The guest in this episode is a sound artist named Camilla Hannan who recently exhibited a work featuring a handful of Jellies at the XMTR Audio Arts Festival in St Leonards-on-Sea, England.

Camilla will be hosting a collective listening experience this weekend at Williamstown Beach to which all Jellies are invited. Our conversation in this episode will provide context for Camilla’s sound piece called ‘Across the Sea’ and offer insight into the creative process. Thanks for listening.

*I acknowledge that in this episode, I make a specific reference to women who swim in open water swimming communities. I would like to honour the non-binary swimmers and gender non-conforming swimmers who contributed to Camilla's artwork. The open water swimming community includes folks of all genders and this podcast celerates the intersecting identities that ocean lovers hold.

Today you will hear from the final guest of the 5-year anniversary series. Betsy Tucker started swimming in 2023 on the southern hemisphere’s Winter Solstice, a joyful day celebrated annually by many Jellies and other groups down at the beach. Betsy is a bookworm, writer, reliable seahorse spotter and an absolute pleasure to bob with on a Saturday morning. She also shares a gorgeous piece of writing which she created to honour her relationship to the water and the Jellies.

In Episode 5, you’ll hear from Jo Wise. This conversation was actually the first I had ever had with Jo, as she relocated to Woodend before I joined the Jellies myself. We had a great time talking about the ritual of attending the monthly B**bs to the Moon swim, the evolving narrative around women’s empowerment and what it means to live a values-aligned life. A big thank you to Jo for driving down to Melbourne to record with me. I know you will all love this chat.

In Episode 4 of the Bloom Podcast, you will hear a chat with the wonderful Molly Galea. Molly is a wise and considerate person who takes an active role in leading a few of the Jellies subgroups. Molly was the Jelly who initiated the Biz Network which she has been coordinating with a few other Jellies for the past few years. In this conversation, she elaborates on how the Biz Network came about and what it offers for Jellies in business.

Episode 3 of the Bloom Podcast is a conversation with the fabulous Sarah Norton. She might be the Jelly who is mentioned most in this series and those who have the pleasure of knowing her would understand why. Sarah is hilarious and you may notice some jumpy parts of the track where I had to edit the levels on our cackling which distorted the sound a little; I’m not sorry about it though, we had fun recording this one. Thanks for listening.

I’m so glad to have you back for Episode 2 with Miranda Toohey and Wai Ying Tham. In this conversation, we learn about the Adventure Swimmers subgroup which has flourished in the Jellies community over the years. We talk distance swims, fairing all types of weather and we reflect on our place in the marine ecosystem. I hope you enjoy! 

Bloom Williamstown Jellyfish Podcast is an interview series created as a celebration to mark 5 years of the vibrant Williamstown Jellyfish swimming group by sharing stories, experiences and insight from our members. Through open conversation and personal reflections, the podcast aims to deepen connections within the group, allowing members to get to know each other beyond the shoreline, foster a sense of belonging and honor a shared appreciation for the sea.  In Episode 1, we chat with Andrea Skillen and Jane Palmer who had a wild thought - mid-COVID-lockdown - to take a dip in the water at Williamstown beach. Since that day, there have been over 400 women welcomed to the Whatsapp group where Jellies post their swimming times, sunrise photos, water quality insights and reports on community happenings.

This podcast is produced and hosted by Adriana Colangelo.