About Last Night hosted by Parry Ray

This episode’s guest is founder and CEO of Nosh Detox, Geets Sidhu Robb. If you follow me on Instagram or read my blog, you will know I am a huge Nosh Detox fan, so it was wonderful for me to sit down with Geeta and find out about her vision, her creative journey and her plans for the future for Nosh. Nosh Detox was primarily born out of Geeta’s need to cure her son who had been so so ill with severe allergies he had spent nearly two years in hospital. There are other reasons too, which you may know or have read about, but rather than lay them out for you here – I will let you listen to our conversation and Geeta’s words. Two parts of Geeta’s working life I found particularly fascinating are that she does a lot of coaching with business women and celebrities - and through Nosh she works with people with cancer – which as she talks is clear is one of the most gratifying parts of her working life. Here’s our conversation…

This episode’s guest is the founder of makeup brand, Sappho, New Paradigm, JoAnn Fowler. JoAnn Fowler is an Emmy nominated make up artist and has a TV and film career that spans 25 years. She was compelled to start her own makeup line when an actress she worked with on the L word decided she didn’t want anything with parabens on her face anymore and JoAnn voyage of discovery began. Sappho is a vegan, clean, cruelty free, high performance cosmetic brand. It is build on a huge amount of integrity. Of course I did my research - but it didn’t really prepare me for the incredible heart and soul of this aspirational woman. And the experience and knowledge she pours into her brand. You might roll your eyes as essentially we are talking about make up but it was thought provoking and eye opening. We talked about JoAnn’s life and her creative journey to date and the importance of green beauty and being a sustainable brand… Here’s our conversation…

This episode’s guest is the founder of skincare brand, Balbec Beauty - Maneesha Patel. Maneesha founded her brand, after she struggled with skin problems as an adult. Trying things that did not work, propelled and compelled her to find a solution. This was quite a shift as she was an academic before. Towards the end of our conversation Maneesha said something I loved, which I wanted to reiterate here - she says – the future is fresh. This is so embedded in her brand philosophy. She strongly believes that real luxury skincare is fresh, clean and natural. There are no compromises when is comes to her the quality of her ingredients or her integrity. One thing that got left on the cutting room floor was the origin of the name Balbec. Maneesha like me is an avid reader and she is a massive Proust fan. In “In Search of Lost Time” Balbec is the seaside resort where the narrator recuperates from his illness and discovers friends and loves within a landscape of fresh air, sea and light... So we met in Paris and we had a ball. We talked about how and when Maneesha started Balbec Beauty, where her journey has taken her so far and of course how her principles are the cornerstone of her business. Here’s our conversation…

This episode’s guest is jewellery designer Tarra Rosenbaum. Creating jewellery has been a passion for Tarra ever since she was a child - it has never left her and obviously has evolved into a successful brand. She produces limited edition and bespoke pieces using ethically sourced gemstones and eco-friendly sourced precious metals. Her pieces are unique and bold but also delicate and have a strong spiritual element to them. These facets run through all her collections and she draws a lot of inspiration from nature. Tarra is very hands on as a creative director and she has a personal involvement in every piece produced from the conception stage through the design process and finally to production. So, we talk about how she loves the start to finish nature of the creative process and, of course, the wonderful interactions and accompanying stories that arrive with each client and that she sees it as such an honour to create something for a client that holds real meaning to them. We met up at Granger and Co in Kings Cross where we had a few cocktails and nibbles. Tarra’s journey is absolutely fascinating - she is a great example of left brain right brain beautifully balance - so we talk about that, what inspires her and the values at the core of her business. Here’s our conversation….

Today’s guest is music producer Andy Wright. The list of people Andy has worked with is truly illustrious, artists like Simply Red, Luciano Pavarotti, Eurythmics, Jeff Beck, Dave Stewart, Simple Minds, and Annie Lennox, to name a few…and me of course! Andy’s career started in the mid 80s when he chased up a job ad in The Melody Maker and started working for a keyboard hire company in London, delivering and setting up studio equipment for recording sessions. In the 1990s he set up his own recording studio and his career unfolded. We chat about his career journey - how he went from the keyboard hire company to where he is today – what he feels you need to succeed in the music industry and how it has changed over the last 30 years and how he has had to adapt. He shared some of his favourite memories with me along with the some of the challenges he has had to face. Andy, as you can imagine, is very much in demand so sadly we didn’t have a lot of time to catch up. We met At Le Pain Quotidian in Parsons Green, which is just around the corner from Andy’s current studio. Here’s our conversation…

This episode’s guest is jewellery designer Sam Hamilton. Having spent a bit of time with Sam, I know she is bold, strong and fearless much like the pieces she creates. She also has a great sense of humour - which also runs through her creations, particularly her current collection called the "Pretty Dix" collection. I caught up with Sam at Bench in the Goldsmith Centre, in Farringdon, London where Sam has a studio. We talked about her creative journey to date, her childhood, and the things that really matter to her – her family, her friendships and creating jewellery that exudes her creative authenticity. Here’s our conversation…

This episode features fashion designer Amanda Thompson. One of the most fascinating things about Amanda, to me, is that her creative journey actually began as a professional ballet dancer. She was a dancer in Michael Clarke’s company, during which time Amanda danced in a Vivienne Westwood show and was photographed by Nick Knight many times, notably once for the front cover of ID magazine. Through her life as a dancer she became enthralled by the medium of film which then led to her training as professional actress during which time she worked with creatives such as David Bailey, Ian Drury and Billy Connolly. Amanda describes this phase of her life as “feast or famine”, with financial struggles at the fore, something she is extremely frank about. And it was at this time Amanda found her calling, which is how she describes fashion design. She was compelled to design and make her own clothes having spent years craving couture she simply couldn’t afford. Self taught, Amanda is a massive proponent of slow fashion and strongly feels clothes should be things that are cherished rather than discarded. She runs her business from her relatively new shop in Westbourne Park, behind Portobello Market in west London. So, we met up in the summer at a lovely bar called Negozia Classica in Notting Hill where we had a couple glasses of delicious Italian wine and chatted about Amanda’s journey to date, what inspires her and her new AW collection. Here’s our conversation…

This episode's guest, Oli Rockberger. Oli is a writer-producer, keys player and singer-songwriter. A long time former NY resident, Oli now lives in London where he grew up. Oli has worked with a staggering number of incredible musicians - Steve Gadd, Randy Brecker and John Mayer to name a few. If you check out Oli's website you will see it is a veritable who's who of the music world. Notably Oli also works with Laura Mvula. I met Oli, at the very very lively The Horseshoe pub in Hampstead, North London (the noisiest venue to date) on a gorgeous summer's day. I totally lost track of time, engrossed in Oli's experiences and viewpoint on the world of music and his part in it. In fact we ended up chatting for nearly two hours...here's our conversation....

This episode’s guest is designer Ali Mapletoft. Ali founded her brand, Age of Reason after noticing a gap in the market for high-end designs that have a message and purpose. Age of Reason produces luxury fashion and home accessories. Stunning, unique, edgy, cool - these are the words that spring to mind for me when I see Ali’s creations. Ali strongly believes that beautiful, luxurious pieces can be made in a sustainable, empowering way. And she chose the name Age of Reason to reflect her empowerment ethos - no sweatshops just beautiful things made by women whose craft is rewarded with fair pay. You’re probably getting a sense of Ali already - and how her principles are front and centre of her brand and her moral compass, guides every step of her creative and business journey. I drove down to Brighton, where Ali is based and we met on a glorious summers day in the restaurant at The Artists residence – where there was a lovely chilled vibe. We talked about how Ali got into the fashion industry, where her journey has taken her so far and of course how her principles are the cornerstone of her business. Here’s our conversation…

About Last Night is a podcast series that I have wanted to record for ages. Each episode I talk to someone who excels in their field, about the highs and lows of their creative journey and how and where they find joy in their lives. Fashion has always played an important part of my life. My love for fashion started at a very young age. I remember going to India every year from about the age of 6 and being mesmerised by swaths of the finest silks and the softest cottons in the markets in Calcutta. I even had a period of my life where I would make my own clothes. But needless to say there is a chasm between me and my teenage creations and this epsiode’s guest, Sheila McKain. Sheila’s first design job was for Donna Karan in New York. She has also worked for Daks and Oscar De La Renta. In 2016 Sheila decided it was time for a new project and co-founded Laain Active wear. Laain is a beautiful designer active wear brand, which is growing day on day and has many loyal fans including me but also really cool people like fitness guru Tracey Anderson. Sheila is one of those people who is an artist at heart with a huge talent and vision but also an extremely savvy businesswoman. We met about a month ago at 108 Brasserie in the heart of Marylebone and chatted over a number of French martinis in their very lively bar…

About Last Night is a podcast series hosted by me, Parry Ray. Each episode I talk to someone who excels in their field, about the highs and lows of their creative journey and how and where they find joy in their lives. Why About Last Night? Because I meet my guests at the end of the day and we have a conversation over a drink or two...