Launch Quotes

[Big problem over next week's conference. Jack's down to do a fringe meeting with Ken Livingstone but it clashes with the launch of Wendy Alexander's book on Donald Dewar. Jack, of course, simply has to be there, because big Brown is turning up as well. Any chance Jack can get to share the same room with Gordon at the moment he grabs. So I had to ring up to persuade Livingstone to cancel to give us an excuse to call off as well.] Pity... I always like sharing a stage with Jack. It makes me look even smarter. - Ken Livingstone

[Before launch] it just seemed impossibly far away, it seemed unreachable. Tonight, I go out knowing our rovers have been there a whole Martian year...it's a much more familiar planet. We know the place. - Steve Squyres

[At the same time, company officials at the lifestyle media and merchandising giant announced a series of changes that indicate they are backing off the Martha Stewart name to focus on non-eponymous products. Everyday Food, a monthly magazine whose circulation has risen 50 percent in the year since it was launched, will no longer carry the tag line] From the Kitchens of Martha Stewart Living. ... Living. - Martha Stewart

[As for] Starved... The show had a lot of fans, so it was tough to choose. Ultimately, we felt that we're just not in a position to spread our resources. We launched our dramas one at a time, and launching two like we did this summer just didn't work out as well. - John Landgraf

[And in launching a 21-day] prayer offensive ... We ask for miracles in regard to the Supreme Court. - Pat Robertson

[AMD's launch places Intel in the unfamiliar position of following another company's technology lead to market. AMD's launch caught Intel] flat-footed... Intel doesn't have a good 64-bit transition strategy. - Rob Enderle

[A tribunal in Birmingham has ruled in favour of former MG Rover workers still waiting for their full payouts following the company's collapse in April. The eight weeks' pay for all 5,000 who lost their jobs is worth around 14 million and will be paid by the government. The Transport and General Workers Union launched the employment tribunal case on behalf of the workers.] Workers and their families should not have been kept waiting... Payment now should be speedy to prevent further hardship. - Adrian Ross