My background is in community arts so I've worked with a wide variety of people with a range of needs, interests and backgrounds in small local communities, across cities and in Europe. I moved into arts project management with some of the top local community and educative arts organisations including The Arts Council.
In 2009 I set up as a freelance Storyteller. I'm part of a thriving Midlands scene and I work nationally. I think engaging the audience in as many brilliant ways as possible is the driving motivation for being involved the oral tradition of storytelling. We are the next generation to speak and listen to these old stories which are told in a way that preserves the heritage but is fresh, interesting and entertaining for a contemporary audience.
I've brought storytelling to lots of festival events such as Moseley Folk Festival, Whitby Folk Festival and at many Nottingham City and County Council celebration days and district play days at local parks and heritage sites e.g. Nottingham Castle and Wollaton Hall. I've performed on the Third Stage at Nottingham Theatre Royal and in Storytelling clubs e.g. in Wales, West Midlands, Derbyshire and Yorkshire. I've also told stories to library reading groups, museum visitors in Stoke, mental health service users and elders in day care as well as via a Nottingham University project to reach Yr1 and Reception primary school children and their parents across the City.
Brewhouse Yard museum brought me into train volunteer curators and The National Trust invited me to train walk guides in North Wales. The good folks at Bestwood Winding Engine House asked me to come along to a couple of their Miners and Music/Steam Heritage events to revive the story of 'Oxo the local Pit Pony' as well as tell ghost stories to adult audiences. I have an enhanced DBS and public liability insurance for £5 million.