“I came here with a blank page to be written on”

PR mogul Andy Spinoza came to Manchester from London in 1979, drawn by the city’s radical history, its growing music  scene and the urge to find a place to “fit”.

Lisa Morton finds out how he tried and failed to interview Tony Wilson in a front room in Rusholme’s Moon Grove, what it was like to launch the alternative magazine “City Life” and why he described himself as “Manchester’s human pinball” during his time working as the diary columnist for The Manchester Evening News.

Andy started his own PR firm SKV Communications in the late 90s and had a hand in the architectural regeneration of Mancher’s city centre, working on the likes of the launch of Beetham Tower in the mid-2000s 

So, what drove him to recently call time on his PR business and instead chronicle 40 years of musical, social, and architectural transformation in the city that made him?

Andy’s new Book “Manchester Unspun” captures a moment in Manchester's rich cultural history and encapsulates a city in artistic and political flux.

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Your host, Lisa Morton, started PR company Roland Dransfield in 1996, one month after the fateful IRA bomb that tore apart the city centre.  From that point, the business, and its team members, have been involved in helping to support the creation of Modern Manchester – across regeneration, business, charity, leisure and hospitality, sport and culture.

To celebrate the 26 years that Roland Dransfield has spent creating these bonds, Lisa is gathering together some of her Greater Mancunian ‘family’ and will be exploring how they have created their own purposeful relationships with the best place in the world.

Connect with Lisa and Roland Dransfield: 

Via our website

On Instagram

On Twitter

On Spotify

Connect with Andy

Buy his book

On Instagram

On Twitter

Mentioned in this episode:

We Built This City's partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

On this episode, We Built This City has partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University.

Manchester Met

“Go out there and create. You've got to do it.”

Actor John Henshaw joins Lisa Morton for a conversation in City Tower, which overlooks Manchester city centre.  It’s a very different skyline to the one John came to love as a child growing up in Ancoats during the 50’s and 60’s. 

John, who was one of 14, was  born and raised on George Leigh street. He jokingly describes his childhood as “feral’, but with lots of love, pets and community.  

Hear how John made the transition from bin man to respected character actor; what it was like working alongside Craig Cash and Caroline Aherne and how a role in The Royal Family led to him epitomising everyone’s pub landlord in iconic series Early Doors. 

You’ll also get a great insight into Manchester history from someone who’s seen that area of the city experience dramatic change. 

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Your host, Lisa Morton, started PR company Roland Dransfield in 1996, one month after the fateful IRA bomb that tore apart the city centre.  From that point, the business, and its team members, have been involved in helping to support the creation of Modern Manchester – across regeneration, business, charity, leisure and hospitality, sport and culture.

To celebrate the 26 years that Roland Dransfield has spent creating these bonds, Lisa is gathering together some of her Greater Mancunian ‘family’ and will be exploring how they have created their own purposeful relationships with the best place in the world.

Connect with Lisa and Roland Dransfield: 

Via our website

On Instagram

On Twitter

On Spotify

Mentioned in this episode:

We Built This City's partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

On this episode, We Built This City has partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University.

Manchester Met

Who's putting the "great" into Greater Manchester? 

We Built This City is all about the people, places and relationships that have built the fabric of modern Manchester.  

In this series, host Lisa Morton brings you the remaining the born, bred or adopted Mancs that have impacted the city region.  

"No one's better than anyone else, everyone's the same" 

Anna Jameson is the broadcaster who wakes up Greater Manchester as the presenter of BBC Radio Manchester’s breakfast show.  She’s also a reporter on North West Tonight and you can hear her on BBC Radio Five Live too.  

Lisa and Anna discuss how Anna’s late Nan still inspires her, when she’s holding powerful people to account.  Lisa also discovers what it’s like to be breaking news stories one minute, then holding people in power to account and interviewing celebrities the next.  

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Your host, Lisa Morton, started PR company Roland Dransfield in 1996, one month after the fateful IRA bomb that tore apart the city centre.  From that point, the business, and its team members, have been involved in helping to support the creation of Modern Manchester – across regeneration, business, charity, leisure and hospitality, sport and culture.

To celebrate the 26 years that Roland Dransfield has spent creating these bonds, Lisa is gathering together some of her Greater Mancunian ‘family’ and will be exploring how they have created their own purposeful relationships with the best place in the world.

Connect with Lisa and Roland Dransfield: 

Via our website

On Instagram

On Twitter

On Spotify

Connect with Anna: 

On Twitter 

On Instagram 

Mentioned in this episode:

We Built This City's partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

On this episode, We Built This City has partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University.

Manchester Met

Mentioned in this episode:

We Built This City's partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

On this episode, We Built This City has partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University.

Manchester Met

Mentioned in this episode:

We Built This City's partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

On this episode, We Built This City has partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University.

Manchester Met

“The only way we got our rights is by showing solidarity”

Divina De Campo is a force to be reckoned with, both on stage and off.  They’ve got the ability to sing in 5 different languages and up and down 4.5 octaves - whilst wearing some incredible outfits and heels. 

Divina has the best laugh in showbiz and there are some real laughs in this conversation too.  Underpinning it all though, are some strong values and belief systems that have contributed towards Divina’s vibrant and unforgettable on-stage presence. You’ll hear about the grit and graft it takes to make a career in the creative industries and the reality of taking part in some of the UK’s biggest entertainment shows. 

Divina’s time on Ru-Paul’s drag race UK created an iconic moment of television, when they addressed the damaging effects of section 28 in schools whilst they were growing up.  You’ll hear  Divina and Lisa explore this as well as the action that can be taken to stand up for LGBTQ rights in 2022.

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Your host, Lisa Morton, started PR company Roland Dransfield in 1996, one month after the fateful IRA bomb that tore apart the city centre.  From that point, the business, and its team members, have been involved in helping to support the creation of Modern Manchester – across regeneration, business, charity, leisure and hospitality, sport and culture.

To celebrate the 26 years that Roland Dransfield has spent creating these bonds, Lisa is gathering together some of her Greater Mancunian ‘family’ and will be exploring how they have created their own purposeful relationships with the best place in the world.

Connect with Lisa and Roland Dransfield: 

Via our website

On Instagram

On Twitter

On Spotify

Connect with Divina

On Instagram 

On Twitter

Mentioned in this episode:

We Built This City's partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

On this episode, We Built This City has partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University.

Manchester Met

“For me it’s about giving opportunities to others.”

Maria Turner is the Client Services Director at Roland Dransfield. She’s recently celebrated 10 years at Roland Dransfield, having worked her way continuously from work experience - straight out of The University of Manchester - all the way to the leadership team.  

Maria was an integral part of the team that created the “Roland Dransfield Way”, a set of values that form the core of the business. In this episode, you’ll hear that she lives those values day in, day out. So what draws a Scouser to Manchester, to work here, to strengthen relationships and help build this city (whilst wearing some of the highest stiletto ankle boots Manchester has ever seen)?

This conversation is about crafting a career and creating a legacy within a company and a community. Lisa and Maria discuss the “pits and peaks” of 10 years in business together and the “purposeful relationships” the business has created in that time. 

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Your host, Lisa Morton, started PR company Roland Dransfield in 1996, one month after the fateful IRA bomb that tore apart the city centre.  From that point, the business, and its team members, have been involved in helping to support the creation of Modern Manchester – across regeneration, business, charity, leisure and hospitality, sport and culture.

To celebrate the 26 years that Roland Dransfield has spent creating these bonds, Lisa is gathering together some of her Greater Mancunian ‘family’ and will be exploring how they have created their own purposeful relationships with the best place in the world.

Connect with Lisa and Roland Dransfield: 

Via our website

On Instagram

On Twitter

On Spotify

 Connect with Maria 

On Twitter

Mentioned in this episode:

We Built This City's partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

On this episode, We Built This City has partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University.

Manchester Met

“If I’m not an artist, what am I?”

Artist Davo Howarth joined Lisa Morton in “Heaven” at Hotel Football for this week's episode.  It’s a place that’s very close to Davo’s heart as it overlooks Old Trafford football ground. 

A born and raised Manc, Davo is an artist who describes his style as “explosive.” In this conversation, you’ll hear how he navigated the school system growing up as a creatively minded kid who’d rather be painting than playing PlayStation. Davo says people would tell him being an artist wasn’t a career option but he carved out his own path to creative success all the same. 

Hear about the values of discipline that have kept Davo consistent with his work, how he deals with self-doubt and how a recent health scare has forced him to re-evaluate his priorities and take a slower pace of life for a while. 

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Your host, Lisa Morton, started PR company Roland Dransfield in 1996, one month after the fateful IRA bomb that tore apart the city centre.  From that point, the business, and its team members, have been involved in helping to support the creation of Modern Manchester – across regeneration, business, charity, leisure and hospitality, sport and culture.

To celebrate the 26 years that Roland Dransfield has spent creating these bonds, Lisa is gathering together some of her Greater Mancunian ‘family’ and will be exploring how they have created their own purposeful relationships with the best place in the world.

Connect with Lisa and Roland Dransfield: 

Via our website

On Instagram

On Twitter

On Spotify

Connect with Davo

On Instagram

On Twitter

Via his website 

Mentioned in this episode:

We Built This City's partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

On this episode, We Built This City has partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University.

Manchester Met

Tony Michaelides has been described as a walking, talking, encyclopaedia of music. He’s been described that way for good reason, because he’s worked with everyone from David Bowie, to New Order to Take That. 

Tony worked in promotions and as a consultant in the music industry.  He’s also very well known in Manchester for his time at Piccadilly Radio, where his nickname was “Tony the Greek”.  

He describes himself as “an adopted yank, but always a Manc”.  He now lives in the United States after the US government granted him a green card for services to music and the arts.  In this episode, you’ll hear some fantastic stories taken from his book “Moments That Rock”, about everyone from the Happy Mondays, to U2, Simply Red, James and the Stone Roses.   

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Your host, Lisa Morton, started PR company Roland Dransfield in 1996, one month after the fateful IRA bomb that tore apart the city centre.  From that point, the business, and its team members, have been involved in helping to support the creation of Modern Manchester – across regeneration, business, charity, leisure and hospitality, sport and culture.

To celebrate the 26 years that Roland Dransfield has spent creating these bonds, Lisa is gathering together some of her Greater Mancunian ‘family’ and will be exploring how they have created their own purposeful relationships with the best place in the world.

Connect with Lisa and Roland Dransfield: 

Via our website

On Instagram

On Twitter

On Spotify

Connect with Tony:

On Twitter 

Via his website

Mentioned in this episode:

We Built This City's partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University

On this episode, We Built This City has partnered with Manchester Metropolitan University.

Manchester Met