: it’s important to be able to laugh at ourselves.  So what if we don’t get it right all the time? Who cares if we’re remembered for our cock-ups rather than our successes?  Better to be remembered for something slightly embarrassing than to not be remembered at-all.  So log on to the Cock-Up-Club, register, and become a member.  You’ve finally found something you’re good at!

www.cockupclub.co.uk is a unique and highly entertaining website where members are able to search for specific types of cock-ups, e.g. travelling stories, rate other people’s cock-ups and have their own stories rated, have access to the most viewed cock-ups and get in contact with fellow ‘cock-upers’.  It provides people with a completely different type of online community. The Cock-Up Club has been included on the MBA Management Business Course programme as part of a skill-developing scheme.

For more information please call Cat Jarman on at Navigate Design on 01730 235666, or email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or Anthony Willoughby on 07939 042266.