Are You Creative?

Helen is the founder of Sketchface, a creative drawing movement based in Chelmsford that helps people rediscover the joy of drawing. She’s also an unapologetic early bird, often waking at 4:44am and using the hour between 5 and 6am as her creative power hour. Sketchface is designed to level the playing field. It doesn’t matter whether you can draw or not. Through playful exercises and simple rules...

Olly Thatcher AKA Olly Thatchh is a content creator from Basildon (or Bas Vegas, depending on who you ask). Starting out behind the camera as a photographer, videographer and music video creator, he built a production company creating on-brand content for businesses before stepping in front of the lens to become a creator in his own right. Spotting a lack of Essex representation on social media, O...

David Bishop is a adult vinyl toy custom artist. Originally from Billericay. Basically, he draws and paints on expensive collectible figures - like Dunny and BearBrick. David got into collecting through vinyl records, the magazine Straight No Chaser, and Mo’Wax records, and then the street artist Futura2000. It was a whole cultural world that appealed to him. Labubu from PopMart is like a modern l...

NSFW episode. NOT SAFE FOR WORK, KIDS, SHOPS. Warning! This podcast contains strong adult themes and very rude swearing from the outset. Kunt is a minor internet musical celebrity from Kunt & The Gang, The Kunts, The Krackpots, The Krown Jewelz and Kuntford & Sons, based in Basildon aka Bas Vegas. Kunt is not a rude name if it’s spelled with a K. He specialises in writing catchy rude songs...

Jo is an improvising vocalist who grew up in Basildon.. What even is that? Musicians and non-musicians will get together and improvise with voice, sound, objects, instruments. Performing with no rehearsal or planned outcome. Performances can last around 20 minutes, or hours with groups. Catching vibes, catching sounds, and responding to the energy in the room. Setting up spaces with a freedom to f...

Pre-loved modern classics seller. Matt runs The Good Love in Brightlingsea with his wife Laura. He might look like a sexy train driver, but he is a retailer. Previously above Roots And Grooves in Colchester. A shop with ‘everything in it’. Finding things for customers, like a record by a Blackpool Tower Organist. Finding vintage is like being a detective. Records are big sellers currently, people...

Owner of Megaflatables, a manufacturer of giant inflatables. Megaflatables designed the giant monsters that were all over the city of Chelmsford. They’ve designed giant Squid Game characters for Netflix promotion, including a giant 15 metre inflatable red light green light doll Young-Hee. NIck has worn a real Squid Game tracksuit. John smells gorgeous FYI. What makes you a Mudite if you live in Ma...

Lora is an Egyptian–British interdisciplinary artist, writer, and researcher whose community-led work moves between environmental storytelling, walking-based arts, and cultural practice. We are channeling full moon energy in the studio. This was recorded before Nick’s Costa to Costa mission and he is buzzing to set off. Lora is the partner of our previous guest Marley, the Community Farmer and Fil...

Children’s book illustrator from Mersea Island, Essex. He recently got a selfie stick and will throw it in a ditch if he sees anyone else on his walk. Mark Strong and his sexy microphone voice. Tom had just been doing an online schools event for the book he created with author Michelle Robinson ‘The Pumpkin that Stole Halloween’ - talking to 400 schools. Tom has drawn SO MANY pumpkins in his caree...

LIVE from Patch Place, Chelmsford for Essex Podcast Festival. Disappointingly Steve isn’t wearing his MBE medal. Talking The Meffs and MeffFest at Charter Hall. Steve grew up in a small village near Halstead, Essex. He discovered music at Xmas 1973 when his Dad was listening to the top 20 on the radio. Tom Robinson, The Stranglers and Eddie & The Hot Rods got him excited about punk and music,...

AKA Man About Country! Our first walking podcast along the banks of the River Chelmer through Chelmsford City Centre to Essex Records Office. James aka Man About Country. Born in Chelmsford, raised in Kelvedon. He loves telling stories about Britain, the land, the people, the folklore - pushing it beyond a grey boring concrete place you wouldn’t want to explore. Getting out is great for physical a...

Sound artist from Colchester. Studied Music Tech in Huddersfield, and could straddle music and engineering departments and experiment for four years. Learning the recording process as well as making music - a great place for a curious mind. Frazer’s first professional music work was performing cover versions for streaming platforms. It was a great learning experience creating different genres and...

Ben and his friends run the Secret Island festival on Mersea Island in Essex. An independent music festival - previous headliners have been Mike Skinner from The Streets, Orbital, and Faithless. Ben’s Dad was an oysterman, his brother is an oysterman, he’s about as Mersea Island as you can get! Seagull chat. Ben looks about 95% the same as Nick, it’s like looking in a mirror - WEIRD! Big up Ray Ke...

Algorithmic artist from Chelmsford, Essex. Specilaising in using technology to create art. Previously a radio technology news and features journalist, London news, and politics, Nik knows his way around a microphone. He’s also written a load of books. But he’s talking to us about his art he creates with spreadsheets. I know! Stick with us… All of his art begins with life modelling sessions and pho...

Wildlife photographer Meng was born in Macau, grew up in Hong Kong, now in Romford from 2006 working as a graphic designer. Hong Kong cinema, Jackie Chan, Drunken Master and dubbing voices in different countries. Jaiden is back in the house, bringing vibes and RAGGA JABA PUNCH to the studio. Meng’s incredible photo of green rose-ringed parakeets flying through a rainbow caught Nick’s eye at the Es...

A special episode about Nick’s epic Costa To Costa walk to raise £5000 for Chelmsford Foodbank. Disclaimer: Nick doesn’t know about coffee or bleaching beans or anything - Costa Coffee DO NOT bleach their beans, but it sounds funny. Nick visited 33 Costa Coffees in Chelmsford on foot! Nick walked 27.01 miles, which took 12 hours. Now some Costa To Costa artefacts are in The Museum of Chelmsford. S...

Podcasts, audio drama, recording, editing, mixing, Helen does it all! And is in the studio judging us! Helen’s voice is YouTube famous because she narrates a school sex education film - in the style Julie Andrews reads 50 Shades of Grey! Helen does amazing on-hold message voices and you have probably been told by her that your call is important to the company. Also the English voice of petrol pump...

Colombian visual artist and illustrator living in Essex, via Mexico and Suffolk, it’s a complicated story! She paints murals, creates digital illustrations, picture books and everything in between. Fine art and snobbery in art. Catalina blames her ADHD for ending up in Essex, she met an English man in Mexico who shared the same music taste (Josef K), and she decided to go on an adventure to Ipswic...

Radio presenter for BBC Essex, event host and all round comedy man. A Romford boy gone Chelmsford. How do you say ‘Up and not crying’ in Icelandic? Sangita ACED her guess of what Rob does. Rob Jelly was born as Rob Jelly, it’s not a stage name! Rob hosts Nuclear Races in Kelvedon Hatch and gets the crowd pumped up for the event. He studied music tech at university and accidentally got into student...

A man of many talents from ‘near Colchester’. Kip creates content around theme parks and technology, not both at the same time. Kip is proud of his honest reviews, he’s not ashamed to call out things that aren’t working. Creators have a responsibility where people will make decisions based on your content, so honesty is very important for respecting your audience. When Kip started there weren’t ma...

Lord Shiva is in the building! Paul from the band Pieces has amazing arm tattoos for all of his passions. Born and raised in Chelmsford. Now he writes and sings for his British Indian punk band Pieces. They write songs about politics, race, the state of the nation. Paul decided to become more active and pokey with his lyrics - to not ignore what’s going on. 2025 has been a vintage year for politic...

The Face of Chelmsford. The future mayor of the City. The future of creativity (FULL STOP). Rebecca described herself as multi-passionate when it comes to creativity. She hosts women’s circles - a safe space for people to turn up authentically and connect. She is part of Make Space for Girls - a project for creating specific spaces for girls to feel safe and belong - architecture for girls and wom...

Owen aka Project Lando aka Art of the Roadz. He’s got ADHD and the smoothest voice we’ve ever had on the podcast. He’s a music producer, radio host and he runs events. He runs workshops in Colchester for kids to learn about DJing and MCing with AC MC at The Minories , which isn’t a place you’d expect urban art. But the director of the gallery Emma Howe saw the potential to widen the gallery’s cult...

Live from Firstsite Colchester (the Golden Banana). Exhibition programme manager George is born and bred Bas Vegas (aka Basildon) from Laindon Hills. His family grew up in a self-built wooden shack in the Plotlands - which fitted closely into the themes of Michael Landy’s ‘Welcome to Essex’ exhibition, George’s first project at Firstsite. Firstsite has seen artists like Ai Weiwei, Anthony Gormley,...

It’s National Cheeseburger Day and Sangita isn’t here, it’s the legend Adam on the co-host - He’s been at Rom Skatepark chucking coloured powder all over the kids for the end of skatepark summer season. Over to our guest… Jake ‘The Burgerman’ Willis plays guitar in hardcore band Raiden, and being in a heavy metal band makes you have bad hearing. Prank chat. Hat chat. Wait for it… BURGER CHAT! Jake...