Work, Actually

Send us Fan Mail Ever wondered what it would be like to be a professional chocolate maker? Listen to this chat with Maya Simler, founder of the educational and organic chocolate brand PLAYin Choc that Maya claims is the kindest chocolate brand on the planet. Designed to be a healthy alternative to the chocolate we see on the market full of allergens and preservatives, this one is made with just th...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wondered what the life of a hat maker is like? This great chat with Katherine Elizabeth explains just that. W e talk all about the art of millinery and her incredible creations, the history of hat-making, the influences, the craft, the route she took, her inspirations and how she’s helping build the next generation of milliners with amazing workshops and millinery academy tha...

Send us Fan Mail There's not a huge amount that feels better than singing your heart out to a song you love and choral arranger and vocal coach Mark De Lisser understands that better than most. He has worked with some of today’s top vocal talent including Ariana Grande, Jessie J and Beverley Knight. He is the founder of Singology; an array of community choirs across London, and has taught at...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wondered what the working life of a model agent is like? You've come to the right place. Listen to Elizabeth Rose, founder of Evolve and Emma Durnell who heads up the women's division, talk about why they now run a boutique modelling agency after years working with the major agencies, how models are scouted and cast, the changing face of beauty and brand demands, th...

Send us Fan Mail Ever considered a career as a fine dining head chef? This episode is with London Stock's Executive Chef, Nico Fitzgerald who graduated from Le Cordon Bleu London in 2016 with a Grand Diplôme® . He has since garnered experience in some of the UK's finest restaurants, including Adelina Yard and Heston's The Hind's Head, before joining his fellow alumni at London...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wished you could have someone to help source and present art in your home? Or take your existing art and help bring it back to life with better frames and presentation? Look no further than Louisa Warfield, an art consultant who does just that. I talk to her all about how she got into the role, what it really entails, how it's not just a service for the super wealthy and...

Send us Fan Mail Ever wondered what it would be like to earn a living from starring in reality tv? Jess Impiazzi, who featured on MTV's Ex on the Beach and Celebrity Big Brother details her experiences and the truth behind the camera, including what she feels are damaging elements of the concept to the positives that came from it.  Jess also details her experiences and more in her new book Si...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to work in the wedding industry? Do you want to be an event stylist? The final episode of both the mini small-business series and of Series 1 in general! A wonderful chat with Gemma Lander, an award-winning wedding stylist in Bedfordshire with a passion for creating perfectly relaxed and beautifully unique wedding days. Gemma talks honestly about how tough 2020 has bee...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want a career change? Do you have a new business idea you want to get off the ground? This episode I chat to Gracie & Sophie Tyrrell- sisters and founders of Squirrel Sisters, an award-winning snacking brand. The sisters have a range of multi award-winning snacks that are vegan, gluten-free, 100% natural and contain no added sugar. They are one of the only snacking bran...

Send us Fan Mail Do you have a new business idea? Do you want a career change? The third out of five small business specials, this episode is with Ben and Dan, twins and founders of Cranes Drinks, a range of refreshingly natural fruit ciders which contain 30% fewer calories and over 40% less sugar compared to brand leaders. They are now seeing great success being available in lots of supermarkets...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want a career change? Do you want to work in the food retail industry? Episode two of this small-business mini-series that is looking at how different small businesses have coped, pivoted and survived this very challenging year. This week's chat is with Harriot, founder of confectionary brand Mallow and Marsh that is stocked in supermarkets and Starbucks. We go into de...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want a career change? Do you want to start your own business? The first in a mini-series on small businesses, I chat with Hannah Paine, founder of jewellery shop and studio épanoui, which also sells beautiful hand-picked artisan gifts and products. With a physical store in Bedford and a thriving online shop, we discuss the past year, the challenges, the setbacks and worries...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want a career change? The final episode of series 1, this week's chat is with Sidonie Warren, the founder of Papersmiths, a beautiful shop that sells design-led stationery goods from designers all over the world. The chat goes into detail on how the business came about, the growth and expansion and, of course, how they have navigated 2020 during COVID. Sidonie chats th...

Send us Fan Mail It's not everyday you get to speak to a gold-medalist Paralympian but I was very fortunate to do just that - this week's episode is with the incredible Liz Johnson, a gold-medalist Paralympic swimmer as well as founder of The Ability People, a company that is dedicated to empowering the skilled global disability population. As a company The Ability People advises, educat...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to work in tech? This week I chatted to Cecilia Harvey, CEO of Hyve Dynamics, a pioneering sensory technology company and also founder of the communities Tech Women Today and Ladies Who Launch all about the work she does in helping support women in technology roles and female entrepreneurs.  www.ceciliaharvey.com  www.hyvedynamics.com 

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to play professional sport? Do you want to work in sport? Wow, what a fantastic chat with the incredible rugby league player Jodie Cunningham, The St Helens and England full-back. We discuss her career as a player to date, the future of women’s rugby league, the 2021 World Cup and trying her hand at punditry.  https://www.rugby-league.com/leagues__competitions/womens_r...

Send us Fan Mail Are you an introvert? This week's episode is with the wonderful Joanna Rawbone, founder of Flourishing Introverts, a company that educates on what being an introvert is and training for individuals and companies on understanding what it means. Also how to fulfil potential instead of just pretending to be an extrovert to fit in with work places geared around that, how companie...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want a career change? Do you want to work in fitness? One of the true pioneers of online fitness, this week's episode is with the incredibly positive and inspiring Cecilia Harris. Cecilia co-founded Results Wellness Lifestyle with The Only Way is Essex's Lucy Mecklenburgh and found the benefits of exercise on mental health after suffering with post-natal depressio...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to start your own business? Grab yourself a glass of sparkling wine and listen to England's youngest vineyard owner, Joe Beckett, explain the process of setting up a vineyard and producing premium English wine. There are many many challenges to producing wine here and Joe goes into detail what these are and how you overcome them. He runs Kinsbrook Vineyard, a fami...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to work in events? Do you want to work with celebrities? Showbiz by name, showbiz by nature! Listen to this amazing and funny episode with the remarkable Liz Taylor, CEO and creative director at the Taylor-Lynn Corporation, an events business that works closely with top celebrities. Hear about the last 25 years of events, with incredible stories and tips for those want...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to work in sport? This week's episode is a chat with former professional figure skater Carol Lane, who now coaches at the elite level, taking competitors to different world championships and Olympic Games, as well as teaching those right at the start of their skating lives at a young age and discovering those with raw, natural talent and movement. Hear about what...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to be a comedian? Ever wondered what it's like to be professionally funny? And have you ever been tempted to try stand-up comedy? Listen to this episode with the hilarious Alexandra Haddow, an up and coming London-based comedian who was fortunate enough to support Frankie Boyle in March - the biggest gig of her career. However, then we went into lockdown so it was...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to be an influencer? This week's episode is with professional influencer Scott McGlynn. Scott is an author, LGBT Activist, podcast host and online lifestyle creator specialising in skincare. A lot of his past experiences form the basis of what he talks about and creates content around, with the aim to help anyone who has suffered with acne, low self-esteem, sexual...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to start your own business? Do you want to work in film? This episode I chat with George Wood, the founder of The Luna Cinema, the UK's leading outdoor cinema company. We discuss his idea for open-air cinema in the UK twelve years ago and making it a reality whilst high on morphine! We talk through the challenges of setting up an events business, the reality behin...

Send us Fan Mail Do you want to be an actor? Do you want to work in VoiceOver acting? Think Robin Williams as the voiceover actor in Mrs Doubtfire and you get a sense into the wonderful working world of actor George Weightman, who has carved out a successful career in voiceover acting over the last few years. From adverts to audiobooks, video games to eLearning tutorials - he's pretty versati...