Neils Podcasts

With Mental Awareness week with us, Mike talks about his PTSD and how Mental Health is a big part of life now.

#mentalhealthawareness #camberleycommunity #lovecamberley #camberley #PTSD #neilspodcasts 

Neil talks to Colin from the High Cross Cafe about how he is dealing in this ever changing world at the moment.

Alasdair Pinkerton popped into the High Cross Cafe for a quick chat with Neil over a Latte. The interview was meant to be a short 15 minutes but like most plans Alasdair had a lot to talk about. 

Neil's questions range from where Alasdair was born to Neil's favourite, what was his first car!!! During this interview you find out that Alasdair is a lot more than a just a Politician.

At last after 3 months we have a name for our little chat with Rev. Mike Thomason. Its quite simply "Coffee with Mike" and everyweek we will be discussing the local news and things happening in the news. So here is Episode 1.

Mike and Neil are talking about how people will deal with the new government rules.  

The podcast with Craig Mcleish continues!!! Tuffy gives us more of an insight into what used to happen in the world of Fat and Frantic.

At last I managed to get an interview with one of Fat and Frantic a band I used to follow in the late 80s and when I say follow, it was like a family. 

Craig Mcleish the bass player and singer in the band talks about how he ended up in one of the biggest's UK Christian bands of the 1980s and 90s.

As with all musicians, once they start talking they can't stop, so I had to put this podcast into two parts. 

I hope you enjoy part one and so lets open the book on Fat and Frantic :)

In Part two of Craigs podcast we find out about how he follows his passion of music and turns it in a career both in the church and commercially.

Craig began his musical life as a choirboy at St Paul’s Cathedral under the direction of Barry Rose. He began composing at the age of 10 and had works performed regularly while still a chorister.

After a degree at York University he returned to London to study at the Guildhall and sang again at St Paul’s as a tenor. At the time he was also arranging and copying music for West End shows such as Les Miserables and Miss Saigon. He also worked as musical assistant and orchestrator for David Heneker (Half a Sixpence) and David Fanshawe (African Sanctus).

n 1992 he became director of the MAYC Orchestra and Singers, performing concerts throughout the UK and being involved in a number of recordings and BBC broadcasts. During this time he wrote more than 250 orchestral scores ranging from Queen to Calamity Jane, Stravinsky and Stevie Wonder. Alongside this he began arranging and writing songs for children’s collections (Big Blue Planet, Love Shone Down) and producing recordings and string arrangements for various artists (Sheila Walsh, Kim Hill, Matt Redman). He is also well known as a conductor and arranger for Songs of Praise.

Recently he has collaborated with composer Tolga Kashif writing orchestrations for the RPO's Seo Taiji Symphony, the Classic FM chart topping CD by saxophonist Tyler Rix and the Genesis Suite which was premiered at the Barbican. He has been musical director of Young Voices UK for 13 years, bringing large school choirs together to play with a live band and solo artists, and currently conducts the MK Community Choir, Hart and Soul Community Choir and the Milton Keynes Youth Choir.

Neil and Mike grab 15 minutes out of their busy schedules to have a coffee and a chat about Mikes past as a mountain rescue volunteer