Pure Graft

Joining me this week is the incredible Aisha Bywaters. We will be discussing all things casting, COVID, diversity & taking your questions   AISHA BYWATERS STARTED WORKING IN CASTING IN 2007. AISHA WORKED FOR SHAHEEN BAIG FOR 6 YEARS, SHE ASSISTED SHAHEEN ON NUMEROUS PROJECTS INCLUDING FILMS THE IMPOSSIBLE, STARRED UP, BLACK MIRROR AND PEAKY BLINDERS. IN 2015 SHE SET UP HER OWN COMPANY, HER CREDITS AS A CASTING DIRECTOR INCLUDE CYBERBULLY (STARRING MAISIE WILLIAMS), THE WATCHMEN (STARRING STEPHEN GRAHAM) AND ENTERPRICE (WRITTEN BY AND STARRING KAYODE EWUMI) FOR TV. HER FILM CREDITS INCLUDE DIRTY GOD AND THE LAST TREE (WHICH BOTH PREMIERED AT THE SUNDANCE FILM FESTIVAL 2019). FOR HER WORK ON THE LAST TREE SHE WAS NOMINATED FOR A BRITISH INDEPENDENT FILM AWARD FOR BEST CASTING ALONGSIDE SHAHEEN BAIG. HER UPCOMING PROJECTS INCLUDE CHANNEL 4 COMEDY LADY PARTS WRITTEN AND DIRECTED BY NIDA MANZOOR AND FEATURE FILM COUNTY LINES (WHICH PREMIERED AT THE LONDON FILM FESTIVAL 2019 AND WILL BE IN CINEMAS IN 2020). IN SEPTEMBER 2020 AISHA WAS NAMED ONE OF SCREEN INTERNATIONAL'S UK & IRELAND STARS OF TOMORROW.

  This weeks Q&A is with Executive Director of HOME in Manchester Jon Gilchrist   Me & Jon will be discussing the difficulties of reopening a major venue over Covid, discussing in house producing, theatre marketing & questions from you. Jon is Executive Director of HOME, a multi-arts venue in Manchester which with 2 theatres, 5 cinemas and gallery spaces. HOME has a year-round international programme, and over 800,000 visits last year alone. It is one of few organisations in the UK to produce, commission and present visiting work across theatre, visual arts and film. Prior to this Jon worked as Executive Director of the Bush Theatre between 2014 and 2018. In this time he led on their major capital redevelopment, and helped expand the organisation’s reach as a centre of excellence for new writing. Before this he worked in marketing roles at theatres across the North West for ten years, including The Lowry in Salford, the Octagon Theatre Bolton, and the Dukes in Lancaster.

Our second Q&A of the week is with Curtis Brown literary agent Isobel Gahan   I talk to the amazing Isobel Gahan who is a literary agent at Curtis Brown. We talk what literary agents do, how to get 1 & of course taking questions from you Isobel Gahan works with Stephanie Thwaites at the Curtis Brown literary agency. Prior to that she worked at J K Rowling’s company Pottermore. She was long-listed for the 2020 Trailblazer award, which celebrates publishing professionals who demonstrate creativity and ambition. Isobel was nominated especially for her work with the Original Talent Green Team. She enjoys fantasy and plots with a mythical twist, for Middle Grade and YA readers, and a strong and distinctive writerly voice that will draw her into a child’s world.

To start this weeks double whammy I interview arts journalist Mark Shenton   This week I will be discussing with Mark how to get into arts journalism, the importance of reviews and more. MARK SHENTON has been a leading London-based critic, commentator, columnist, interviewer and broadcaster on theatre for the last two decades. He has variously served as chief critic for the Sunday Express, WhatsOnStage, The Stage (also Associate Editor), LondonTheatre.co.uk and What’s On in London magazine, and has written for The Guardian, The Observer, The Times, Time Out and Attitude magazines, amongst others. In the US, he was long-time London correspondent to Playbill.com. He has curated and conducted live interviews for the Theatrical Guild with guests that have included Judi Dench, Simon Russell Beale, Michael Codron and more, and hosted platforms at the National with Stephen Sondheim, Peter Shaffer and David Henry Hwang, at the Donmar Warehouse with Derek Jacobi and Helen McCrory, and at Crazy Coqs with Tim Minchin and Anne Reid. For the last eight years he has taught classes at ArtsEd London on the history and appreciation of musical theatre to their first year BA students. He has co-authored Harden’s London theatre guide. As theatre emerges from it’s COVID-enforced hibernation, Mark is determined to continue to fly the flag for independent but dependable critical content, via his personal website ShentonStage and twitter @ShentonStage.

Next up in our Actor Awareness Lockdown Q&A's is 1 of the country's leading casting directors in the incredible Shaheen Baig!   We will be discussing how shes earned her reputation of funding incredible emerging talent, casting in Covid, casting diverse talent & more. Shaheen Baig gained her first casting director credit on Alejandro Amenábar’s The Others starring Nicole Kidman, and established her own company in 2001 after assisting some of the leading UK Casting Directors for several years. Since then, Shaheen Baig Casting has earned a reputation for finding and nurturing new and diverse acting talent, as well as supporting promising new filmmakers and established directors in film & television. Based in London, SBC is Shaheen, Layla, Michelle, Jonny & Gabby..

This weeks Actor Awareness lockdown Q&A is with The Lowry Theatres producer & programmer Matthew Eames.   We will be discussing how 1 of the biggest regional theatres in the UK is dealing with Covid, how there needs to be more support for emerging producers & if you don't want to be an actor, how to get into the more behind the scenes roles. Alongside the questions you send in to. Matthew is Senior Programmer/Producer at The Lowry in Salford, programming theatre, dance, comedy and circus across all three theatre spaces, leading on the contemporary programme for the organisation. He also produces The Lowry’s biennial cross-art festival – WEEK 53 – commissioning shows such as Nigel Slater’s Toast and Le Gateau Chocolat’s Pandora, and leads on cross-organisational community and audience development projects such as Paines Plough’s Roundabout. Matthew has also worked in artist development and fundraising at The Lowry and remains passionate about supporting artists and theatre-makers at all stages of their career to develop and progress. Matthew trained in Musical Theatre at the Royal Academy of Music in London and worked as a freelancer in theatre for 11 years, firstly as a performer in West End and touring musicals and subsequently as a resident/associate director and director. He refocused his career within arts organisations in 2011 taking an MA in Arts Management at Goldsmiths University and joining The Lowry the following year. Matthew is a proud Midlander, hailing from brewery town Burton-on-Trent in Staffordshire where he grew up on the same estate as Paddy Considine. He was introduced to theatre thanks to the intervention of an inspiring teacher at his secondary school at the age of 13. He is still going and he hasn’t finished yet.

This week I have a chat with Artistic Directors of Salford Arts Theatre Scott Berry & Roni Ellis   We will be discussing how small venues stay afloat during this pandemic, the importance of local regional theatres & more Salford Arts Theatre is a charming 112 seater theatre in the heart of the Salford Community. Salford Arts theatre aims to make theatre accessible giving opportunity to the community and those who want to work with in the creative industry. We are the only independent theatre in Salford and are self funded. WHAT WE DO..... Salford Arts Theatre produce inhouse professional theatre under Salford Theatre Company. We aim to produce theatre that is accessible to those who wouldn't normally visit the theatre producing family friendly theatre to drama throughout the year. The theatre is available to hire for productions, meeting, rehearsals, childrens parties and much more...... HISTORY.... Salford Arts Theatre was originally build for The Salford Players a local group who gave opportunity to the community and aspiring actors. Many faces were part of the group such as Sir Ben Kingsley, and many more. The Salford Players were established in 1913 and performed out of many building in Salford until The Playhouse was built.... When the goup disolved the theatre was given back to Salford City Council who opened the space as professional theatre only the theatre then closed. Before Roni and Scott took over the space in 2007 many had used the space for a number of purposes. The theatre is open on a regular basis. Most recently we have been supported by Stephen Lord and Peter Hook who were both born in Salford.

Q&A with incredible casting director Nicky Bligh. We will be discussing COVID castings, industry tips & tricks & taking your questions.   Nicky is an experienced Casting Director both in TV and film, and has worked on many successful comedies and comedy dramas across various networks including the BBC, SKY, ITV and Channel 4. She has worked with many of the UK’s top production companies. Several shows have been nominated/won awards such as the Rose D’Or for comedy, BAFTA for Best Sitcom, British Comedy Awards, RTS and National Television Awards. She has worked with some of the UK’s best comedy talent. Recent credits include: Buffering, a new series for ITV2, Sandylands a new series for UKTV, After Ever After by David Walliams and the Dawson brothers for Sky, starring Sir Tom Courtenay, Celia Imrie and Sian Gibson, Stath Lets Flats (series 2) and a second series of critically acclaimed show, Home (Channel 4). It is written by actor/writer Rufus Jones (Stan and Ollie, W1A) and produced by Adam Tandy (The Thick Of it, Inside Number 9, The League Of Gentlemen) starring Rufus, Youssef Kerkour and Rebekah Staton. Other Credits include: Living The Dream (Sky/Big Talk), When Bowie Met Bowlan (Sky Arts/Lion Television), Ballot Monkeys (Channel 4), Drunk History (Comedy Central), Boomers (BBC1), Mrs Brown's Boys D'Movie, Bad Education (BBC), Mount Pleasant (Tiger Aspect/SKY), Bluestone 42 (BBC), Psychobitches (SKY Arts), Psychoville (BBC), Crackanory (UKTV), Ideal (BBC), and Extras (BBC). She is a member of The Casting Directors Guild.

A Q&A with 1 of the top casting directors in the UK Kelly Valentine Hendry.   This Q&A is with 1 of the UK's top casting Directors Kelly Valentine Hendry. Her phenomenal CV includes Fleabag, Gangs Of London, Broadchurch & more. We will be discussing working class talent in the arts, the world of casting & tips on showreels & headshots. Kelly Valentine Hendry is a casting director working in Film and Television based in London. She is the founder and lead casting director at KVH casting alongside Alex Irwin, Lilly Hanbury and Cole Edwards. Together they love to work on international projects like The Spy, The Last Kingdom & Gangs of London . They recently completed casting on Sony/Amazon’s Wheel of Time fantasy series, Shondaland/Netflix regency drama Bridgerton and are currently casting Agbo/ Amazon's new spy action series Citadel. Prior to that, alongside fellow CD Victor Jenkins , Kelly was proud to work on Broadchurch, Fleabag (S1) and Episodes. KVH casting is committed to inclusive casting. Twitter @KVHendry IG : kvhcasting

After the huge success of our Actor Awareness Q&A's over lockdown we have decided to start them up again!   Over lockdown we ran Q&A's with some incredible industry role models such as Vicky Mcclure, Danny Brocklehurst, Nickie Sault & Shane Meadows, alongside many more. We had over 1000 people attend virtually, so due to the success we are ready to run them again! Kicking us back off is John McGrath who is the Artistic Director of Manchester International Festival. We will be talking festival changes during a pandemic, creating new work, best way to stand out when applying for festivals & much more. Please send in any questions you want me to ask John to actorawareness1@gmail.com Here is John's Bio. John E. McGrath is Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Manchester International Festival. His first Festival in 2017 featured world premieres from leading international artists; a new digital direction for MIF; a series of participatory commissions in public spaces, and My Festival a year-round programme forging closer connections with Manchester communities. In 2019 John commissioned artists including Yoko Ono, Philip Glass, Laurie Anderson, Idris Elba and Tania Bruguera to make work for the largest ever edition of MIF. John was previously Artistic Director of National Theatre Wales, where he achieved a reputation for large-scale site-specific work, digital innovation and extraordinary community involvement. As Chief Executive of MIF John will also be responsible for The Factory, a flagship cultural space currently being built in the heart of Manchester, which will have a year-round programme of new work from the world’s greatest artists, offering a space to make, explore and experiment.

This is the last of the Actor Awareness Lockdown Q&A series and wanna end with a bang. So I have called in another big gun in Vicky Mcclure   Victoria Lee McClure (born 8 May 1983) is a British actress, model and presenter. She is best known for her roles as Detective Inspector Kate Fleming in the BBC series Line of Duty (2012–present) and Lol Jenkins in Shane Meadows' film This Is England (2006) and its Channel 4 spin-off mini-series This is England '86 (2010), This Is England '88 (2011), and This Is England '90 (2015).[1] Before This is England, she appeared in another of Meadows' films, A Room for Romeo Brass (1999), where she played Ladine. She won the RTS Award and BAFTA Television Award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Lol in This is England '86 in 2011. We will be discussing how she has forged an incredible career from a working class background, the differences of tv and film & taking questions from you.

Q&A with the incredible producer Jane Berthoud who is the ex head of BBC comedy radio.   As we come to the end of our Actor Awareness Q&A's I'm joined by Jane Berthoud who is an amazing producer and the ex head of BBC radio comedy who has a wealth of experience. We will be discussing writing for radio, how to approach broadcasters and taking questions from you. Jane Berthoud is the Ex Head of Radio Comedy, which made around 160 hours of radio content each year, making it the single largest producer of comedy in the world. Most output airs on Radio 4 and spans entertainment as well as scripted comedy, shows include: The News Quiz, The Now Show, Just A Minute, I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue, It’s Not What You Know, Ed Reardon’s Week, Party, Bridget Christie Minds the Gap and Can’t Tell Nathan Caton Nothing to mention a few. Jane also oversaw French & Saunders and The New Comedy Awards on Radio 2. In that time Jane was overseeing BBC Radio Comedy, the weekly comedy audience on Radio 4 had risen from 4.7 million to 5.7 million. The Friday Evening Podcast is frequently top of the iTunes chart. Jane has also worked in TV as a Producer; she’s produced TV to Go, World of Pub and Ideal starring Johnny Vegas. Jane won a BAFTA and was made European Comedy Producer of the Year for the BBC Two show, Help. As a Producer in Radio Comedy, Jane made On Baby Street written by Jenny Éclair and Julie Balloo with Caroline Aherne and Kathy Burke, Audio Diaries by Kay Stonham and At Home with the Snails, by Gez Foster as well as comedy shows for Radio 1 and Radio 2. She also produced Loose Ends on Radio 4. She now runs her own production company Funny Bones Productions.

This Q&A is with the incredible Assistant Director and producer Nickie Sault. Her credits include THIS IS ENGLAND, WORLD ON FIRE , THE VIRTUES and many more. She has worked alongside some greats like Shane Meadows, Pete Bowker and Stephen Merchant. In this Q&A we will be discussing working class representation in TV, how to get into being an assistant director and producer in TV, working class representation and the gender imbalance in TV. Alongside some questions you want to send in aswel. Oh and halfway through we surprised our zoom guests with an appearance by the king of the working class himself Shane Meadows!

In this Actor Awareness Q&A we have the incredible industry powerhouse that is Danny Brocklehurst, fresh off his most recent BAFTA nominations for Brassic. Danny is a BAFTA and International Emmy winning screenwriter who has written on some of the biggest UK dramas of recent years. Credits include BRASSIC, SHAMELESS, CLOCKING OFF, ORDINARY LIES, THE ACCUSED and many more. Between 1992 and 1999, Danny worked as a freelance journalist for a range of publications including The Guardian, The Big Issue, The Manchester Evening News and City Life. Since leaving journalism he has worked as a full-time scriptwriter. Danny won a BAFTA for his work on Shameless series one and was nominated for a Best Writer BAFTA for series two of Clocking Off. He was featured in the writers section of the Broadcast Hot 100 in 2007. We will be discussing his gift for portraying working class stories, how he made the transition between journalism and script writing and also all the questions you want to ask to

Simon is a BAFTA winning comedy producer and script editor, whose most recent work has been to develop and produce three series and a special of the critically acclaimed This Country for the BBC. Previous credits include co-devising and producing three series of Josh Widdicombe’s Josh for BBC Three, three series of Small Scenes for BBC Radio, three series of Newsjack, two series of The Guns of Adam Riches and an Arthur Mathews sitcom called The Golden Age. Simon is passionate about writing and developing projects from scratch with talent. We will be discussing with Simon tips and tricks on writing for comedy, how he became involved in This Country and of course questions from you guys as well.

Rebecca Papworth is a Creative Producer and Executive and Writer. She has twenty years producing experience at a senior level: she established Hat Trick North, launched The Salford Sitcom Showcase and was Executive Producer at BBC Comedy North, overseeing three series of CITIZEN KHAN, developing SUNNY D for BBC3 and HOME FROM HOME for BBC1. She has also spent time as a Commissioning Executive for BBC Nations and Regions, with credits including award-winning shows RAB C NESBITT, GAVIN & STACEY, THE ROYLE FAMILY and A MATTER OF DEATH. She was the first woman to produce HAVE I GOT NEWS FOR YOU, series produced the award-winning I LOVE THE 80’S, created FAME SET & MATCH and developed THE JOHNNY & INEL SHOW for CBBC. She is the originating Producer of BBC1 Comedy Drama series HOME FROM HOME, and is always on the search for original and distinct voices, and brilliant writing. Rebecca runs her own production company, CanCan Productions.

Amy Ireson has been an agent at Narrow Road for over 24 years. She has been at the forefront of setting up & running one of the most successful agency's in the UK. Narrow Road now not only has a huge reputation in London but up in the North to. Amy has a wealth of experience in the industry making her the perfect person to gather advice off. We will discuss the best ways to get an agent, how to market & present yourself as an actor, showreels & headshots & much more.

So the moment you have all been waiting for, it's our drunk Christmas episode! Tom & Ellen sat down with mulled wine, apple sourz & lambrini to discuss panto, Christmas for actors, new years resolutions & positive thinking. We have a new sketch, a new segment called unpopular opinion & our festive addition of funny audition stories of the week. DISCLAIMER: As we get more drunk we apologise our language gets worse & worse, so just a warning, maybe use it as a drinking game and do a shot everytime we swear? Anyway enjoy the episode have an amazing Christmas & new year grafters.

This week Tom & Ellen take a trip down memory lane and look back on drama in schools. However due to recent government cuts now 9 in 10 schools have made cuts to arts programmes, 3 in 10 schools don't even have drama as an option. Also they discuss audition fees, Ellen as Dorothy, Tom as Bill Sykes and their favourite drama memories. Alongside this we start the episode in a peculiar way & a themed audition/ industry stories of the week. Enjoy!

In this episode we are talking the shit day jobs we have to work inbetween acting work. We discuss the Eastenders actress being shamed in the press for earning a living, we discuss Tom & Ellen's day jobs, the most popular flexible jobs for creatives & the word that everyone hates... Taxes! Alongside all this we have 2 brand new comedy sketches and of course the audition stories of the week!

So we have reached episode 3 of Pure Graft. Because Tom & Ellen are both northern, poor, working class actors they will be talking about how expensive it is to forge a career in the arts. They talk actor starter packs, drama school audition fees, how to help each other out and much more. Alongside that we have 3 sketches this week and of course your audition stories of the week!

This week we discuss the dreaded topic of agents. We begin with our "Break up sketch" then we talk finding agents, the graft we put in to get an agent, alongside our own experiences. Then we move onto the segment why we all tune in, yes, it's funny audition stories of the week. We have multiple stories ranging from pitchforks to swinging your coat around your head. Follow us on Twitter @GraftPure or Instagram @puregraftpodcast or our Facebook page and send in your feedback & audition stories.

This is a trailer for episode 2 of Pure Graft! Have a listen to see what we are discussing in the next episode!

It's our debut episode of the Pure Graft podcast, here to start your week off with a smile. This week we discuss something all actors have experienced multiple times, when people outside of the arts industry ask actors "What have you been in" or "What's your plan B?". Tom & Ellen talk about their own experiences. Also included are sketches on the subject matter & ofcourse our funny/ industry story of the week. Tom's talks about his audition story of doing a panto audition that goes very wrong & our story sent in about shaving your balls in a commercial casting. Come join us settle down, put the kettle on, or listen on the tube or the gym, however you want to enjoy.

We are here to slap a smile on your face while your grafting away. This trailer will give you an insight into our first episode called "What have you been in?" We have all been there when a non industry person has asked you that question followed by "Been in anything I know?" Or "What's your plan B"? We talk all this and more plus our hilarious segment of funny audition/ story of the week. Our debut episode will be coming out next Monday!