News sandwiching and public holiday publicity: how to time a celebrity divorce announcement =========================================================================================== ![News sandwiching and public holiday publicity: how to time a celebrity divorce announcement](https://vardags.com/images/pictures/f663627dd08f59b46a3d398d744fff36.jpeg)On Monday, September 26 2016 at 7:02 p.m. EST, Liev Schreiber and Naomi Watts announced they were getting divorced. Just two hours later the first presidential debate was aired. News of the divorce trickled slowly out with the distracted media too engrossed in Trump and Clinton crossing horns to pay the couple any mind. It was no accident. Gwen Stefani announced her separation from Gavin Rossdale on a Monday in August 2015 giving the media all working week to build steam. Her career swung back into public view and a resurgent hit heartbreak album and a TV show quickly followed. Though the days of courtroom battles making pariahs of divorcees are for the most part [safely consigned to history](https://vardags.com/family-law/celebrity-divorces-history), people in the public eye can find their divorces subject to fascinated scrutiny in the press. To ensure that demise of a relationship doesn't spell the demise of a career, timing is everything. Below we have some of the most infamous media management manoeuvres. For maximum publicity --------------------- Early week announcements have the whole working week to percolate. This means more coverage. It can also mean better coverage. The US weeklies frenetically reporting celebrity news tend to wrap on Monday night, so many are closed on Tuesdays. Celebrities that announce break-ups on a Tuesday like Angelina Jolie, Taylor Swift and Lady Gaga [have more control](https://www.marieclaire.com/celebrity/news/a22943/celebrity-divorce-announcement-timing/) over how it will play out in the next few days. Some notable days can also get a big splash. Katy Perry and Russel Brand declared their split in 2011 the day before New Year's Eve rapidly becoming a hungover talking point. Other top tips for maximum exposure are catching your public off guard, public appearances, paparazzi tip-offs and red herring lovers. To keep things quiet -------------------- The options here are slim. The choice is between Friday afternoons, holiday weekends or the very middle of summer when journalists are less inclined to report and people are less interested in everyone else's lives. The other option is sandwiching your announcement in bigger news. Top tips include securing private judges and discreet clerks. California lawyer Laura Wasser told [Bloomberg](https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2016-laura-wasser-hollywood-divorce-lawyer/) that whenever she can she files high profile cases in branch offices. "Santa Barbara is great" because, she says, their clerks leak fewer documents. Most importantly ---------------- Do tell your husband or wife first. Second-hand news is second-rate news. Vardags' team of [top divorce lawyers serving celebrities](https://vardags.com/team/specialist-divorce-lawyers/celebrities-divorce) delivers bespoke legal services top [HNW and UHNW individuals](https://vardags.com/guide/high-net-worth), their families and buisinesses. Learn more from [Vardags'divorce guides](https://vardags.com/guide/divorce-guides). "Ayesha Vardag - Britain's top divorce lawyer." ![The Huffington Post](https://vardags.com/images/logo/huffpost.png) "Ayesha Vardag - Woman of the Year"![GG2](https://vardags.com/images/logo/gg2-3.png) "Leading, Magic Circle law firm."Mr Justice Coleridge "A handful of firms dominate the so-called 'glamour' end of the market ... Vardags"The Times "One of the best divorce lawyers in the country"Marie Claire "Ayesha Vardag - 'diva of divorce' for the world's super rich" ![BBC](https://vardags.com/images/logo/bbc.png) "Dr Stephen Bence is a financial genius."Lewis Marks KC "Ayesha Vardag - the Queen of divorce"Daily Mail "Vardags brilliantly argued my case to a resounding victory"Pauline Chai (client) "Britain's top divorce lawyer" ![The Telegraph](https://vardags.com/images/logo/telegraph.png) More Divorce news ----------------- [England's long war between the press and the courts](https://vardags.com/family-law/press-and-courts "Englands long war between the press and the courts") [A step by step guide to getting divorced](https://vardags.com/family-law/a-step-by-step-guide-to-getting-divorced "A step by step guide to getting divorced") [News sandwiching and public holiday publicity: how to time a celebrity divorce announcement](https://vardags.com/family-law/news-sandwiching-and-public-holiday-publicity-how-to-time-a-celebrity-divorce-announcement "News sandwiching and public holiday publicity: how to time a celebrity divorce announcement") [Corner-stone decision in the Italian Court of Cassation for spousal maintenance: a matter of principles](https://vardags.com/family-law/italian-spousal-maintenance "Corner-stone decision in the Italian Court of Cassation for spousal maintenance: a matter of principles") [Lawyers horrified and disappointed by Supreme Court 'loveless marriage' ruling](https://vardags.com/family-law/supreme-court-loveless-marriage-ruling "Lawyers horrified and disappointed by Supreme Court 'loveless marriage' ruling") Articles by Thea Dunne ---------------------- [A step by step guide to getting divorced](https://vardags.com/family-law/a-step-by-step-guide-to-getting-divorced "A step by step guide to getting divorced") [Meeting Grand Prix showjumper, Sara Battista](https://vardags.com/posts/meeting-grand-prix-showjumper-sara-battista "Meeting Grand Prix showjumper, Sara Battista") [News sandwiching and public holiday publicity: how to time a celebrity divorce announcement](https://vardags.com/family-law/news-sandwiching-and-public-holiday-publicity-how-to-time-a-celebrity-divorce-announcement "News sandwiching and public holiday publicity: how to time a celebrity divorce announcement") [What's next for English divorce law following Owens ruling](https://vardags.com/posts/whats-next-for-english-divorce-law "Whats next for English divorce law following Owens ruling") [Prenups: What are they and why get one?](https://vardags.com/family-law/prenups-what-are-they-are-why-get-one "Prenups: What are they and why get one?")