NF02 February/March 2024
NF02 is a manifesto for making the next two months not just bearable but brilliant, and it’s landing in stockists as we type. In the new issue you’ll find a roundup of our favourite bites that won’t break the bank; a heart to heart with Robbie Williams’ favourite Knowle-based illustrator and friend of ghouls, The Sad Ghost Club; a cavalcade of standups riding in to save us from end-of-winter frowns; a cosmic trip into Wake the Tiger’s brand-new OUTERverse; an invitation to kick off from Bath City Women FC; and way more stuff (including a fancy pants competition) than we can possibly fit into a short and snappy caption like this.
NF02 is a manifesto for making the next two months not just bearable but brilliant, and it’s landing in stockists as we type.
In the new issue you’ll find a roundup of our favourite bites that won’t break the bank; a heart to heart with Robbie Williams’ favourite Knowle-based illustrator and friend of ghouls, The Sad Ghost Club; a cavalcade of standups riding in to save us from end-of-winter frowns; a cosmic trip into Wake the Tiger’s brand-new OUTERverse; an invitation to kick off from Bath City Women FC; and way more stuff (including a fancy pants competition) than we can possibly fit into a short and snappy caption like this.
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<strong>NF02</strong> <strong>February</strong> / <strong>March</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
thenearfield.com<br />
Wake the Tiger gets cosmic / Snack hacks with George Egg<br />
Comedy roundup / The Sad Ghost Club / What’s on / Bath City Women
downside SCHOOL<br />
come & see how<br />
downside is doing things<br />
differently<br />
co-educational day & boarding school for pupils aged 11-18<br />
daily minibuses to/from centre of bath & villages in between<br />
call issy hartnell on 01761 235103 to arrange a personalised visit<br />
www.downside.co.uk
Welcome 3<br />
Simon Tapscott<br />
Co-founder and commercial director<br />
Jack Horner<br />
Co-founder and creative director<br />
Chris Parkin<br />
Editor<br />
Sam Freeman<br />
Art director<br />
Clemmie Millbank<br />
Listings editor<br />
Camilla Cary-Elwes<br />
Subeditor<br />
SUPPORT US<br />
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from just £3 per month.<br />
patreon.com/nearfield<br />
PATREON HALL OF FAME<br />
William Rowe<br />
This issue of nearfield was printed in<br />
January <strong>2024</strong> by Zenith Print Group in<br />
Pontypridd, Wales.<br />
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simon@thenearfield.com<br />
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© nearfield <strong>2024</strong>. All information contained in<br />
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only. nearfield magazine is published by Do<br />
Good Things Limited who do not accept<br />
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Things Limited.<br />
Let’s be honest: <strong>February</strong> is rubbish. It never<br />
ranks well in favourite-month straw polls in the<br />
pub. That ‘new year, new you’ energy is worn out,<br />
winter is trolling us by this point and we’re even<br />
shortchanged on days to get stuff done. Sod that,<br />
though. Let’s make <strong>February</strong> (and <strong>March</strong>) great<br />
again. Because everyone loves a bargain, we’re<br />
pointing you in the direction of the tastiest bites<br />
that won’t blow your budget, and offering you the<br />
chance to win a night, for free, in a luxury hotel.<br />
We also get a lesson in positive mental health from<br />
Robbie Williams’ favourite Knowle-based illustrator<br />
The Sad Ghost Club, get in the brains of standups<br />
Josh Pugh, Amy Mason and Tamsyn Kelly, and<br />
explore Wake the Tiger’s imagination-revving new<br />
space. There’s also room for Bath City Women<br />
FC, Cary Grant on acid, Massive Attack, plus our<br />
events list, and food and drink section. Maybe<br />
<strong>February</strong> and <strong>March</strong> aren’t so bad after all.<br />
And remember, if you want even more of<br />
everything, visit thenearfield.com.<br />
Chris Parkin<br />
editorial@thenearfield.com<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
@the.nearfield<br />
THIS ISSUE’S<br />
CONTRIBUTORS<br />
Writers<br />
Shonette Laffy<br />
Freya Parr<br />
Rich Pelley<br />
Amanda Nicholls<br />
Photographers<br />
Francesca Jones<br />
Felix Russell-Saw<br />
Illustrator<br />
Thomas Burden<br />
(front cover)<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
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In this issue <strong>NF02</strong><br />
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46 6 72<br />
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Features<br />
31 BEST CHEAP EATS<br />
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A collection of pursefriendly<br />
food places that<br />
don’t skimp on quality<br />
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41 THE SAD GHOST CLUB<br />
Meet the Knowle-based<br />
illustrator spreading positive<br />
awareness of mental health<br />
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15 FOOD & DRINK<br />
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COMPETITION<br />
46 WAKE THE TIGER<br />
Take a peek into the cosmic<br />
new space at Bristol’s<br />
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multi-sensory wonderland<br />
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thenearfield.com<br />
52 COMEDY ROUNDUP<br />
Josh Pugh, Amy Mason,<br />
Tamsyn Kelly and Slapstick<br />
Festival are all on frownslaying<br />
form<br />
58 BATH CITY WOMEN FC<br />
We hand our pages over to<br />
the manager and players of<br />
this rising community club<br />
74<br />
15<br />
Win a night for two,<br />
plus breakfast, at<br />
harbourside hotel,<br />
The Bristol<br />
Regulars<br />
6 FIELD NOTES<br />
The Holburne<br />
Museum, Simple<br />
Things Festival,<br />
Cary Grant, the<br />
Bristol zine scene<br />
and ultramarathon<br />
sadism<br />
The Granary, cosy<br />
pubs with rooms and<br />
TikTok sensations<br />
Urban Tandoor<br />
21 THE LIST<br />
Your guide to what’s<br />
on in the southwest<br />
68 IT HAPPENED HERE<br />
Before Massive<br />
Attack there was The<br />
Wild Bunch – we dig<br />
into the archives<br />
72 MY NEARFIELD<br />
With artist, illustrator<br />
and record sleeve<br />
designer Victoria<br />
Topping<br />
Contents 5
NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD •<br />
6 Field Notes<br />
FieldNotes<br />
Keeping you clued-up about life in the southwest<br />
ALL CHANGE<br />
The Holburne Museum’s<br />
new curator of<br />
contemporary art, Layla<br />
Gatens, tells us about her<br />
ambitious, unifying plans<br />
“I believe galleries and museums<br />
should uplift a multitude of<br />
perspectives; amplify different<br />
voices and practices to tell<br />
stories in different ways; and<br />
create pockets of sanctuary.<br />
Lost Threads Turner Prize winner Lubaina Himid’s Holburne installation<br />
“There still aren’t enough<br />
institutions working collectively<br />
with others. I’m interested in how<br />
we can use creative practice<br />
and museum programming<br />
to work towards change,<br />
through personal and social<br />
transformation. How can art and<br />
creative practices enable us to<br />
find moments of rest, joy and<br />
pleasure among the ongoing<br />
crises faced by our society?<br />
“The Holburne Museum launched<br />
a contemporary programme in<br />
2018 to bring more experimental<br />
practices and debates to the<br />
southwest. This year we’re<br />
presenting the Turner Prizewinning<br />
artist Lubaina<br />
Himid’s Lost Threads (see<br />
The List), an ambitious<br />
installation reflecting the<br />
movement of the oceans<br />
and rivers that have<br />
been used to transport textiles,<br />
as well as enslaved people.<br />
“The Holburne is free for anyone<br />
aged 18 and under, and students<br />
can visit for free. We also host<br />
free Up Late sessions on the<br />
last Friday of each month.<br />
We want audiences to feel<br />
welcomed, seen by and<br />
part of the Museum.”<br />
nfld.io/holburne<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Field Notes 7<br />
RADIO ACTION<br />
Where we celebrate local radio. This issue,<br />
we meet Noods Radio’s Agata Chudziak<br />
IN THE MUCK<br />
AND NETTLES<br />
Where can we hear you?<br />
“I have a monthly show on<br />
Noods – Concrete Pillow.<br />
My next two are on 14<br />
<strong>February</strong> and 13 <strong>March</strong>.”<br />
What will we hear?<br />
“80s new wave, dream<br />
pop, synth and a sprinkle<br />
of 90s electronica and<br />
shoegaze. I schedule in<br />
new releases that fit this<br />
ethereal, romantic and<br />
slightly gritty world.”<br />
Why is independent<br />
radio important?<br />
“It is to DJs what<br />
grassroots venues are to<br />
bands. It provides a space<br />
for underrepresented,<br />
underprivileged creators.<br />
For listeners, it gives them<br />
music and information<br />
unrestricted by trends,<br />
charts or adverts.”<br />
Who else should we<br />
check out?<br />
“Angelkin’s 999Hz and<br />
Monksy’s Earth Worms.<br />
They play ethereal and<br />
experimental sounds with<br />
a lot of synth; what’s not<br />
to love? I also want to<br />
shout out Mria and her<br />
Home Remedies show.”<br />
What do you get up to<br />
off-air?<br />
“I have plans for an 80s<br />
goth and new romantic<br />
club night in Bristol. I’m<br />
also excited for my first<br />
solo live shows.”<br />
noodsradio.com<br />
Great Avon Wood, the 100-acre<br />
community woodland near Pensford,<br />
founded by Forest of Avon Trust and<br />
Avon Needs Trees, is looking for<br />
volunteers to help plant 16,000 trees<br />
by winter’s end. Alex Stone, of the<br />
Forest of Avon Trust, explains why.<br />
“A lot of what we’re doing is restoring<br />
trees back where they were many<br />
years ago, and this site is full of history<br />
and heritage. Planting and caring for<br />
our region’s trees helps clean and cool<br />
our air, reduces flooding, and provides<br />
a home for declining species of birds,<br />
bugs and fungi.”<br />
Sign up to volunteer.<br />
avonneedstrees.org.uk<br />
Photo: www.alexanderturnerphotography.com<br />
Pick of<br />
the pops<br />
Catch this lot<br />
(and more) at<br />
Bristol all-dayand-nighter,<br />
Simple Things,<br />
on 24 <strong>February</strong>.<br />
nfld.io/simple<br />
Kayla Painter<br />
Bristol’s sonic<br />
innovator opens<br />
proceedings in<br />
the Beacon’s main<br />
hall with a new<br />
laser AV show<br />
centred around<br />
her deep-listening<br />
electronics.<br />
Space Afrika<br />
Leading lights<br />
of Manchester’s<br />
experimental<br />
scene, this duo<br />
specialise in<br />
subaqueous<br />
dub techno<br />
and nocturnal<br />
ambient.<br />
CASISDEAD<br />
Do not miss this<br />
masked grime<br />
MC whose debut<br />
album featured<br />
Pet Shop Boys’<br />
Neil Tennant. Get<br />
in on the ground<br />
floor before he<br />
lifts off.<br />
Gilla Band<br />
Dublin’s loudest.<br />
Prepare to be<br />
pummelled by<br />
surging, jetplanelanding<br />
guitars,<br />
and tickled by<br />
lyrics Mark E.<br />
Smith would’ve<br />
been proud of.<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
8 Field Notes<br />
Horfield boy<br />
Ahead of the spring launch of their Cary Grant<br />
walking tour, Show of Strength’s Sheila Hannon<br />
lets us in on her favourite Cary tidbits<br />
The Oscar also-ran<br />
Cary became super rich after beating Hollywood’s contract<br />
system. This may be why, despite nominations, he never<br />
won an Oscar (though he eventually received an honorary<br />
one in 1970). He also became a director of Fabergé.<br />
The father<br />
With fourth wife Dyan Cannon,<br />
Cary became a father for the first<br />
time at 61. He virtually gave up<br />
acting to spend as much time<br />
with Jennifer as possible. Dyan<br />
and Jennifer’s books were the<br />
sources for the ITV drama, Archie.<br />
Show of Strength’s<br />
Raising Cary Grant<br />
tour takes place<br />
from 29 <strong>March</strong><br />
to 1 April<br />
nfld.io/caryg<br />
The serial husband<br />
Cary’s first wife was another<br />
English actor who made it big<br />
in Hollywood: Virginia Cherrill,<br />
star of Charlie Chaplin’s 1931<br />
silent film City Lights. His second<br />
was Woolworth heiress Barbara<br />
Hutton. They became known as<br />
Cash and Cary.<br />
The proto hippy<br />
Cary experimented with alternative<br />
treatments and therapies. In the late 50s,<br />
Betsy Drake, his third wife, recommended LSD<br />
and Cary took over 100 trips. He once told his<br />
daughter Jennifer: “You know how old ships<br />
or whales get barnacles on their belly? LSD<br />
helped me remove the barnacles.”<br />
The acrobat<br />
Born Archie Leach<br />
in Horfield, Bristol,<br />
on 18 January 1904,<br />
Cary ran away at<br />
14 to join a troupe<br />
of boy acrobats:<br />
Bob Pender’s<br />
Knockabout<br />
Comedians. He<br />
sailed to America<br />
with them a few<br />
years later. When<br />
his contract ended,<br />
Cary stayed on,<br />
picking up work as<br />
a stilt walker on<br />
Coney Island when<br />
times were hard.<br />
Plaza Cinema<br />
Walliscote Road,<br />
Weston-super-Mare<br />
Special screenings at this art deco<br />
wonder are accompanied by<br />
a Compton theatre organ which<br />
rises from the pit.<br />
SILVER SCREENS<br />
Curzon Cinema & Arts<br />
Old Church Road, Clevedon<br />
One of the oldest purpose-built<br />
cinemas in the world, the Curzon<br />
opened in 1912 with a fundraiser<br />
for the relatives of the Titanic<br />
disaster. And on it goes…<br />
20th Century Flicks<br />
Christmas Steps, Bristol<br />
The longest-running video rental<br />
store in the world (so it’s claimed)<br />
has a two-screen micro cinema<br />
where you can watch any of the<br />
20,000-plus films in stock.<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
10 Field Notes<br />
Meet<br />
CAIT COOKE<br />
the<br />
makers<br />
ZINEZILLA ILLUSTRATION & ZINE FAIR<br />
Zinezilla Illustration and Zine Fair is back<br />
for the third edition of MEGALAZINE. Taking<br />
over Bristol creative space KIT FORM, in<br />
Stokes Croft, Zinezilla provides a platform<br />
for established and up-and-coming<br />
creators alike to tout everything from<br />
comics, zines and clay, to posters, prints<br />
and clothing. Co-founder Mereida Fajardo<br />
highlights six local illustrators and zinemakers<br />
to check out on the day.<br />
Produced by designer Cait Cooke,<br />
I Wanna Be! is a grassroots<br />
zine focused on self-discovery,<br />
individuality and ‘becoming’, aimed at<br />
young women and non-binary people.<br />
Its first issue combines interviews,<br />
photography and illustrations to<br />
explore the modern punk scene with<br />
intelligence and openness. She’s<br />
a zine-maker to watch.<br />
@iwannabemag<br />
DIRTPIGEON<br />
Calcifer Cole – who is better known<br />
in the scene as DirtPigeon – is<br />
a trans artist who weaves highly<br />
saturated colours, nonsense<br />
and clowns into their sprawling<br />
collection of work. Their art, ranging<br />
from zines and prints to patches<br />
and pins, is queer and colourful.<br />
Just like them!<br />
@dirtpigeon<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Field Notes 11<br />
GENARO<br />
MARTINEZ<br />
MEDINA<br />
Currently artist in residence<br />
at The Wilson Art Gallery<br />
& Museum in Cheltenham,<br />
Genaro’s vibrant illustrations<br />
take inspiration from his<br />
surroundings and Mexican<br />
heritage. His desk is a place<br />
where bright zines and smart<br />
editorial images collide<br />
with experimental art books<br />
tackling big themes.<br />
genaromartinez.co.uk<br />
MEGALAZINE<br />
takes place at KIT<br />
FORM, Jamaica<br />
Street Studios, on<br />
10 <strong>March</strong>, from<br />
12noon<br />
nfld.io/zines<br />
SEADOG COLLECTIVE<br />
Seadog is a collective of<br />
enthusiastic zinesters, illustrators<br />
and comic nerds based in<br />
Bristol. Prolific in their output,<br />
Edie Woolf, Ang Hui Qing and<br />
Jay Arthur Simpson create<br />
wonderfully bright and varied<br />
zines and comics alongside<br />
gorgeous prints and garments.<br />
@seadogcollective<br />
ETHAN LLEWELLYN<br />
Bristol-based cartoonist and<br />
illustrator Ethan Llewellyn<br />
is going places. Inspired by<br />
underground comics and the<br />
seedy underbelly of society,<br />
his dark, funny and expertly<br />
crafted comic anthology Naff has<br />
revealed Ethan as a fully formed<br />
cartoonist who is ready to take<br />
on the world.<br />
@ethanllewellyncartoons<br />
ROMAN<br />
MACRAE<br />
Inspired by folklore,<br />
horror and demonic<br />
fantasy, illustrator,<br />
designer and selfpublishing<br />
artist<br />
Roman Macrae wields<br />
his ink brush like<br />
a sword to craft dark<br />
and delicious comics.<br />
Having fun with<br />
character designs<br />
and panel layouts,<br />
his debut graphic<br />
novel Losing My<br />
Shadow shows we<br />
have much to expect<br />
from this exciting new<br />
cartoonist.<br />
romanmacrae.com<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Field Notes 13<br />
GOING<br />
UNDERGROUND<br />
Taking place over the weekend<br />
spanning 1-3 <strong>March</strong>, The Tunnel is<br />
a 200-mile endurance event organised<br />
by ultramarathon sadists Cockbain.<br />
Runners are tasked with completing<br />
a hundred ‘out-and-backs’ through<br />
the mile-long Combe Down Tunnel<br />
within 55 hours. Bristol runner Andy<br />
Persson, who was in his mid-50s when<br />
he completed the event, describes the<br />
experience (horror?) for us.<br />
“I’m no stranger to endurance running,<br />
having completed several longdistance<br />
runs including John o’Groats<br />
to Land’s End, the 630-mile South West<br />
Coast Path, and the 250-mile Thames<br />
Ring. However, The Tunnel presented<br />
a whole new challenge. I was attracted<br />
by the stripped-down simplicity: no<br />
support, no earphones, no light, no<br />
navigation – just running, non-stop, for<br />
over 200 miles.<br />
“I loved all 53 hours. There’s something<br />
calming and contemplative about<br />
running in the dark for so long, but<br />
my abiding memory of the experience<br />
is the hallucinations. They reached<br />
a whole other level in this race, with<br />
exotic carvings in the walls, diamondencrusted<br />
floors and a glass ceiling, all<br />
of which I was convinced were there.<br />
“The other great draw is how low-key it<br />
is. You’ve just run over 200 miles and at<br />
the finish there are a handful of people<br />
waiting for you. You get a handshake<br />
and a medal from Mark [the organiser],<br />
and then you trudge home. The<br />
hallucinations continued for several<br />
hours after, the muscle ache for several<br />
days, but the sense of achievement<br />
hangs around forever.”<br />
Fancy it? Start prepping for 2025,<br />
and stay tuned for all the details.<br />
cockbainevents.com<br />
Find your<br />
pace<br />
Weston-super-<br />
Mare Half<br />
Marathon<br />
This seaside run on<br />
29 <strong>March</strong> takes you<br />
along the seafront,<br />
on the sand, and<br />
onto the pier.<br />
nfld.io/wsmhalf<br />
Bath Trail<br />
Runners<br />
Find your offroad<br />
feet with<br />
this friendly crew.<br />
Mondays are for<br />
beginners with<br />
gentle 5k runs.<br />
bathtrailrunners.<br />
org<br />
Left Handed<br />
Giant Running<br />
Club<br />
Join this relaxed<br />
running group at<br />
the Left Handed<br />
Giant Brewpub,<br />
in Bristol, on<br />
Tuesdays at 6pm.<br />
nfld.io/lhgrun<br />
CLIMBING THE WALLS<br />
Running not your thing? Destroy your<br />
fingers instead at the BOFF Climbing<br />
Festival at Flashpoint Bristol on Saturday,<br />
2 <strong>March</strong>. Expect an abundance of new<br />
boulder problems and categories for<br />
all abilities and ages, plus pizza, drinks,<br />
trampolining, raffles and brand stalls.<br />
nfld.io/boff<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
The Great Wine Co.<br />
The finest wines and spirits since 1983<br />
The Great Wine Company,<br />
Wells Road, Bath BA2 3AP<br />
Shop - Open to public<br />
Customer car parking<br />
www.greatwine.co.uk
Food & Drink 15<br />
Food&Drink<br />
COMPILED BY AMANDA NICHOLLS<br />
FLAVOUR OF<br />
THE MONTH<br />
Breakfast club<br />
The Granary’s<br />
sesame buttered<br />
spinach with<br />
poached eggs and<br />
buckwheat waffle<br />
THE GRANARY<br />
32 Welsh Back, Bristol<br />
Word of a tip-top Harveys Bristol<br />
Cream trifle was what lured us<br />
to Welsh Back’s latest opening<br />
– along with our curiosity to see<br />
what else this new incarnation<br />
of the cobbled street’s striking<br />
Bristol Byzantine building would<br />
have in store.<br />
Built in local red Cattybrook brick<br />
in the 19th century and first used<br />
to dry large quantities of grain,<br />
the Grade II-listed Granary has<br />
had plenty of colourful moments<br />
since, largely as a music venue<br />
hosting everyone from Lemmy’s<br />
Motörhead to Iron Maiden in the<br />
60s, 70s and 80s. It was also<br />
where Del Boy fell through the<br />
bar in that episode of Only Fools<br />
and Horses.<br />
Back to the present day, though,<br />
and in its tall glass of tart cherry<br />
jelly, almond cake and tonka<br />
custard, the trifle that snagged<br />
our attention followed through<br />
on its promise – an undeniable<br />
highlight, even after delicious<br />
sourdough flatbreads with firebraised<br />
tomatoes, ricotta and<br />
hot honey, and slow-cooked<br />
aubergine makhani dahl with<br />
crispy buckwheat. The flamegrilled<br />
lamb kofta with blackened<br />
cabbage, garlic and fennel seed<br />
butter was cooked to perfection,<br />
as you might expect from a team<br />
that has earned its stripes at<br />
Jamaica Street Stores, Harbour<br />
House and The Christmas Steps.<br />
Sesame buttered spinach,<br />
poached eggs, cider hollandaise,<br />
buckwheat waffle: don’t think<br />
we didn’t clock you on the menu.<br />
We’ll be back for you at breakfast<br />
soon – along with a few cocktails,<br />
too, now the basement has been<br />
transformed into a live venue<br />
which aims to plug the Granary<br />
back into its amped-up past.<br />
Small plates £5-£9,<br />
fired dishes £9-£28<br />
granarybristol.com<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
16 Food & Drink<br />
STAY COSY<br />
Snug pubs that offer it all: country walks,<br />
indulgence and a comfy bed<br />
THE BATH ARMS<br />
Longleat, Horningsham<br />
Gingerbread croutons in sweet<br />
potato, chilli and coconut<br />
soup; and fresh yet comforting<br />
couscous peppered with<br />
pomegranate, chestnuts and<br />
charred winter cabbage. Just<br />
a couple of the refreshingly creative<br />
veggie dishes offered by this vine-covered 1736 pub on<br />
Wiltshire’s Longleat Estate, which supplies the menu’s<br />
meat and game. This characterful gaff is also the Beckford<br />
Group’s first to offer a bonus spa experience. Bramley’s<br />
small-batch Somerset skincare is provided alongside<br />
brilliant massage therapist Lucy Walters in a snug<br />
shepherd’s hut newly opened in the gardens.<br />
Mains £15-£25; batharmsinn.com<br />
THE CASTLE INN<br />
West Street, Castle Combe<br />
If you want the ‘prettiest village in<br />
England’ all to yourself once the<br />
daytrippers have scarpered, your<br />
best bet is a sleepover at the 12thcentury<br />
Castle Inn – Trencherman’s<br />
best pub of 2023 – with its wonky<br />
walls, twisting corridors, friendly staff,<br />
and attention to detail. Bagsy the<br />
four-poster room for views of stout,<br />
ivy-clad cottages and the square<br />
where scenes from War Horse and<br />
The Wolfman were shot. Cross the<br />
Bybrook’s tiny bridge for an appetitesummoning<br />
woodland walk among<br />
song thrushes and goldcrests, before<br />
hearty cheddar and ale soup, beasty<br />
beef-dripping chips, and warm honey<br />
and thyme madeleines tempt you<br />
back to base.<br />
Mains £18-£28;<br />
exclusive.co.uk/the-castle-inn<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Food & Drink 17<br />
SIGN OF THE ANGEL<br />
6 Church Street, Lacock<br />
A favourite of film location scouts,<br />
Lacock village is home to a 15thcentury,<br />
five-bedroom coaching inn<br />
that doubles as The Babberton Arms<br />
in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood<br />
Prince. Behind the Tudor façade is<br />
a wood-panelled sitting room,<br />
a dog-friendly restaurant (with two<br />
AA Rosettes) offering fireside dinners<br />
– venison pithivier with pickled<br />
blackberry perhaps, or sage gnocchi<br />
– and homely rooms filled with<br />
centuries-old original features.<br />
Mains £17-£35; signoftheangel.co.uk<br />
THE ROYAL OAK<br />
1 Cirencester Road, Tetbury<br />
Photos: Amy Murrell ; Pete Helme Photography<br />
Oak Lodge’s low wooden beams<br />
and freestanding roll-top tubs<br />
are a welcome sight after an<br />
afternoon rummaging in Tetbury’s<br />
classy boutiques and a bellyful<br />
of monkfish curry or rarebit tart<br />
with charred apple salsa in the<br />
Oak’s saloon bar. Complete with<br />
art deco piano, vintage jukebox,<br />
upcycled church panelling, and<br />
cosy booths, this lively 18thcentury<br />
freehouse was restored<br />
back to the community a decade<br />
ago and the local vibe is palpable.<br />
Mains £16.50-£28;<br />
theroyaloaktetbury.co.uk<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
18 Food & Drink<br />
Urban<br />
legends<br />
The Bristol curry champions spicing up the<br />
TikTok algorithm and winning over celeb fans<br />
with their reimagined pop classics<br />
For staff at Bristol’s award-winning Urban<br />
Tandoor, turning up for work these days is<br />
a little like stepping into an episode of Stars<br />
in Their Eyes. They don’t know which pop icon<br />
they’ll be playing next as they help owner<br />
Sujith D’Almeida turn his latest TikTok dream<br />
into reality: “They don’t have a clue what’s<br />
coming,” he says, “or whether they’re going to<br />
be George Michael or Mariah Carey that day.”<br />
The curry kings, on Small Street and<br />
Whiteladies Road, have become social media<br />
sensations thanks to their spoofs of popular<br />
songs. Given an Indian flavour to match the<br />
food, their top-performing tracks – currently<br />
racking up millions of views – include Bhaji<br />
Girl, You’re the Naan That I Want and I Bet You<br />
Look Good at the Tandoor.<br />
Starting out with an ethos of “less oil, no<br />
colourings, fresh cooking” back in 2013,<br />
when first-time restaurateur Sujith took to the<br />
streets with chicken tikka to tempt in potential<br />
diners, Urban Tandoor has always prided itself<br />
on its points of difference – and its tonguein-cheek<br />
attitude. Which, in their case, means<br />
Sweet Caroline and Come on Eileen on the<br />
restaurant playlist, waiters wishing diners<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Food & Drink 19<br />
“We don’t want to be<br />
a big chain – we want to<br />
continue to be something<br />
just for Bristol”<br />
good luck for their next mistake the night<br />
before they get hitched, and churning out<br />
algorithm-riding TikTok smashes.<br />
The journey to viral success started in<br />
lockdown as an antidote to the doom and<br />
gloom. “We wanted to put smiles on people’s<br />
faces,” says Sujith, recalling the moment<br />
things really took off with Bring Another<br />
Tray, their cover of East 17’s Stay Another<br />
Day. They’ve since had Maya Jama and UB40<br />
sharing and liking videos, and the Hairy Bikers<br />
have been down for dinner. Staff are quickly<br />
gaining celeb status with a stream of visitors<br />
arriving from around the world to meet their<br />
heroes. “They were confused at first when<br />
people asked for a photo,” says Sujith. “They<br />
thought they were being asked to take<br />
a photo, not be in one.”<br />
It’s still all about the diner, though: free<br />
desserts are dished out when there’s an<br />
occasion to celebrate, and fame is nothing<br />
compared to the messages they get from new<br />
fans and loyal customers alike. “We don’t want<br />
to become a big chain,” says Sujith, “we want<br />
to continue to be something just for Bristol.”<br />
Bombarded with suggestions for future<br />
videos, they’re essentially now accepting<br />
requests, and Sujith cryptically promises to<br />
take things to the next level this year.<br />
Mains £10.25-£18.95; urban-tandoor.com<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
A VOYAGE OF CULINARY DISCOVERY & MUSICAL MISCHIEF<br />
SUN<br />
Sugababes<br />
Bombay Bicycle Club<br />
CMAT • Newton Faulkner • Billie Marten<br />
Gentleman’s Dub Club • Mista Trick Collective • A.Skillz<br />
Wille And The Bandits • Omega Nebula • The Ultimate ABBA Party<br />
SAT<br />
FOOD & CHEFS<br />
Nathan Outlaw • Tom Brown • Emily Scott • Jack Stein • Thuy Diem Pham<br />
Mark Hix • Richard Bertinet • Poppy O’Toole • Jude Kereama • Andrew Tuck • Ana Ortiz<br />
Demonstrations • Foraging • Feasts • Masterclasses • Chef Tipis • Cooking Over Fire<br />
FAMILY & WELLBEING<br />
Comedy • Cabaret • Talks • Fancy Dress Parade • The Flying Seagull Project • Circus Skills<br />
Arts & Crafts • Fairground • Kids Cookery School • Under The Canopy Bushcraft<br />
Cosmic's Art Space • Coasteering • Surf Lessons • Kayaking • Yoga • Sauna • Massage & Facials<br />
SCAN FOR MORE<br />
£20 DEPOSIT SCHEME TICKETS AVAILABLE
NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD •<br />
The List 21<br />
TheList<br />
What’s on locally this <strong>February</strong> and <strong>March</strong><br />
COMPILED BY<br />
CLEMMIE MILLBANK<br />
CLOSE TO<br />
THE BONE<br />
Samuel Brewer, cofounder<br />
of disability-led<br />
theatre crew FlawBored,<br />
tells us about their new,<br />
squirm-inducing show<br />
For loads<br />
more events, visit<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
Photos: Guy Sanders<br />
It’s a Motherf**king Pleasure<br />
comes at a good time in terms<br />
of where culture sits around<br />
identity politics. Especially in<br />
the way we talk about disability<br />
and its interactions with other<br />
individual identities. We take<br />
down everyone, from the wellintentioned<br />
to the rude,<br />
ourselves and the audience.<br />
Hopefully you’ll laugh; you’ll also<br />
feel uncomfortable and squirm<br />
quite a bit.<br />
The thing I love most about<br />
theatre is being in a room and<br />
making something that makes<br />
you laugh… and then realising<br />
you’re too deep into the joke<br />
and you need to work out what<br />
audiences will find funny next.<br />
You have to keep a rhythm with<br />
dialogue and you might spend<br />
an hour working out if the word<br />
‘has’ or ‘had’ will be funnier in<br />
a sentence.<br />
I really love shows that are<br />
‘aware’ they’re theatre. Not<br />
taking themselves seriously but<br />
taking the work seriously. Also,<br />
a large proportion of shows<br />
are becoming more and more<br />
accessible, and this means as<br />
someone with low vision I have<br />
more choice and agency.<br />
One of my favourite spots in the<br />
southwest is Cosies! in St Pauls.<br />
I love drum ’n’ bass. And I tell you<br />
what, that Clifton Suspension<br />
Bridge is a marvellous feat of<br />
engineering. Love bridges.<br />
Watch It’s a Motherf**king<br />
Pleasure at The Weston Studio,<br />
Bristol Old Vic, from 25-30<br />
<strong>March</strong>. nfld.io/motherflip<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD •<br />
22 The List<br />
Unbroken<br />
Weston College, Weston-super-Mare<br />
28 <strong>February</strong><br />
Award-winning physical theatre artist Nikki Rummer delivers<br />
a powerful, personal solo show about family, betrayal and<br />
freedom, weaving in acrobatics, gymnastics and capoeira.<br />
Presented with the Rural Touring Dance Initiative, and<br />
supported by Super Culture.<br />
nfld.io/unbroke<br />
Bugged Out x<br />
Document<br />
Document, Bristol<br />
17 <strong>February</strong><br />
Celebrate 30 years<br />
since Bugged Out<br />
first stormed Sankeys<br />
Soap in Manchester<br />
with a pedal-tothe-metal<br />
all-dayer<br />
designed to make<br />
you forget it’s still<br />
light out. Featuring<br />
everyone’s favourite<br />
Belgian ravers<br />
2manydjs, plus Erol<br />
Alkan b2b with Palms<br />
Trax, and loads more.<br />
nfld.io/bugged<br />
PROMOTED<br />
BC Camplight<br />
Komedia, Bath<br />
8 <strong>March</strong><br />
BC Camplight is<br />
the moniker of US<br />
singer-songwriter<br />
Brian Christinzio.<br />
Pitching up<br />
somewhere between<br />
Ben Folds and Badly<br />
Drawn Boy, he<br />
brings his brand of<br />
quirky indie-pop<br />
to Komedia for the<br />
first time.<br />
nfld.io/bccamp<br />
Photo: Camilla Greenwell<br />
Angeline Morrison<br />
& Daudi Matsiko<br />
Strange Brew,<br />
Bristol<br />
8 <strong>March</strong><br />
Get lost in Morrison’s<br />
haunting restorytelling<br />
as she<br />
brings to life the<br />
world of the UK’s<br />
forgotten Black<br />
ancestors through<br />
her intoxicating,<br />
lyrical and reliably<br />
experimental<br />
folk songs. She’s<br />
joined by Ugandan<br />
singer-songwriter<br />
and guitarist Daudi<br />
Matsiko.<br />
nfld.io/angel<br />
Ritual Union<br />
Various venues,<br />
Bristol<br />
23 <strong>March</strong><br />
Catch the next wave<br />
of musical talent at<br />
Bristol indie fest,<br />
Ritual Union. Topping<br />
the bill with fizzing<br />
alt-pop and rock<br />
are Dream Wife, Liz<br />
Lawrence, Do Nothing<br />
and Widowspeak,<br />
plus there’s an<br />
opening set from cult<br />
post-punk recluse,<br />
Martin Newell (AKA<br />
The Cleaners From<br />
Venus).<br />
nfld.io/ritual<br />
PROMOTED<br />
Starter for Ten<br />
Bristol Old Vic<br />
29 <strong>February</strong> to 30 <strong>March</strong><br />
Adapted from the hilarious novel by David Nicholls and<br />
its later film adaptation, Starter for Ten is a bright, bighearted<br />
new musical. Featuring an irresistible 80s-inspired<br />
soundtrack, this coming-of-age comedy is about love,<br />
belonging, and the all-important difference between<br />
knowledge and wisdom.<br />
nfld.io/starter<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD •<br />
24 The List<br />
Present Tense<br />
Hauser & Wirth, Bruton<br />
Until 28 April<br />
Featuring 23 emerging to midcareer<br />
contemporary artists,<br />
this exhibition shows the next<br />
generation testing the boundaries<br />
of their mediums to address<br />
and confront notions of identity,<br />
consciousness, humanity and<br />
representation within the current<br />
cultural climate.<br />
nfld.io/ptense<br />
Right Ania Hobson, Let the Land Speak<br />
(2023), oil on canvas, 210 x 190 cm.<br />
Courtesy the artist. Photo<br />
© Ania Hobson<br />
Bottom right Emanuel de Carvalho,<br />
defence incessant (2023), oil on linen,<br />
200 x 300 cm. Courtesy the artist and<br />
Gathering, London. Photo<br />
© Grey Hutton<br />
Bottom left Sang Woo Kim, You’re<br />
looking at me (2023), oil on canvas, 50 x<br />
40 x 2 cm. Courtesy the artist. Photo<br />
© Damian Griffiths<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD •<br />
The List 25<br />
ONE YEAR! Photographs from<br />
the Miners’ Strike 1984/85<br />
Martin Parr Foundation, Bristol<br />
Until 31 <strong>March</strong><br />
Four decades on, explore the role photography played in<br />
the bitter disputes between the National Coal Board and<br />
Conservative government. This collection demonstrates the<br />
power of photography as a tool of resistance.<br />
nfld.io/oneyear<br />
Wildlife<br />
Photographer of<br />
the Year 2023<br />
Bristol Museum<br />
& Art Gallery<br />
Until 21 April<br />
Featuring<br />
soundscapes, videos,<br />
expert insights<br />
and, of course, the<br />
contest’s 100 winning<br />
photographs, this<br />
annual show captures<br />
the minutiae of animal<br />
behaviour and all the<br />
breathtaking diversity<br />
of the natural world.<br />
nfld.io/wildpix<br />
The Wonderful<br />
World of the<br />
Ladybird Book<br />
Artists<br />
Victoria Art<br />
Gallery, Bath<br />
Until 14 April<br />
Take a little trip down<br />
memory lane with this<br />
collection of vintage<br />
Ladybird artwork.<br />
Along the way, trace<br />
the interconnected<br />
stories linking these<br />
iconic covers and<br />
their creators, and<br />
learn more about the<br />
models and locations<br />
pictured.<br />
nfld.io/ladyb<br />
Photos: John Sturrock/reportdigital.co.uk; Laura Ford, Dancing Clog Girls (2015), bronze<br />
Acts of Creation:<br />
On Art and<br />
Motherhood<br />
Arnolfini, Bristol<br />
9 <strong>March</strong> to 26 May<br />
Plunge into the<br />
joys, heartaches,<br />
mess, myths and<br />
complexities of<br />
motherhood in this<br />
major Hayward<br />
Gallery Touring<br />
exhibition. Work by<br />
more than 60 artists<br />
presents motherhood<br />
as a creative<br />
enterprise tempered<br />
by ambivalence, grief<br />
and exhaustion.<br />
nfld.io/actc<br />
Lubaina Himid:<br />
Lost Threads<br />
Holburne Museum,<br />
Bath<br />
Until 21 April<br />
Weaving and flowing<br />
throughout the<br />
gallery and museum’s<br />
collections is Lost<br />
Threads’ 400m of<br />
vibrant Dutch wax<br />
fabric. This is the<br />
work of British artist,<br />
Himid, who uses her<br />
career to uncover<br />
marginalised and<br />
silenced histories,<br />
figures, and cultural<br />
expressions.<br />
nfld.io/lostthreads<br />
The Guts and The Glory<br />
Bo Lee and Workman, Bruton<br />
Until 2 <strong>March</strong><br />
Six painters and sculptors – Samuel Bassett, Kim Booker,<br />
Tomo Campbell, Laura Ford, Alexis Soul-Gray and Clare<br />
Woods – explore modern-day concerns by refracting the<br />
visual language of art history through their own wholly unique<br />
contemporary vision.<br />
nfld.io/guts<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
AMERICAN<br />
ROAD TRIP<br />
The new special<br />
exhibition for <strong>2024</strong>,<br />
celebrating epic road<br />
trips across America<br />
9 <strong>March</strong> –<br />
31 December<br />
SPONSORED BY<br />
DAFFODIL MONTH<br />
Mid-<strong>March</strong> – April<br />
Enjoy a feel-good start to spring<br />
with 70,000 daffodils in bloom<br />
throughout the gardens<br />
EASTER FAMILY FUN<br />
29 <strong>March</strong> – 14 April<br />
With family trails in the gardens<br />
and museum, crafts, egg-roll<br />
race, storytelling and more
NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD •<br />
The List 27<br />
ReBalance<br />
Various venues, Bath<br />
Until 18 <strong>February</strong><br />
Force yourself out of hibernation via this three-week wellness<br />
celebration. You’ll find exclusive hotel and spa packages on<br />
offer, taster sessions and plenty of family fun, too. Highlights<br />
include VR meditation, laughter yoga and wellbeing walks<br />
around the city.<br />
nfld.io/rebal<br />
Wellbeing & Cold<br />
Water Swim<br />
Clevedon<br />
Marine Lake<br />
Mondays<br />
& Thursdays<br />
Decompress with<br />
this group of friendly<br />
mindful mermaids.<br />
You’ll start with<br />
guided mindfulness<br />
exercises before<br />
strolling along Poet’s<br />
Walk and finishing<br />
with an optional (go<br />
on, you know you<br />
want to) cold water<br />
swim in the chilly<br />
Marine Lake.<br />
nfld.io/mermaids<br />
Wim Hof<br />
Fundamentals<br />
Workshop<br />
The Hideout,<br />
Bristol<br />
18 <strong>February</strong><br />
Fancy boosting your<br />
energy, improving<br />
concentration and<br />
relieving stress?<br />
Cold water therapy<br />
(AKA submerging<br />
yourself in an ice<br />
bath) promises all that<br />
and more. Learn the<br />
fundamentals with<br />
Gus Hoyt, one of the<br />
UK’s only Level 2 Wim<br />
Hof Instructors.<br />
nfld.io/wimgus<br />
Soul Gazing<br />
Meditation<br />
The Good Heart,<br />
Frome<br />
22 <strong>February</strong><br />
Wordlessly attune<br />
yourself to one<br />
another in this unique<br />
workshop, in which<br />
you’ll connect with<br />
those around you on<br />
a whole new level.<br />
Soul gazing, they say,<br />
will help you expand<br />
your emotional<br />
intelligence and<br />
draw you away from<br />
self-absorption and<br />
navel-gazing. Ideal.<br />
nfld.io/soulg<br />
Candlelit Gong<br />
Bath Sound<br />
Journey<br />
New Oriel Hall,<br />
Bath<br />
1 <strong>March</strong><br />
Relax and let the<br />
soundwaves wash<br />
over you. Using<br />
a 32-inch symphonic<br />
gong, a hand-held<br />
Chinese wind gong,<br />
Tibetan singing<br />
bowls, chimes,<br />
a shruti box, and<br />
voice mantra, your<br />
instructor will create<br />
a deep resonance to<br />
rebalance both mind<br />
and body.<br />
nfld.io/soundj<br />
To promote<br />
your event on<br />
these pages,<br />
email simon@<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
Foraging Walk for Wild Edible and Medicinal Plants<br />
Conham River Park, Bristol<br />
16 <strong>March</strong><br />
Stride through woodland clearings and gaze across the River<br />
Avon as you learn to identify wild edible and medicinal plants<br />
growing right here in the southwest. The walk will be guided,<br />
but open, with plenty of time to ask questions and get curious.<br />
nfld.io/forage<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
28 The List<br />
Bath Arts Collective’s<br />
new Curious Minds<br />
festival (7-28 <strong>March</strong>) is<br />
bringing author Paul<br />
Burston’s Polari Salon to<br />
town. Here he explains<br />
what it’s all about<br />
Curious Minds<br />
presents Polari<br />
Salon at Komedia<br />
on 28 <strong>March</strong>. Find<br />
the full festival<br />
lineup at<br />
nfld.io/curious<br />
THINGS<br />
YOU<br />
DIDN’T<br />
KNOW<br />
ABOUT<br />
POLARI<br />
SALON<br />
Sometimes described as “the<br />
lost language of gay men”,<br />
Polari is a type of slang<br />
spoken by members of the<br />
LGBT community during the 20th<br />
century. This coded form of<br />
communication flourished in the<br />
50s and 60s, when male<br />
homosexuality was still illegal.<br />
Polari went mainstream<br />
with Round the Horne, the<br />
BBC radio show featuring<br />
Hugh Paddick and Kenneth<br />
Williams as a couple of camp<br />
characters whose bitchy banter<br />
entertained millions. When they<br />
said a man was ‘bold’, they didn’t<br />
mean courageous but overtly<br />
homosexual.<br />
Polari has links with other<br />
slang vocabularies such as<br />
Cockney rhyming slang.<br />
Words like ‘bona’ (good) and<br />
‘riah’ (hair, backwards) are rarely<br />
heard today. Others like ‘ogle'<br />
and ‘naff’ have since made it into<br />
common usage.<br />
Polari was celebrated by<br />
David Bowie, who employed<br />
it on Girl Loves Me from<br />
his final album, Blackstar.<br />
Another fan is Morrissey, who<br />
had a hit with Piccadilly Palare<br />
in 1990. The lyric refers to the<br />
‘meat rack’ in London’s Piccadilly<br />
Circus, where male hustlers<br />
would compete for ‘trade’.<br />
Polari Salon is a celebration<br />
of LGBT words and voices,<br />
and began in a gay bar in<br />
Soho in 2007. Since then,<br />
we’ve appeared at book festivals,<br />
museums, clubs and theatres<br />
across the UK. Come and ogle us<br />
in Bath! It’ll be bona.<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD • NEARFIELD •<br />
The List 29<br />
Curiouser and<br />
curiouser<br />
Three more festival<br />
highlights<br />
Author and mental health<br />
campaigner Bryony Gordon will<br />
be in conversation with Marisa<br />
Bate about her new book,<br />
Mad Woman.<br />
Komedia, 7 <strong>March</strong><br />
GLOW<br />
Grove Park,<br />
Weston-super-<br />
Mare<br />
13-17 <strong>February</strong><br />
Weston-super-Mare’s<br />
dazzling light festival<br />
expands to five nights<br />
and features more<br />
than 25 spectacular<br />
installations around<br />
the main site,<br />
with bonus free<br />
installations spilling<br />
out across the town<br />
centre. A multisensory<br />
and cosmic<br />
experience for the<br />
whole family.<br />
nfld.io/glow<br />
Chemical-Free<br />
Plant Care<br />
Bath City Farm<br />
2 <strong>March</strong><br />
Get your gloves on,<br />
slide into your wellies<br />
and get back in the<br />
garden this winter,<br />
with an instructive<br />
workshop on how to<br />
identify the pests and<br />
diseases that could<br />
be harming your<br />
plants. You’ll also get<br />
a shed load of tips<br />
on natural prevention<br />
and companion<br />
planting.<br />
nfld.io/kindp<br />
Sir Ranulph<br />
Fiennes: Mad, Bad<br />
and Dangerous<br />
Frome Memorial<br />
Theatre<br />
2 <strong>March</strong><br />
Suffering from<br />
a serious case of<br />
wanderlust? Tag<br />
along with Sir<br />
Ranulph Fiennes OBE<br />
on a trip that spans<br />
lost Arabian cities<br />
and countless world<br />
records, and explores<br />
the high cost he has<br />
paid – more than<br />
just a few frostbitten<br />
fingers – for living life<br />
on the edge.<br />
nfld.io/ranulph<br />
Join Joanna Nadin, professor<br />
of creative writing at Bristol<br />
University, for a walk around<br />
Cleveland Pools and a writing<br />
session back at the museum.<br />
Holburne Museum, 15 <strong>March</strong><br />
Brilliantly<br />
Engineered!<br />
Bath Royal Literary<br />
& Scientific<br />
Institution<br />
24-27 <strong>February</strong><br />
Photos: Krystyna FitzGerald-Morris<br />
Author Varaidzo pairs up with<br />
Brit jazzer Orphy Robinson<br />
to launch the former’s novel,<br />
Manny and the Baby –<br />
a story evoking the Bath jazz<br />
scene of the 30s.<br />
Komedia, 28 <strong>March</strong><br />
Keep inquiring minds<br />
busy with this free,<br />
hands-on engineering<br />
exhibition for<br />
families. Get to<br />
grips with amazing<br />
technology presented<br />
by innovative<br />
local companies<br />
including The Dyson<br />
Foundation, Buro<br />
Happold and Team<br />
Bath Electric Racing.<br />
nfld.io/engine<br />
Wassail Prune<br />
The Newt, nr Bruton<br />
8 <strong>March</strong><br />
Join specialist fruit grower Andy ‘Apples’ Lewis<br />
for a late-winter prune of The Newt’s vast apple<br />
orchards before a cyder tasting and full-blown<br />
traditional wassail. Shoo evil spirits from the trees<br />
by offering (and quaffing, natch) homegrown<br />
cyders and singing folk songs.<br />
nfld.io/wassail<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Cheap Eats 31<br />
Illustration: Thomas Burden<br />
Eating out is one of life’s great pleasures but it shouldn’t<br />
mean breaking the bank. We’ve cobbled together our<br />
favourite cheap eating spots to help you treat yourself<br />
without blowing the budget. Ready to tuck in?<br />
WORDS SHONETTE LAFFY<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
32 Cheap Eats<br />
GUILDHALL MARKET CAFE<br />
Guildhall Market, Bath<br />
Step back in time at this cult classic greasy spoon; the place<br />
to go for an old-school fry-up complete with tinned<br />
tomatoes and fried bread for a little over £9. Going against<br />
the central Bath grain, this place has more options for under a tenner<br />
than you can wave a bottle of HP Sauce at – filled jacket spuds for<br />
£7.65, or mains such as ham, egg and chips, or chilli and rice. Leave<br />
room for apple pie or spotted dick with custard (£4.50).<br />
CHILLI DADDY<br />
St Nicholas Market & 45-47<br />
Baldwin Street, Bristol<br />
After Szechuan noodles<br />
with a serious kick?<br />
Swing by Chilli Daddy’s<br />
stall in St Nicholas Market for<br />
their £5 lunch deal (xiao mian<br />
noodles or pao jiao rice with<br />
a drink), or their restaurant on<br />
nearby Baldwin Street for an even<br />
bigger selection of dishes, from<br />
tofu hotpot to pork saozi, all for<br />
under £10. You’ll be asked how<br />
spicy you want your order on<br />
a scale of one to five, and we<br />
advise a cautious response. Hot!<br />
chillidaddy.com<br />
SKY KONG KONG<br />
The Haymarket, Bristol<br />
Chef Wizzy (Hwi Shim) explains how she keeps<br />
her forward-thinking Korean fare affordable<br />
“I love helping people try<br />
healthy international food.<br />
We serve over 300 fresh<br />
ingredients in every meal.<br />
I have an allotment where<br />
I grow Korean vegetables,<br />
which I use in pickles in<br />
winter. As a team, we<br />
work hard to have a good<br />
relationship with local<br />
butchers, fishmongers<br />
and greengrocers, and<br />
they support us in return.<br />
I want to organise<br />
an open community<br />
supermarket under one<br />
roof with local suppliers,<br />
traders and street food,<br />
all at a cheap price.”<br />
skykongkong.co.uk<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Cheap Eats 33<br />
VERY APPY<br />
Too Good To Go<br />
Nab unsold food from<br />
nearby shops, cafes<br />
and restaurants.<br />
First Table<br />
A great way to save if<br />
you’re happy to eat<br />
early evening.<br />
Olio<br />
Avoid food waste with<br />
this community<br />
food-sharing app.<br />
Xplore<br />
Discover local<br />
businesses, store your<br />
loyalty cards in one<br />
place, and earn rewards.<br />
Foodstuff<br />
A Bristol delivery app<br />
working with indie<br />
food businesses.<br />
CHAI WALLA<br />
42 Monmouth Street, Bath<br />
A popular spot among<br />
locals in the know.<br />
Chai Walla serves up<br />
Indian street food and hefty<br />
wraps filled with your choice<br />
of falafel, onion bhaji or<br />
samosa, piled high with salad<br />
and sauces for just £7.50 – or<br />
the option to have it ‘all in box’<br />
for £9. Everything on the menu<br />
is vegan, with an abundance<br />
of customisable options, from<br />
curry and rice to samosa<br />
chaat. We recommend<br />
grabbing a £2 bag of bhajis.<br />
chaiwalla.uk<br />
ROOTED CAFE<br />
20 Newbridge Road, Bath<br />
Rock up at this cosy<br />
Newbridge cafe, and<br />
pick out the bargains<br />
on a wholesome menu which<br />
includes Keralan curried<br />
scrambled eggs on toast<br />
(£6.95) and lip-smacking<br />
poutine fries (£7.50). These<br />
come with their house dahl<br />
and sauces, or cheese, wild<br />
mushroom ragu and truffle,<br />
or sriracha mayo. Don’t order<br />
one of these bad boys if you<br />
need to do anything after;<br />
you won’t be able to move<br />
for at least an hour.<br />
rootedcafe.co.uk<br />
THREE BROTHERS BURGERS<br />
Welsh Back, Bristol<br />
Celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, the<br />
Bristol burger boat has a rep for its great value<br />
lunch deal. For £7.50 you get a classic burger<br />
(meat, veggie or vegan) with fries or slaw, and the option to<br />
add extra toppings for another quid or two. Complete the<br />
Big Messy Challenge (a foreboding triple cheeseburger, pile<br />
of chilli cheese fries, and a pint of beer or soft drink) and<br />
there’ll be no bill. Nada.<br />
threebrothersburgers.co.uk<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
34 Cheap Eats<br />
THE LONG TABLE<br />
Brimscombe Mill, Stroud<br />
TUK TUCK<br />
5 St Stephen’s Street & 32 Stokes Croft, Bristol<br />
Low-key but always<br />
busy, Tuk Tuck is<br />
a go-to for locals.<br />
Menus differ between their<br />
city centre and Stokes Croft<br />
restaurants, but at both you<br />
can get kimchi fries loaded<br />
with beef, chicken or tofu for<br />
£9.50, or go healthier with<br />
a bibimbap rice bowl filled<br />
with veg, plus meat or tofu<br />
and a fried egg, for under<br />
£10. Lighter bites include<br />
dumplings (£6.60) and<br />
pumpkin croquettes (£7).<br />
tuktuck.com<br />
Will North, the co-founder<br />
of this community dining<br />
table, where diners pay what<br />
they can, explains how the<br />
initiative works<br />
SANDWICH SANDWICH<br />
48 Baldwin Street, Bristol<br />
You must have been living under a rock if you’ve still<br />
not seen a cross-section of the behemoth sangers<br />
buttered-up by this place. Make sure you arrive<br />
hungry – although the inevitable queue will help with that.<br />
Choose from a menu of hot or cold sandwiches, or build your<br />
own from the piled-high deli counter, and lay down £6.95-<br />
£8.95 for the biggest sandwich you’re ever likely to eat.<br />
sandwichsandwich.co.uk<br />
“The Long Table was founded<br />
by me and Tom [Herbert] in<br />
2018, with the ethos that eating<br />
hyper-local, restaurant-quality<br />
food shouldn’t be a luxury. Our<br />
pay-as-you-can model is a way<br />
for people from all backgrounds<br />
to feel welcome. We always<br />
share what our meals cost to<br />
make sure people know what<br />
our outgoings are, but there is<br />
never any expectation. All we ask<br />
is that people do truly pay what<br />
they can. Every month, 8-12 per<br />
cent of meals are paid forward<br />
by the community. The fact we<br />
have so many returning guests<br />
and new faces shows that when<br />
you trust your chefs to make<br />
something delicious, and provide<br />
them with the best produce, the<br />
food is always good.”<br />
thelongtableonline.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
36 Cheap Eats<br />
TASTE OF NAPOLI<br />
32 The Horsefair, Bristol<br />
KNIGHTS FISH RESTAURANT<br />
5 Northload Street, Glastonbury<br />
This family-run restaurant, which has passed<br />
through five generations since opening in 1909,<br />
still keeps its prices low, even as a serial award<br />
winner. There are loads of options for under £10, including<br />
small cod and chips for £8.30, sausage with chips for<br />
£6.50, fishcake and chips for £7, or pie and chips for £8.50.<br />
knightsfishrestaurant.com<br />
Tucked away on the<br />
Horsefair in Broadmead is<br />
this much-loved slice of<br />
Italy, and a counter stacked with<br />
freshly made pizza (slices starting<br />
at £3.50), toasted paninis (£7.50)<br />
and arancini (£2.50). They do<br />
a whopping selection of vegan<br />
snacks, too, including pastries and<br />
desserts, and have shelves stacked<br />
full of Italian deli products.<br />
tasteofnapoli.co.uk<br />
PAPPU DOSA<br />
25 The Parade, Patchway<br />
Trekking to Patchway for a meal out<br />
probably wasn’t among your new<br />
year’s resolutions, but you should<br />
be doing it anyway, thanks to Pappu Dosa.<br />
Their range of delicious, wallet-friendly dishes<br />
take inspiration from the best street food and<br />
home cooking in Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai.<br />
Mix and match from a selection of dosa, idli,<br />
sambar, uttapam and rice dishes, and fill your<br />
face without getting landed with a big bill.<br />
pappudosa.co.uk<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Cheap Eats 37<br />
MONSTER MUNCHES<br />
Snack hacker to the stars George Egg gives a few everyday treats his economical upgrade<br />
Photo: Matt Lincoln<br />
We all enjoy a cheeky bite<br />
between meals but the choices<br />
at the budget end of things are<br />
pretty limited. However, I’m the<br />
Snack Hacker, and with a few<br />
easily obtained items in your<br />
culinary arsenal you can elevate<br />
the most humble of nibbles into<br />
something far more deluxe.<br />
THE MCWUNDERBURGER<br />
Next time you’re visiting the<br />
golden arches, bring along<br />
a jar of sauerkraut. It’s readily<br />
available in supermarkets, or<br />
make your own. When ordering<br />
a double cheeseburger take<br />
advantage of the ‘customise’<br />
button and make the following<br />
changes: remove the ketchup<br />
(it’s much too sweet and<br />
sugary), add mayo and extra<br />
mustard, and chuck in an extra<br />
gherkin. When you get your<br />
order, remove the top bun and<br />
pile in a generous clump of the<br />
sauerkraut. The vinegary acidic<br />
tang and crunchy cabbage<br />
coupled with the fatty burger,<br />
cheese and Germanic hit of<br />
the burger mustard combines<br />
to offer something so much<br />
more than the sum of its parts.<br />
Sauerkraut also has a number<br />
of health benefits which, when<br />
added to the naughtiness of the<br />
burger, means you’re breaking<br />
even. Kind of.<br />
A FISH PIE FROM GREGGS<br />
Apart from the obvious<br />
fish and chips, there are<br />
surprisingly few seafood<br />
options on the high street,<br />
and that’s a pity considering<br />
we live on an island. One<br />
of my favourite dinners is<br />
a fish pie and I’ve come<br />
up with an easy way of<br />
turning a Greggs Cheese<br />
and Onion Bake into<br />
something that hits all the<br />
same notes. Nibble the edge<br />
off the pasty so you can<br />
open it like a purse, then add<br />
the following: flaked smoked<br />
mackerel, ripped up ‘crab’<br />
sticks, fresh tarragon, and<br />
top it with crushed scampi<br />
fries. Trust me, it’s superb.<br />
SALTED CARAMEL<br />
ROLO DESSERT<br />
Rolo do a little dessert pot.<br />
Buy some, freeze them, peel<br />
the lid off, and sprinkle with<br />
flaky sea salt. That’s it. An<br />
audaciously simple idea that<br />
transforms the mundane<br />
into the sublimely gourmet.<br />
Thank me later.<br />
Keep an eye out for George’s<br />
live dates. @georgeegg<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
38 Cheap Eats<br />
FALAFEL MAMA<br />
1 London Road, Stroud<br />
A calm cafe oasis where<br />
you can fill up on falafel<br />
in pitta or in a salad box<br />
and have a cup of tea without<br />
going over £10. For something<br />
more substantial, grab half<br />
a filled pitta and chips for just<br />
over £9. The whole menu is<br />
vegan, and the cafe itself is<br />
bright and quirky, with seating<br />
upstairs to watch the world go<br />
by. Squirrel away 10 falafel<br />
balls for later for only £4.75..<br />
falafelmama.co.uk<br />
BELLE’S KITCHEN<br />
38 Silver Street, Dursley<br />
Need a cost-efficient refuel<br />
after trekking the (mainly)<br />
bargain-deficient hills of the<br />
Cotswolds? As well as the<br />
MERAKI<br />
3A Market Street,<br />
Bradford-on-Avon<br />
Seriously filling homemade<br />
Greek pastries and biscuits are<br />
the main attraction at this cafe in<br />
the centre of Bradford-on-Avon,<br />
and its van in the train station.<br />
Start off with a wedge of spinach<br />
and feta spanakopita (£4) or<br />
sausage-filled Meraki pie (£4.50),<br />
before sweetening things up<br />
with baklava or honey cake (both<br />
£3) with Greek coffee. Snap up<br />
some tahini cookies (£1.50 each)<br />
to take away.<br />
merakivan.com<br />
usual soups, sandwiches and<br />
wraps, other steals available<br />
for under £10 include corned<br />
beef hash (£8.95) and buddha<br />
bowls (£7.95). They also have<br />
an incredibly good value<br />
takeaway menu, with slow<br />
roasted belly po, and sausage<br />
and chorizo casserole looming<br />
large for £6.95, and small pies<br />
for £4.95 (big ones are £8.50).<br />
belleskitchendursley.co.uk<br />
ON THE MARKET<br />
The Frome<br />
Independent<br />
Browse a range of local<br />
produce and tasty<br />
street food on the first<br />
Sunday of the month.<br />
St Nicholas Market,<br />
Bristol<br />
Open Monday to<br />
Saturday, St Nicks has<br />
everything from paella<br />
or tagine, to pie and<br />
mash. There’s a street<br />
food market on Wine<br />
Street every Tuesday<br />
and Friday as well.<br />
Bath Farmers’<br />
Market,<br />
Green Park Station<br />
The UK’s oldest<br />
farmers’ market gathers<br />
under the glass roof,<br />
every Saturday from<br />
8.30am.<br />
SCOFF,<br />
Portishead Marina<br />
Find an ever-changing<br />
lineup of street food<br />
traders every Saturday<br />
and Sunday, 11am-3pm.<br />
Five Valleys,<br />
Stroud<br />
Open daily, this indoor<br />
market showcases<br />
some of the best local<br />
veg, meat and bakes.<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
APPRENTICESHIPS<br />
& CAREERS FAIR<br />
THURSDAY<br />
14 TH MARCH<br />
10AM-2PM<br />
APEX HOTEL<br />
James St W, Bath BA1 2DA<br />
Meet over 100 national<br />
and local employers<br />
offering jobs and<br />
apprenticeships<br />
SCAN ME<br />
SIGN UP NOW<br />
bathcollege.ac.uk/apprenticeships
The Sad Ghost Club 41<br />
KINDRED SPIRITS<br />
Bristol-based creative project The<br />
Sad Ghost Club is here to spread<br />
positive awareness of mental health<br />
and normalise feeling sad – just what<br />
we need this gloomy <strong>February</strong><br />
WORDS RICH PELLEY<br />
PHOTOGRAPHY FRANCESCA JONES<br />
Ghoul story, bro The Sad Ghost Club’s Lize Meddings<br />
contemplates her ghostly pals’ next adventures from<br />
her Knowle workspace<br />
D<br />
on’t make me sound like I’ve<br />
peaked!” jokes 32-year-old<br />
illustrator Lize Meddings,<br />
perched on her desk at her<br />
home studio in Knowle, as<br />
nearfield’s photographer Francesca works her<br />
magic. A portrait of Robbie Williams – drawn<br />
by Lize’s boyfriend’s brother, Freddie – lies<br />
face down on the desk, removed from the<br />
wall at the last minute because we don’t want<br />
Robbie hogging the limelight. Not everything<br />
is about Robbie Williams.<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
42 The Sad Ghost Club<br />
Except, Robbie Williams does play a part. Lize<br />
is the creator of The Sad Ghost Club (SGC for<br />
short), the Bristol creative project that aims to<br />
spread positive awareness of mental health<br />
through ghost-branded art, zines, merch and<br />
books. And in an unexpected turn, SGC has<br />
just finished a collaborative comic strip with<br />
Williams, who normally favours angels and his<br />
personal demons over ghosts.<br />
“I hadn’t really thought how<br />
it would benefit people to<br />
see their feelings mirrored<br />
back at them”<br />
Long story short: Lize’s boyfriend Alfie works<br />
as a sound tech for Gaz Coombes from<br />
Supergrass. Coombes toured Australia with<br />
Williams late in 2023, where a “just in case”<br />
SGC care package was passed over during<br />
a barbecue. Williams loved it and got in touch<br />
to commission a Sad Ghost Club comic strip<br />
of his very own.<br />
“He just DMed and said: ‘Let’s collab,’” explains<br />
Lize. “I said: ‘That would be really nice. If you<br />
have anything to write that you think fits, I can<br />
illustrate it as a comic.’ So that’s what we did.”<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
The Sad Ghost Club 43<br />
Lize Meddings’ happy places<br />
Drink ’n’ Draw<br />
“Drink ’n’ Draw is such<br />
a great way to meet other<br />
creatives, and can lead to<br />
collaborations and projects.<br />
It’s also a good way to help<br />
you get out of the house,<br />
which can be hard as an<br />
introverted creative.”<br />
nfld.io/dandd<br />
Watershed<br />
“My friend is the manager<br />
so I’m always down there,<br />
by the harbourside,<br />
checking out what’s on,<br />
especially anime films that<br />
don’t hit the big cinemas.”<br />
nfld.io/watersh<br />
Street art<br />
“There’s so much street<br />
art in Bristol, obviously.<br />
It’s really nice to see so<br />
much colour in the centre<br />
and beyond. I find it really<br />
inspirational to see all the<br />
stickers everywhere, too<br />
– Stokes Croft is great for<br />
this. I love stickers.”<br />
nfld.io/street<br />
LDComics<br />
“LDcomics give a talk in<br />
Hamilton House, Stokes<br />
Croft, once a month or<br />
so. They’re a women-led<br />
comic collective that host<br />
talks from professionals<br />
and beginners. It can be<br />
a really great way to meet<br />
like-minded people.”<br />
ldcomics.com<br />
Victoria Park,<br />
Bedminster<br />
“I’ll often head to Victoria<br />
Park. It has great views of<br />
the city, and helps break<br />
up my day if I’ve been at<br />
my desk too long.”<br />
The Louisiana<br />
“I love a cheeky local<br />
gig at the Louisiana.<br />
Sometimes it’s inspiring to<br />
see people being creative<br />
in a different field. I listen<br />
to so much music when<br />
I’m working, it’s great to<br />
find new bands to keep me<br />
company at my desk.”<br />
nfld.io/louis<br />
Above A collection of Lize’s<br />
comic and zine output<br />
Left Lize summons more<br />
ghostly ideas<br />
Bottom left The first three<br />
volumes of The Sad Ghost<br />
Club’s graphic novels<br />
The Sad Ghost Club was born out of Lize’s<br />
frustration of failing to find work after<br />
studying for a degree in illustration at<br />
Plymouth College of Art in 2012.<br />
“I was not in a good place mentally,<br />
being a post grad and not having<br />
a job,” she says. “All my friends were<br />
leaving Plymouth, so it felt like a ghost<br />
town. My housemate and I got evicted<br />
because we couldn’t pay the rent.<br />
I was living back at home, sad that<br />
I couldn’t work in illustration, hoping<br />
something would fall into place.”<br />
Lize’s illustration course encouraged her to<br />
sell her work off her own back, rather than<br />
relying on editorial commissions that might<br />
never come. It was a slow start. “I’d make<br />
maybe £20 per art fair selling badges and<br />
zines, but at least it was something.”<br />
A friend picked up on a ghost character<br />
Lize had designed for a Halloween<br />
comic, and asked to use it on the<br />
album cover for a local Plymouth<br />
band. (“What were they called? I can’t<br />
remember! They had one cassette and<br />
were never heard of again!”)<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
44 The Sad Ghost Club<br />
“At first it was the Tired Eyes Club<br />
because I’d got a job working as a cleaner<br />
from 6am until 9am and I was exhausted<br />
all the time because I couldn’t sort out<br />
my sleeping pattern,” she recalls. “I really<br />
liked the Sad Ghost character, so I kept<br />
drawing it.” Cut to <strong>2024</strong>, and – after a bit<br />
of downsizing due to the pandemic – SGC<br />
is coming into its 10th year as a full-time<br />
business for Lize. I ask how she would best<br />
describe SGC in its present form. “Comics<br />
and artwork that depict the myriad feelings<br />
that come with not-so-perfect mental health<br />
and wellbeing.”<br />
“When I first started the comics, I was only<br />
sharing my own feelings. I hadn’t really<br />
thought how it would benefit people to see<br />
their feelings mirrored back at them.” Now,<br />
it’s all about reassuring people that having<br />
negative feelings and feeling sad from time<br />
to time is totally normal. The Sad Ghost<br />
character knows it’s OK to sometimes feel<br />
down, antisocial or that you don’t even want<br />
to get out of bed, or deserve a medal if you<br />
do. Everyone is entitled to a bad day, Sad<br />
Ghosty reasons. (Is the Sad Ghost female or<br />
male, I ask, out of curiosity. “I’m not telling<br />
you,” smirks Lize.)<br />
Slipper-y character Lize Meddings has been running<br />
The Sad Ghost Club for 10 years now, branding<br />
everything from comics and zines to badges, beanies<br />
and bags with her relatable apparitions<br />
The first SGC book that was released in 2021<br />
has been translated into French, Portuguese,<br />
Danish and Polish. Two more followed and<br />
– going by the outline of self-encouraging<br />
deadlines on the wall – it looks like plans for<br />
a fourth are well under way.<br />
Robbie Williams only wrote six words for<br />
his comic: “Embarrass myself. Lose sleep.<br />
Apologise. Repeat.” But expressing mental<br />
health through illustration and a few words<br />
is what SGC is all about. “If you’ve ever been<br />
sad, then you’re already a member,” reads<br />
the SGC tagline. “It’s not hard to join and<br />
everyone is welcome,” says Lize. If Robbie<br />
Williams can join The Sad Ghost Club, so<br />
should you, too.<br />
thesadghostclub.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
SOUTH WEST<br />
BUILDING OF THE YEAR<br />
Image: East Quay and Watchet Marina, credit Joseph Horton<br />
NOW SHOWING:<br />
People Came for Tea and Stayed Forever by Sam Francis<br />
20.01.<strong>2024</strong>-06.05.<strong>2024</strong>, daily 10am-5pm<br />
GALLERY & EXHIBITIONS<br />
UNIQUE PLACES TO STAY<br />
RESTAURANT & SHOP<br />
ARTISTS & PRINT STUDIO<br />
HANDMADE PAPER MILL<br />
EVENTS & EDUCATION<br />
@eastquaywatchet<br />
eastquaywatchet.co.uk<br />
Watchet, Somerset
46 Wake the Tiger<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Wake the Tiger 47<br />
CAN BRISTOL'S MULTI-<br />
SENSORY WONDERLAND<br />
WAKE THE TIGER GET<br />
ANY MORE COSMIC? AS<br />
WE DISCOVER ON A TRIP<br />
TO THE OUTERVERSE, ITS<br />
CREATORS ARE GIVING<br />
IT A VERY GOOD GO<br />
WORDS FREYA PARR<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
48 Wake the Tiger<br />
hen you’re schlepping around the<br />
bleak, post-industrial wasteland<br />
of St Philip’s Marsh on a rainy<br />
Sunday afternoon, the promise of<br />
a “voyage transcending reality to<br />
a dimension beyond imagination”<br />
feels somewhat lofty and out<br />
of reach. Venture towards the<br />
eastern end of Albert Road,<br />
though, and that vision quickly<br />
comes into sharper focus.<br />
Created by the team behind<br />
Boomtown – a music festival<br />
in Hampshire with the tagline<br />
“bang goes the normal” – Wake<br />
the Tiger opened in summer<br />
2022 and branded itself as the<br />
world’s first ‘Amazement Park’:<br />
a dream factory of immersive<br />
environments to walk through,<br />
interact with and explore. The<br />
end goal? To ignite the wild,<br />
creative impulses within us all –<br />
but also the playfully bounding<br />
tiger cub. For co-founder and<br />
creative director Luke Mitchell,<br />
the idea was to “create a yearround<br />
version of the Boomtown<br />
concept, fusing theatrics, set<br />
design and creativity”.<br />
The project was born out of<br />
lockdown, when festivals were<br />
stalled around the globe. “We’d<br />
previously bought this building<br />
in St Philip’s Marsh, where we<br />
thought we’d set up a big club<br />
event, but we never really had<br />
the time,” says Luke. “Covid gave<br />
us the chance to really dive into<br />
this and work out what we could<br />
do with it.”<br />
Having hosted more than<br />
250,000 visitors since its<br />
opening, it’s hard now to think<br />
of Wake the Tiger as anything<br />
other than an unequivocal<br />
success. But, explains Luke, it<br />
was a bit of a sleeper hit. “When<br />
we first opened, we hardly sold<br />
any tickets. It was terrifying. It<br />
was quite hard to sell it in the<br />
press initially, because there’s no<br />
Disney castle at the end. It’s the<br />
mass of everything together that<br />
makes it. You have to see it to<br />
understand it, because it’s a new<br />
concept. Fortunately, people kept<br />
coming and word got out.”<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
BRISTOL BEACON PRESENTS<br />
HANIA RANI<br />
GHOSTS<br />
09 MAR <strong>2024</strong><br />
BRISTOL BEACON<br />
BRISTOL<br />
SUPPORT FROM CAOILFHIONN ROSE<br />
TICKETS - BRISTOLBEACON.ORG<br />
THE NEW ALBUM GHOSTS OUT NOW ON GONDWANA RECORDS<br />
29 Feb – 30 Mar<br />
Tickets from £10<br />
(plus concessions)<br />
#StarterForTen<br />
0117 987 7877<br />
bristololdvic.org.uk<br />
Charity No. 228235 Design feastcreative.com
50 Wake the Tiger<br />
As soon as they’d clobbered that<br />
first hurdle, though, the team<br />
began mapping out its next<br />
phase. After shutting its doors<br />
for a brief time to put its plans<br />
into action, the amazement park<br />
is back open again, bigger than<br />
before. With 15 new spaces, the<br />
concept has evolved to include<br />
a journey into the OUTERverse,<br />
through a vending machine,<br />
a ticket office and into the astral<br />
plane. There are projections,<br />
interactive points and vibrant<br />
cosmic designs throughout,<br />
repurposing everything from<br />
Victorian prams to 90s washing<br />
machines. “This second phase<br />
is about exploring the mind and<br />
looking inwards to see how our<br />
imaginations can look beyond<br />
what we might first see,” says<br />
Luke. “It’s all about the power<br />
of the collective imagination.”<br />
Creative producer Summer Dean<br />
adds, “The new build is much<br />
more tongue in cheek.”<br />
This unreal, psychedelic<br />
experience is the brainchild of<br />
not just Luke and Summer, but<br />
over a hundred artists, poets,<br />
robotics experts, architects,<br />
costume makers, videographers<br />
and prop makers from around<br />
Bristol, many of whom come from<br />
the underground music and art<br />
scene. “No singular imagination<br />
could have ever come up with<br />
this,” says Luke.<br />
Photo: Andre Pattenden<br />
Artists were invited into the<br />
space to design freely. Summer<br />
was set to work, writing hundreds<br />
of briefs for the artists, who went<br />
away to experiment in the space.<br />
Colour palettes were set and<br />
moodboards laid out, but the<br />
artists were otherwise given free<br />
Innerspace<br />
Just some of the<br />
melon-twisting<br />
sights on display<br />
in the OUTERverse<br />
Top right<br />
Co-founder and<br />
creative director,<br />
Luke Mitchell<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Wake the Tiger 51<br />
rein. “People were painting from<br />
feelings, rather than thinking too<br />
much,” says Luke.<br />
The entire<br />
experience is<br />
Bristol through<br />
and through – it’s<br />
edgy, it’s punk,<br />
it’s anarchistic”<br />
Sensory Sensitive<br />
Sessions<br />
Regular sessions for<br />
those who would<br />
prefer to attend<br />
at a time when<br />
sensory stimulation<br />
is managed. Check<br />
the website for info.<br />
wakethetiger.com<br />
Fundraiser for<br />
Gaza<br />
23 <strong>February</strong><br />
Explore OUTERverse<br />
after hours at this<br />
Wake the Tiger x<br />
Boomtown charity<br />
event, with live music<br />
and a midnight finish.<br />
nfld.io/wttgaza<br />
Big Banger:<br />
Meridian Soluna<br />
22 <strong>March</strong><br />
Celebrate the spring<br />
equinox by losing<br />
yourself in Meridia’s<br />
Dream Factory.<br />
nfld.io/soluna<br />
The audience is as eclectic as<br />
the concept itself, so there’s<br />
no target demographic. For<br />
Summer, it’s about bringing those<br />
unexpected magical moments<br />
of interaction and engagement<br />
you get from a festival field. “It’s<br />
about creating theatre for people<br />
who wouldn’t usually go to art<br />
exhibitions or plays,” she says. On<br />
that opening day in 2022, Luke<br />
looked down the queue and saw<br />
a family of Japanese tourists,<br />
a group of OAPs with walking<br />
sticks, and a sprawling mass of<br />
punks with mohicans.<br />
“The entire experience is<br />
Bristol through and through,”<br />
he says. “It’s edgy, it’s punk, it’s<br />
anarchistic. It asks you to think<br />
about things differently. But it’s<br />
also playful.” While he has plans<br />
to take Wake the Tiger around<br />
the world, there was a very clear<br />
reason for starting in Bristol. “The<br />
city deserves this,” he says. “I go<br />
down to the city centre and all<br />
I see is a big piece of concrete<br />
and an empty plinth. And this is<br />
supposed to be one of the most<br />
cultural cities in the country.”<br />
An immersive experience in an<br />
industrial outpost may not be the<br />
first thing that springs to mind<br />
when you think ‘culture’. But for<br />
a city whose most famous<br />
exports include a mysterious<br />
street artist, a trip-hop collective<br />
and a love of activism, it seems<br />
fitting, don’t you think?<br />
OUTERverse at Wake the Tiger is<br />
now open. wakethetiger.com<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
52 Comedy Roundup<br />
CHUCKLE<br />
lovers<br />
It is OK to have a laugh in <strong>February</strong> and <strong>March</strong>, you know. Here to help you on<br />
your merry way are this obliging crew of established and fast-rising standups<br />
WORDS<br />
CHRIS PARKIN<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Comedy Roundup 53<br />
osh Pugh has had a huge 18<br />
months. He stormed Live at the<br />
Apollo, helped judge the BBC<br />
New Comedy Awards, and got<br />
his first-ever tattoo. He also<br />
played (and scored) in a World Cup final as<br />
a member of the partially sighted England<br />
football team. Bringing his new show, Existin’<br />
La Vida Loca, to the southwest may not match<br />
that for dizzying euphoria but we thought<br />
we’d catch up with him anyway.<br />
We could ask you about performing for<br />
Live at the Apollo, but what’s this about you<br />
playing international football?<br />
“I’ve played for England since I was 20, and<br />
as a kid and all that. When the game got<br />
to 11-a-side, though, I just couldn’t see the<br />
distances I needed to. But as a kid you don’t<br />
really understand. I knew I was partially<br />
sighted, but I didn’t know other people could<br />
see so much. My little boy, he’s two now, and<br />
I’m like, ‘There’s a step, there’s a step,’ and my<br />
wife’s like, ‘Yeah, he saw it ages ago.’ If we’re in<br />
a room looking for stuff, he’s the boss, he’s in<br />
charge. It keeps your ego in check.”<br />
“It’s<br />
cathartic<br />
to take<br />
something<br />
that’s been<br />
difficult<br />
for you<br />
and find<br />
something<br />
funny in it”<br />
Do you go over past shows like<br />
football managers do after<br />
a 5-0 hammering?<br />
“I can’t watch myself doing<br />
standup. Part of that is because<br />
of how my eyes look. I’ve never<br />
been comfortable with how<br />
they are. When you’re 16, 17, 18,<br />
going out for the first time to<br />
nightclubs, and you get tagged<br />
in 400 pictures on Facebook the<br />
next day… I’d be going through<br />
untagging myself. So you get<br />
to be on the TV and it’s like, ‘Oh<br />
God.’ But it’s me. If I’m on a panel<br />
show and my eyes are all over the<br />
place, I’ve got a duty to show that<br />
because there’ll be others feeling<br />
like I did when I was 17, 18.”<br />
England lost 4-3 to Ukraine in the final of the<br />
IBSA World Games; is it still too painful to<br />
work up any gags about that?<br />
“It’s hard to make playing in a World Cup final<br />
relatable. There’s a documentary out on TNT<br />
Sports with us and Michael Owen, whose son<br />
has Stargardt’s disease; it’s about his journey<br />
and the World Cup. But football in comedy<br />
is hard to do in a standup environment. So<br />
much of comedy is getting information across<br />
simply, but I play for the England partially<br />
sighted Futsal team. Apart from the word<br />
‘England’, I don’t think anyone knows what the<br />
other words mean.”<br />
Photos: Sam Frank Wood<br />
Would you rather headline Wembley as<br />
a standup or score a winner there?<br />
“Football. Hundred per cent. I love comedy –<br />
and maybe I shouldn’t say this – but there are<br />
no four-year-olds dreaming of doing Live at<br />
the Apollo, are there? Also, as a defender,<br />
I don’t score very often.”<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
54 Comedy Roundup<br />
not comedy, it’s not going to<br />
make it in. I don’t get loads from<br />
friends and family. When I’m<br />
talking about my dad in standup,<br />
I’m talking about my dad, my<br />
stepdad, my father-in-law,<br />
friends’ dads – it’s just a dad.”<br />
Photo: Sam Frank Wood<br />
You’re a big deal on social media; do fans<br />
request standup versions of your viral hits?<br />
“One of my favourite jokes is in Phoenix<br />
Nights. There’s an alternative comedian on<br />
stage and Brian Potter, Peter Kay’s character,<br />
shouts, ‘Tell us a joke we know!’ I did standup<br />
for years before I did the videos, but the<br />
videos got me an audience. People bump into<br />
me in the street and tell me their favourite<br />
one, and that’s nice, but I like to give them<br />
something different live. I have to be careful,<br />
though. I’ll burn a premise on a one-minute<br />
social video, when actually it could’ve been<br />
a 10-minute routine.”<br />
Do you observe your mates down the pub?<br />
“Sometimes I’ll do a video and my mates are<br />
like, ‘Oh, that’s about me.’ No! It’s not about<br />
you. Or, ‘This’ll be good for one of your videos.’<br />
No, it wouldn’t! It’s a very dull interaction, it’s<br />
FOUR MORE<br />
Jessica<br />
Fostekew<br />
Rondo Theatre,<br />
Bath<br />
21 <strong>February</strong><br />
Rob Newman<br />
Cheese & Grain,<br />
Frome<br />
22 <strong>February</strong><br />
Romesh<br />
Ranganathan<br />
Bristol Beacon<br />
22-23 <strong>March</strong><br />
Ania Magliano<br />
Pound Arts,<br />
Corsham<br />
29 <strong>March</strong><br />
nfld.io/comedy02<br />
You weave some difficult life<br />
experiences into your standup;<br />
is it like therapy?<br />
“You can work things out in<br />
standup. You’re looking at where<br />
the comedy is and I imagine<br />
that’s quite therapeutic. I don’t<br />
think it should replace actual<br />
psychological treatments if you<br />
need them, but it’s cathartic<br />
to take something that’s been<br />
difficult for you and find<br />
something funny in it. My last<br />
show was about me and my wife<br />
trying for a baby and having IVF,<br />
and I had couples messaging,<br />
saying they’d found it a help.”<br />
You’ve been described, in<br />
a positive way, as shambling;<br />
what do you make of that?<br />
“They’ve fallen into my trap there,<br />
haven’t they? I’m a Midlander<br />
with some GCSEs, but I’m bright<br />
at what I do and emotionally<br />
intelligent. If I’m shambling, it’s<br />
probably deliberate, to disarm.<br />
There’s a great comedian called<br />
Charlie Baker, and he told me<br />
that Dolly Parton used to say:<br />
‘Find out who you are and do it<br />
on purpose.’ So there’s probably<br />
a bit of that. I’m probably more<br />
competent than my comedy<br />
would have you believe.”<br />
Catch Josh at the Cheese<br />
& Grain, Frome (8 <strong>February</strong>);<br />
Komedia, Bath (20 <strong>March</strong>); Hen<br />
& Chicken, Bristol (22 <strong>March</strong>).<br />
nfld.io/comedy02<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Comedy Roundup 55<br />
AMY MASON<br />
After taking a break from comedy<br />
to have a family, Amy Mason is back<br />
and causing a buzz online with her<br />
affectionate caricatures of Bristol mums.<br />
Before she previews her new show, Free<br />
Mason, at Bristol’s Comedy Den, we<br />
ask her if she’s been kicked out of any<br />
WhatsApp groups yet.<br />
“I’m still in them – but for how long? I’m<br />
pretty sure they are quieter than they<br />
would be if I wasn’t there. My videos<br />
really do come from a place of deep<br />
affection, though. My Pigeon character<br />
is very Bristol. She’s this woman who<br />
‘sells stones on Etsy’. In theory, she’s<br />
such a caricature that it shouldn’t be<br />
funny, but the truth is I know people who<br />
are barely any less out there.<br />
Photo: Lucy Ridges<br />
“I don’t draw on any of my school or<br />
mum WhatsApp groups, or anything<br />
from my daughters’ school (I promise!),<br />
but there is always a chance someone<br />
will think I’ve based something on them.<br />
Standup is actually more of a worry<br />
because my material is often personal<br />
and, especially now I have kids, you have<br />
to think about how much you’re putting<br />
out into the world. Also, the headteacher<br />
of my daughters’ school told me he’s<br />
seen one of my videos.”<br />
Catch Amy at The Comedy Den on<br />
15 <strong>February</strong>. nfld.io/comedy02<br />
“Thereʼs born-and-bred Bristolians,<br />
proper 90s crusties and middle-class<br />
Etsy mums – I love them all”<br />
In on the joke<br />
Amy’s pick of local comedy clubs<br />
The People’s Comedy<br />
People’s Republic of<br />
Stokes Croft, Bristol<br />
A great left-leaning alternative<br />
night. The acts get paid the same.<br />
The Alternative Book Club<br />
The Bottle of Sauce,<br />
Cheltenham<br />
A brilliant night with some great<br />
acts and a lush atmosphere.<br />
Honeypot Comedy<br />
The Room Above,<br />
Bristol<br />
A night for women and non-binary<br />
comedians. It’s always lots of fun.<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Award-winning macarons, confectionary<br />
and patisserie made on site in the heart<br />
of Bath<br />
Tea directly from Taiwan, matcha and<br />
hojicha from Japan, and an<br />
ever-changing menu of speciality<br />
drinks<br />
Bespoke celebration chiffon cakes<br />
and mousse cakes<br />
1 Grove Street, Bath, BA2 6PJ<br />
www.sugarcanestudio.co.uk<br />
friday 23rd feb<br />
&<br />
7pm-midnight<br />
present<br />
Explore Wake The Tiger's exciting NEW OUTERverse,<br />
featuring amazing live performances (artists tbc).<br />
Tickets: wakethetiger.com - £25<br />
100% of ticket sales go directly to charity
Comedy Roundup 57<br />
SLAPSTICK FESTIVAL<br />
TAMSYN KELLY<br />
Bristol’s annual celebration of silent<br />
film and visual comedy is back for five<br />
nights of over-the-top laughs from 14-18<br />
<strong>February</strong>, with Samira Ahmed, Terry<br />
Gilliam, Harry Hill, Lucy Porter and loads<br />
more, plus a brand-new comedy horror<br />
strand. Alasdair Beckett-King, who<br />
presents a screening of The Cat and<br />
the Canary with Robin Ince, as well as<br />
a night of comedy horror shorts called<br />
Even Stranger Films, is nothing short of<br />
hyped about this.<br />
“There is a tendency for modern<br />
audiences to laugh at old horror films<br />
like Nosferatu, The Golem and The<br />
Cabinet of Dr Caligari,” says Alasdair.<br />
“But I don’t think that’s strange; people<br />
laugh at contemporary horror films, too.<br />
These classics are packed with striking,<br />
uncanny imagery, so it’s no surprise they<br />
are still getting a reaction out of people<br />
a hundred years on. Although Slapstick<br />
Festival is about more than people<br />
falling on their bottoms, we must never<br />
forget the comedic power of a pratfall.<br />
Death is the great leveller, but tripping<br />
over and falling headfirst into a barrel of<br />
water is pretty effective, too.”<br />
Slapstick Festival runs from 14-18<br />
<strong>February</strong>. nfld.io/comedy02<br />
Photo: Rebecca Need-Menear<br />
Cornish standup and BBC New Comedian of the Year<br />
finalist Tamsyn Kelly celebrates the healing power of the<br />
hight street in her debut standup hour, Crying in TK Maxx,<br />
which she’s bringing to Bristol’s Alma Tavern & Theatre.<br />
“We’re the most ourselves we’ve ever been when bombing<br />
around the high street, looking like we’ve rolled out<br />
from under a bush. There’s something animalistic about<br />
going to the shop just to get the stuff you need to live.<br />
Shopping is a time to reflect; it’s calming, everyone is just<br />
‘normal’, there’s no pretence. If you are feeling emotional<br />
or vulnerable, there’s something comforting about being<br />
around people who are doing something grounding and<br />
mundane, like sliding ponchos along a rail at TK Maxx.”<br />
Catch Tamsyn at the Alma Tavern & Theatre on<br />
8 <strong>March</strong>. nfld.io/comedy02<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
58 Outside Influence<br />
OUTSIDE INFLUENCE • OUTSIDE INFLUENCE • OUTSIDE INFLUENCE •<br />
Bath City<br />
Women<br />
Every issue, we hand our pages over to a local<br />
community, group or organisation making<br />
things better in the region. This issue, it’s<br />
Bath City Women FC<br />
PHOTOGRAPHY FELIX RUSSELL-SAW<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Outside Influence 59<br />
Smells like team spirit<br />
Bath City Women FC<br />
training at Odd Down<br />
Sports Ground<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
60 Outside Influence<br />
As written by<br />
manager of Bath<br />
City Women FC,<br />
Matt Abreu<br />
ath City had wanted<br />
to start a women’s<br />
team for ages but it<br />
wasn’t until we got<br />
our main sponsor,<br />
Wealthtime, that,<br />
along with the<br />
ambition of community director Jane Jones,<br />
who leads the project, we had everything in<br />
place. That was summer 2022.<br />
I joined in July the same summer after<br />
hearing the club was recruiting a head<br />
coach. As a dad with a football-playing<br />
daughter, I’m really keen to grow the game<br />
locally for women and girls, and with the<br />
Lionesses’ Euros win halfway through our<br />
first pre-season it was the perfect time to<br />
get things up and running.<br />
The main thing we wanted to do was<br />
create a sustainable team that local girls<br />
and women could aspire to play for. We<br />
also wanted to make football as inclusive<br />
as possible. We now have two competitive<br />
teams – a first team and a development<br />
team – and the club’s charitable arm, the<br />
Bath City Foundation, runs a turn-up-andplay<br />
session (Tuesdays, 7-8pm, at St Martin’s<br />
Garden Primary School) for beginners or<br />
women just looking to enjoy football.<br />
The support we get from the club and<br />
supporters’ groups has been phenomenal.<br />
The team gets treated the same way as the<br />
men’s team. We’re lucky we have brilliant<br />
facilities and opportunities to ensure<br />
players get the most out of the game. Like<br />
playing home matches at Twerton Park.<br />
We speak to other women’s teams and the<br />
biggest struggle is playing facilities – clubs<br />
not allowing their women’s teams to play on<br />
the same pitch as the men out of fear the<br />
pitches won’t handle the extra matches.<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Outside Influence 61<br />
ABBY GRAY<br />
University of Bath student<br />
“I first started playing football at school but it<br />
was hard as there weren’t many girls playing.<br />
When I was younger I feel like there weren’t<br />
many girls’ teams at all, so I had to play for<br />
a boys’ team at first and it was hard to get<br />
their approval. I love being able to play at<br />
a stadium like Twerton Park and feel part of<br />
something. There’s a real sense of team spirit,<br />
which I try to bring into my everyday life.”<br />
TARA TAYLOR (CLUB CAPTAIN)<br />
Software engineer<br />
“My parents were always very encouraging<br />
and supportive. And the boys and teachers at<br />
school were also brilliant. Being part of<br />
a team brings loads of positives. It helps<br />
keep motivation levels and work rate high.<br />
And it’s good for mental health having your<br />
peers around you. I feel it builds confidence,<br />
too, and encourages you to keep showing<br />
up. Funding and awareness is key to taking<br />
things to the next level, which will bring more<br />
quality across the board.”<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
62 Outside Influence<br />
EMILY DELLOW<br />
Personal trainer and owner of The Fit Pitt<br />
“At secondary school, it was never an option<br />
for girls to play football; ‘school sports’ took<br />
priority, so I couldn’t commit to training and<br />
matches outside school. I only began playing<br />
again, 10 years later, after seeing Bath City<br />
Women promoting the new setup on ITV.<br />
Walking out at Twerton Park on game days,<br />
with all the social media promoting us, gives<br />
us a huge confidence boost. It feels like we’re<br />
a pro side. Our aim is to progress through the<br />
leagues and encourage more girls to come<br />
and play for or support Bath City.”<br />
LIBBY GOATER<br />
Programme facilitator, HMP Ashfield<br />
“I joined a mixed youth team at the age<br />
of five and stayed there until 14, when the<br />
FA changed the rules about girls playing<br />
in mixed teams. Then I was scouted for<br />
Bristol Academy Women. Being young and<br />
having a passion to play, I didn’t care what<br />
people thought. I did experience sexist,<br />
dismissive comments, but it just fuelled me<br />
to get back on the pitch. It’s had a massive<br />
impact on my life. We’re constantly building<br />
our communication skills and team work,<br />
something I use in my work.”<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Outside Influence 63<br />
It’s all kicking off<br />
in the southwest<br />
A selection of local clubs to get<br />
started with<br />
Bristol City Women<br />
bcfc.co.uk/bristol-city-women<br />
Forest Green Rovers<br />
fgr.co.uk/team/fgr-womens-team<br />
Chippenham Town Ladies<br />
facebook.com/FCChippenham<br />
Westbury Youth Ladies<br />
westburyyouthfc.co.uk/teams/Ladies<br />
Wells City Ladies<br />
wellscityfc.org.uk/teams<br />
Portishead Town Ladies<br />
portisheadtownfc.com/ladies-football<br />
Growing up playing football, I never noticed<br />
the struggles women faced getting into<br />
the game. Having a daughter opened my<br />
eyes and spurred me on to try and have<br />
a positive impact within the game. My<br />
highlight so far is winning promotion to<br />
the South West Regional Women’s Football<br />
League (East Division) in our first season.<br />
That, and hearing from the growing number<br />
of young players who want to play for us<br />
after watching the team over the past year.<br />
I’ve been a City supporter for years and<br />
want Bath City Women to become a club<br />
other local teams look to for inspiration. The<br />
aim isn’t just success on the pitch; we want<br />
to see local young players progressing from<br />
youth setups into the first team, something<br />
that’s started happening. I hope we can<br />
continue bringing a high level of football to<br />
women in the community.<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
64 Marketplace<br />
Marketplace<br />
Showcasing independent businesses in the southwest<br />
Services<br />
Knee Financial Planning<br />
A bespoke financial planning<br />
service for private clients, family<br />
estates and business owners.<br />
Knee Financial Planning specialise<br />
in providing comprehensive<br />
strategies to optimise wealth,<br />
manage risk and help achieve<br />
financial goals.<br />
kneefinancialplanning.co.uk<br />
Estrella Ventures<br />
A full-service marketing agency<br />
made for brands with purpose.<br />
Working with good people doing<br />
great things to accelerate positive<br />
change. Starting with an authentic<br />
strategy, Estrella Ventures work<br />
with you to achieve sustainable<br />
results that make an impact.<br />
estrellaventures.com<br />
Suited and Booted<br />
Originals<br />
S&B Originals have been producing<br />
meaningful video content for more<br />
than 20 years. Whether it’s<br />
a corporate video, TV commercial<br />
or social media content, they’ll<br />
make sure it connects with its<br />
audience and has impact.<br />
suitedandbooted.org<br />
Art & Design<br />
Health & Wellbeing<br />
New Brewery Arts<br />
New Brewery Arts connects people<br />
with the handmade and celebrates<br />
the role of creativity in all our lives.<br />
As well as workshops, they have<br />
an exhibition programme, with<br />
spring highlights including Clay is<br />
My Canvas and Georgia O'Keeffe:<br />
Memories of Drawings.<br />
newbreweryarts.org.uk<br />
Jennifer Mosse Design<br />
A residential interior design<br />
consultancy providing a bespoke<br />
service tailored to each client’s<br />
needs. Delivering a unique style<br />
that combines modern pieces<br />
with vintage finds, and blends<br />
seamlessly across contemporary<br />
and period homes.<br />
jennifermosse.com<br />
TONIQ<br />
Located in the heart of Bath,<br />
TONIQ is a group personal training<br />
facility with a focus on the whole<br />
‘you’. Providing support in nutrition,<br />
lifestyle, and stress management,<br />
and complemented by awardwinning<br />
classes, TONIQ helps you<br />
get more out of life.<br />
toniqlife.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
Marketplace 65<br />
To promote<br />
your business<br />
in Marketplace,<br />
email simon@<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
Workspaces<br />
Photo: Greentraveller<br />
Gather Round<br />
A growing family of creative coworking<br />
spaces with locations in<br />
Southville and St Pauls, Bristol.<br />
They support a community of<br />
around 200 creative thinkers and<br />
doers to connect, collaborate and<br />
thrive. If you want an inspiring<br />
place to work from, get in touch.<br />
gather-round.co<br />
Glove Factory Studios<br />
A unique rural workspace in Holt,<br />
near Bath, with 60-plus studios, set<br />
around garden courtyards in acres<br />
of countryside. Featuring<br />
a Coworking Club Room, quiet call<br />
booths, dedicated desk space,<br />
private studios, a meeting room,<br />
and a private swimming lake.<br />
glovefactorystudios.com<br />
House of St John’s<br />
More than a workspace, House of<br />
St John’s, in central Bath, includes<br />
a stunning open-plan events<br />
space for a variety of functions.<br />
From personal celebrations to<br />
networking events and awards<br />
ceremonies, it provides a luxury<br />
setting with a range of benefits.<br />
hosj.co.uk<br />
Food & Drink<br />
Home & Garden<br />
Iford Manor Kitchen<br />
An award-winning restaurant<br />
specialising in homemade, farmto-fork<br />
dining. Enjoy a threecourse<br />
lunch (£25) on Fridays and<br />
jazz Saturdays, or indulge in their<br />
ultimate Sunday roast. They also<br />
host pizza nights, supper clubs,<br />
sourdough workshops and more.<br />
ifordmanor.co.uk/fooddrink<br />
Lord Architecture<br />
An award-winning RIBA Chartered<br />
Practice with a passion for<br />
contemporary architecture and the<br />
reimagining of historic buildings.<br />
Creating inspirational spaces and<br />
beautifully crafted responsive<br />
architecture in Bath, London and<br />
across the south of England.<br />
lordarchitecture.co.uk<br />
James Gallie Architecture<br />
JGAD work closely with their<br />
clients to create carefully<br />
considered and joyful places.<br />
They heal existing buildings and<br />
land, inside and out, to connect<br />
occupants with their environment,<br />
wherever that may be. Each project<br />
is ecological, unique and uplifting.<br />
jamesgallie.com<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
have Courage Experience more<br />
Open Door Morning<br />
Friday, 1 <strong>March</strong> <strong>2024</strong><br />
ROOM TO BE ME —<br />
priorparkcollege.com<br />
rewild yourself<br />
sauna<br />
stays<br />
team off-sites<br />
retreats<br />
farm / woods, near bath + bristol<br />
campwell.co.uk
Hybrid Health Physiotherapy situated in our<br />
NEW location on Milsom Street in Bath, is a<br />
cut above the rest. Our concept, the “Hybrid<br />
Approach” has been shaped over 17 years<br />
of leading industry experience.<br />
Treatments include:<br />
• Running Analysis • Acupuncture<br />
• Sports Massage • Dry Cup Therapy<br />
• Swedish Massage • Lymphatic Drainage<br />
Book now or visit the website for<br />
more information:<br />
www.hybridhealthphysio.com<br />
A<br />
PLACE<br />
TO CALL<br />
WORK.<br />
BRISTOLOFFICE.CO.UK<br />
BATHOFFICE.CO.UK
68 It Happened Here<br />
The night UK and US hip-hop<br />
royalty did business together<br />
UK hip-hop would sound very different<br />
without the influence of Bristol, and one city<br />
crew had a greater impact than many others:<br />
the Wild Bunch. Captured by Bristol snapper<br />
Andrew ‘Beezer’ Beese, here they are in 1986<br />
performing at The Crypt, in St Pauls, with<br />
Soul II Soul and Great Peso from US rap group<br />
Fearless Four (you know, Rockin’ It). From<br />
left to right, it’s Willie Wee, Peso, and future<br />
Massive Attack members Andrew ‘Mushroom’<br />
Vowles, Robert ‘3D’ Del Naja and Grant ‘Daddy<br />
G’ Marshall. And lurking in the background,<br />
with specs on? A young artist called Inkie.<br />
There’s more like this in Beezer’s forthcoming<br />
book Until Now, published by PC Press.<br />
Photo: Beezer<br />
HIP-HOP @ 50<br />
Explore the role the Wild Bunch, Bristol and<br />
the UK have played in the evolution of hip-hop<br />
at this Trinity Centre all-dayer. Hip-Hop @ 50<br />
brings together top MCs, DJs, beatboxers,<br />
graffiti artists and dancers to analyse the past,<br />
the present and the future.<br />
nfld.io/hiphop50<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
It Happened Here 69<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
A FREE EXHIBITION WITH<br />
INTERACTIVE WORKSHOPS<br />
FOR FAMILIES & GROUPS<br />
MEET YOUNG ENGINEERS & LOCAL COMPANIES<br />
WATCH TECHNOLOGY DEMOS<br />
TAKE PART IN S.T.E.M. WORKSHOPS & CHALLENGES<br />
BRLSI.ORG<br />
Sat Feb 24th - Tues Feb 27th. 10am to 4pm daily<br />
16-18 Queen Square, Bath, BA1 2HN<br />
FREE ADMISSION<br />
A series of talks dedicated to<br />
EXTRAORDINARY<br />
WOMEN<br />
Inspiring stories of scientists, artists, philosophers & musicians who<br />
changed the world for women<br />
Featuring:<br />
Ada Lovelace<br />
Artemisia Gentileschi<br />
Clara Schumann<br />
Dolly Parton<br />
Mary Somerville<br />
Mary Wollstonecraft<br />
Paula Rego<br />
Simone de Beauvoir<br />
16-18<br />
Queen Square<br />
Bath, BA1 2HN<br />
<strong>March</strong><br />
<strong>2024</strong><br />
3 evening talks +<br />
1 full day symposium<br />
BRLSI.org/whats-on
www.carladiogo.com
72 My nearfield<br />
My nearfield<br />
Victoria Topping<br />
Bath-based artist, illustrator and record sleeve designer Victoria Topping<br />
explains how the region continues to inspire her creative practice<br />
I<br />
first came to Bristol in the early<br />
noughties to study art at UWE.<br />
I was initially attracted to the<br />
music scene and fell in love<br />
with the place after attending<br />
many legendary house parties,<br />
squat parties and raves, where<br />
I met people who have become<br />
family to me now. As the years<br />
passed, my perspective shifted,<br />
and I began to appreciate the<br />
southwest for more than just its<br />
musical magic. I’ve become much<br />
more appreciative of the area’s<br />
natural beauty, which is only ever<br />
a short walk away. The southwest<br />
also has a current of mysticism<br />
running through it that gives it<br />
a unique energy.<br />
The music is still ever-present<br />
in my work; last year I created<br />
a piece directly inspired by the<br />
energetic vibrations coming<br />
out of a huge speaker stack at<br />
St Pauls Carnival. There was so<br />
much love going around that<br />
day – a shared love for music,<br />
for unity and for each other. The<br />
energy was palpable. It’s these<br />
moments that I want to capture<br />
and get down in visual form.<br />
The energy doesn’t just come<br />
from the music. It’s also there in<br />
the land in parts of Somerset.<br />
It’s a kind of tangible thing and<br />
I’m always looking to channel it.<br />
I’m currently researching ancient<br />
medieval myths linked with local<br />
landscapes. We have Minerva<br />
in Bath, and I spent some time<br />
researching Greek myths for my<br />
book Mythologica, which led me<br />
into much of the other folklore<br />
this part of the world teems with.<br />
I’m now a mum of two, and<br />
living in Bath, so I rarely get<br />
a chance to go out dancing.<br />
Instead, I’m connected to a great<br />
community of artists at Bath<br />
Artists’ Studios, although I work<br />
from my own studio in town<br />
these days. And when I’m not<br />
creating, I’m collecting books<br />
on myths from Mr B’s bookshop,<br />
or secondhand treasures from<br />
Beaufort Bookshop in Larkhall. I’m<br />
addicted to buying crazy vintage<br />
clothes, too, and Walcot Street<br />
has two treasure troves in The<br />
Yellow Shop and Jack & Danny’s,<br />
which has a special place in my<br />
heart and has been open since<br />
the 60s. There’s nothing I love<br />
more than rolling up my sleeves<br />
and digging through the overpacked<br />
rails.<br />
Book a studio tour via<br />
victoriatopping.com<br />
“The southwest has a current of<br />
mysticism running through it that gives<br />
it a unique energy”<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
My nearfield 73<br />
Clockwise from<br />
top Mother Love;<br />
Victoria in front of<br />
her artwork, Utopia;<br />
Soundwave; at<br />
work in her Gay<br />
Street studio<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
74 Competition<br />
COMPETITION<br />
WIN a luxury<br />
stay in the<br />
heart of Bristol<br />
Bag a night away for two at The Doyle Collection’s<br />
art deco bolthole, The Bristol<br />
Given an elegant spruce-up by<br />
the good people at luxury hotel<br />
group The Doyle Collection,<br />
The Bristol presents guests with<br />
the best of both worlds: easy<br />
access to Bristol’s unique culture<br />
and nightlife, and a sophisticated<br />
retreat on the city’s iconic<br />
harbourside. If you’d prefer to<br />
stay in and marvel at the views,<br />
you can do that too; this art deco<br />
splendour features the River<br />
Lounge for afternoon teas and<br />
sundowners, Parisian River Grille<br />
restaurant, and in-house cocktail<br />
bar, Rick’s. Sound like your kind<br />
of thing? Follow the instructions<br />
(right) for a chance to win a onenight<br />
stay for two with breakfast<br />
included. You’re welcome.<br />
doylecollection.com/hotels/<br />
the-bristol-hotel<br />
HOW TO<br />
ENTER<br />
For your chance<br />
to win, enter at<br />
thenearfield.com<br />
before 17 <strong>March</strong><br />
<strong>NF02</strong>
BIG NAMES,<br />
NEW STAGES<br />
all together now - bristol beacon is open!<br />
Transatlantic<br />
Sessions<br />
Thu 8 Feb<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
Róisín Murphy<br />
Sun 11 Feb<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
Manu Delago<br />
Sun 11 Feb<br />
Lantern Hall<br />
Pip Blom<br />
Fri 16 Feb<br />
Lantern Hall<br />
Simple Things<br />
Festival<br />
Sat 24 Feb<br />
Bristol Beacon<br />
FEVER RAY<br />
Thu 29 Feb<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
London Symphony<br />
Orchestra<br />
Mon 4 Mar<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
Echo &<br />
The Bunnymen<br />
Wed 6 Mar<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
10cc<br />
Thu 7 Mar<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
Hania Rani<br />
Sat 9 Mar<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
Holly<br />
Humberstone<br />
Fri 15 Mar<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
Nick Mulvey<br />
Wed 20 Mar<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
Bournemouth<br />
Symphony<br />
Orchestra<br />
Thu 21 Mar<br />
Beacon Hall<br />
Sam Lee<br />
Wed 27 Mar<br />
Lantern Hall<br />
Thundercat<br />
Sat 30 Mar<br />
Beacon Hall
A DIMENSION<br />
BEYOND<br />
IMAGINATION<br />
WAKETHETIGER.COM