You Want To Do What?

We chat with Ben Newman a Motorsport Engineer. Ben has known that he wanted to work in Motorsport since the age of 14, having picked up his passion for all things Motor from his dad. Ben is lucky enough to live in a town with a top level Motorsport business, which he managed to secure work experience at during his time in secondary school. Having made such a good impression during his work experience he was taken on by the business part time whilst he completed his studies. After attending university and attaining his degree Ben started to see an opportunity to specialise in the analysis side of Motorsport and since then has been involved with teams such as Bentley, Porsche and Maclaren and has also been part of teams that have competed at the British GT Championship and Le mans 24 Hour. A great in-depth chat for anyone aspiring to get into the world of Motorsport. 

We chat with Benedict Browne about life as a Men's Fashion Journalist. Benedict spent his early years interning at numerous magazines and PR agencies paying his dues, culminating in job offers from huge publications such as the Rake and Gentleman's journal which led to fantastic opportunities such as regularly traveling to Italy, visiting Bespoke designers to learn about how they make their products as well as meeting with Brands and PR agencies all across London to bring the best stories and products to the attention of the publications readers. Building a reputation for good journalism is incredibly important in the early years, the better your name the better access to new launches and influential people you will get, which in turn will allow you to write better and more informed pieces. Benedict is now a freelance writer and the reputation he built up over the five or so years he spent at magazines is now invaluable. Being driven with a get up and go attitude is a must in this highly competitive industry. Benedict's long term goal is to  start his own mens fashion store in London with a highly bespoke and well informed approach, after speaking with him we are sure it won't be too long before we see this happen.   

We chat with Matt Wallis about life as a Farrier. Being a Farrier involves many different skill sets whether that be blacksmithing, learning how to control huge animals whilst you try to carry out very intricate adjustments or even building your own business from scratch, it also requires an in depth knowledge of the anatomy of horses. Farriery is a highly regulated industry within the UK and one of the only countries around the world where you need to hold a qualification to work, it can take up to five years to qualify and it is recommended that you do an apprenticeship with an experienced Farrier to really learn the trade from them first hand. Matt gives a very honest account about his time in the industry, over twenty years of knowledge and hard graft, not to mention being on the receiving end of a few kicks. A very passionate advocate for an ancient industry that is still going strong and contrary to popular belief, growing in the 21st Century. Matt only has one real bone of contention with the industry and that is a lack of tea! So all in all a great career to get into if you love working with animals and being in the great outdoors. Just make sure you have a good flask for the tea and you should be okay.  

We Chat with Chris Smith a Semi professional Footballer currently playing at Kings Lyn. Chris started out playing football from a young age, and once he had convinced his mum and dad to take him to a local side he started to gain attention from scouts at a very early age. Chris went on to play for Ipswich until the age of eighteen and from then on has played semi pro football. Chris gives a very honest account about playing at such a high level at a young age, from the politics of selection to seeing other kids having to deal with incredibly pushy parents and the heart break of being let go when the club decides they no longer want you. Chris took a very pragmatic approach to his time at Ipswich and always kept his options open by furthering his eduction and even applying for a university place to study mechanical engineering at a time when he was still playing at Ipswich, unfortunately some young players do not and end up with very few options once they are let go. Semi Pro football sounds like the perfect option if you have a great skill set but don't necessarily want to or can't commit your entire life to the professional game, you can still earn very good money and play the game you love with your mates at a very competitive level. If you are a young footballer and want honest advice then give this a listen. 

We chat with Dr James Greenwood about life as a Vet. From the stresses of Vet school exams, to trying to piece together a diagnosis for your patients who can't exactly tell you whats wrong, to the elation of helping someones beloved pet. Being a Vet can be mentally straining and emotionally very difficult at times, but if you are as passionate about helping animals as James you come to expect that there will be ups and downs but you really wouldn't want to do anything else. James has even had the opportunity to work for the BBC, staring in "The Pets Factor" which follows James and the team whilst they treat animals, which airs on CBBC and has been running for eight seasons. As well as TV and media work James has his own podcast "Vet Together" Where he chats with pet owners about their animal tales and gives out loads of veterinary advice. Having wanted to be a vet when i was younger i found that James gave such a great insight into the reality's of actually being a Vet opposed to what we probably think being a vet is going to be like. We even had a special guest appearance from James famous one eyed dog Oliver. If your thinking about being a Vet you probably won't find a better advocate for this industry than James, a real pleasure to chat with him.   

We chat with Dr Chris Naunton about life as an Egyptologist. Ancient Egypt is one of, if not the most well known ancient civilisations in the world, Spanning across millennia with huge ups and downs, hundreds of kings and queens and of course huge feats of engineering such as the pyramids. Dr Chris has had an amazing and incredibly varied career from studying Hieroglyphs, Pharaohs and Pyramids to Tomb hunting, Writing books and making Tv documentaries, as well as running a charity and teaching the general public about the vast history of Egypt. Within the world of Egyptology their is space for those who are highly academic as well as those that can really engage and teach the general public about this fascinating period of history. If like me you love your history you will struggle to think of a cooler way to spend your working life. Where do i sign up?! 

We chat with Lucy Hodson about life as a wildlife conservationist, Lucy is a self confessed nature nerd, and loves nothing more than getting into the great outdoors and finding wildlife. From laying in the mud looking for insects, plants or fungi, to educating us all about the natural world and what we can do to help save our local wildlife. Lucy has had some amazing opportunities such as working for the BBC on numerous wildlife shows, working with amazing charities that are focused on rewilding the UK, as well as protecting the natural environment we already have. If you love wildlife and want to be involved in protecting our natural world this sounds like the perfect place to start. A very inspirational chat with a super passionate Naturalist and Conservationist.  

We chat with the co founder of Bremont, Giles English about the watch making industry and the story of the Bremont brand. Giles and his brother Nick started Bremont with the goal of bringing watch making back to the UK. Watch making and the watch industry as a whole involves highly intricate engineering, bespoke design and experimental marketing. Trusted by the worlds military's to build watches that are capable of withstanding the extreme environments they operate in, as well as partnering with the likes of Jaguar, British Airways and England Rugby, it is safe to say Bremont is establishing itself as a quintessentially British brand with a focus on expertly designed and highly engineered time pieces that will be passed down for generations. If you have the patience, dexterity, a mind for puzzles and a keen eye for detail then watch making may be for you. A pleasure to chat with Giles who is clearly very passionate about bringing watch making back to the UK and training the next generation of expert watch makers. 

We chat with Charlotte about life as a Creative Director, from working with A list celebrities and musicians such as Ed Sheeran and One Direction on anything from music videos to cover art to the long hours and pitching to win projects. Being a Creative Director requires an inquisitive nature, an ability to pull different ideas and personalities together and in Charlotte's own words " A jack of all trades and hopefully a master of some" A brilliant chat, one of our favourites so far, Charlotte exudes passion for her chosen career, it sounds like a lot of fun if your willing to put the hard work in.  

We chat with Raven about life as an Archaeologist, From ancient Egypt to ancient Greece and beyond. From huge monuments such as the pyramids to more personal items such as ancient Greek oil lamps. From super early mornings on dig days to uncovering objects from thousands of years ago that help us to piece together the story of our ancestors. Archaeology is not quite what you see in the Indiana Jones or Lara croft movies, less guns and more trowels.