Podcasts about Pompey

Jake is back with Tom Malley and Joe Wood to review the second half of Portsmouth's 2024/25 Championship campaign. Matchdays 24-46 are put under the microscope alongside the Blues' early FA Cup exit and the club's January transfer business.

rWotD Episode 2932: Pharnavaz II Welcome to Random Wiki of the Day, your journey through Wikipedia's vast and varied content, one random article at a time.The random article for Wednesday, 14 May 2025, is Pharnavaz II.Pharnavaz II (Georgian: ფარნავაზ II) (died 30 BC), of the Artaxiad dynasty, was a king (mepe) of Iberia (Kartli, eastern Georgia) from 63 to 30 BC. He is known as Pharnabazus in Classical sources, and is commonly identified with the Bartom or Bratman of the medieval Georgian chronicles.He succeeded upon the death of his father Artag who had been defeated by the Roman general Pompey in 65 BC. However, Roman hegemony over Iberia proved to be impermanent, and, in 36 BC, the legate Publius Canidius Crassus led his army into Iberia, forcing Parnavaz to make an alliance against Zober, king of neighboring Albania. Canidius and Parnavaz marched to Albania and subdued its people. Incidentally, no Georgian source documents these events reported by Cassius Dio in his Roman History Instead, the Georgian annals concentrates upon the homecoming of Mirvan, the exiled son of Parnajom, who had been brought up in Iran. Mirvan returned to Kartli at the head of an Iranian army, killed Bartom and became a king.Bartom is said to have adopted Kartam, the descendant of Kuji (the alleged ruler of Egrisi in the time of the first Iberian king Parnavaz). But Kartam had also been killed in battle against Mirvan. Nevertheless, Kartam's pregnant wife – the daughter of Bartom – fled to Armenia where she gave birth to a son named Aderki.This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 01:07 UTC on Wednesday, 14 May 2025.For the full current version of the article, see Pharnavaz II on Wikipedia.This podcast uses content from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.Visit our archives at wikioftheday.com and subscribe to stay updated on new episodes.Follow us on Mastodon at @wikioftheday@masto.ai.Also check out Curmudgeon's Corner, a current events podcast.Until next time, I'm standard Matthew.

#LONDINIUM90AD: GAIUS ASKS GEMANICUS, WHAT IF POMPEY THE GREAT HAD SURVIVED? MICHAEL VLAHOS. FRIENDS OF HISTORY DEBATING SOCIETY. @MICHALIS_VLAHOS 1573

The first half of Pompey's maiden season back in the Championship after 12 years away is analysed by Jake Smith, Tom Malley and Joe Wood. Matchdays 1-23 are discussed in detail, as are the back-to-back postponed November fixtures and the Blues' brief involvement in the Carabao Cup.

Part 2 of 3 of the Life of Julius Caesar. In this episode:Caesar forms the First Triumvirate with Pompey and Crassus, uniting Rome's most powerful menHis revolutionary consulship of 59 BCE bypasses Senate opposition through popular assembliesThe brilliant staging of the Gallic conquest, using allies and tribal conflicts as pretexts for expansionHis management of Rome through letters while commanding armies across GaulThe death of Julia and Crassus fractures the political alliance holding Rome togetherVercingetorix's rebellion culminates in the decisive siege of Alesia, securing Gaul for RomeCaesar transforms both Rome and Gaul forever through calculated strategy, personal magnetism, and relentless ambition—all while his enemies in Rome, led by Cato, plot his downfall and convince Pompey to turn against him, setting the stage for civil war. Thanks to our sponsor, Ai Labs. Visit austinlab.ai to chat with a team member about custom Agentic AI power solutions for your SMB to Enterprise level business.  Powered by Shokworks.Also Thanks Dr. Richard Johnson, the Crassus to this Caesar series!

It's the summer, and our focus switches to players who could be leaving and some initial thoughts on players Pompey could bring in. Hugh and Andy are joined by returning co-host Jack Hancock (@HancockAnalysis) to look at the start of the summer and where Pompey goes from here. 06:23 - Hull review, Ben Killip's future at the club and where Christian Saydee fits in next year. 21:04 - Zak Swanson, Kusini Yengi, and Cohen Bramall. Do you extend them, and if not, who can replace them? 40:24 - Where does the squad need to strengthen the most? Is the Championship going to be tougher next season? 45:55 - Murphy and Lang, and keeping hold of our best assets. 50:21 - Cardiff debrief with Tom from Sports Addict Corner (@TomasTaylor4) to chat about their relegation and how they want to rebuild the squad. 1:05:14 - Luton debrief with Phil from OK Football Show (OKFootballShow) to chat about their relegation and how they want to rebuild the squad.

Jake Smith sits down with Portsmouth Women head coach Jay Sadler and loanee defender Jazz Bull to review the success of the team's first season in the Championship. The trio discuss everything from the highs and the lows, as well as the big characters in the dressing room, the retained list and preparations for the 2025/26 campaign.

Saturday's Championship curtain closer against Hull City is discussed by Jake Smith, Alex Fletcher and Mark Magee. There's also reaction to Alan Knight's charity match in aid of Prostate Cancer UK, which ended 8-8 between the Pompey Legends and the Celebrity XI. Dave Joyce, Jordan Cross, Lee Bradbury, Matt Le Tissier, David Norris, Gareth Evans and Knightsie himself all spoke exclusively with Jake after the full-time whistle at Fratton Park.

It's star wars day....May the fourth be with you! But it's also the infamous and prestigious Rugby Football Club's Pub Rugby 7s tournament. https://www.petersfieldrfc.club/ Kevin and Isaac visit Penns Place to catch all the action with player and fan interviews. The long awaited cricket season finally gets underway https://www.petersfieldcricket.club/ and we have the news and results. The football season is still alive, Petersfield town men's and women's teams have been in action. Liss Athletic continue to impress with their goal frenzy continuation. https://www.pitchero.com/clubs/lissathletic . Local darts features for the first time with final results from their winter league and knockout tournament https://ptdl.leaguerepublic.com/index.html . Plus it's the final Pompey game to mull over. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A look ahead to the final matchday of the 2024/25 EFL season with Jake Smith, Tom Malley and Matt Corrick. Portsmouth's curtain closer against Hull City in the Championship is the primary focus for the panel, who also weigh up all possible scenarios for sides still in involved in promotion and relegation battles across the country.

Harvey Blair's first professional goal gained Pompey a respectable point, as we start to look towards the summer. 06:40 - Hugh, Andy, and Freddie discuss the game against Sheffield Wednesday, the squad rotation, and how those players performed. 22:05 - We start to look at the squad for next season touching on Atkinson, Bramall, Steward, Dozzell and Blair. 48:50 - Hull preview with Hull fan and football writer for the Telegraph Kathryn Batte (@KathrynBatte) 1:24:40 - Abu Kamara and score predictions

Dan is with Beth, Simon and Jon with a hell of a lot to get through With the protests gathering pace this week and the hotly contested meeting minutes release we have plenty to chew through this week. With the players having to take part in a rather mooted lap of honour and yet another game this season where haven't won at home in spite of the statistics, Join the gang try and make sense of it and we're keen to hear your comments.Was this the last we'll see of certain players?Will DC Listen?What do think are the next steps of the protests??Find out Monday night Live! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sunday's 4-0 win over Blackburn Rovers for the Pompey Women, who have now also secured their second tier safety, is dissected by Jake Smith, Pepe Lacey and Ian Chiverton. The men's 1-1 draw with Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough in their penultimate match of the season is also discussed on the show, which contains interviews with Harvey Blair, John Mousinho, Sophie Barker and Jay Sadler.

A massive week in the football as the season's come to a close. Liss Athletic are in action in a local derby vs Liphook. https://www.pitchero.com/clubs/lissathletic/ . The all-conquering Petersfield women's under 18s side have their last game against Winchester https://www.petersfieldtownfc.co.uk/ and the climatic end game as the Petersfield men's first team chase a playoff place v Roffey. There's a look ahead to the massive event of the Rugby 7s on star wars day (May 4th be with!) https://www.petersfieldrfc.club/ and the golf pro-am tournament https://www.petersfieldgolfclub.co.uk/ . Darts with Mrs Q, cow chat and Pompey survival are all on the menuSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A marked improvement in the Warriors attack has inspired a 26-12 NRL victory over the Newcastle Knights - their first Anzac Day win since 2014. The hosts ran in five tries, with Adam Pompey and Jackson Ford bagging doubles. It's their fifth win of the season, taking them to third on the NRL ladder. Pompey joined Piney for a chat about their decisive victory. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jake Smith hosts the show for the 500th time, welcoming Eric Coleborn and Andrew Barnard on with him to help preview Pompey's penultimate match of the season. The panel also look ahead to Sunday's season finale for the Portsmouth Women, who take on Blackburn Rovers at Fratton Park hoping to better Sheffield United's result elsewhere in order to retain their second tier status.

Two dramatic wins against Norwich and Watford confirm Pompey will be playing in the Championship next season! 08:16 - Hugh, Andy and Freddie discuss Pompey's away win against Norwich. 37:40 - The lads review the game vs Watford. 50:38 - Manager circus in the Championship and Pompey sticking with John Mousinho. 58:50 - The Championship relegation battle as teams keep gaining points. 01:04:08 - James from The Wednesday ‘Til I Die Podcast (@WTIDPOD) joins the show to talk about Pompey's upcoming game and what's behind the scenes with ownership and Danny Röhl. 01:36:50 - Score predictions.

Pompey's survival-securing victory over Watford on Easter Monday is analysed by Jake Smith, Mark Coates and Charlie Sinclair. Regan Poole and John Mousinho also feature withome and hh their post-match comments before Portsmouth Women's 1-1 stalemate with Bristol City gets picked apart.

Jake Smith and Sam Macey deliver reaction to Portsmouth's 5-3 victory over Norwich City at Carrow Road on Good Friday. With the help of Kaiden, George and Ted from The Hornet Talk Podcast, the pair also look forward to the Blues' Easter Monday meeting with Watford at Fratton Park after hearing Paul Marsh's big interview with former Pompey midfielder Gareth Evans.

The Blues' Good Friday meeting with Norwich City at Carrow Road is previewed by Jake Smith, Brendan Tuttiett and Daniel Emery. Pompey boss John Mousinho features too, looking ahead to his side's next Championship outing with Max Swatton from the club's media team.

A last-minute Rob Atkinson header saves Pompey and keeps the Blues four points clear of the drop. 5:51 - Hugh, Andy and Freddie discuss Pompey's rollercoaster ride against Derby. 38:41 - The lads then look at the other teams involved in the Championship relegation battle, their run-ins, form, and who we think are likely to get relegated. 46:50 - Pompey legend Gareth Evans joins the podcast and gives his views on Pompey's Championship survival. He also shares some stories on his time at Pompey ahead of his evening at The Gaiety in Southsea with Brett Pitman. 01:13:25 - Finally, Adam from The Pink Un Podcast (@Pinkun) joins the show to preview the game on Friday vs Norwich.

Jason is back this week & is joined by Chris & Nigel to discuss The Rams entertaining 2-2 draw at Fratton Park with Derby throwing away the lead twice in the game.We then look at the busy Easter schedule with the Visit of Luton Town & trip to The Hawthorns.To round off as usual this week Jack joins Jason to chat all things Ewes with the u21's celebrating silverware at the weekend.Thanks for listening & Up The Rams!

A panel comprised of Jake Smith, Alex Fletcher and Ryan Honey is tasked with recapping the events of Portsmouth's 2-2 draw with Derby County at the weekend. Interviews with Alan Biley, Gemma Hillier, Ray Crawford, Peter Higham and Alan Knight also feature, recorded before kick-off on Saturday as the club celebrated its annual Former Players Day at Fratton Park.

Derby looked destined for 3 points but were undone by a long ball in the dying moments! How well did Derby play, and did the team deserve more? Featuring Jake Barker, James Walker and Rob Gregory. #DCFCDonate to "RamsTalk Runs 3824km" for Derby Food 4 Thought Alliance: https://justgiving.com/campaign/ramstalkrunsfordf4ta--If you did enjoy the episode, please consider liking and subscribing, or rating us on Spotify and Apple Pods. It really helps us out. Up the Rams!--Get up to 35% off Derby County current and retro shirts with Fanatics (Kitbag) using our custom link: https://kitbag.evyy.net/RamsTalk--Find Our Other Content Here:Website: https://linktr.ee/ramstalkpodSpotify/Apple Pods: https://podfollow.com/ramstalkpodTwitter: https://twitter.com/RamsTalkPodTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ramstalkpodYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ramstalkpod--Business Inquiries:RamsTalkPodcast@Gmail.com--Tags: #DCFC #DerbyCounty #EFLChampionship #EFL #Pompey #PortsmouthFC--Team/Crew:Jake Barker - Director/Producer/HostJamie Page - Assistant Host/CreativeCallum Boocock - Guest Host/CreativeAdam Titley - Guest Host/Producer/CreativeJack Doughty - Guest Host/CreativeVik Singh Dosanjh - Guest Host Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join Eamonn Barclay and his team—Debbie Julians, Steve Warren, and Ted Robinson—as they host a Lion who was part of a dynamic duo at Millwall. They discuss our victory at Sheffield, Ivanovic, and the insinuations made by Pompey's coach, Mousino and our homophobic FA Charge for chants at Palace.Derek Possee talks about:  • Playing in Dublin for St Patrick's Athletic with Barry Bridges • Life in Southwark and Merstham, developing his football skills and joining Spurs• Joining Millwall and Benny Fenton  • Life for players and their families in Meopham  • His days with Vancouver Whitecaps  • Describes his memorable days at MillwallWe also hear from Paul Loding as we catch up on all the latest news from the Millwall Romans & Pride.Phil Coleman shares Dave Mehmet and this Dockers Day story from his 'Brut' Room.A preview of Millwall v Middlesbrough Ted's Prediction League is in full swing as Nick Wythe aims to reclaim his position at the top.Our second guest is Chris Bethell – Mr Millwall -, who discusses:  • Reporting on the U21's on social media  • The book '59 Home Games, and others he has produced   • The details of Dockers Day and those attending • Becoming a Millwall fanIt's worth a listen.Music and Audio credits:  https://www.maritimeradio.co.uk  https://www.FesliyanStudios.com

Jake Smith sits down with David Howes and Chris Parsons to analyse Pompey's midweek loss at Coventry and preview Saturday's meeting with Derby County. Kirsty Roxanne comes on to provide a closer look at The Rams and head coach John Mousinho also features, looking ahead to his side's must-win match at Fratton Park.

Derby's immense defence stood tall last night keeping a vital clean sheet to keep the Rams out of the relegation places! Join us for all the chat on Derby's important Burnley draw, plus a look ahead to Pompey away with FourNilWrittenAllOverIt! Featuring Jack Doughty, James Walker and Daniel McSheffrey. #DCFC--Donate to "RamsTalk Runs 3824km" for Derby Food 4 Thought Alliance: https://justgiving.com/campaign/ramstalkrunsfordf4ta--If you did enjoy the episode, please consider liking and subscribing, or rating us on Spotify and Apple Pods. It really helps us out. Up the Rams!--Get up to 35% off Derby County current and retro shirts with Fanatics (Kitbag) using our custom link: https://kitbag.evyy.net/RamsTalk--Find Our Other Content Here:Website: https://linktr.ee/ramstalkpodSpotify/Apple Pods: https://podfollow.com/ramstalkpodTwitter: https://twitter.com/RamsTalkPodTikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ramstalkpodYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ramstalkpod--Business Inquiries:RamsTalkPodcast@Gmail.com--Tags: #DCFC #DerbyCounty #EFLChampionship #EFL #BFC #Burnley #Pompey #PortsmouthFC--Team/Crew:Jake Barker - Director/Producer/HostJamie Page - Assistant Host/CreativeCallum Boocock - Guest HostAdam Titley - Guest Host/Producer/CreativeJack Doughty - Guest Host/CreativeVik Singh Dosanjh - Guest Host Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Reaction to Pompey's 2-1 defeat to Millwall at The Den with Jake Smith, Kevin Stokes and Mark Magee. The panel also look ahead to the midweek trip to Coventry City with the help of Sky Blues supporter Moz Baker and the pre-match thoughts of Portsmouth head coach John Mousinho.

On this episode, Jake Smith is helped by Sam Macey and Joe Wood to preview Portsmouth's next Championship match away at Millwall. Opposition fan Stephen Jones from the ‘Chat With Chaps' podcast provides his expertise and Pompey Supporters' Trust chair Donald Vass talks about the findings from the PST's 2025 Fan Survey

A massive win in a tight game puts Pompey in a great position to push onto safety in the Championship. Hugh, Andy and Freddie get into the Blackburn game and how important winning gritty games like this are. The lads then discuss the state of the academy and upcoming player contracts. Should Pompey offer Swanson and Yengi new deals? 35:30 - Finally, Micky from That Millwall Podcast joins the show to give you the lowdown on everything you need to know about the game at the Den on Saturday.

Marcus Licinius Crassus was an influential politician in the late Roman republic, famous for the wealth he accrued and the power that he held. An ally of Caesar and a rival of Pompey, he rose to prominence during the social wars, but would never get the military glory he believed was his owed. Episode CCXXXIX (239) Part I of Crassus Guest: Assoc. Professor Rhiannon Evans (Classic and Ancient History, La Trobe University)

Joined by Kevin Stokes and Alex Fletcher, Jake Smith provides reaction to Pompey's 1-0 win over Blackburn Rovers at the weekend. Andy Chandler from Walk The Island also comes on the show to reveal The Roberts Centre as this year's supported charity with Lauren Burgess representing the charity itself alongside him.

Portsmouth's Championship clash with Blackburn Rovers at Fratton Park is previewed by Jake Smith, Andrew Barnard and David Howes. Pompey boss John Mousinho also features on the show, which contains a replay of Paul Marsh's important conversation about CPR with 2 cardiac arrest survivors - Former Liverpool and Scotland midfielder Graeme Souness sat down with Paul alongside current Luton Town defender Tom Lockyer.

After defeat at Preston leaves Pompey just four points above the relegation zone, there were strong words from John Mousinho. This week, Andy and Freddie: - Review the defeat at Deepdale and chat through what went wrong -Discuss whether Geoff Hurst's third goal in the 1966 World Cup Final actually crossed the line - Consider what should change, if anything, against Blackburn Rovers at Fratton Park this weekend - Round up key news from the international break and a Pompey Women update

We cover the conquest of Jerusalem by Pompey, the rise of Julius Caesar, and the Battle of Actium.

Jake Smith, Kirsty Roxanne and Charlie Sinclair provide reaction to Pompey's goalless draw with Southampton in the Barclays Women's Championship at the weekend. The trio also assess England's victory over Albania in Thomas Tuchel's maiden game in charge on Friday before looking ahead to tonight's first-ever meeting with Latvia at Wembley, the second match of The Three Lions' 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifying campaign.

With the help of head coach Jay Sadler, Jake Smith and Ian Chiverton look ahead to Portsmouth's Barclays Women's Championship clash with Southampton at St Mary's. Wednesday night's Inter-Services Cup tie between the Royal Navy and the RAF at Fratton Park is picked apart on the show too, with Navy representatives Fraser Quirke, Glenn Long, Jack Wright and Chris James all featuring!

Analysis and reaction following a mixed weekend of results for Portsmouth's men and women brought to you by Jake Smith, Tom Malley and Ryan Honey. Interviews with John Mousinho, Ava Rowbotham and Jay Sadler feature alongside a replay of Dave Joyce's chat with Blues legend Alan Knight, who reveals more details about an upcoming All-Star Charity game being played at Fratton Park in May.

Julius Caesar is one of history's most famous figures. But before his legendary conquests and romance with Cleopatra, how did he rise to power?In this episode of The Ancients, host Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor Catherine Steele to explore Caesar's early life, political struggles, and key allies and rivals - from Marius and Sulla to Pompey and Crassus. Together Tristan and Catherine uncover the defining moments that shaped Rome's most famous leader.Presented by Tristan Hughes. The producer and editor is Joseph Knight. The senior producer is Anne-Marie Luff.All music courtesy of Epidemic SoundsThe Ancients is a History Hit podcast.Listen to The Ancients episode; the Rise of Cicero: https://shows.acast.com/the-ancients/episodes/theriseofciceroSign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe. You can take part in our listener survey here: https://insights.historyhit.com/history-hit-podcast-always-on

The Ideas of March is March 15, a day in the Roman calendar that became infamous for the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 BC. Jacob Sider Jost, Associate Professor of English at Dickinson College, joined The Spark to share more about the Ides of March. Where did the phrase, beware the Ides of March, where did that come from? "Beware the Ides of March is a line from Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar… And so, Shakespeare wrote, he wasn't the first to write a tragedy on this topic, but he wrote a tragedy about the assassination of Julius Caesar, and it's really two tragedies because it's the story of Caesar and his death, and then the sort of greatest conspirator Brutus, and then he dies at the end of the play." What was the reasons behind the plot to kill him? "Rome had for the couple of centuries up to the life of Caesar had been a Republic, and it had a Senate, and it had some things that sound a bit like modern American democracy, but it was basically an oligarchy, a powerful elite of inherited senators sort of dominated Roman political life. But it was unstable. There were power struggles through the first century BCE where individuals tried to sort of take full power in Rome. And when Julius Caesar came back to Rome in that fifth decade BCE, he had just defeated Pompey, who was another sort of general fighter. And it looked to the conspirators that Caesar was going to take over, become a single ruler just in himself, become an emperor, and abolish the republic. Now, in the end, that's what happened. His grandnephew Augustus Caesar took over, became emperor, and the Roman Empire went for hundreds of years after that. But that's what the conspirators were trying to prevent. They were trying to keep Rome a republic." Why do you think Julius Caesar’s assassination still captures people’s imaginations hundreds of years later? "It's been performed on multiple stages in multiple countries and has been with us for almost, you know, over 400 years. And so, the language of Shakespeare and the power of the story keep people coming back to Julius Caesar in the Ides of March." Listen to the podcast to hear the entire interview. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After the high of the Leeds win, the most Pompey thing had to happen. Hugh, Andy and Freddie get stuck into two very different games this week. The lads discuss how effective the system was against Leeds compared to how lost it looked against the low block of Plymouth. It just got a bit tighter in the relegation battle. Finally, we preview the trip to Preston and give our score predictions.

To reflect on the Blues' midweek defeat to Plymouth Argyle at Fratton Park, Jake Smith is joined in the studio by Eric Coleborn and Joe Wood. Saturday's meeting with Preston North End at Deepdale is also previewed on the show, as is Sunday's Barclays Women's Championship fixture involving Portsmouth and Sunderland.

Highlights from the rest of the English Football League. The Championship was wild as Burnley's shutout streak came to an end. Sheffield has moved back to level on points with Leeds after they dropped 5 points, including a loss to Pompey. Wycombe and Wrexham are fighting for the other promotion spot in League 1, while Birmingham City is pulling ahead. Finally, in League 2, Walsall now has only a 2-point lead, and the fate of Morecambe and Carlisle is nearly sealed to drop out of the professional league. For Premier League action, we cover EVERY match   www.Dufootballshow.com Facebook @DUfootballshow Instagram @DUfootballshow Twitch @DUfootballshow Kick @DUfootballshow TikTok @DUfootballshow YouTube @DUfootballshow Highlights from the rest of the English Football League.  Catch up with our favorite side teams.  For Premier League action, we cover EVERY match  www.Dufootballshow.com

Jake Smith is joined by Kevin Stokes and Pepe Lacey to reflect on the Blues' huge win over Championship leaders Leeds United at the weekend. The post-match thoughts of both match winner Colby Bishop and head coach John Mousinho feature too before the trio begin to preview Pompey's midweek clash with struggling Plymouth Argyle at Fratton Park.

Pompey's loss to Luton has put a bit of pressure back on the blues as they prepare to face high-flying Leeds and struggling Plymouth. Hugh, Andy and Freddie are reunited after the Amsterdam trip. The lads drafted in David Norris who has been co-commentating for Plymouth to preview Wednesday's six pointer. Before that, the lads review the Luton game and preview Leeds on Sunday. This episode includes and much more: 13:15 - Luton review with Phil from Okay Football Show (@OkayFootballShow) 43:00 - Leeds preview with Adonis from Roaring Peacock Podcast (@PeacocksRoar) and BBC Sport. 56:38 - Plymouth preview with David Norris (@DMnorris19)

Graham and Joe discuss the draw with West Brom, what the squad needs this summer, what to do with Brenden Aaronson, Rasmus Kristensen reports, Jack Harrison, the title race, Pompey this weekend and plenty more. Listen, share and subscribe now.

Skip the Queue is brought to you by Rubber Cheese, a digital agency that builds remarkable systems and websites for attractions that helps them increase their visitor numbers. Your host is Paul Marden.If you like what you hear, you can subscribe on iTunes, Spotify, and all the usual channels by searching Skip the Queue or visit our website SkiptheQueue.fm.If you've enjoyed this podcast, please leave us a five star review, it really helps others find us. And remember to follow us on Twitter  or Bluesky for your chance to win the books that have been mentioned in this podcast.Competition ends on 19th March 2025. The winner will be contacted via Bluesky. Show references: https://www.ajah.ae/https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-griffiths-63432763/Kelly's final episodeThe transformation of Painshill Park, with Paul Griffiths, Director of PainshillWhat it really takes to launch a podcast. With Kelly Molson and Paul GriffithsPaul Griffiths has worked in the Heritage, Museums and Tourism world now for nearly 30 years.After spending 16 years working in various role for English Heritage, in 2012 he moved to the Mary Rose Museum as Head of Operations to oversee the opening and operations of the multi award winning museum, welcoming over one million visitors before in 2018 taking on moving to the Painshill Park Trust in the role of Director of Painshill. Paul spent 6 years there before his move in December 2024 to Ras Al Khaimah one of the seven Emirates that make up the UAE. In this exciting brand new role Paul is Chief Executive Officer of the Al Hamra Heritage Village, part of the Al Qasimi Foundation. Transcriptions: Paul Marden: Welcome to Skip the Queue, a podcast for people working in and working with Visitor Attractions. I'm your host, Paul Marden.Longtime listeners will remember my guest today, Paul Griffiths, when he was CEO at Painshill Park, from when he was interviewed back in season one by Kelly. In today's episode, Paul comes back to talk about his new role as CEO of Al Jazeera Al Hamrah Heritage Village in Ras Al Khaimah in the UAE. Now, I'm always interested in the first 90 days of people's experience in a job, so we'll be talking more about that and his for the future. Paul Marden: Paul, welcome back to Skip the Queue. Paul Griffiths: Hello. Thanks for having me, Paul. Great to be here. Paul Marden:  Long time. Listeners will know that we always start with an icebreaker question and our guests don't get to know that one in advance. I think this one's a pretty kind one. I was pretty mean to Paul Sapwell from Hampshire Cultural Trust a couple of weeks ago because I asked him whether it was Pompey or Saints and for political reasons, he felt that he had to abstain from that.Paul Griffiths: Testing his interest. I'd have gone Pompey at the time because that's where we live. Well, did live. Paul Marden: Oh, there you go. There you go. So you've moved over from Portsmouth. You're now in the UAE. Tell listeners, what is that one? Home comfort that after three months away from Blighty, you're missing? Is it proper English marmalade? Paul Griffiths: Do you know what? I've been able to get hold of most things, but I've not been able to get. I know people who cook properly, so I should be able to do this myself, but I haven't. Cauliflower cheese, one thing I'm missing from home, that doesn't sell it anywhere in a sort of pre pack or frozen form. I can even get hold of Yorkshire puddings in Spinny's supermarket, but I can't get hold of cauliflower cheese. Paul Marden: Can you get cauliflowers? Paul Griffiths: Can get cauliflowers. I'm sure I can make cheese sauce if I knew what it was doing. But you normally. I'm so used to normally buying a pack of cheese, cauliflower cheese to have in my Sunday roast. Paul Marden: Okay. So if I ever get to come out, I need to bring out a plastic wrapped, properly sealed so that it doesn't leak on the plane. Cauliflower cheese? Paul Griffiths: Yes, please. Yeah, absolutely. Paul Marden: So your last episode was actually. Or your last full episode was back in season one, episode 22. So five years ago and the world has changed a lot in five years, but most recently it's changed a lot for you, hasn't it? So why don't you tell listeners a little bit about what's happened to you since you were with us in season one? Paul Griffiths: Wow. Yeah, well, season one seems an age away, doesn't it, now with all the wonderful guests youu've had since on Skip the Queue, it's been a different program completely. But, yeah, no, well, back then I was at Painshill, were coming out of a pandemic and I remember, you know, Kelly and I were chatting over all the different avenues that everyone had gone and what we've done at Painshill and that continued brilliantly. And however, my life has taken a change in. In sense of where I am, but I'm still doing the same sort of work, so. Which is, you know, when our industry, and it's such a fabulous industry, it's great to stay in it. Paul Griffiths: So I am now over in the United Army Emirates in the Emirate of Ras Alhaima, which is the third biggest of the seven emirates that make up the UAE, behind Abu Dhabi and, of course, Dubai. So I was approached, God, nearly always, this time last year, about a call over here. Yes. My recruitment company got in touch and went through, you know, had a good look at the job description and thought, well, actually, we'll throw my hat into the ring. And applied, went for a series of online interviews with the recruitment company, then an online interview with the people over here at various departments within the Al Kassimme Foundation and the Department of Museums and Antiquities. Paul Griffiths: So, yeah, looking at this brand new job, which I'm now lucky enough to be in, I then was flown out in August for a round of interviews, met all the team. You know, one of those things that you later discover, the whole real four days was one big interview, although there was. There was a central one. But of course, everyone you were meeting along the way was being asked to feedback, And I love chatting to people and enjoying people's company. So actually went for dinners and lunches and all sorts, which was just a lovely four days and almost felt like a free hit in many ways, Paul. Well, this is going to be a brilliant experience. Paul Griffiths: If I don't get the job, I'm going to have a great four days in Rasta Taima, seeing it, meeting everyone, enjoying the time here. And, you know, the more time I spent here, the more time with the team, the more time, you know, going and visiting sites. I just became more and more that this would be an amazing job. Obviously gave my absolute everything, did loads of research, gave everything in the interview. The interview took a rather unusual turn. After the sort of hour and a half of questions and my questions, I was asked to leave the room for a short period. Not unusual in that sense because I was, you know, I wasn't just going to leave and go because obviously I was in their hands for four days. Paul Griffiths: But the doctor, Natasha Ridge, the executive director of the foundation, came out the interview and said, “Right, that's all gone really well. We're really pleased. We're now off to the palace for you to meet His Highness Sheikh Saud, who is the ruler of Ras Al Khaimah and on the Supreme Council of the UAE.” So I was sort of, I went to one of the small meeting rooms you. Now I know that. Now I know where I was, where I went. But at that point I had no idea. One of the lovely. There's a very much a service thing here. Paul Griffiths: So, you know, we have in the Heritage Village as well later we have a wonderful member of our team, Geraldine, who does lots of cooking, prepares stuff and just had a wonderful fish taco lunch because we're four hours ahead of you, of course, here in Alaihi. So, yeah, so one of the guys came in with, gave me an English breakfast tea and sort of, you know, sat there reviewing what, thinking what on earth was I going to be asked by His Highness. And then was put into one of the drivers and we drove up through Rat Sahma City, through into the palace, up the long driveway and there I was sort of eventually, after about 20 minutes, presented with. Presented to Sheikh Sword who asked me, chatted, asked various questions. Paul Griffiths: I don't think there could be many interviews that you end up with His Highness in the second half of it. You know, it's sometimes a presentation. Yeah. So that was. I was there for about half an hour and that's your time over and off he goes. And off I went back to then go and have dinner with some of the team. So it was a very surreal afternoon. Paul Marden: Being interviewed by royalty. But when you're not expecting that as part of the interview process, that must be quite unnerving. Paul Griffiths: I had a heads up that at some point in my trip I might meet him, but there was no formal arrangements. I had me had to get in a diary. So it hadn't even crossed my mind that's what was about to happen. When I was asked to leave the meeting room, I just thought maybe they wanted to come back with more questions or, you know, say I hadn't gone well, whatever. But, yeah, no, that was the. I took that as a good sign. I thought, well, actually, if I'm being whisked up there, the interview must have gone relatively well because I'm sure they would present me to shake sword if it hadn't gone so well. Paul Marden: Yeah. You'd hope that he would be towards the end of the cycle of the interview round. Paul Griffiths: Yeah. Paul Marden: Not doing the early sifting of CVs. Paul Griffiths: No. He certainly had seen who I was because he asked me some questions about where I'd worked and. Okay, things like that. So he'd obviously seen a CV. He's a very. I mean, I've met him subsequently a few times. I've been fortunate to be a dinner hosted by him a couple of weeks ago. But he is a very, very intelligent man. Works really hard. I mean, work. He, you know, for him, he spends every minute working on the emirate. He ruled, he. He's the ruler. But he's almost a. It's a sort of combo, I guess he's all Prime Minister at the same time as being the ruler. So he is constantly working. You know, I'm really committed and I'm lucky in many ways that where I am working at the Heritage Village is his real. Paul Griffiths: One of his real pet projects that he's really driving forward. So, yes, we come with sort of royal. Royal approval, if you like. So. Yeah. Paul Marden: Excellent. So I. I've not been to the Emirates before, so for those of us that have not been, tell us a little bit about Ras Al Khaimah, of course. Paul Griffiths: Well, Ras Al Khaimah is one of the quieter Emirates mentioned. Sheikh Saud there, he's really driving a sort of, you know, a sort of agenda of bringing in more tourists. But he wants to use culture and territory as part of that. So, you know, it's a more relaxed, low level, if that makes sense. It's not Dubai, it's not full on, it's more relaxed Emirate. It's relaxed in cultural and many of the ways it's not, as you know, some of the other Emirates are, for example, completely dry. Ras Al Khaimah has given licenses to hotels and big restaurants in hotels for serving drinks. And there are a number of sellers where you can purchase for your consumption your own home, whereas Sharjah, you can't purchase any alcohol, for example, so it's a bit more chilled like that. It's a lovely place. Paul Griffiths: We're very fortunate to have the heavier mountains go through the far side of Ras Al Khaimah. So where I'm based is more on the seafront but then not, you know, I can see the mountains behind and there's a number of drives up into the mountains which are absolutely fabulous. Up to the Jebel Jais, which is the highest point in the UAE, we have the world's longest and fastest zip wire. I have not gone anywhere near that yet. Goes up to 100km an hour and is the longest over from the top of the mountain, whisking you off to the other side. I think it looks terrifying. But my. Paul Marden: I'm more interested in cables that take you to the top of the mountain. Maybe with some skis on my feet than I am attaching myself to a cable and going down the mountain. Doesn't sound like fun to me. Paul Griffiths: There's a toboggan ride as well up there as well.Paul Marden: Oh, I'd love that. Paul Griffiths: So that's the toboggan ride's on my to do list when the family get off, I'll save it for then and take my son Barney on that. But you know, there's all this sort of venture sports up on the top of the mountain and driving up there is remarkable. They put a proper road in. It's not the scary driving up the Alps, terrified what's going to come around the other corner. It's very like driving up a road, you know, normal sort of dual carriageway, two lanes each way and then right going through the mountains to the other side to one of the other Emirates for Jazeera , for example. So you're over on the Indian Ocean side Gulf Vermont. That road is just beautiful. There's no traffic on it, you know. Paul Griffiths: So Ras Al Khaimah is only about an hour and hour to an hour and a half from Dubai airport. And Dubai is a sort of people go to Dubai in the same way that we, you know, you'd go to London, I'd go to London when I was in Port Soviet, we would. It's now, you know, it's not considered a. There's always someone from work who's in Dubai every day almost for some reason. So nipping up to Dubai, I was like, I went to a dinner there last week and you know, it just seemed very normal that he jumped in a car and drove up to Dubai and came back that evening. Whereas. Seems remarkable actually to be doing that. But yeah, so because of where we are, Abu Dhabi is about two and a half hours away.Paul Griffiths: And we are the northern point of the Emirate, So we border on to Oman, split into a number of areas. Again, I didn't know any of this till I got here, but there's a part of Oman that's at the top of Ras Al Khaimah. And so, yeah, so it's a beautiful Emirate with nature, with mountain areas, which does get a bit chillier when you go up the mountains. I looked quite silly in my T shirt and shorts when I went up there on a Sunday afternoon. People were going past me like they were going skiing. You know, people wore coats and hats and looking at me as if I'm really daft. But I was still. It's interesting that because it's winter obviously everywhere here at the moment and at home, but it's. Paul Griffiths: People here are often telling me it's a cold day when I'm still standing. I still feel really quite warm. But yeah, finding that sort ofPaul Marden: Talking 30s at the moment for you, aren't we? Paul Griffiths: Yeah, it's a little bit. The last couple days have been down in the lower 20s, really comfortable. But when we last weekend, people were getting a bit nervous that summer had come very early because it was hitting the early 30s last week. So I don't know how for me, when we get to August, when it's in the mid, late 40s with real high humidity, I think I'm just going to go from aircon building to aircon building to aircon building.Paul Marden: I am such a Goldilocks when it comes to that sort of thing. Not too hot, not too cold, it needs to be just right. So I would definitely struggle in that kind of heat. Look, let's talk a little bit about where you are in the new job. So you've taken on the role of CEO of Al Jazeera Al Hamra Heritage Village. So tell me a little bit about the village. Why is this village so historic? Paul Griffiths: Well, it's a really interesting one, Paul, because it is very important, but it's not that old. And that's why what coming to me about making it more alive is something that's going to be crucial to us. So the village has been lived in for many years. It was a pearl farming village. So most of the people who worked here were doing pearl farming, which is pretty horrible job to do. You were, again, learning about this. You were jumping off boats, going to the ocean depths for up to three to four minutes. No protection really, apart from a very light shirt and some little bits on your fingers. But actually you're nothing on your eyes. Paul Griffiths: So you're having to look through the salt water, find the pearls come up and they were going up and down sometime 15, 16 times or more a day. And there's a fascinating exhibition in Dubai at the Al Shindagha Museum which really does focus on how this worked and how these guys were living. So, so it's a real. So that was the village. So the village had that, it obviously had then had fishing men, merchants making boats, merchants selling, trading wares. And Ras Al Khaimah has been quite a strategic part as all of the UAE really for the sort of trades coming from the Middle east and out into the Gulf. So the villages was being lived in up until the very early 70s. Paul Griffiths: Up in the 1970s the Al Za'abi tribe who were based here were offered I guess a new life is the only way to look at it in Abu Dhabi with new jobs, with land, with housing and it's just a better way like pearl farming was now being done so much cheaper and easier in the Orient in Japan mainly. So that was, that dropped away. There wasn't the other merchant trading going on. So actually the oil boom basically led the tribe to almost one up sticks and head to Abu Dhabi. And in many ways good story because we're still in touch with quite considerable amounts of the tribes people who were here. Lots of the elders have done wonderful oral histories, videos talking about their lives here. But this village survived as just fell into ruins, but actually wasn't developed. Paul Griffiths: And where it becomes important is this would have been what all of the Gulf would have looked like before the oil boom. The UAE wasn't a wealthy nation before then. You know, when I went up to Dubai and spent some time at the Etihad Museum, which is based around which Etihad Union is the not Around Man City Stadium should point out very much around about how the UAE had come together and how, you know, so it wasn't the wealthiest nation, but actually they discovered oil. They then brought seven Emirates together. It then has flourished in the ways that we now know what Dabi and ifwe looks like and even Ras Al Khaimah in some parts and really quite glamorous. But this village survived. Paul Griffiths: So although it fell into ruin, all the other fishing, farmhome fishing, pearl farming villages across the Gulf had become, just got destroyed, knocked down, you know, turned into hotels and high rises. And actually when you visit the other Emirates, lots of them are now recreating their historic areas or re purposing some of the historic buildings and they're doing it very well. In Dubai, Sharjah has actually completely rebuilt. It's what it calls the Harp Sharjah, which is. Which was its historic sort of areas, but. Paul Marden: Right. Paul Griffiths: But this survived. Many of the buildings had fallen into disrepair. And what we've been doing for the last few years, as the Al Qasimi Foundation and the Department of Antiquities and Museums is restoring a number of these buildings, we've then sort of gone into a sort of activation so you can walk around. So we've got, you know, carving now. Only a year ago it was mostly sand. We've now got a path going through it, so you can walk in. And the job that I've really been asked to do initially on arrival here is to really push that activation forward and really look at my sort of. What I've done in the past and what we've seen other places do and think about what can we do to bring this bit more to life? Paul Griffiths: Because it's the sort of storage village is around the 1970s. Well, it was abandoned in the 1970s. Well, you know, for us from the UK, from lots of other nationalities, actually, something in the 70s isn't very old. It's in our lifespan. You know, we are looking at this going well, actually. So when I was talking to a lot of. So RAK TDA's basically visit RAK tourism authority. So they are really supportive in wanting to push Al Jazeera Al Hamra Heritage Village, which will from now on abbreviate to AJAH to save me. Keep saying that. Long tanned. So they are really keen that we're doing more stuff. So why would a tourist want to come? What is there to see once you're here? Paul Griffiths: On top of some abandoned and now beautifully restored houses, mosques, you know, things that you would have expected in a village of, you know, a thousand or so population, 500 houses, you know, so more than a thousand people, really. So that's the sort of plan in that way. So in many ways I've got a sort of blank canvas to play with. But, you know, money's not unlimited, so it's about. So working closely with local communities, working with, you know, local traders, looking at what could we bring into the village on the back of the art fair. I know we'll talk about later, but it's, you know, this has been a. This is a real challenge for me to. How do I take this sort of place forwards.Paul Marden: In my mind's eye, we go to the Weald & Downland Living Museum so open air museum, lots of houses recreating life through the ages. Is that the sort of experience that I'm going to get if I come to the village of I'm going to see the properties and I'm going to see this previous way of life come to life in front of me?Paul Griffiths: Well at the moment you'll see you just see in the houses and the buildings but you're walking around looking at historic buildings but we have got a number of the houses we've put in. Each video is at the moment showing the audio visuals so you can walk around and listen to members of the tribes chatting about their youth and what's happening and you can see the buildings in real life. I guess what I'm looking for this is telling the story a little bit of the village which we don't initially do that well at the moment that's no criteria. Yes, this is what we need to do going forward. There's been several stages of activation When I came last August part not many the paths weren't all finished. We didn't have anywhere for visitor services to be at the front.Paul Griffiths: We only had a very small sort officey area which has now been built up to where I'm. Where I'm sat today. So I think what you're going to get is a multi as a blend of traders who will be in our suitcase. The Souk is fully restored sooke and shopping market area so that's my first point is to move some people in there. So I've already got a goldsmith and move to her studio in got some handicrafts we've got some textile people moving in the. Paul Griffiths: The main gallery of Nassau Heyman Design Gallery which is the one big gallery where artists can go is going to have a sort of satellite shop if you like not shop a satellite so there will be pieces of work there are in here with their little souvenir store which they sell because they get people a lot of what the design gallery does is making souvenirs of Ras Al Khaimah that are all handmade so quite special gifts. So what we're hoping is tying up with our local hoteliers who many of which have not been so it's bringing them in and they need something more to see to send their guests here. Paul Griffiths: So you know talking to some of them over lunch when I hosted some of them on Saturday it was a case of you know actually, can they send their clients and say, you can do all your holiday shopping because at the moment they're sending people to the shopping malls which are just, you know, nice, but actually merchandise them to go to a heritage village, get that experience of what the golf would have been like and bags of shopping at the same time. Paul Marden: So who doesn't love a. A museum gift shop at the end? So, you know. Paul Griffiths: Exactly. And we don't really have that here at the moment from an Al Jazeera perspective. So on my plan for this year is to put in. We've got an info booth, as it's called at the moment. It's not a world. It's not the best customer service friendly. It's like a caravan but with some windows. And yeah, it's probably a better. Now it's got air conditioning. Yes. But it doesn't work very well for customers. You're trying to talk through little windows because you can only have small windows to keep the air con working, not have too much open to. It's just passing out. Paul Griffiths: So, yeah, so I'm looking at building this summer, hopefully. Fingers crossed, touch wood, a visitor welcome centre, which is something we're really pushing along with, which will be lovely because that will be that proper visitor welcome with a shop with an induction into an introduction. Sorry, into the Al Jazeera story. And then let people go. And then when they get to the far end, they'll be the souk full of. He says again, hopefully slowly filling them out, but full of traders and local craftspeople and people who are. Even if they're not originally local, they're based in rack, so they are considered local. The UAE is built up of a lot of expat population. When I say expats, I mean just English people from around the world. It's a really accepting, welcoming community. I've been really. Everyone says hello to you as you're walking into the supermarket shops. There's no. Whoever they are where you're from. Paul Griffiths: Everyone's talking to each other because the local population know they've had to bring people in because there's thousands more jobs than there are Emirati population in Ras Al Khaimah. So, you know, it's always been. And when you look at the foundation of the UAE, it was about, we will need to bring people in to bring this. To build this nation with us. So, you know, it's been always a sort of welcome and melting pot of different people. Paul Marden: Yeah, amazing. Look, you mentioned when we had our initial chat. You've been there now three months, you've been doing lots of visiting of other attractions. Because I think you said to me, which I thought was quite interesting, that you were. There's lots that you bring with you from the UK in your experience, but there's lots of best practice and good practice happening within the Emirates already. So you've been kind of going out and visiting a lot of cultural venues and attractions in the Emirates. Tell me a little bit about those. Paul Griffiths: Yeah, so it's been a minute of a manic last month in February, because we've had the art festival. I know we're going to keep hinting at it, we'll get to it at some point, but when I've had some time away, what's been fabulous, it's just sort of. And I think as well, because the family aren't here in my own at the moment, said, “All right, I've got some time off, let's go and explore.” Yeah. So I've sort of driven across to Fajera, spent time in Sharjah and took myself up for a weekend in Dubai, which was fantastic. Booked a very reasonably priced hotel and just spent a weekend flowering around everywhere and just really immersed in my. So and only scratch the surface. There's so much more to see. So, yeah, so I've been going and looking at. Paul Griffiths: Well, you know, I don't want to do something that's not. There'll be alien to, obviously, the culture here. And that's been really. What's been great fun in the last few months is it's not just going into a new job, you know, and learning that. It's actually been a terrifying, at some points, fabulous experience. I was learning new cultures, new working lives. You know, things are working. It's done very differently here. You know, there's a different hierarchical process we have in the UK and permissions are needed in different places. And that's not. I'm not saying any of this is a bad thing, it's just learning those different things. So I've been learning all these different cultures. You know, we're just coming into Ramadan, which I've had no real experience with before. And that is. That is a massive thing here. You know, it's the month. Paul Griffiths: Every billboard you go past is someone trying to sell something for Ramadan, whether it be a new chest of drawers, you know, your family needs this new dining table for Ramadan. It's a bit like, you know, you will see at Christmas at home, everyone catching on, you know, IKEA will be saying, new table and chairs for Christmas. You know, it's. It's not. It's a sort of different repeating itself. You know, those sort of signs you have around the supermarket. Christmas back home. They're all up now in supermarkets here for Ramadan. Paul Marden: Right. Paul Griffiths: Encouraging what people are going to buy for when they break the fast at sunset Iftar. So, you know, so it's all sort of promoting. You need this for. So it's a real. We're going to a massive thing. And that's been a real sort of learning, cultural thing for me, which has been great because actually I've always enjoyed, when I'm traveling, learning about other cultures, you know, it's always been for me, I always try and visit museums, galleries, learn about the place I'm at. And so actually living somewhere and learn about someone who's been. I think it's added to the fun of the experience. But back to your question. Paul Griffiths: Yes, I've been traveling wherever the possibility to start to look at other historic venues, looking at where they've, you know, restored historic markets and souk areas and what sort of things are going in there, what are people doing there. Up in Dubai, there is a place called Al Shindagar Museum, which is where they've. Some of the historic buildings that have been saved by the creek of Dubai have been turned into the most amazing series of museums, is the only way I can describe it, because each house is a different gallery or different theme. So you have the story of the creek being built up, the story of Dubai seafarers. There was a faith and. Faith and religion room, talking about Islam and different cultures, how that's worked around Dubai. Paul Griffiths: Dubai being built up as a city, lots about the rulers and families, but every house you went to is a different place. What was so impressive there from a visitor experience perspective was the training that Stafford had was sensational. You know, you go into someone, you think they're obviously being managed really well because obviously this is. You don't just train. So obviously someone oversees this really well. But clearly the training, everywhere you went, the customer service was exceptional. People coming out from behind counters, giving you introductions, making sure you had everything needed, you know, as you were leaving. Have you got any questions? All those things we try and all have tried to teach over the years, and in many ways we've all been different levels of success of that. Paul Griffiths: But what was amazing was they also got the security guards in on the act as well, because there's a real culture here that there's a separate, they're secure, they're very different. You know, there's, we've got them here, they're in very much brown security, clearly marked, you know, protecting places. But what they've done there is they had clearly trained those security guards as well, because every security guard you came across was getting in the act of chatting to visitors, even if their English wasn't brilliant, they were really keen to direct you to the next. Come this way. So the next place, oh, you finished that room, you must go upstairs. And you know, that sort of. Paul Griffiths: And whether they, you know, really just said, look, you can have a much more interesting day than just standing, staring at people walking around. You can actually chat to visitors from around the world and get talkative. And I just had the most amazing. I ended up in this museum for over five and a half hours or something silly like that. And I thought I was going to be there an hour because it was priced very reasonably. You know, when you judge a museum on, well, actually I paid this, I'm probably going to be here for that amount of time. And actually it was just, you know, I found myself stopping for a coffee, stopping for lunch. But I was so impressed by the way the staff interacted. Paul Griffiths: They also had a number of cultural local guides as well, who really were, you know, in the full sort of Emirati national dress, but wanted to press on. This is where. This is what I'm doing. So I've some, you know, I traveled across to Fujairah every week and was in a, an old, what was the ruler's summer house. And the guy, and the guy who ran it just took me on a tour. I didn't ask for a tour. He just said, would you. Well, he said, should I take you around? Yes, please. And we had this great hours experience as he was just chatting about all the rooms. And I think people here are very keen to share their culture and their heritage and very welcoming. Paul Griffiths: So, yeah, so I've done quite a bit traveling around the other parts of the UAE. I can't go out of the UAE because I've only got a hire car at the moment, so I can't go out to Omar, that's on my list. You get yourself a car. I can travel north of the border into Oman and explore that. But for now, seven emirates to. So no shortage of places. And I've not been up to Abu Dhabi yet, so still with that on my list. So yeah, Paul Marden: Wowzers. Okay. So I guess, and this is completely, what would I feel like if I was in your position of going to this new country, immersing myself in this relatively new place that you're leading? How do I say this without flattering you? You were a well connected guy. If I went to events, everybody knew you. You had this wide network of people having worked in the UK in the attraction sector for a long time and you've now jumped over to the UAE. What's happened to the network? How does that feel? I mean it must feel slightly kind of worrying or nerve wracking. What have you done to build the network in this new place? Paul Griffiths: There's a number of points to that. Right, so let's answer in a few minutes. So the world's a smaller place so I'm still occasionally having teams call zoom calls with really close ex colleagues, friends, you know, I'm sure, I mean I always say I'm sure but everyone keeps saying, “Oh I'm really loving the journey so please keep posting. So I am going to keep posting and probably going to start to annoy people after a while”, but the feedback so far is everyone saying we're loving the journey and following you with it and feel like we're on the journey. So I will carry on. I'm sort of keeping writing stuff up and sharing it and also I don't know how long I'll be here for. You know, probation is massive over here. I have to keep my fingers crossed. Paul Griffiths: I pass probation which is a six month period because it's a real right the UAE all not just off and across the UAE. It's a real big, you know, much more than at home, much more structured. On day one was given a series and this isn't a bad thing at all, a series of probation tasks, you know, around reports that are around other historic parts because the job that I've come over will eventually evolve into a wider heritage role. But at the moment the real focus is on Al Jazeera Al Hamra, which is great. Get one site, get it going, then see where we go next. So I think I'm still connected to lots of people back home. I'm still looking, seeing everyone's posts and enjoy. Paul Griffiths: I mean my usual jealousy of not being part of the ALVA network anymore as they're all having that great time in Belfast in the last couple of days and seeing everyone's post, not just one or two, but everyone you know, Bernard down with you know everyone's post. I wish I was there with them.Paul Marden: The FOMO was real. So I had Andy Povey in the office with me yesterday and we're both saying the FOMO about that ALVAe vent was very real for both of us having. Paul Griffiths: Having spent. You know I was at the Mary Rose few years where we joined ALVA and go experiencing those council weeks and knowing just hey how much they are great for networking A. You get very spoiled because every host wants to really show off what they can do and I think the Titanic always do that because we go there before for a council meeting but it's. Yeah. So you still see this stuff. So it's still sit home and there's still people I can reach out to.Paul Marden: Of course.Paul Griffiths: If we need to and I'm still calling on people things, you know, different projects we're doing here. But then again it's about slowly building up that network here and I think there's a slightly. You know, there's a. Within Ras Al Khaimah I've started making connections with lots of other people in the Heritage world and. And outside that. So we're already, you know, connecting up with different people from different parts of Ras Al Khaimah, the work we're going to do moving forward and for me I think it's been just a. I'm sort of still pinching myself I'm here and that sort of. So many things keep happening and you know. The weather's been gorgeous because I've come out of a grim English weather to this quite nice winter here where it's mostly been late mid-20s. Paul Griffiths: You're in she and shorts when you're off duty. You know, there's other things. The thing that really surprised me is how smart actually the dress code is for business over here. Paul Marden: Okay. Paul Griffiths: So I had to sort of all the usual brands that from home Mount Marks is next everything here so you could order online and get it delivered quite quickly. So I had sort of came out of one wardrobe thinking I was going to be far more in polo shirt and linen trousers are sort of very sort of summer at Painshill look, you know outdoor. But actually yeah my colleagues are still. Because of the aircon atmosphere. Lots of colleagues particularly in the head office are in suits. A bit like where I would have been when back in my London days. When we're in the office you were in a shirt tie. So yes, I had to sort of buy A back home wardrobe almost once I got traveled out with very lightweight clothing. So yes, it's a bit different in that sense. Paul Marden:  Yeah, absolutely. Let's talk a little bit about life as an expat. How have you found the transition? Paul Griffiths: Fine so far. I say there's lots of bits around work and practice and you know, no amount of inductions will be able to help you on some little faux pas you can make about not realising where you need approvals for staff. And obviously coming from the. For the last six years of being director of Painshill and only from feeding into a board of directors, board of trustees who we'd see quarterly and you know, I chat to the chairman every week. There was a lot of me sort of making those sort of decisions instantly was here, you know, particularly as were part of the foundation and we are representing Sheikh Saud as his name's in the title of the organization now, making sure we're going through those tick sheets. Paul Griffiths: You know, if I want to do anything that needs to spend more money, that's out budget, that is going to his Highness to be signed off. So any projects we're doing, we're needing to make cases to the highest man in the country to actually get those, you know, sign offs and things. And I'm not, that's not a bad thing. But you know, it's just that from an expat I guess it's getting used to. Everything's available here. Not the big supermarket up the road sells Waitrose and Marxist products and has a room at the back for non Muslims where you push the button, door opens, it's like a little bit of a naughty boys room. Paul Griffiths: You push back door open, slides you walk in and there's the pork heaven, you know, there's bacon, there's pork scratching, patays, you know, all because it's a real, you know, it's not just there's so many expats here, particularly from the Philippines and stuff who obviously pork is a big part of their diet. So yeah, that's available. I said earlier on there's cellars where you can pick up a great beer or a couple of glasses of bottle of wine or whatever you want. So actually it's not that I found myself flying into this really different world and I'm not really. Paul Marden:  It's a melting pot, isn't it? Paul Griffiths: Yeah. And I'm not someone who's ever been since very young, you know, going off to nightclubs or anything like that. But if you wanted that There is that. The hotels. So actually, if you're a younger person coming out and you wanted that nightlife, the hotels, particularly on Margin island and Minnal Arab, the tubing hotels have really nice restaurants, fully licensed clubs and stuff. But, you know, actually I found sort of the work is busy. Everyone's, you know, lots going on, actually, just going back to, you know, I was in a hotel for the first two months, which wasn't a dreadful thing because it was an apartment hotel. So, yeah, I had enough and now we've moved. I've moved into a villa ready for the family. Come out hopefully in about a month's time.Paul Marden:  Oh, that'd be exciting. Paul Griffiths: Yeah. So that's nice. So we've got the back onto the golf course. It's quite, you know, it's a nice place to be. It's going to be nice and, you know. Paul Griffiths: Yeah, so I've not struggled adapting because it's not. It's not that, you know, normally I've got a wonderful team here, Asia, you know, so with one Emirati and some Filipinos and other people from around the. From around the world. So that's been nice. And it's melting pot of learning their cultures as well as the local culture and. Yeah. And then they eat rice with everything. So it's. Yeah. Every lunchtime there's a bowl of rice, big bowl of salad in the main course and there's me pouring on the one on the salad, everyone else on the rice. But, yeah, it's been great, Paul. I mean, I can't. It's been one of those. Every moment you think this is just a great place to be. Paul Marden: Good. Let's go back to Al Jazeera and talk a little bit about some of the events that have been going on. So I know you're coming to the end of the Ras Al Khaimah Art Festival. Tell me a little bit about that and how well that's gone. Paul Griffiths: It's been brilliant. I know. I had no idea what to expect. First time for this. So this is the 13th International Art Fair. It started off back in the small museum back in the city of Central Town, moved to here, I think, five years ago is what I'm saying, and slowly grown every year since then. So this is the biggest one we've done, really. Lots of massive sponsors on board from across the Emirates, actually fully supported by His Highness, who's been here at least four times, if not five, since we've had the vessel. He was here at the opening ceremony for the big launch, you know it was, and it was like a proper opening ceremony. Paul Griffiths: Everyone sat round with a band and speakers and you know like not quite Olympics but you know it was a proper event. This is the opening of it and it felt like a big event. Yeah. All my female members of my team had, were given time off in the day to do hair and makeup. It was proper. Everyone looked, everyone looked the business, it was lovely. You know everyone was scrubbed up from the maintenance team to, you know, our executive director looking fabulous in a brand new dress. You know it was really was. No, I've had a new suit, I got a new suit for the occasion. Paul Griffiths: So yeah, it was a lovely evening and then it's rolled ever since and for me it's been wonderful because I've seen people in this village which has been quite quiet since I'd arrived and it's sort of been okay, how are we going to get this? But actually clearly putting something on has attracted a complete cross spectrum audience. So you know, we have people coming in, absolutely fascinating, obsessed with the art, beautiful and it's artists I should say from around the world. It's all exhibited outside or inside the little houses. So you know lots of the pieces have been blown up quite big and quite impressive. I mean do look at it on the website, you know people, you know if you go to ajah.ae you can then click on from there.Paul Marden: We'll put the links and everything in the show notes so people be able to find that. Paul Griffiths: It's been, but it's been, for me it's been fabulous because we've seen so many people in, you know I was, you know, we've had, we've got pop up restaurants so this won't mean anything to people back home but the restaurant called Puro P U R O has a restaurant at the top of the mountain at Jebel Jais. Really almost impossible to get booking, you know you have to book months advance for lunch or dinner. It's the place that everybody, both locals, internationals and tourists want to see and often frequented by his Highness. They've got a pop up restaurant here which just is fabulous. Paul Griffiths: They we've had a lovely couple, Kelly and Paolo in running a restaurant called Antica which is a sort of the chef's Italian Paolo but he's lived in Australia so it's a fusion of Australian middle Italy, sort of historic villagey type cuisine with an Emirates twist. But you're just served four or five courses without there's not a menu. It's not a restaurant as such, so it's sort of a sharing experience. But you know, the food is amazing. So I was fortunate to have dinner. Well, I've actually been fortunate enough to have dinner in Antica twice and lunch there as well. But one of the dinners I was then wandering around the village about 10 o'clock at night was full of people, you know, families just. Paul Griffiths: There is a different culture over here that people do more stuff in the evenings because of the temperature and a different way of life because the local people aren't obviously, for obvious reasons, down the pub on a Friday night, they're doing stuff with the family and you go past cafes and even outside of the village, you know, 9, 10 o'clock on a Friday night, they're full of people sitting very beautifully dressed in their finest, drinking coffee and eating desserts. That's a big thing. People seem to love coffee and desserts. Paul Marden: Okay. Paul Griffiths: But, but then of course it's because because of the heat most of the year we'll spend more time indoors resting in the day and then ready to go out at night and do some more stuff. So yeah, so we've had this sort of here in the evenings. It's really fun. What was interesting is our hours for the festival were meant to be midweek. So Monday we always close. Tuesday to Thursday we're meant to be open till 6 o'clock and then Friday, Saturday, Sunday open to 11:00. Often struggling to get people out then the first night. So the Tuesday night was the first night. Medusa goes at 6:00. 5:45, I had a queue of at least 40 people trying to get in. So we just had to make an on the hooves decision. Paul Griffiths: We're going to stay open later. And then we just opened till 8:00 in the midweek. We didn't want to push it too much because of obviously from the staff welfare perspective, an hour's work. But actually that first night were just. Myself and Sikrat, who's the director of the festival, Emirati. Wonderful. Emirati has been my cultural bodyguard in many ways because he's been the person, my go to person for what should I do here? What about this person? How should I do this? So Spencer Crouch just stood there. Look at this crowd. We both just said, “Well we can't turf them away. This would be daft.” So yeah, so we've had. And we've had about 40, 000 visitors will have come through the door by the end of the festival in 28 days. Paul Griffiths: The artworks then going to stay up in place for Ramadan. So we'll be working different hours again during Ramadan and this is the first time Al Jazeera will ever do. Has ever done anything special for. Because before now it's just been a come and visit, walk in, do what you like, leave now. We're trying to structure that visitor experience. So we're going to be for Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, because Thursday's the sort of Friday night in many ways. Because a lot of people have Fridays off here. Yes, because of the day of prayers and so a lot of people in Ras Al Hamah go to Dubai and Abu Dhabi for work. So Thursday nights they'll travel back. So actually we're going to be open till midnight on Thursday, Friday, Saturday for Ramadan. Paul Griffiths: So people will break the fast with the families and then they want to do the sort of head top of activity. They've now got food back in them and an energy source. And out they come. So again, first time we've done it, hopefully see numbers with the artwork will still be in place. We're then working on some different options around cuisine, food, coffee and hopefully get some musicians in as well, just to give a bit of an atmosphere. But it is a holy month, so it's not. It's not parties, but it's enjoying the family. Paul Marden: Yeah, absolutely. So what does the future look like for the Heritage Village and for tourism and attractions more generally in RAK? Paul Griffiths: I think for RAK itself, we're trying to bring more tourists in then trying to get the most hotels. Interestingly, as they had a lunch with five of our local big hotels at the weekend using. Using our Antico restaurant, this is excuse to have another lunch there and invite some people in and just take on their views, which is great. So just chatting and getting their thoughts on it. They were saying what. What happens in Iraq a lot at the moment is people are finding the hotels through travel agents, through, you know, searches. I know when were looking before I came out here, I know Ras Al Hamra came up on a Thomas Cumbin telescope. Yeah, similar. What am I thinking of? Probably Tui, I guess, or someone like, you know, someone like that. Paul Griffiths: I was doing a search for when went to Canary, but up came Ras Al Khaimah as a hotel and what they were saying. A lot of people will book that and have no idea really what Ras Al Khaimah is, other than it's part of the UAE. Some people think it's part of Dubai, you know, actually, because it's not, they don't realize it's seven emirates, etc. So a lot of people are booking their sort of tourists, their hotels. Our job is to try and then get them out and attract them to do other stuff. So there's lots of adventure tourism going on at the moment. We talked about the zip wire and lots of hiking, walking, camel rail, camel riding, you know, trips to the desert where you can zoom around in 4x Fours and go karts and stuff. Paul Griffiths: So from my perspective of the Heritage village is about bringing it more alive, bringing more people in, promoting it, more linking up with these sorts of hoteliers, concierges. And this is really early days for us because this has always been sort of slightly done but not really pushed yet. And sort of listening to what their advice is and seeing how we can act upon it, you know, and what sort of stuff we can take forward because, you know, there's a lot to be done. And there's lots of other heritage sites across rat about 90 on the list of actual heritage sites. And some of those are real ruins that you're never going to be able to do anything with. Paul Griffiths: Those sort of English Heritage free sites, you know, the ones you stumble across with a little brown sign and you pull up with a lay by, have a potter around and off you go without seeing anyone. There's a bit like that. But then there's a number of sites that will work well with some activation. You know, we've got Dyer Fort, which is on the World Heritage site tentative list and we're working on projects to slowly take that forward to World Heritage status. Touchwood because it's a really important for, you know, and it's perfect for visits. You climb up to the top, you get the most gorgeous views. You know, really is a gorgeous little site. So more interpretation, more things there is what's needed. But you know, again, this is all early days. Paul Griffiths: So it's all about sort of, you know, each day's excitement. What can we do, what can we push forward, who can we talk to? And what's been great is as the festival's gone on, more people have been coming and chatting to me. Mine have become more, well known. That sounds wrong, goes back to your sort of earlier question about, you know, people are sort of learning about, oh, this person's here now. Paul said, although people can call me sir or Mr. Paul, which is fine. I can deal with that. Keep saying now, people, I keep saying, please don't call me sir. You really don't need to. But it's so culturally great. But Mr. Everyone see everyone externally, she's called Mr. Paul, so I can put up with that. But I was there. Although when we host his. Paul Griffiths: His Highness hosted dinner that I was invited to, I then got even pushed up to His Excellency, which was a title. I want to go. Paul Marden: That's quite nice. Paul Griffiths: Yeah, I love that. Apparently. I always thought that someone else I knew was his title. His Excellency was part of the family, but actually it's. Once you get to a CEO director level in royal that circle, you immediately become His Excellency, so. Paul Marden: Well, there we go. I will correct myself in future communications. Paul Griffiths: Please do. Yeah, but I thought it was wonderful. That's why it's just been lovely, the funny comments coming from people back home saying, oh, well, I've amended my entry in my phone to now shake your he status. But yeah, so. But there's a sort of cultural things. It's just. Okay, right, lovely. That's fun. Paul Marden: It's been a whirlwind for you. It's been really interesting actually, talking about it and understanding more about. About what's happening there, about how exciting it is, this huge opportunity that you've got to make a something out of this beautiful historic village and then that, you know, the remit will grow from there. So I think. I think this has been lovely. We always wrap up our interviews with a book recommendation and you've had this privilege once before. So have you run out of recommendations or do you have something ready for me? Paul Griffiths: Well, I was going to recommend the Red island, an Emirati story, because it's based on Al Jazeera Al Hamra, but I thought that might be a little bit too niche. This guy. So, again, little things have come across. This guy's written a book, Adil, and he's going to be coming to Al Jazeera to do a book reading signing. These little opportunities. I have read the book, I promise. It was actually fascinating because it's all about local culture. It went off in a number of tangents, but actually from a point of view of how the Emirati local culture works and families, it was actually quite a really good induction. But now I've decided to go with a more book for management or book for running. And I don't think anyone's given this before, but if they have, I'm nervous. Paul Griffiths: But this book, Fish!, which is one of my favourite books. I've actually launched this as the Al Jazeera Book Club for the spring. So all the team have a copy. Book clubs are massive over here for work. Every department has one here in the foundation. So this book, Fish, is based around the Seattle fish market. My colleagues who've worked me in the past, both. I can hear them groaning now because they've forced everyone to read this, but it's basically around having fun when you're at work. And it talks about the story of the Seattle fish market, how they were just flogging fish, but actually one day decided, we need to liven this up. We need to want to be here. So introduced, sort of involving the crowd, fish flying through the air. Paul Griffiths: But It's a more of a story about a woman joins, it moves up in a company into a department that no one's been able to manage. She gets to the bottom of using the fish market. And it's just a really fun, easy reading book. And so I recommend it to. To listeners and viewers. Paul Marden: That's brilliant. So listeners, if you would like a copy of Fish,Paul Griffiths: It's quite a cheap book as well, Paul, so please, you have to give one away. So it's not too much money. It's just 9.99 in the non fiction section. So, yeah, cheaper. Paul Marden: Bargain. Bargain. That's the trouble with. So I've been doing a few live events where we have panels, four people with book records, recommendations. That's going to bankrupt me. No, not today. We got a bargain this time. So I like this. Yeah. If you'd like a copy of Fish, if you'd like a copy of Paul's book, head on over to Bluesky and when Wenalyn posts the show note, go over there and repost it and say, I want Paul's book. And the first person to do that will get a copy of the book. Paul, delightful as always. Three times on the podcast, at least. Paul Griffiths: I think this would be number. This would be number four because we had the original episode where Kelly grilled me about life at Painshill. Then we did the Turn the Tables episode when I grilled Kelly on setting up podcasts. And then we did. Then we did the Goodbye to Kelly, whatever it was. 100 episode. And then this. Yeah, four Skip the Queues. Which is always a pleasure and I'm so delighted as you're my favourite podcast, obviously.Paul Marden: It's, oh, you say the nicest things. That must be a record. I need to go back and check that I think four times on the podcast is pretty impressive. Paul Griffiths: I think I should get to add all mine up into one as a total so I can beat Dominic Jones, who's always had the biggest number, isn't he? Paul Marden: So, yeah, so he does and he still does. So, yeah, I think aggregating the number of listens for across all of your episodes, I think that might be within the walls. Let me see what I can do and I'll add everything up and we'll see if you can take Dom's crown. Paul Griffiths: Sorry, Dom. Paul Marden:  Because he's not competitive at all. Paul Griffiths: No, he's not, mate. He's a great guy, though. So, yeah, a friendly rival. Paul Marden: Exactly. Thank you very much, Paul. I would love to keep in touch. Paul Griffiths: Let's keep talking. Paul Marden: I want to hear what happens not just after the first 90 days, but I want to hear what happens in a year's time and two years time. So thank you so much for coming on and telling us about Ras Al-Khaimah and the Heritage Village. It's been lovely. Paul Griffiths: Yeah, thanks for having me. It's great. Been a real pleasure. Paul Marden: Thanks for listening to Skip the Queue. If you've enjoyed this podcast, please leave us a five star review. It really helps others to find us. Skip The Queue is brought to you by Rubber Cheese, a digital agency that builds remarkable systems and websites for attractions that helps them to increase their visitor numbers. You can find show notes and transcripts from this episode and more over on our website, skipthequeue fm.    The 2024 Visitor Attraction Website Survey is now LIVE! Dive into groundbreaking benchmarks for the industryGain a better understanding of how to achieve the highest conversion ratesExplore the "why" behind visitor attraction site performanceLearn the impact of website optimisation and visitor engagement on conversion ratesUncover key steps to enhance user experience for greater conversionsDownload the 2024 Rubber Cheese Visitor Attraction Website Survey Report

Highlights from the rest of the English Football League. Leeds gets a last-minute winner to continue their lead at the top of the Championship, with the Blades being the only contender. Pompey has gotten a couple of wins to give themselves a bigger lead to safety. Birmingham City is starting to run away with Lg 1 as Wycombe and Wrexham fade while a surprise club is in the playoff spot. Finally, in Lg 2, Accy is still safe, but they did lose to Morecambe this weekend as the battle at the bottom gets tighter. For Premier League action, we cover EVERY match   www.Dufootballshow.com Facebook @DUfootballshow Instagram @DUfootballshow Twitch @DUfootballshow Kick @DUfootballshow TikTok @DUfootballshow YouTube @DUfootballshow

This week Beau discusses all the details concerning the conspiracy surrounding Julius Caesar's assassination.