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Projects

RADIO & MUSIC COURSE (FUNDED BY GMCA AND WEA)

We are excited to bring this exclusive combined Radio & Music Course to 4C Community Centre in Tameside. This is an exciting opportunity to learn the ropes of, both, radio and music production, songwriting, and radio presenting.

This project will take place from the 11th of November to the 22nd of November. There is also a taster session you can come along to on the 8th of November to find out more about what you’d be getting up to on the programme.

To get involved, please email projects@reformradio.co.uk or give us a call on 0161 806 0879.

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Job Opportunity Opportunity

Casual Technician – Contact Theatre

SALARY: £12.92 per hour

MAIN LOCATION: Based at Contact with work at other venues/some home working as required

RESPONSIBLE TO: Production Manager

WORKS WITH: Technical, Artistic, Operational Teams

HOURS: Casual

OVERVIEW OF THE ROLE

To provide technical and operational support of a high standard to all of Contact’s performances, participatory projects and operational activities, including maintenance. Technically supporting artistic activity.

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Featured Podcast Podcasts

ROPE LADDER FICTION / WE ARE SURVIVORS

We Are Survivors is a survivor focused organisation that provides safe spaces for male (including trans and non-binary individuals) survivors of sexual abuse, rape and sexual exploitation across Greater Manchester.

They teamed up with Rope Ladder Fiction, a Manchester-based drama production company. Together they created a series of powerful written pieces, using the survivors’ personal experiences to create four moving stories of hope and resilience. 

Rope Ladder approached Reform Radio to produce the recording of the stories. Read and performed by Neil Bell, our team directed the performance. We encouraged the writers to be in the room during the recording of their pieces, ensuring they felt a part of the process and experienced how it all worked. 

Our team then edited each piece, adding in detailed sound design to bring the stories to life. We received amazing feedback from both the Rope Ladder Fiction team, and the writers.

Joseph from Rope Ladder Fiction said: “Working on these audio dramas with We Are Survivors has been a privilege that has led to four emotive and well-written pieces of storytelling being created. We can’t thank Reform Radio enough for their professional and comforting approach to producing these audio dramas and inviting us into their space. From February to July, this creative process is one that has been allowed time and care. Olivia and the rest of the team respected this from the get-go and matched this ethos during the two recording days.”

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Featured Podcast Podcasts

Tonies

Tonies is a children’s toy maker, bringing listening and playing together. The Toniebox uses audio storytelling to introduce pre-readers and developing readers to the wonders of narrative long before children can read the words in a book. 

Children and parents can listen to narrators like Rupert Grint, Denzel Washington, Morgan Freeman, Whoopi Goldberg, David Walliams, and Jodie Whitaker reading stories like The Emperor’s New Clothes, Peter and the Wolf, and The Very Hungry Caterpillar. 

We worked with Tonies on their series of short children’s stories, written by the author Rachel Bright and narrated by actor Bill Nighy. The stories followed the adventures of a curious Koala, a lonely Gecko, and a nervous Lion. Our team wrote, recorded, and edited the introductions to each story as well as the quiz and outro that followed each tale. Our brilliant in-house team worked hard to ensure the audio was engaging, exciting, and was appropriate for the target audience of 3-8 year olds.

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RAISE THE BAR: DR SYNTAX

Northern name, Dr Syntax, joined Jorgy & Cheech on their latest show for some serious ‘rappering’. Delivering dry wit, honest bars and hard-hitting punchlines, the rapper didn’t cease to impress us. Alongside some chat on the airwaves, we were buzzing to experience a live session from the man himself.

Watch the full set below.

You can listen back to the full show on Reform Radio below for some quality conversations, tune choices and beats.

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Featured Podcast Podcasts

BBC Sounds Audio Lab 2024

Hosted by creative force Mia Thornton, Instrumental is a 5 episode music podcast celebrating the powerful yet often overlooked contributions of Black British artists in shaping Britain’s most cherished musical genres – those not as typically associated with Black culture, such as classical, punk, folk, dance and pop. 

Through captivating storytelling, expert interviews with high profile contributors such as Craig David and Clara Amfo, and rich archival content, each episode focuses on one of these genres, touching themes of erasure and re-telling, breaking stereotypes, legal and economic challenges and safe spaces and community to name a few.  

This is a BBC Sounds podcast produced under the Audio Lab 2024 scheme, a training and development programme helping to amplify the next-generation of podcast producers and audio creatives, set for release in early 2025.

It is the first podcast for the BBC that makes use of a new music rights agreement called SORP, meaning we’re able to feature longer music extracts than the usual BBC documentaries you hear!

Find more information on the BBC Sounds Audio Lab Scheme here.

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Projects

PODCASTING COURSE (FUNDED BY MAES)

Our Podcasting Course is kindly funded by MAES and runs over a two-week period.

Have you ever had a podcast idea which you never got round to? Or maybe you have always wanted to get behind the mic but not known where to start. If so, then this one’s for you. Learn how to design, produce, record, edit and promote your podcast.

Lunch and travel is provided so, what are you waiting for?

See the flyer below for the full details on how to get involved in one of our future Podcasting courses.

Check out our antics at one of our Podcasting Courses in the video below.

Delve deeper into what our participants go up to here where we chatted to Ruby and Dove about their time on the course and listen to the Reform Radio show they contributed towards below.

Find out about our other free creative courses here. If any of them take your fancy, get in touch with our lovely Engagement Team on projects@reformradio.co.uk to get involved.

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BBC SOUNDS’ AUDIO LAB PROGRAMME W/ MIA THORNTON

In case you missed it, we are a Production Partner on this year’s BBC Sounds’ Audio Lab project. Audio Lab is a top class training opportunity. It aims to amplify the next-generation of podcast producers and audio creatives. As part of this year’s programme, we are supporting young creator, Mia Thornton, to bring her podcast idea to life. We thought it would only be right to introduce her properly so keep reading to find out more about her work and where you can listen to it.

Please can you introduce your name pronouns and a little bit about your hobbies and interests?

My name is Mia, but most people call me Mimi, and my pronouns are she/her. Hobbies and interests? That’s a hard one, I’m boring but busy. I guess, overall, I have an interest in discovery. Whether it’s self discovery or world discovery, I really enjoy exploring and learning. It could be through music, fashion, food, writing, travelling. Ultimately, I just really enjoy discussions and exchanging stories and experiences with people.

How did you first find out about the AudioLab programme and what made you want to get involved?

A friend of mine sent the application link to me and said ‘this might be perfect for you’. After reading through it, I realised that she was 100% right. I’d heard of Audio Lab before but hadn’t applied. However my current work contract at the time was coming to an end so I was looking for something new. I already had some experience in podcasts and audio/digital production before, but most of it had been self-taught. Audio Lab seemed like the best way to get industry experience whilst also being able to create.

How was the application process? Can you tell us a bit about your journey from applying for the programme and where you are now?

The application process was different to any job I’ve applied for before. You had to do the usual ‘why you’re the right person’ type application, but you also had to create a demo of what your episode would sound like. For me, this worked in my favour, because I already had a clear idea of what I wanted to convey. It was really fun to get creative so early on in an application. But, it also made me even more invested in my idea. I actually told myself that even if I didn’t get the job, I would create the series myself anyway. It’s good job I got it, as I’m not sure I would’ve had the discipline otherwise!

Although the podcast and content I’m working with now is a lot more in depth, structured and has more logical thought behind it, the core message and sound remains the same. I’m essentially telling stories that are being woven together by great music. 

Tell us more about your podcast – what has inspired its creation?

My podcast is about Black British music, but from a different perspective. I’ll be looking at genres that are loved by Britain, but not always associated with the Black artists who have contributed to them. Classical, punk, dance, folk and pop are what we’ll be exploring.

The idea was something I had been sitting on for a while but I never really did anything with it. It came from a feeling of frustration with constantly seeing the same stories of Black people being told repeatedly. There often doesn’t seem to be space in mainstream media for stories that sit outside of the ‘norm’ or the mainstream when it comes to Black people. 

I was also really interested in how that is also manifested in how we view music. A lot of my friends are musicians or DJs and I’ve often seen them overlooked because they create or play music that doesn’t sit within the predictable lines of blackness. I wanted to be able to tell the stories of the people who are insanely talented, but because they don’t fit into this idea of what Black people ‘should’ be, their work isn’t given the credit it deserves. 

What has been your favourite thing about the process of creating your podcast so far?

So far, I’ve just really loved speaking with all the different contributors whose voices will be featured in the podcast. It’s been so inspiring to hear so many different stories and to meet and speak with people who I wouldn’t usually cross paths with. 

Have you learnt anything about yourself through the AudioLab process so far? If so, tell us more.

I’ve learned to be more accepting of myself. You’ll probably hear it in the podcast, but it’s been a journey for me to unlearn my own stereotypes and biases that I’ve had towards myself. 

It’s been quite eye-opening and also empowering to confront the beliefs I’ve internalised and to recognise how they’ve influenced me, or held me back. Overall, it’s really encouraged me to embrace who I am (how cliché, yuck!), but I think by doing this, it adds a depth to the stories that I want to tell in the podcast. But, I guess you’ll have to listen to really get what I’m talking about… 

Who is your favourite Black British artist?

Right now, my favourite artist is probably Mansur Brown – his music is literally perfect for any and every situation. I don’t really need to say any more, go listen and then you’ll understand. NAQI Vol 2 is my favourite album of his, but they are all fire.

What are your plans post-podcast creation? Do you want to keep creating audio content or do you have other things in your plan?

I’m not really sure, I’m really just enjoying where I’m at right now. I’d love to create more audio content, but because my journey into this hasn’t been linear, I don’t really expect my journey after it to be either. I’d like to explore more roles within the music industry, but then I’d also like to sell all my belongings and travel the world for a year – I guess what’s meant for me will be!

Mia’s podcast will be out in early 2025 and available to listen to on BBC Sounds. From her concept, story-telling, incredible guests and more, we can assure you that you won’t want to miss out on it.

Stay tuned for more Audio Lab news over on our Instagram and LinkedIn.