We all know that children have a natural sense of awe, wonder and curiosity. They are great ‘teachers’ of so many things, including going from nothing to something.

So I thought who better to have on my next episode than my very own daughters, Ava and Liora.

Today I ask them:

- If they had £1,000 what would they do it?

- what’s their view on the state of the world?

- what do they think adults care about?

- what’s their advice to adults on being creative?

- we have a Marvel quiz and then discuss their favourite movies. (The girls also have advice for TV executives!)

And much more!

I talk with an old (but still young!) friend, Lakwena Maciver about her work as an artist. She's well known for murals, installations and brand collaborations (H&M, Mini).

We talk about the immediacy of painting, boundaries and how these can be helpful to creative work. A good part of our conversation centres on what it's like being a mum, and doing creative work at the same time, the differences between women and men, and what it means to shape culture as an artist. 

Nigerian-born British jazz guitarist, musical director, producer, and theatre composer, Femi Temowo. We get into his musical and creative journey. From working with Amy Winehouse to composing the score for Death of a Salesman (Arthur Miller) which he toured alongside actor Wendell Pierce (The Wire).

Emily Blunt, Maggie Smith, Michael Caine, Hulk Hogan, these are just some of the names Julio has had the fortune of working with in his career as an Animation exec / producer. 

In this conversation Julio and I talk about the sheer numbers of people and time it takes to produce an adult animation, as well as what he's learnt from his time as both a producer and a content executive. 

Today I'm joined by Solomon Temowo (Development Director at Remedy Entertainment) and Maxime Rioux (Senior Game Designer at NextGames -- A Netflix Games Studio). 

Solomon (my elder brother), started out life in the UK, spent a number of years running his own games company in Taiwan, before moving to Helsinki, Finland, to work for Remedy. 

Maxime, also based in Finalnd, has worked on a bunch of free-to-play mobile games over the years. We worked together at Netflix.

I recorded our conversation as part of a trip to Finland at the end of 2024. We talk about psychological safety with creative teams, the importance of knowing your audience, and the need for the games industry to become more sustainable.

Note: the views shared are the personal opinions of Solomon and Maxine, and not necessarily those of their respective studios 

I reflect on my last converstion with Natalie Rose (TV Commissioner), and spend a bit of time reflecting on the role of feedback in the creative process. Towards the end, I share 10 practical tips and reflections on handling feedback well. Perfect listen if you've wrestled with giving or receiving feedback. 

Natalie is an award winning Commissioning Editor and Executive Producer based in the UK. At UKTV, she discovered rapper and cook Big Zuu, commissioning Bafta-winning Big Zuu’s Big Eats for Dave. Her credits also include Stacey Dooley Sleeps Over, Bangers and Cash and Warbird Workshop. At ITV, as an Entertainment Commissioner, Natalie was responsible for entertainment formats such as The Voice, Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, and The Jonathan Ross Show. 

She also commissioned travelogue series Big Zuu’s 12 Dishes in 12 Hours with guests Will Poulter, Anna Maxwell Martin, Oti Mabuse and more. 

Before commissioning, Natalie produced some of the UK’s well known brands such as Big Brother, I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here!, Gogglebox, The X- Factor, The Only Way Is Essex and many more.

An introduction to Inside the Art of Making (IAM) a brand new podcast about the people behind creative work, as well as the business apparatus required to make it all happen.