Bristol Unpacked

The government has stepped up their so-called ‘war on woke’ in the ongoing contest for Britain’s historical memory. With Bristol finding itself at the centre of the debate, Neil chats with the director of the city’s most celebrated event, St Pauls Carnival, on whether patriotism can ever be inclusive to include pride in diverse communities, or is it just a right-wing obsession to whitewash the UK’...

A self-declared thorn in the side of the mayor’s administration, Clive Stevens has just stood down as a Green Party councillor in the city, due to stress brought about by the pressures of the job.  Well regarded across party lines, Clive is a stickler for detail and a campaigner for greater transparency from a mayoral administration that he says is secretive about key policies and projects, which...

As a long-standing Labour councillor for Easton, Afzal Shah has been navigating the changing face of the neighbourhood and its diverse communities, including the recent dispute about the future of St Marks Road. But his recent appointment as the council cabinet member for Climate, Ecology and Sustainable Growth means an even bigger challenge: The struggle to get Bristol to its self-imposed deadlin...

Ade Williams is a bit of a celebrity pharmacist. Both around his pharmacy in Bedminster, South Bristol and speaking up in the media for a community-minded approach to healthcare. Neil and Ade talk about the practicalities and emotions of the vaccination effort, and the background and reasons for high levels of scepticism or ‘vaccine hesitancy’ across communities.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/pr...

Content warning: Mention of sexual assault in prisons, self-harm and suicide.  Steffi made national news with her story of transitioning gender later in life to officially becoming a woman while deciding with her wife to stay together. Steffi Barnett has a fascinating story, is a prominent activist for LGBTQ+ rights and awareness-raising, a radio host on local BCFM radio and exec-producer of Shout...

There's a theory that in recent years some parts of the working class are being badly let down, and have sought answers elsewhere - contributing to the rise of right-wing populists and policies. This week we talk to Nick, one of the founders of ACORN, the community union who's main focus is on housing justice, but with much bigger ambitions to genuinely create working class solidarity and power as...

Content Warning: Discussion of suicide Listen up, particularly men and boys. It's dark, it's wet, there’s a pandemic on. It's taking its toll, particularly on mental health. But there is light, and no it's not Boris Johnson’s cavalry. It's your friends, family and other support and networks you can access and build. This week we’re chatting to Desmond Richards, formerly one of Bristol’s best break...

Last week we had the Tory challenger for Bristol Mayor, and this week we have a Labour party stalwart, councillor and cabinet member for children services Helen Godwin. Helen recently lost the Labour election to be the candidate for West of England Metro Mayor but is still a big player in local party politics as council cabinet member for women and children services. Neil and Helen chat about how...

As the debate around the legacy and current effects of racial injustice rages, some Conservatives of colour are speaking up in rejection of what they see as the dominant ‘woke’ views.  Samuel Willams, the mixed-heritage Tory hopeful for Bristol’s mayoralty in May 2021 is one such voice. He chats with Neil about feeling patronised by the Left, being ostracised by others in the Black community and t...

What does it mean to be Bristolian? Makala Cheung, born and raised in Knowle West of South-East Asian heritage, is a musician and creative director of the Filwood Centre in the South Bristol heartland.  Listen in with Neil as they explore the ongoing debate of who is or isn’t Bristolian, the rise in racism against Chinese people since COVID, and how the wider city sees Knowle Westers. Hosted on Ac...

Tony Dyer has been around the political block in the city as mayoral, MP and councillor candidate for the Green Party. The Hartcliffe raised activist cannot attract the usual stereotypes associated to the party. With first hand experience of some of the most deprived places in Bristol and the UK, why did he never join Labour and where does he see politics in the city with an election around the co...

Arts and culture is taking a massive hit as the fallout of the pandemic continues. Emma Harvey is the outspoken CEO of the renowned Trinity Arts Centre and is at the forefront of the struggle to defend and champion the sector as a whole, and stick up for grassroots community culture while big city centre venues dominate the headlines. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As a leader of Bristol’s Black and Green project, Zakiya is bringing a background in broadcasting and research to connect the inner city with the natural environment. Featuring on BBC 4 and across many platforms with writing, Zakiya is a Jamaican born in London and lived most of her life in Jamaica and brings a fresh perspective on many issues, and wants to see more radicalism in our thinking abou...

From childhood experiences of being in care and bounced around different schools, to appearing on the front page of the Bristol Post last week talking about knife crime, Lawrence Hoo has a lot to say - often in poetry form. As part of the Cable's Black History Month coverage, Neil and Lawrence talk about the renaming of Colston Hall to Bristol Beacon, how education and the arts are key to building...

Public concern about climate change is at an all time high. Yet we are still hurtling towards, and seeing the beginnings of an unimaginable crisis. Among those standing in the way is Chloe Naldrett and Extinction Rebellion, sometimes naked sometimes not. Though criticised as extremists and criminals by some, and dismissed as naïve and counterproductive by others, XR has attracted huge support and...

The famously humorous Hartcliffe local was a city councillor in the 1990s, and then getting re-elected in 2016, bringing professional experience to the role of city council cabinet lead for housing. Credited with doing a good job but now standing down to lead a large housing association, Neil Maggs asks have the council cosied up to big business and developers too much, or is that the only way to...

Desmond Brown, on reforming the criminal justice system and being called a ‘police informant’ Now at the forefront of conversations to reform the criminal justice system locally and nationally, Desmond Brown is an advocate for racial justice, especially since the Tasering of Ras Judah by police in 2017. Desmond has been accused by some of being a police informant, due to his work with local instit...

Children's futures almost stolen, inequality made worse by algorithm and education in the time of COVID-19 in some of the UK's most deprived neighbourhoods. This week Neil talks to Samantha Williamson, the Principal of Merchants Academy. The school responsible for educating children from Reception to 18 in Withywood and Hartcliffe, areas recognised as among the most deprived in the country. As the...

Krazy is a rapper, producer and broadcaster, and a force to be reckoned with. As a white man he has been accused of cultural appropriation, despite growing up with in the scene. Was the way that Wiley was treated after his anti-semitic comments also racist? Draper discusses a video that went viral this week, where he punched a bigot. Last Man Standing is a new digital rap battle platform championi...

David Goldblatt is an award winning sports writer and broadcaster living in Bristol. He is the author of The Ball Is Round: A Global History of Football which had been described as the "seminal football history book,” His latest work has seen him look at climate change and its impact on sport in a report commissioned by the Rapid Transition Alliance. The remarkable results were recently covered in...

Growing up in poverty on the north Bristol council estate of Lawrence Weston, Jimmy didn’t read a book until he was 20. His life changed when his girlfriend took him to the Tate gallery in London. Now Jimmy is a renowned artist, composer and curator and has exhibited alongside the UK’s leading figures, including Mark Quinn, sculptor of the Jen Reid Black Lives Matter statue that was temporarily on...

Marti Burgess owns Lakota, a club in Stokes Croft that turned 28 this year. Neil and her discuss the old days and the future of this stalwart of Bristol nightlife. From the heady days of the House scene in the early 90s to the rumours of an imminent sale. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marti Burgess hit the headlines as the first Black person to join the notorious Society of Merchant Venturers, the 500 year old business and philanthropy club of slave trader Edward Colston and other members of Bristol’s elite, then and now.  Marti is a corporate solicitor, chair of the Black South West Network and St Pauls Carnival and is involved with a multitude of other activities in the commu...

Born and raised Bristolian, community activist and diehard Bristol Rovers fan, Delroy Hibbert is a Black Lives Matter backer. But he also attended the ‘All Lives Matter’ nationalist demonstration in Bristol the week after Colston fell. A Bristol Cable video seen by hundreds of thousands captured a very tense moment with agitated protesters, ending in an iconic photograph of Delroy and a veteran sh...

Founding member of Countering Colston, Green party city councillor and former Lord Mayor, Cleo Lake has a lot to say on the big questions of politics, race, history and the future of Bristol and beyond.  Unafraid to speak truth to power, Cleo has challenged Mayor Marvin Rees on not having confronted Edward Colston’s legacy, having herself swiftly removed his portrait from the Lord Mayor’s office....