One of the many challenges with crisis communications is that it is typically difficult, if not impossible, to hear what happened from the horse’s mouth afterwards.

Which is why it’s something of a coup that Speed has former BP chief executive Tony Hayward coming to face a room full of marketing people, communications specialists and entrepreneurs at our parent firm Loewy’s monthly Mandrake networking club on Tuesday night.

Mr Hayward, as if you’ll need any reminding whatsoever, was in charge of the oil giant when the Deepwater Horizon tragedy saw one of the biggest ever oil leaks wreak havoc in the Gulf of Mexico, leading to him being labelled by the public and cited in the media as the “most hated man in America“.

What happened in the aftermath of the leak, the frantic efforts to stem the flow and cap the hole, and his subsequent resignation from the CEO post, have become PR folklore. It’s one of the most talked-about examples of how a large corporation handled, or struggled to handle, the media in the wake of a huge crisis. It was also the first crisis of its kind in which social media took hold as the firm faced a barrage of online criticism for an apparent lack of transparency.

Following assumed wisdom that the CEO must be seen to be taking personal charge and responsibility in the event of crisis, Mr Hayward stepped forward into the media glare. What he couldn’t have foreseen was the length of time the situation dragged on.

Every crisis is different, but Deepwater Horizon was unique.

I have more than a few questions I’d like to ask him on Tuesday, but please leave others as comments on this post if you’d like me to air others.