The Human Folk Report by Alice Hammerton

PRESENTING:

THE HUMAN FOLK In praise of personhood.

PRESENTING:

THE HUMAN FOLK In praise of personhood.

A Marketing Report to Explore the Magazine Launch of The Human Folk Alice Hammerton / N0330978 / FASH30002

I confirm that this work has gained ethical approval and that I have faithfully observed the terms of the approval in the conduct of this project. This submission is the result of my own work. All help and advice other than that received from tutors has been acknowledged and primary and secondary sources of information have been properly attributed. Should this statement prove to be untrue I recognise the right and duty of the board of examiners to recommend what action should be taken in line with the Universityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s regulations on assessment contained in its handbook. signed .................................................................................................................... date .......................................................................................................................

WORD COUNT: 5451 (WITH QUOTES 8836)

CONTENTS

1.0 INTRODUCTION

2.0 METHODOLOGY

3.0 WHY NOW? 3.1 AUTHENTICITY 3.2 SOCIAL CURIOSITY 3.3 BRAND RELATIONSHIPS

4.0 THE MARKET

5.0 THE BIG IDEA

6.0 CREATIVE OUTCOMES 6.1 CASE STUDIES 6.2 THE MAGAZINE 6.3 THE CONTENT 6.4 DIGITAL COUNTERPART

7.0 THE SPONSOR 7.1 WHY FOLK? 7.2 WHY COLLABORATE? 8.0 WHO’S IT FOR? 8.1 FOLK FOLLOWERS 8.2 PEOPLE PERSONS 9.0 COMMUNICATION STRATEGY 9.1 POSITIONING 9.2 PROMOTION

10.0 GOING FORWARD

11.0 CONCLUSION

12.0 REFERENCES 13.0 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 14.0 BIBLIOGRAPHY 15.0 APPENDIX

66 67 68 74

INTRODUCTION

oday’s media dominated, and celebrity-obsessed, culture of narcissism and hyperreality has resulted in a multitude of side-effects and movements, both cultural and commercial. Anthropologist and consultant Peter Mark Adams believes that, ‘The pervasiveness of media controlled images and celebrity culture has created societies driven by greed, distracted by trivia and in thrall to spectacle. As humanity, we are faced with a direct threat to our ethical, personal and cultural evolution’ (Adams 2013: online). This is a sentiment shared by many, as has been demonstrated by clear shifts in priorities and wider cultural trends demanding more authentic and meaningful lives, in an attempt to get back to reality and our essential selves. As technology and digital connectivity are ever-evolving, more and more people’s lives are migrating to the internet, where virtual relationships are played out and a sense of reality and meaningful experience is much harder to grasp. Author David Boyle discusses the difficult balance of “virtual” and “real” in the world in which we live today - ‘There’s a growing suspicion of a world where we don’t have to see people or touch anything, and a longing for something we can’t quite put our fingers on.’ (Boyle 2004: 5). These technological and virtual lifestyles of the digital age are leading to a need for something more meaningful in our lives, as well as a greater need to disconnect through offline methods.

This trend for authenticity has long been predicted. Philosopher Robert Nozick said that ‘In a virtual world, we’ll long for reality even more.’ (Nozick in Boyle 2004: 7), a prediction that is proving true today, particularly within the magazine industry. Stylus state that consumers are becoming more attracted to the sentimental pull of physical magazines, as they are overwhelmed and dissatisfied with online content options (Stylus 2013: online). However troubling economic times and this digital boom have of course lead to difficulties and changes in many sectors, including the print market. As a result of this, individual parties in many areas of the creative industries are turning to collaboration in order to ensure mutual stability, as well as innovation, a strategy which can be extremely beneficial for both sides of the partnership.

This report explores the concept and strategy for a new niche publication, created in association with clothing brand Folk, as a response to the outlined cultural factors. The mutual benefits of this collaboration will be explained, as well as the process of product development and a clear communications strategy. Created in order to satisfy the social curiosities and interests that all people take in one another, quarterly keepsake magazine ‘The Human Folk’ will celebrate the uncelebrated, and communicate a new perspective on Real Life content, centred on appreciation and positivity. Disregarding celebrity, sensationalism and hyperreality, the magazine will instead respond to the consumer’s current desire for honesty, authenticity and escapism.

METHODOLOGY

METHOD

DESCRIPTION

REASON

EVALUATION

Primary Research

Online Survey, 65 respondents, male and female aged between 17 and 60.

To gain contextual and market insights into consumersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; opinions and reactions to the project idea and related topics.

Extremely useful and informative, very good response, with use of many open questions allowing valuable opportunities for insightful expansion and explanation.

Secondary Research

Book-based research into cultural theories surrounding authenticity, slow movement, brands and magazines.

To identify and gain an understanding of the wider social and contextual factors which may affect the project.

Useful in understanding the origins and reasons behind cultural movements impacting the project, however information is somewhat limited by publishing dates.

Secondary Research

Report-based research into To gain insights into the the market surrounding ways in which the market is online and print magazines. currently operating, exploring both broad and more specific areas and to identify market trends and performance.

Extremely useful method for gaining hard facts and up to date statistics about the market, as well as identifying opportunities for future growth.

Secondary Research

Article and online-based research into magazine market, social interests of consumers, content marketing and sponsor brands.

To gain an in-depth understanding of any brands involved in the project, and explore new perspectives and opinions on all areas of the project.

Very useful in offering current information relating to technology and more recent trends in culture and the market, future opportunities and predictions, and a broad range of ideas and perspectives.

Secondary Research

Research into commercial case studies, relating to independent magazines and brand publications.

To understand and examine examples of existing products which may help inform decisions into the projectâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s final product.

Useful in helping to develop strategies for creating magazine identity, as well as creative inspiration and tactical positioning opportunities.

WHY NOW? IN ORDER TO EXPLORE AND EVALUATE THE CURRENT ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH THE PRODUCT WILL LAUNCH, THE FOLLOWING CONTEXTUAL FACTORS HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AND EXAMINED.

3.1 A

AUTHENTICITY

s well as multiple benefits and advancements, the digital age of mass media and technology has produced a broad spectrum of side-effects and counter reactions, including a desire for honestly, going back to basics, the Slow Movement and a need to escape and disconnect. Due to the increased use of screens in our daily lives, disconnecting and relaxing through offline methods has become essential, and tangible objects which offer a more personal and intimate experience such as magazines and books, can help us to do so. According to Stylus, in 2013 ‘this digital barrage is sending people back to those traditional print values’ (Stylus 2013: online). Magazines offer a good opportunity for downtime and escapism through a more personal and authentic channel than a television or computer.

As well as a desire for a slower lifestyle and a greater need to wind down and disconnect due to technology, David Boyle relates this search for authenticity to a world dominated by big brands and corporate giants. He states in his book that ‘In this kind of branded reality, people are afraid that their grip on what is authentic is somehow slipping from them... [having been] programmed into a wonderful hyper-real virtual world by a giant corporation. The roots of the new demand for authenticity lie in this kind of excess - a sense that reality itself is up for sale.’ (Boyle 2004: 12). People need to feel like they are involved in something real, particularly where brands are concerned. He explains that this current trend for authenticity is also rooted in humanism, stating that ‘authenticity may mean natural or beautiful, it may mean rooted geographically or morally, but behind all that [it] means human. It means that the full complexity of people is recognized, that their need for human contact, their uniqueness and individuality are recognized too.’ (Boyle 2004: 285). As we attempt to disconnect from the stress of modern life, the desire for authentic relationships and connections with other human beings and organisations becomes greater.

However, Boyle also points out that alongside the current search for authenticity, consumers today do still very much enjoy the conveniences of a modern lifestyle, and are not willing to give this up entirely. Offering authenticity to consumers today is about creating an appropriate balance which doesn’t entirely reject modern conveniences. Relating to the print and magazine markets, this means harmoniously using offline and online methods in appropriate measure to meet the consumer’s desire for both.

“We have seen the emergence of a new growing, articulate minority of the population, who are rejecting the idea that progress means a fake, second-rate world and are demanding real human contact, real experience and real connection. They don’t just want authenticity - this is no puritanical return: they enjoy drinking too much, they want fast food when it’s convenient, and they certainly want to use the internet. But they don’t want that to be their only choice. They want something authentic to go back to.” (Boyle 2004: 261)

Fig 1. 7

“The human race is interesting full stop.” “People are endlessly fascinating! Everyone has a story to tell.” “I am nosy and watching people’s behaviour and communication fascinates me.” “I like to know the story behind people, makes me feel like I know them better.” “Its a natural human instinct to take an interest in others, we all like to gossip and aside from this we can learn a lot from others.” “It fascinates me how everyone is different, and how absolutely everyone has different high and lows and trials and tribulations.” (Anonymous Respondents 2013: Appendix A)

Fig 2.

SOCIAL CURIOSITY

s an extension of this general cultural trend for authenticity, people are also becoming more interested in our human relationships with one another, as we search for a deeper meaning and connection in all areas of life. Psychologist David Givens is of the opinion that we are all amateur anthropologists, due to our basic human nature of curiosity, ‘We are curious about ourselves and about other people, the living as well as the dead, here and around the globe.’ (Givens 2012: online). Of the respondents of our online survey, 94% said that they take a natural interest in other people and their lives (Appendix A). Some of the commonly given reasons were general curiosity and nosiness, natural human empathy and compassion, fascination and escapism, an interest in learning and comparisons, and the differences between us all.

As a consequence of this natural social curiosity, which has been pushed to great extremes through modern media and communications, we have come to a point where our obsessions with celebrity, hyperreality, and our culture of narcissism are well recognised and documented, and as a consequence people are beginning to grow tired of it. A respondent in our survey said, ‘I care about people - part of that is taking an interest in their lives (real issues). I do not care about celebrities and fashion stuff.’ (Anonymous respondent 2013: Appendix A). There is now an opportunity to celebrate the uncelebrated, and feed the current desire for authenticity, honesty and something real through a focus on ordinary people and their stories.

3.2

There is evidence to suggest that as people are looking more and more for meaningful relationships with one another, exploring ordinary people and their lives is more interesting now than the constant barrage of often unreliable or fabricated information about celebrities.

Popular TV programmes of the moment, such as 24 hours in A&E, tend to focus more on the human element and the stories behind the staff and individual patients featured, rather than the medical aspects and basis for the show. The show’s producer, Anthony Philipson, says that it is the intimate and powerful portraits of the patients and the “real human stories” which fascinate and engage their viewers so successfully, ‘every story reveals so much about human life and that’s what is so interesting.’ (Philipson 2011: online).

3.3

BRAND RELATIONSHIPS

rands can use the current desire for authenticity and meaningful connections to develop informed and relevant content marketing and communication strategies. In the current economic climate, brands are trying to form deeper and more meaningful relationships with their consumers, in order to secure brand loyalty and, ultimately, financial stability and longevity. Research scholar Reshma Farhat has found that ‘Brand personality not only plays a crucial role in customer retention, but also has profound influence on a company’s performance’, recognising that ‘in the present prevailing competitive scenario, brands are new business warriors and customer retention plays a vital role so that the customers are glued to an offering on a long-term basis’ (Farhat 2011: online). Brands are continually trying to communicate a strong and clear brand personality, in order to differentiate themselves from competitors. Effective content marketing has become a vital way to communicate with consumers and inspire brand loyalty by delivering consistent, ongoing valuable information, as opposed to a focus

on selling. Described by the Content Marketing Institute as ‘the art of communicating with your customers and prospects without selling. It is non-interruption marketing. Instead of pitching your products or services, you are delivering information that makes your buyer more intelligent.’ (Content Marketing Institute 2013: online), content marketing informs consumers of the brand’s values and offers them something more than the hard sell. Using offline methods, such as brand magazines, experiential events and more personal in-store shopping services, along with meaningful content marketing are just some of the ways that brands are currently trying to find deeper connections with consumers. However Justin Pearse, head of innovation at marketing services agency Bite, warns that for content marketing to succeed, brands need to produce authentic content that clearly resonates with the consumer -

“We’re facing a content deluge online in 2013. The interruptive advertising model of old is fast dying out as digital media give always-on consumers the ability to take control of their relationships with brands. Content is being seen, often correctly, as one way to help build these relationships. The very real danger is that this leads to an outpouring of poor quality, unfocused content produced purely to satisfy the algorithmic demands of SEO or social media.” (Pearse 2013: online).

Fig 3.

With this in mind, it is crucial to know your consumer, so that content can be produced with an authentic point of view that will truly engage and satisfy their needs and interests.

Brands today are also striving to be seen as more than a single focused organisation, instead wanting to appear more as multidisciplinary “lifestyle” brands. Creating a culture around a brand is also an effective way of engaging people and creating brand loyalty, as marketing-savvy consumers today want to be a part of something more meaningful and personal than the corporate global machines that dominate today’s marketplace. Authors Stefania Saviolo and Antonio Marazza describe a lifestyle brand as one that ‘offer[s] a perspective on the world and a call to action’, a brand with a cause, with which its consumers can connect and relate. A successful lifestyle brand will appeal to consumers not just on the basis of product, but also what the brand represents to that consumer who will ‘appreciate its personality, values and cultural content’ (Saviolo and Marazza 2012: 11).

THE MARKET

he previous cultural factors, along with economical and technological factors have all had various effects on the general print and magazine markets. And although there has been a general decline in print sales and distribution, Stylus reports show that at least 195 new magazines went to print in 2012, compared with 181 in 2011, showing there is still room for growth within this sector and it is still seen to be a good opportunity and market to enter. ‘We’re seeing a resurgence of print publications, with consumers responding to the perceived high value and luxuriousness of tangible printed magazines.’ (Stylus 2013: online).

The rise in digital content, popular for its convenience factor and often free options, has of course contributed to the overall decline of the print market. However this has not been as significant or damaging a factor as was originally expected. Mintel finds that ‘There is still a strong consumer loyalty to the print format, including its tangible physical aspects’ with almost two thirds (65%) of consumers ‘prefer[ing] to read a print copy of a magazine rather than a digital version’ (Mintel 2012: online). Sara Cremer, MD at customer communications agency Redwood, believes that it is not an issue of either/or, and that it is simply a matter of defining the different role and purpose of print and online, ‘Print does certain things very well. There’s a sense of reward – almost luxury – of devoting time to the printed page that you can’t put a price on. But at the same time, there’s an immediacy and ‘shareability’ to the online world that’s just as valuable in its own unique way.’ (Cremer in Hooper 2012:

online), a sentiment shared by many throughout the industry. Although digital is a valuable opportunity in certain regards, print still has a firm place and relevance in the market today, as ‘over half of consumers agree that reading a magazine is a good way to ‘switch off’/disconnect from technology (eg mobile phones, the internet etc)’ (Mintel 2012: online), a side-effect that, due to its nature, digital content cannot offer.

“Magazines offering expertly curated content with a graphic flair are not only surviving, but thriving.” (Stylus 2013: online)

independents

Fig 4.

Another reward that print magazines can offer readers in a way that digital cannot, is a sense of intimacy and the satisfaction felt from the appreciation of a beautiful and special object. Due to these benefits, the phenomenon of the “bookazine” has been extremely successful. Described by Scandinavian bookazine LOFT as ‘A symbiosis between a magazine and a book that goes against the dominant trend of consuming and throwing away tons and tons of printed matter’ (LOFT 2013: online), these hybrid objects incorporate a keepsake element and sentimentality that traditional throwaway magazines do not. Mintel found that ‘A fifth of those who currently read print magazines also say they would pay more for a collectible magazine (longer than normal, highquality photography/design etc).’ (Mintel 2012: online). Peter Eramian, creator of Shoppinghour Magazine, also notes the change in magazines as an appreciated and treasured object, describing magazines as ‘entering a second golden age, characterised by the filtering away of the disposable from the non-disposable’ (Eramian in Watson 2013: online). With this in mind, the design and craft becomes particularly important in order to make the object worth holding on to for the reader.

Steve Watson, founder of alternative subscription service Stack Magazines, also takes this point of view, however he points out that along with this appreciation of well designed, keepsake magazines, there is also a danger that a lack of meaningful content may let these beautiful and well crafted titles down. ‘Browse the shelves in any well-stocked magazine shop and you’ll find all sorts of £20+ titles weighing an absolute ton and covered in all sorts of special print finishes, but without really having much to say for themselves.’ (Watson 2013: online). Alongside interesting design and considered craft, it is important to really have something to say, in order to set yourself apart and truly live up to this new meaningful and emotional relationship with the reader.

“A magazine is no longer something you just flick through, it’s something you devote time to, read carefully, appreciate its design and craft, and reflect on. It’s something you keep and cherish, reference and reread. It asks you to pause for a moment, smell it, touch it, examine it, and think about it. It offers a nuanced activism that resists the nonstop anxieties of everyday life. From the vision to the editing, the idea to the concept, the design to the ethos, the words to the paper, the image to the ink, and the voice to the community, magazine publishing is becoming one of the most exciting collective art forms of our time.” (Eramian in Watson 2013: online)

This emphasis on keepsake magazines with considered content is also echoed in Mintel’s research findings, as they have identified that ‘there is still strong demand for a well-targeted, carefully-priced niche publication offering good quality content.’ (Mintel 2012: online). In the debate surrounding the “death of print”, independent niche publications are one area of the market who have been seen to ride out the economic gloom surprisingly well. Jeremy Leslie of magculture.com says of the enduring success of niche magazines that, ‘Ironically, I attribute it to the internet,’ (Leslie in Hooper 2012: online), as it has helped people to truly appreciate a tangible object with an angle and a sense of permanence, compared to the fleeting and everchanging information online. Stylus agrees, ‘Niche magazines are thriving as audiences find their specific needs aren’t matched by generalized online content.’ (Stylus 2013: online). Tanya Farber on the other hand puts this down to the specific consumer base of more focused, niche publications in the independent sector, stating that ‘where niche magazines are concerned, the absence of a sizable audience is mirrored by a fierce loyalty among those who make the purchase.’ (Farber 2012: online). Urs Honegger, CEO of Panorama Publications, agrees, describing the readers of the independent and niche magazine markets as ‘much more engaged, more loyal, more passionate and more keen to interact with their niche magazine’. (Honegger in Farber 2012: online).

In the same way that niche publications have achieved a fiercely loyal readership through careful targeting, brands have a good opportunity to enter the print market with “customer magazines” offering content marketing that truly speaks to their consumer. According to the Association of Publishing Agencies (APA), in 2011 half of the top 10 titles and 25 of the top 100 by average circulation were magazines produced by brands as part of their marketing communications (APA in Baker 2011: online). Mintel’s research in 2011 also estimated that ‘the industry in the UK alone is likely to be worth £1bn by 2013. Between 2008 and 2009 it grew 16 per cent, and by 2013 it is projected to increase by a further 22 per cent – no mean feat when the rest of the glossy magazine world is in the doldrums.’ (Mintel in Greene 2011: online).

It is the direct impact on consumers that these publications are seen to have that is attracting brands. Julia Hutchinson, chief operating officer of the APA, says that ‘Our research has shown that these magazines create an eight per cent uptick in sales... On average, every customer spends 25 minutes reading these titles. That’s 25 minutes spent with the brand. Lots of companies are redirecting their ad and marketing spends to this avenue.’ (Hutchinson in Baker 2011: online). This is largely attributed to the quality of in-house magazines today, previously seen as glorified advertorials, which now use much subtler branding with a genuine effort to introduce original material and considered content. This type of brand publishing can only serve to increase customer loyalty, and brand relationships, in a much gentler form than pure advertising, Lucy Greene at the Financial Times says ‘The investment makes sense: it gives depth to a brand in an environment they can control. It pushes product without the obvious “sell”, and in many instances may be cheaper than advertising.’ (Greene 2011: online).

Fig 5.

“Businesses as diverse as British supermarket Waitrose, Swedish fashion brand Acne and German car manufacturer Audi are lavishing time and resources on the production of increasingly popular print publications as part of their marketing strategies. There’s an understanding that the value consumers place on these tangible objects reflects back in a positive way on their brand. This sort of branded content – engaging consumers with an editorial voice, rather than a marketing voice – continues to offer strong return on investment for companies across the spectrum.” (Stylus 2013: online)

Discovering a niche area of content that will engage a brand’s consumer can be extremely beneficial. Considering the combined contextual factors of the current desire for authenticity and consumer’s social curiosity, there is still a lot of room for growth in the magazine market in terms of catering for this interest. We asked the respondents to our survey (Appendix A) “What would you be more interested to read about in a magazine?” out of “The lives and stories of celebrities” and “The lives and stories of ordinary people”, 28% said they would be more interested to read about celebrities, whereas an enormous 72% said that they would rather read about ordinary people. In addition to this, 74% of respondents said that they found “Relatable aspects of everyday life that ordinary people share and experience” more

Fig 6.

interesting and intriguing than, “Aspirational aspects of the perhaps unobtainable/unrealistic lives of the rich and famous”, which scored only 26%. This shows there is a large appetite for this type of content. However the only category that currently aims to purely cater to this interest in a dedicated print format, is the underperforming “Real Life” sector of the “Women’s Weeklies” market, with YOY figures of -10.7%, and POP standing at -5.9% (ABC 2013: online). This, in part, may be due to the nature of this type of magazine, traditionally seen as throw-away items, of poor design and quality, compared with the general keepsake trend in the market. However the launch in March 2013 of the first ever new monthly title in this sector, “That’s Amazing!”, marks a new direction for this type of magazine, and shows that there is still significant interest in the sector

Fig 7.

and subject matter. Although That’s Amazing! magazine is attempting to overcome this traditional throw-away identity of Real Life magazines, by offering a monthly, and theoretically better quality publication, its design and aesthetic is nothing new and does not take advantage of any of the popular attributes of bookazines and keepsake titles. When asked about these types of Real Life magazine in our online survey, respondents frequently responded with descriptions such as ‘tacky’ and ‘trashy’, one respondent said they need to ‘calm down’ visually and that they’re ‘outdated’, whereas another stated ‘They look cheap and flimsy and maybe that’s why I don’t buy them.’ (Anonymous respondent 2013: Appendix A).

Fig 8.

The content of these magazines is also seen to be sensationalistic and exploitative, rather than positive or appreciative. When asked if respondents thought if these publications deal with their content tactfully or respectfully, some of the comments were ‘No. I think that these publications sensationalise life experiences a little and as such at times make the story unbelievable.’, ‘I think the stories I see on covers tend to be the same “Mum left Dad for brother” type headlines which do not interest me and exploit real people for what I think is shock and comedy value’ and ‘its never good to see someone else’s distress commodified’ (Anonymous respondents 2013: Appendix A). Respondents felt that the Real Life content which discusses people’s stories in these magazines is always very negative, exploitative and sensationalistic, and not at all positive or uplifting. When asked how these magazines could be improved these were the common themes of the responses - ‘Stop talking about hurtful and negative things people think they care about and start talking about interesting things’, ‘Telling inspirational stories about their pasts or interests as opposed to making you feel sorry for them or horrified’, ‘A chatty but informative tone of voice that allows the consumer to relate and form an emotional response to what they’re reading’ and ‘they could do with taking a more appreciative and sympathetic tone of voice’ (Anonymous respondents 2013: Appendix A).

Taking into consideration all of the above factors, including the proven resilience of print against digital formats, the popularity of keepsake publications and bookazines, the merits of niche publishing and targeted content marketing for brands, as well as the lack of an item within the market that caters appropriately to the huge human and real life interest category, we have identified a clear gap in the market for a new publication which takes advantage of these factors, as well as a significant opportunity for the involvement of an appropriate brand.

“[Print] has almost gained its own premium feel. There’s something nowadays slightly special about a print product: it is still a very luxurious purchase – that can make you feel warm and special inside. Print products are still very good at making those deeper emotional connections.” (Tickner in Stylus 2013: online)

THE BIG IDEA

areful examination of the identified social, cultural and market conditions have helped to inform a relevant and timely â&#x20AC;&#x153;Big Ideaâ&#x20AC;?. Its aim is to celebrate the uniqueness and authenticity of everyday people and their extraordinary lives, through a new keepsake print magazine, with a focus on beautiful design and meaningful content.

The publication will be produced in association with the brand Folk, who will operate as a sponsor and collaborative partner for the magazine, a partnership which will be beneficial for both parties, as will be explained later.

CREATIVE OUTCOMES LEADING ON FROM THESE AIMS, A SET OF CONSIDERED CREATIVE OUTCOMES HAVE BEEN OUTLINED IN ORDER TO CREATE A MEANINGFUL PRODUCT AND EFFECTIVE STRATEGY THAT WILL REFLECT AND FULFILL THIS.

6.1 F

CASE STUDIES: BUILDING MAGAZING IDENTITY

or the purposes of exploring the necessary and effective components to be considered when building a magazine identity, three specific publications from the independent magazine sector have been analysed, all of which have proven extremely successful and popular in what they are doing.

CONTENT & ANGLE: MONO.KULTUR

ell-regarded within the independent magazine industry for their innovative design approach, what really sets German magazine Mono.Kultur apart is their unique approach to content. Each issue offers simply one in-depth interview with a chosen person of interest, relating to popular themes in culture such as art, music, film and literature. Their website states that: ‘mono.kultur is an interview magazine from Berlin. Questions and answers. Conversations with the interesting few. In full length and depth, extensive and unfiltered.’ (Mono.Kultur 2013: online).

In terms of content and angle, Mono. Kultur shares a similar approach to The Human Folk, in delivering indepth life conversations and really getting to know the people featured, on a more intimate and personal level than other magazines. However where the magazines will differ is in the type of person featured, as Mono. Kultur focuses on celebrated and wellknown individuals, as opposed to the ordinary and unknown individuals of The Human Folk.

“mono.kultur features one interview per issue, no more no less. Carefully selected and designed. No distractions, no gossip, no trendscouting. Instead we offer opinions, experiences, lives.” (Mono.Kultur 2013: online)

Fig 9. 25

TONE OF VOICE: OH COMELY â&#x20AC;&#x153;There are adventures that capture the feeling of being free, stories from people with tales to tell, recipes to warm your heart, and crafty things to make. All these things, wrapped up in beautiful words, illustration and photography.â&#x20AC;? (Oh Comely 2013: online)

Fig 10.

h Comely has very successfully created a unique identity, and therefore a strong following of loyal readers, though a considered tone of voice and message. The focus of the magazine is on playful creativity and curiosity, with a warm and friendly tone which speaks to the reader as a close friend or companion. Oh Comely describes itself as a lifestyle magazine ‘that makes people smile, full of quiet moments and stories. Read it with a cup of tea or a toddy.’ (Oh Comely 2013: online).

The Human Folk will have a similarly warm and appreciative tone of voice, in order to create an engaging and uplifting relationship with the reader, and a similarly loyal consumer base. However the content of the two magazines will differ greatly, as Oh Comely covers a fairly vast array of topics and subject matter, whereas The Human Folk will have more specific and focused content.

“It's a magazine that inspires people to talk to their neighbours, send painted pictures in the post and look at life afresh. It celebrates their creativity and their personal beauty, and explores the things they love. oh comely makes people feel better about themselves.” (Oh Comely 2013: online)

DESIGN & OBJECT: CEREAL MAGAZINE

ffering a clean and minimal design, new food and travel quarterly Cereal has proven extremely popular amongst design circles and lovers of the magazine as a collectible object. They strive to generate content that isn’t time sensitive or region specific, a timeless approach which is reflected in their design and layout. Cereal’s designer, Richard Stapleton, says that they wanted to, ‘create something that had a very minimal look and feel. We use a muted colour palette, and employ plenty of white space throughout the publication to give our content room to breathe.’ (Stapleton 2013: online).

The Human Folk aims to appeal to these same design ideals as Cereal magazine, in order to create a magazine with weight that the reader will want to hold on to. This minimal design will create a similar feel to the magazines, however they will appeal to separate consumers through their differing content.

‘Although making the magazine look nice is important to us, our focus is on simplicity and readability. We want our readers to enjoy the reading experience.’ (Stapleton 2013: online)

Fig 11.

Although some aspects can be compared, each of these magazines are indirect competitors, having a very varied subject matter or approach that is not directly in line with that of The Human Folk. There are therefore

currently no direct competitors in the market which offer both honest and authentic content about real people, an appreciative tone of voice and a considered and modern aesthetic.

Fig 12.

THE MAGAZINE

imilarly to the publications indentified in the case studies, the magazine will be produced independently, through a team external to the brand Folk. The identity of the magazine will be that of an independent title, that is created in association with the brand and its values. The name of “The Human Folk” has been chosen in order to create an independent identity for the magazine, but still acknowledge Folk’s association within the title. “The Human Folk” is a phrase from ancient times, often used in fairytales. It describes us as a united species but also points out the shared humanity which differentiates us from other animals and ultimately leads to our authentic individualism. Dating back to an oral tradition of sharing experiences and personal communication, it is very much in line with the magazine’s message.

6.2

The tone of voice for the magazine will be appreciative, honest and down to earth, responding to the consumers desire for a more positive and uplifting approach to “Real Life” content and stories, clearly demonstrated in our survey (Appendix A). Accompanying the magazine’s name, The Human Folk, there will be a tagline “In praise of personhood”, echoing the values and sentiment of the publication. On the following page is the mission statement for the magazine, along with an “About the Magazine” statement, for use on the website and the press release (see Appendix M).

appreciative, positive, inspirational, down to earth, honest, real, anthropological, uplifting, warming, interesting, philanthropic, kind 31

MISSION STATEMENT: The Human Folk strives to share and to celebrate the uncelebrated. We aim to present personhood and to reignite our connections with one another, inspired by real people, their stories and their everyday lives, be they ordinary or extraordinary. ABOUT THE MAGAZINE: Alongside kindred spirits Folk Clothing, we collectively believe in celebrating the value of detail, the fine details that make us who we are, whether it is through the clothes we wear or the histories of our lives. We believe that it is in our stories, experiences, opinions and preferences that we all become individual people, and therefore both interesting and valuable. We step away from notions of celebrity. This magazine celebrates every personâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s uniqueness, our own from the moment we arrive, within our community of mankind, the human folk.

The design for the magazine will be focused on a clean and minimal aesthetic, using the power of beautiful images combined with a large amount of white space, in order to create an easy and enjoyable reading experience. A muted colour palette will create a calming and authentic aesthetic to match the magazineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s

content and tone of voice. The magazine will be printed on a thick paper stock of 140gsm for the internal pages, and 300gsm for the cover, with a simple perfect bind. This will create a meaningful weight and feel to the magazine, responding to the desire for tangible, keepsake bookazines and publications.

Fig 13.

MICHAEL HEFFERNAN

STREETS: LONDON’S YOUNG HOMELESS

It’s a sad fact that, for many Londoners, the homeless have also become faceless. Many of us are so used to them on our streets that they have become part of the landscape. By photographing homeless people against a white background, Michael Heffernan takes them out of their immediate content and in doing so he

humanises them. They become people, with personalities and stories and life. By interviewing each person and by presenting their stories, Michael Heffernan resists the temptation to romanticise. Instead, these are portraits that are real and urgent, and in opening jaded eyes, they are properly shocking.

Words: Terence Conran Photos: Michael Heffernan

My name is Adrian Shine, I’m a naturalist, I’ve worked on the Scottish Lochs since 1973. I lead the Loch Ness Project which is a general research effort at Loch Ness and Loch Morar and I’m the designer at the Loch Ness exhibition at the centre here. When I was first fascinated by this subject I was a schoolboy in the 1960s. That’s when the Loch Ness investigation was here with their cameras looking around and I was intrigued by the idea of something this big in our back garden. I was not a very promising schoolboy and I think it was fame and fortune beckoning, yet I was always an amateur naturalist and I think that’s the perspective I bought from the beginning. The popular stereotype of the Loch Ness monster certainly form the 50s onwards was that of a plesiosaur, the marine Jurassic reptile. As we investigated from putting cameras around the Loch trying to ambush the creature and get that wonderful head and neck shot everyone wanted; after we’d been under the water with our cameras and our submarines; after we’d pinged the water with our sonar - we were really looking much more at the environment which was quite cold. What we have here is a legacy of the ice. And so it became an impossible habitat for reptilian reproduction. In my opinion the most plausible candidate is that of the Sturgeon, which like the Salmon comes in from the sea to spawn in fresh water. They have been know to swim up rivers for 50 miles or more. If ever there was a reptilian looking large creature then a Sturgeon would fit the bill. They can get to three metres long. They have a primitive crocodilian appearance and so if you are looking for a really unusual creature behind this legend then my favourite would be the fish, and the Sturgeon. There are always going to be people who see Loch Ness monsters, and there are going to be even more that believe in them, because we do not necessarily believe in the things we believe in on the basis of rationality. We believe in things on the basis of narrative. We like stories, and this is a good story. 56

‘em.” More on that later. Other significant ladies have included the very lovely Slovak warrior lady who speaks 11 languages and looks like Liz Taylor, “yeah, she’s a smart lass”, he laughs, “But a real crook!”, I could go on, but then there is the exquisite Japanese lady he spent many years with. “She’s a clever, clever, clever clogs,” he adds happily. He made a beautiful Zen garden for her Mother. Maybe he should have stayed in Japan, but… no regrets. Marriage? “Never been married. But come close, oh yeah.” And now? “Oh yeah, yeah. I’ve got a lady friend at the moment, who shall remain a secret. She’s a blonde, and very beautiful, in her late forties. And we get on really well. We really do.” As I say, ever the gentleman. But did I mention Andy’s surname is Richardson? This was Andy’s career advice at school: “I think you’d be very good in the MET, the Metropolitan Police, with your height.”, and I said “You must be joking! Do you who my cousins are? “ Andy’s father had 21 brothers, 4 sisters. Charlie Richardson, he of the nailing hands to floorboards speciality, was a close relative. Andy’s Mum had given him the Mad tag and “when we were in the Harrow boys gang, and there’d be the Wembley, and the Uxbridge, and the mods and rockers in the 60s, there were lots of Andys! And there were Ands and Andrews, and so I was Mad Andy.” That was useful, plus “when they had the mods and rocker fights, and say I’d be in the hundred club and there’d be a fight start between Wembley and Harrow, or Uxbridge or somewhere like that, they’d say “You don’t wanna touch him, he’s one of the Richardsons”. Neato! At 16 it would get him into pubs at 3am as well, “because I was one of the mob I was allowed in”, he laughs. His Mother despaired , saying “You mustn’t have anything to do with them! After all this education, what did we bring you back here for? I wish we’d left him in Australia, eating oysters!”

“Life is interesting. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do. I’m fascinated with humans and the weird things we do and the strange places we build toOwen interview: do them in.”

Cutts

KINDRED SPIRIT

OWEN CUTTS

Singer songwriter Owen Cutts talks to The Human Folk about lyrics, honesty and the weirdness of everyday life. Interview: Alice Hammerton Photos: Reggie Yates 8

Fig 14.9 35

6.3

THE CONTENT

side from the editor’s letter at the beginning of each issue, and any information about the magazine online, the primary channel that The Human Folk will communicate its message and identity through is it’s content. In order to emphasise the authenticity and integrity of the magazine, a high proportion of the content is commissioned, original material rather than bought in, with a focus on emerging creative talents and contributors (see Appendix). In order to maintain Folk’s current brand identity and personality, it is important to make connections with existing content and projects from the brand, such as postings on their blog and collaborative projects with cultural artists and photographers. The magazine will not feature any outside advertisements, as it would not be in the interests of Folk to sponsor a publication promoting brands other than itself.

In order to support the idea of content that focuses on real, ordinary people and create an authentic community around the magazine, the readers themselves will be encouraged to offer ideas and opinions on interesting people to be featured, as if becoming contributors themselves. This reader-generated content component will serve to enhance the feeling of honesty and authenticity surrounding the magazine, creating a strong consumer relationship with the brand. The items of content within each issue of the magazine will consist of Regulars and Features. Details of future content have also been listed to demonstrate ideas for future issues going forward.

“Mintel sees interactivity as one of the key areas for future market development. Magazine brands that are able to find creative ways (both on and offline) to enable their readers to participate in a shared project and create a sense of belonging are likely to thrive.” (Mintel 2012: online)

FUTURE CONTENT Pub Portraits - Locals of the Lamb: A series of frank photographic portraits of the local patrons of The Lamb pub on Lambâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Conduit Street where Folk have a store. Backs Of Heads and Facial Hair: Photographic exploration into individualsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; choices of hairstyle and facial hair and what can you tell from these choices.

In Your Shoes: Editorial feature focusing on portrait photography of the faces and feet of one set of people (coworkers, a family, a group of fans or hobbyists), displaying the photos side by side and detailing what each individual thinks their shoes say about them.

In the Details: Macro photography editorial of imperfections and human details freckles, wrinkles, skin, hands.

Fig 15. 37

REGULARS Kindred Spirit: Interview with an identified figure who shares a similar outlook to The Human Folk. Vol 1: Owen Cutts. Folk Clothing Presents: Showcasing Folk’s latest cultural collaborations, focusing on the subject matter of people within the concept. Vol 1: ‘Loch Ness by Jamie Stoker’. Folk Folk: A Q&A answered by a Team Member (Folk employee) and Folk Follower (Folk Consumer) detailing general and personal aspects of their daily lives and opinions. Thank You’s: An opportunity to say thank you to a Good Samaritan. For each volume these will be reader-contributed, in order to involve them in the content and tell their unique stories alongside curated items of content. Elder Respect: Identifies an interesting older person and highlights an appreciation for a interesting and unique aspect of their life. Vol 1: Joy Tomkins Tell us a Story: An additional short story from one of our featured interviewees. Vol 1: a story from Andy Richardson.

FEATURES The Making of Mad Andy: Frank and in-depth interview with Andy Richardson, a local and often misunderstood character, exploring the details of Andy’s life and experiences. Field Day: Photographer Bennett Dean explores the power of spontaneous eruptions of emotion when relating to one of this country’s greatest passions: football. Backpacking’s Wasted on the Young: Conversation with 67 year old Carol Parkinson about her passion for travelling and the stories of the experiences she’s had along the way. Obsessions - The Piano Man: Interview exploring how obsession an with the piano has shaped who Mo Assadullah is as a person - presented in a digestible quote format. My Manor: Photographic editorial by Phil Sharp featuring portraits of local residents from Stoke Newington area. London Young Homeless: Direct and honest photographic project by Michael Heffernan from 1990’s London chronicling the young people living on the streets, through their own stories .

Fig 16.

ue to the personal nature of the magazine, with an appreciation for authenticity and honesty, it is fitting that the content should be presented primarily in a physical, tactile print format. However there will be an online counterpart so that access to content can be more widespread, and in order to respond to current trends demanding a combination of mediums. ‘Mintel continues to believe that print will remain at the heart of magazine publishing for the foreseeable future... The challenge is to invest in digital and other products and services whilst continuing to nourish the physical product at the centre of the brand.’ (Mintel 2012: online). There will be a separate website, www.thehumanfolk.com - available at 123-reg.co.uk for £10.99 per year which will link with folkclothing.com through a new tab on the brand’s existing website. Thehumanfolk.com will be the primary channel for readers to contribute ideas and “Thank You’s” to the magazine, as well as view additional multimedia content and information about upcoming issues. Vikram Alexei Kansara of The Business of Fashion, says that ‘blending professional editorship with community-powered curation is a new and promising approach.’ (Kansara 2013: online), which is exactly what The Human Folk will aim to do through the online community of its website. Initially, the digital counterpart will not be fully interactive, however there is an opportunity to create a more multi-sensory experience through the development of an interactive app in the future.

DIGITAL COUNTERPART

6.4

Fig 17.

THE SPONSOR CLOTHING BRAND FOLK HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS A RELEVANT SPONSOR FOR THIS PROJECT FOR A NUMBER OF REASONS.

7.1

WHY FOLK?

reated in 2001 as an independent clothing retailer, Folk emerged as part of the reaction to the enormous rise in corporate branding and logo marketing of the late 1990s. Author Naomi Klein describes the consumer culture of this time as “logomaniacal”, as big brands like Tommy Hilfiger, Nike and Calvin Klein were dominant (Klein 2000: 15). Establishing itself as a company dedicated to producing quality, authentic and innovative products, not elaborate brand messages and logos, Folk’s founder, Cathal McAteer said of beginning the brand that - ‘At the time, things were a bit too sportswear influenced or too “designer” for my taste - you couldn’t sell anything unless it had a really strong brand name and logos held such a huge value to the consumer. My love affair with the rag trade started with labels that had no obvious branding. If I was going to make clothes, they were going to be influenced by that type of designer.’ (McAteer in Seidler online: 2011).

Their design ethos is one which focuses on the finer details of each product and garment they produce, creating contemporary casualwear their website states that ‘Understated quality and considered detailing is at the core of the brand as we continually strive to make innovative but everyday clothing.’ (Folk 2013: online). As the name suggests, Folk as a brand are interested in the human relationships and low-scale personal approach of an independent retailer. They place a lot of importance on a sense of community, and maintaining close relationships with manufacturers and loyal consumers, who share this “no logo” ethos of quality and authenticity over big brands and label superficiality.

This is an approach which has continued to be successful for the brand as McAteer states in 2012, ‘Financially we’re in a good place at a time when the economy sucks. It’s a wonderful position to be in.’ (McAteer in Walker 2012: online). This also suggests that Folk are in a good position to invest in a project that will further enhance and build upon their customer loyalty, and secure continued future stability for the brand.

“I got sickened by people buying something just for the branding; it got a little bit boring... The big brands had so much power. Nothing was really independent. There was nothing very personal about the clothes, and that’s how I like to dress. There was something missing for me and my friends.” (McAteer in Walker 2012: online).

Fig 18.

7.2

WHY COLLABORATE?

BENEFITS TO: FOLK

hrough its minimal and subtle approach, The Human Folk magazine will sit in line with the authentic “no logos” outlook of Folk, and the brand’s general aesthetic which is also clean, minimal and timeless. However the primary benefit of the collaboration to Folk will be that this association with the magazine will create further human depth and personality to their brand, communicating an interest in people (and consumers) as individuals.

Folk currently are very product focused in their marketing approach, however they do expand further on their cultural and social interests through the content of their blog. The Human Folk would build on this grounding and take it further, giving it more of a focused, niche perspective. It speaks of deeper values than just the brand’s product, and creates a lifestyle and culture around the brand, inviting like-minded consumers to build a deeper and more meaningful relationship with Folk, ultimately strengthening their brand personality and message of authenticity. This deeper connection with consumers will ultimately lead to increased brand loyalty, making it a good financial investment. Reshma Farhat states that ‘many studies reveal that brand loyal customers are willing pay any prices and are less price sensitive. Perhaps the marketing cost is significantly less when the brand enjoys a large group of loyal customers’ (Farhat 2011: online).

Wider distribution of the brand name “Folk”, through the title of the magazine, is expected also to help to strengthen brand awareness and bring in new like-minded consumers to the clothing brand, via readers of the publication who have discovered it through alternative retail channels in a context outside of the Folk brand.

BENEFITS TO: THE MAGAZINE

he crucial benefit of this collaboration and sponsorship to the magazine is the financial support and security which Folk can offer. In a difficult market it is important to take strategic measures in order to secure a realistic position in which to launch. As a new magazine, it is also beneficial to The Human Folk to create an association with a brand in order to strengthen its identity and credibility, giving it some validity and context within the market.

Another benefit to the magazine is that it gives instant access to an established consumer base who trust the brand and will therefore buy into products associated with them - ‘Customers have bought into the brands anyway, so they’ll buy into the magazines. Look at Apple: if they produced a technology magazine, there’d be a huge audience because people respect it.’ (Hales in Greene 2011: online) states Graham Hales, managing director at brand consultancy Interbrand, in relation to brand titles.

Fig 19.

WHO’S IT FOR? THE CONSUMER FOR THE MAGAZINE HAS BEEN IDENTIFIED AND DIVIDED INTO TWO SEGMENTS, CONSISTING OF THE PRIMARY CONSUMER, “FOLK FOLLOWERS”, AND THE SECONDARY CONSUMER, “PEOPLE PERSONS”.

8.1 A

FOLK FOLLOWERS

s has been previously mentioned, the primary consumer for the magazine will be the current customer at Folk, as they have already bought into the brand and are likely to purchase additional products introduced by or associated with it.

Not interested in labels and celebrity, the Folk consumer is instead interested in quality, authenticity and the thoughtful details, which is why they are faithful to Folk. They are interested in a more meaningful life, and a timeless and honest approach, bored with superficiality and wider trends and fads. More interested in being an individual, they appreciate that Folk are an independent, and more under-the-radar brand. They encompass a wide age range, from mid 20s to late 50s, with a high level of disposable income due to well-paid jobs in the arts and design based industries. Interested in a cultured and intelligent lifestyle, they are promotion-cynical and brandaware consumers, who want to be part of something more meaningful than a corporate global giant.

Fig 22.

Fig 20.

Fig 21.

Fig 23.

Fig 24.

PEOPLE PERSONS

he secondary consumers for the magazine will be those who do not currently shop at Folk, and are perhaps unfamiliar with the brand, but find an interest in The Human Folk due to an interest and connection with its content and design. They are of a lower income and, if they know the brand, might aspire to shop at Folk but can’t necessarily afford it. They may choose to buy into the brand through the lowerpriced option of a magazine, as they understand and appreciate the message of authenticity and the considered design of the object. More likely to buy the magazine as a treat to themselves for some down-time, they are independent thinking, broadminded, readers of the Guardian and other left-of-centre publications, who value a social conscience.

8.2

Working in a variety of sectors such as social, charities, design and education, they are a very varied type of person, united by their interests and mind-set. They are not restricted by age or gender, but are defined by their interest and agreement in the values of The Human Folk, of honesty and appreciation - reflecting the “mass niche not mass groups” macro trend described by marketing expert Jonathan MacDonald (MacDonald 2009: online). This being said, there is good reason to expect that the content of the magazine may often attract an older consumer, as Mintel’s research finds that ‘over-55s strongly favour lifestyle content... as well as a more “serious-minded” and a less celebrity-led approach.’ (Mintel 2012: online). Research also shows that over-55s currently feel that their interests are not well catered for, and could be seen as an underdeveloped opportunity for the print industry for three reasons, ‘firstly, demographic – this is a growing population segment; secondly, over-55s are relatively affluent and their spending power has been less affected by the recession; thirdly, Mintel’s research shows that, when they are engaged with magazines, older readers are much more likely to take out subscriptions to their favourite titles.’ (Mintel, 2012), a factor that is very much in The Human Folk’s favour.

Fig 25. 53

COMMUNICATION STRATEGY IN TERMS OF PROMOTION AND DISTRIBUTION, THE MAGAZINE WILL FUNCTION MORE LIKE AN INDEPENDENT MAGAZINE, RATHER THAN A BRAND PUBLICATION.

9.1

POSITIONING

orrect positioning of The Human Folk, taking into consideration price and distribution, is vital in terms of reaching the appropriate consumer and communicating an accurate picture of the magazine’s identity. New editions of the magazine will be released quarterly, at a price point of £9, reflecting the production values of the publication and to sit in line with the higher price point of Folk. The following distribution channels have been targeted in order to ensure that the magazine reaches the appropriate audience: Folk: As well as through the brand’s online store, distribution will be through each of Folk’s UK stores in Brick Lane, Holborn and Shepherd Market, as well as a trial distribution in Folk Amsterdam (where good English is extremely widespread) and if successful also in Folk Berlin.

Independent stores: Specialists in independent publications, the magazine will sit well in Magma and Magazine Shack, both based in London with alternative stores around the UK. Online: A selection of initial online distributors and subscription services would be Stack Magazines, Vetted, Magculture and Slowdownjoe. Mainstream retailers: Trial distribution via WHSmiths through careful branch selection in order to reach the wider consumer.

Fig 26.

Fig 27.

PROMOTION

ethods for promoting the launch of The Human Folk will be focused largely on raising brand and product awareness within the appropriate consumer communities, as opposed to creating a “hype”, through methods which focus on a personal and engaging approach such as events, video and word of mouth. There will be a launch event held at Folk’s flagship store in Holborn for the release of each quarterly issue. The first event will be slightly bigger as it launches the entire concept of the magazine, whereas each event from then onwards will have more of a lowkey feel, similar to that of a friendly coffee shop and relaxed evening party. The events will encompass an interview, chat or Q&A session with a guest featured in the magazine, with opportunities to mingle, relax and enjoy an early preview and purchasing opportunity of the current issue before it’s sale release the following day.

9.2

Although the focus of the project is offline there is still a need to promote this content online as well in order to drive sales of the physical object. Video will be a significant medium for promotion as it is engaging and interactive, and therefore proving extremely popular and effective currently through sharing options and the phenomenon of viral videos. Promotional videos will include teaser videos incorporating interesting interview snippets to engage and intrigue the consumer, directing them to the website, as well as Flick-through videos of the magazine, creating interest and ultimately encouraging the purchase of the print magazine. A press release has also been created (Appendix M), focusing on the magazine’s mission statement and reasons behind the launch and sponsorship with Folk, will be distributed to targeted blogs and online magazines, such as huhmagazine.co.uk, stackmagazines.com, magculture.com/ blog and hypebeast.com.

GOING FORWARD

ollowing the initial launch of the magazine, the avenue of extending the magazine’s digital offer to include a fully interactive component should be explored. The emphasis should still remain on the print version of the magazine, however there is currently a demand for multimedia content relating to magazines, as Mintel finds that ‘21% of UK adults “like the idea of multimedia magazines - combining words, images, video, sound”’ (Mintel 2012: online), therefore this could be an avenue for further development.

One of the options which should be considered is the creation of an interactive app using technology developed by Layar Creator, which allows readers to digitally interact with a static magazine. Users will be able to “like” articles and images to be shared on their social media, static feature images and and cover photos can even be turned into video content via the app. Urs Honegger says that niche magazines can be ‘very successfully converted into the digital media space because the high engagement of the readers means that the up-take of digital magazines apps is greater and faster than with your standard consumer titles’ (Honegger in Farber 2012: online), meaning that there is good reason to assume that this app would have a successful uptake. This option also ensures that the printed object stays at the heart of the magazine, whilst also delivering multimedia content and a new level of interaction to readers. ‘The printed magazine sits at the heart of a wider ecosystem of multiplatform media. Print and digital can complement each other in a mutually beneficial way.’ (Stylus 2013: online).

Another prospect to be considered, following the theme of reader generated content and creating a personal community and culture around Folk, could be to invite readers to be “guest-editors” for future editions of the magazine.

CONCLUSION

he Human Folk is a unique and warming keepsake publication, offering a new take on â&#x20AC;&#x153;Real Lifeâ&#x20AC;? magazines and content, and an antidote to the throw-away celebrity magazines of today. Produced in association with sponsor brand Folk, a focused strategy has been

outlined, offering mutual benefits to both magazine and brand. With an entirely new approach combining an appreciative tone of voice with beautiful design, The Human Folk responds to the consumerâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s desire for authenticity on two levels. Firstly, it offers the consumer a strategy of content focused on real people and real lives, that they may find easier and more enjoyable to relate to than the aspirational and hyperreal lifestyles of celebrities currently dominating the magazine market. And secondly,

it creates an honest and meaningful relationship between the consumer and Folk, as they are demonstrating to the consumer a broader interest and value set than just clothing. It provides an opportunity to escape the stresses of our modern lifestyles, and indulge in our natural social curiosities, encouraging the reader to share, listen and reconnect with their fellow human folk.

Fig 28.

12.0 REFERENCES (Adams 2013: online) (Boyle 2004: 5) (Nozick in Boyle 2004: 7) (Stylus 2013: online) (Stylus 2013: online) (Boyle 2004: 12) (Boyle 2004: 285) (Boyle 2004: 261) (Anonymous Respondents 2013: Appendix A) (Givens 2012: online) (Anonymous respondent 2013: Appendix A) (Philipson 2011: online) (Farhat 2011: online) (Content Marketing Institute 2013: online) (Pearse 2013: online) (Saviolo and Marazza 2012: 11) (Stylus 2013: online) (Mintel 2012: online) (Cremer in Hooper 2012: online) (Mintel 2012: online) (LOFT 2013: online) (Mintel 2012: online) (Eramian in Watson 2013: online) (Watson 2013: online) (Eramian in Watson 2013: online) (Mintel 2012: online) (Leslie in Hooper 2012: online) (Stylus 2013: online) (Farber 2012: online) (Honegger in Farber 2012: online) (APA in Baker 2011: online) (Mintel in Greene 2011: online)

(Hutchinson in Baker 2011: online) (Greene 2011: online) (Stylus 2013: online) (ABC 2013: online) (Anonymous respondent 2013: Appendix A) (Anonymous respondents 2013: Appendix A) (Anonymous respondents 2013: Appendix A) (Tickner in Stylus 2013: online) (Mono.Kultur 2013: online) (Mono.Kultur 2013: online) (Oh Comely 2013: online) (Oh Comely 2013: online) (Oh Comely 2013: online) (Stapleton 2013: online) (Stapleton 2013: online) (Mintel 2012: online) (Mintel 2012: online) (Kansara 2013: online) (Klein 2000: 15) (McAteer in Seidler online: 2011) (Folk 2013: online) (McAteer in Walker 2012: online) (McAteer in Walker 2012: online) (Farhat 2011: online) (Hales in Greene 2011: online) (MacDonald 2009: online) (Mintel 2012: online) (Mintel 2012: online) (Mintel 2012: online) (Honegger in Farber 2012: online) (Stylus 2013: online)

13.0 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Fig 1. Window View (2011) online: kararachelle.tumblr.com Fig 2. Wooden Shelves (2011) online: kararachelle.tumblr.com Fig 3. Land Rover One Life Magazine (2006) online: the-cma.com Fig 4. Stack Magazines (2013) online: stackmagazines.com Fig 5. Acne Paper Issue 10 (2010) online: 5inchandup.blogspot.co.uk Fig 6. Chat Magazine (2011) online: jessbridgeman.files.wordpress.com Fig 7. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Amazing! Magazine (2013) online: newsstand.co.uk Fig 8. Real People Magazine (2013) online: hearst.co.uk Fig 9. Tilda Swinton Issue 21 Mono.Kultur (2009) online: mono-kultur.com Fig 10. Oh Comely Magazine (2012) online: ohcomelymagazine.tumblr.com Fig 11. Cereal Magazine (2013) online: flickr.com Fig 12. The Human Folk Magazine (2013) Own Artwork Fig 13. London Homeless Spread (2013) Own Artwork Fig 14. The Human Folk Inside Spreads (2013) Own Artwork Fig 15. The Human Folk Contents with Coffee (2013) Own Artwork Fig 16. The Human Folk Contents Spread (2013) Own Artwork Fig 17. The Human Folk Homepage (2013) Own Artwork Fig 18. Folk Munich Store (2010) online: slamxhype.com Fig 19. The Human Folk in Folk Store (2013) Own Artwork Fig 20. Workspace (2012) online: theultralinx.com Fig 21. Wine Evening (2012) online: solitaire-solidaire.tumblr.com Fig 22. Kindle and Coffee (2013) online: fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net Fig 23. Kinfolk Bike (2013) online: cycleexif.com Fig 24. Having Tea (2013) online: cottonandflax.wordpress.com Fig 25. Book Basket (2012) online: citified.blogspot.com Fig 26. The Human Folk in Magma Store (2013) Own Artwork Fig 27. The Making of Mad Andy Vimeo Teaser (2013) Own Artwork Fig 28. The Human Folk with Breakfast (2013) Own Artwork

14.0 BIBLIOGRAPHY BOOKS: Andersson, P., Steedman, J. (Eds.) (2002) Inside Magazines: Independent Pop Culture Magazines. London: Thames and Hudson. Boyle, D. (2004) Authenticity: Brands, Fakes, Spin and the Lust for Real Life. London: Harper Perennial. Honore, C. (2005) In Praise of Slow: How a Worldwide Movement in Challenging the Cult of Speed. London: Orion Books. Klein, N. (2000) No Logo. London: Flamingo. Losowsky, A. (Ed.) (2007) We Love Magazines. Luxembourg: Editions Mike Koedinger. Losowsky, A. (Ed.) (2009) We Make Magazines: Inside the Independents. Luxembourg: Editions Mike Koedinger. Marshall, P. D. (2001) Celebrity and Power: Fame in Contemporary Culture. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. Neumeier, M. (2006) The Brand Gap: How to Bridge the Gap between Business Strategy and Design. Berkeley: New Riders. Rothstein, J. (Ed.) (2007) Designing Magazines: Inside Periodical Design, Redesign and Branding. New York: Allworth Press. Saviolo, S., Marazza, A. (2012) Lifestyle Brands: A Guide to Aspirational Marketing. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. MARKET REPORTS: Stylus (2013) Evolution of Magazines - 22 January 2013. Available at: http://www.stylus.com/PageFiles/578320/Stylus_Evolution_of_Magazines_screen.pdf (Accessed 19/05/13) Mintel (2012) Magazines UK - June 2012. Available at: http://academic.mintel.com/display/590328/?highlight=true (Accessed 01/04/13) 68

ARTICLES: Adams, P. M. (2013) ‘Modernity - An altered state of consciousness?’, Researchgate (January 2013). Available at: http://www.researchgate.net/publication/235410911_Modernity_-an_altered_state_ of_consciousness Anon. (2013) ‘Independent Magazines Go Digital’, Computer Arts (January 29 2013). Available at: http://www.computerarts.co.uk/features/independent-magazines-go-digital Baker, R. (2011) ‘New Brand Magazines Challenge Consumer Titles’, Marketing Week (August 18 2011). Available at: http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/new-brand-magazines-challenge-consumertitles/3029401.article Berthelsen, G. (2010) ‘We are not Rats, and Life is not a Race’, CNN Edition (November 12 2010). Available at: http://edition.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/11/12/geir.berthelsen.slow.movement/ Dunn, G. (2010) ‘Cathal McAteer’, Drapers (July 10 2010). Available at: http://www.drapersonline.com/news/womenswear/this-fashion-life/cathal-mcateer/5014917. article Farber, T. (2012) ‘Niche Magazines: Giving Readers a Sense of Ownership’, The Media Magazine (July 16 2012). Available at: http://themediaonline.co.za/2012/07/niche-magazines-giving-readersa-sense-of-ownership/ Garratt, S. (2010) ‘Corinne Day: Pioneer of a new kind of Beauty’, The Guardian (September 4 2010). Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/2010/sep/04/corinne-day-kate-moss Greene, L. (2011) ‘The Boom in Branded Magazines’, Financial Times (January 8 2011). Available at: http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/82754772-fbe0-11de-9c29-00144feab49a.html#axzz2U0JXXf4e Gutman, B. (2012) ‘5 Big Brands Confirm that Content Marketing is the Key to your Consumer’, Forbes (November 27 2012). Available at: http://www.forbes.com/sites/ marketshare/2012/11/27/5-big-brands-confirm-that-content-marketing-is-the-key-to-yourconsumer/ Hooper, M. (2012) ‘Who Says Print is Dead’, The Guardian (June 3 2012). Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/jun/03/who-says-print-is-dead Kansara, V, A. (2013) ‘Online Upstarts Explore a New Model for Fashion Media’, Business Of Fashion (February 28 2013). Available at: http://www.businessoffashion.com/2013/02/online69

upstarts-explore-a-new-model-for-fashion-media.html Pearse, J. (2013) ‘Why Brands need to Avoid the Hype Surrounding Content Marketing’, The Guardian (March 5, 2013). Available at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media-network/medianetwork-blog/2013/mar/05/brands-hype-content-marketing Philby, C. (2009) ‘The Niche Magazines Riding out the Gloom’, The Independent (February 16 2009). Available at: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/press/the-niche-magazinesriding-out-the-gloom-1622760.html Pinchess, L. (2013) ‘Backpacking Isn’t Just for Gap Year Students’, Nottingham Post (March 18, 2013). Available at: http://www.thisisnottingham.co.uk/Backpacking-isn-t-just-gap-year-students/ story-18450435-detail/story.html#axzz2PPswP7Jb Walker, R. (2012) ‘Interview: Cathal McAteer, Designer and Creator of Fashion Label Folk’, Scotland on Sunday (September 9 2012). Available at: http://www.scotsman.com/scotland-on-sunday/ scotland/interview-cathal-mcateer-designer-and-creator-of-fashion-label-folk-1-2515638#. UEx8dtTzskI.twitter ONLINE: National Portrait Gallery - Kate Moss, available at: http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/ portraitLarge/mw129573/Kate-Moss (Accessed 29/03/13) Cereal Magazine - About, available at: http://readcereal.com/cereal-magazine/ (Accessed 29/03/13) Mono.Kultur Magazine, available at: http://mono-kultur.com/colophon (Accessed 29/03/13) HUH Magazine: Interview: David Obadia, Founder of BWGH, available at: http://www.huhmagazine.co.uk/3814/interview-david-obadia-founder-of-bwgh (Accessed 03/04/13) HUH Magazine: Vinyl Riot - The Travel Issue, available at: http://www.huhmagazine.co.uk/3559/vinyl-riot---the-travel-issue (Accessed 04/04/13) Its Nice That: James Hyman highlights the importance of Print, available at: http://www.itsnicethat.com/articles/james-hyman-pop-culture (Accessed 10/04/13) MIMDTV Speaks to Owen Cutts, available at: http://mimdtv.com/2012/11/13/mimdtv-speaks-to-owen-cutts-owencutts/ (Accessed 10/04/13) MTV: Wrap Up and Watch Out - Owen Cutts, available at: http://www.mtv.co.uk/music/ 70

urban/3615-wrap-up-and-watch-out-owen-cutts (Accessed 10/04/13) Mr Porter: The Intro - Folk Clothing, available at: http://www.mrporter.com/journal/journal_issue38/6#undefined (Accessed 20/04/13) Brand Addendum Vol. 15 - Folk Clothing, available at: http://www.otokostore.com/blog/read/56/4/3/2013/brand-addendum-vol-15-folk-clothing (Accessed 21/04/13) End Clothing - Folk SS11 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Cathal McAteer Interview, available at: http://www.endclothing.co.uk/blog/folk-ss11-cathal-macateer-interview/ (Accessed 22/04/13) Park Life: Local Folk we love, available at: http://park-life.org/2010/06/folk-clothing-london-supra-kensal-rise/ (Accessed 23/04/13) 24 Hours in A&E: Making with Show, with Anthony Philipson and Amy Flanagan, available at: http://www.channel4.com/programmes/24-hours-in-ae/articles/qa-making-the-show (Accessed 29/04/13) David Givens on Anthropology for Boston University, available at: http://www.bu.edu/anthrop/about/what-is-anthropology/ (Accessed 05/05/13) What is Content Marketing?, available at: http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/what-is-content-marketing/ (Accessed 05/05/13) Stack Magazines: Steve Watson: A Second Gold Age, available at: http://www.stackmagazines.com/blog/second-golden/ (Accessed 25/05/13) Magazine Launch: Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Amazing!, available at: http://www.inpublishing.co.uk/news/articles/launch_thats_amazing.aspx (Accessed 25/05/13) ABC Results: Consumer Magazine Circulation Dec-Jan 2012, available at: http://www.inpublishing.co.uk/news/articles/abc_results_publisher_reaction__15022013.aspx (Accessed 25/05/13) Oh Comely Magazine, available at: http://www.ohcomely.co.uk/info (Accessed 03/04/13) Benjamin Seidler interview Cathal McAteer on Folk Clothing (2011), available at: http://www.mrporter.com/journal/journal_issue38/6#undefined (Accessed 30/04/13) Dougie Wallace Photography, available at: http://www.dougiewallace.com/9065/stories/ (Accessed 30/04/13) Jonathan MacDonald - Macro Trends of the 21st Century - October 2009, available at: http:// thisfluidworld.com/ourthinking/the%20first%206%20macro%20trends%20of%20the%2021st%20 Century.pdf (Accessed 21/05/13)

HUH Magazine: Layar Creator - Merging Print and Digital Media, available at: http://www.huhmagazine.co.uk/3855/layar-creator---merging-print-and-digital-media (Accessed 20/05/13) What is Layar?, available at: http://www.layar.com/features/ (Accessed 20/05/13) Kararachelle Tumblr - Window View, available at: http://www.kararachelle.tumblr.com/post/3415284039/because-i-wish-this-was-the-view-out-mycurrent (Accessed 25/05/13) Kararachelle Tumblr - Wooden Shelves , available at: http://www.kararachelle.tumblr.com/post/3074497849/because-of-these-wood-shelves (Accessed 25/05/13) Content Marketing Association - Land Rover One Life Magazine , available at: http://www.the-cma.com/showcase/onelife (Accessed 25/05/13) Stack Magazines, available at: http://www.stackmagazines.com/content/featured/ (Accessed 25/05/13) 5 Inch and Up - Acne Paper Issue 10 , available at: http://www.5inchandup.blogspot.co.uk/2010/08/acne-paper.html (Accessed 25/05/13) Chat Magazine, available at: http://www.jessbridgeman.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/chat-cover.jpg (Accessed 26/05/13) News Stand - Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Amazing! Magazine, available at: http://www.newsstand.co.uk/i2363032/Zoom/THATS-AMAZING_APR-13.jpg (Accessed 26/05/13) Hearst Publishing - Real People Magazine, available at: http://www.hearst.co.uk/Real+People/5-magazine.htm (Accessed 26/05/13) Mono.Kultur - Tilda Swinton Issue 21, available at: http://www.mono-kultur.com/issues/21 (Accessed 25/05/13) Oh Comely Magazine Tumblr, available at: http://www.ohcomelymagazine.tumblr.com/post/26704802812 (Accessed 25/05/13) Flickr - Cereal Magazine, available at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/standing_on_tiptoe/8594301509/ (Accessed 25/05/13)

SlamXHype - Folk Munich Store, available at: http://www.slamxhype.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Folk-Munich-Store-8.jpg (Accessed 26/05/13) The Ultra Linx - Workspace, available at: http://www.theultralinx.com/2012/06/cool-office-designs-workspace-inspiration.html (Accessed 26/05/13) Solitaire Solidaire - Wine Evening, available at: http://www.solitaire-solidaire.tumblr.com/page/3 (Accessed 26/05/13) Kindle and Coffee, available at: http://www.fbcdn-sphotos-d-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/383134_10151568706478407_128 7786289_n.jpg (Accessed 26/05/13) Cycleexif - Kinfolk Bike, available at: http://www.cycleexif.com/kinfolk-autumn-2 (Accessed 26/05/13) Cotton and Flax Blog - Having Tea, available at: http://www.cottonandflax.wordpress.com/2013/02/25/cotton-flax-pennyweight-goods/ (Accessed 26/05/13) Citified Blog - Book Basket, available at: http://www.citified.blogspot.com (Accessed 26/05/13) LOFT Bookazine - About, available at: http://www.loftbookazine.com/exempelsida/ (Accessed 19/05/13) MagCulture, available at: http://magculture.com/blog/ (Accessed 15/04/13) VIDEO: An Introduction to Cereal Magazine, available at: http://www.huhmagazine.co.uk/4966/video-an-introduction-to-cereal-magazine (Accessed 29/04/13) Meet Cereal Magazine, available at: http://vimeo.com/62924822 (Accessed 29/04/13) Slow Coffee, available at: http://vimeo.com/9552634 (Accessed 03/04/13) 73

15.0 APPENDIX A - ONLINE SURVEY (EVALUATION & SAMPLE RESPONSES) Carried out throughout March to May 2013. Available at: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/266XVF8 PARTICIPANTS: 65 Which category below includes your age? 17 or younger 1.54% 18-20 15.38% 21-29 63.08% 30-39 6.15% 40-49 9.23% 50-59 4.62% 60 or older 0% Are you male or female? Male 46.15% Female 53.85% Would you say you take a natural interest in other people? Why do you think this is? Yes 93.85% No 6.15% What experiences and aspects of other peoplesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; lives do you find interesting to read/find out about? Love 60% Loss 30.77% Weight issues 18.46% Health 27.69% Illness/disabilities 16.92% Family issues 41.54% Profession/career 72.31% Fashion/style choices 52.31% Crime/horror stories 35.38% Babies 12.31% Inspirational stories 66.15% Pets 20% Life changing events 66.15% Near death experiences 41.54% Funny stories/experiences 73.85% Passions/hobbies 58.46% Specialist skills/advice 47.69% Other (please specify) 10.77% What would you be more interested to read about in a magazine: The lives and stories of celebrities 27.69% The lives and stories of ordinary people 72.31% 74

What do you find more interesting and intriguing: Relatable aspects of everyday life that ordinary people share and experience 73.85% Aspirational aspects of the perhaps unobtainable/unrealistic lives of the rich and famous 26.15% Do you think that current magazines publishing “real life stories” content (such as ‘Chat Magazine’, ‘Take a Break’ and ‘Real People Magazine’) do so respectfully and tactfully? Why/why not? “Concentrating on meaningless stories of celebrities who have already made it in life is wrong. Giving normal people the limelight for something truly heroic or inspiring is a lot more worthwhile!” “No. They’re too OTT and seem to add more to them which make them sound unbelievable. They’re usually accompanied by bright, sometimes day-glo colours which don’t add sincerety, respectability or tact.” “No. I think that these publications sensationalise life experiences a little and as such at times make the story unbelievable.” “These magazines are too dramatic and when I read them it feels like they just exploit peoples lives to make sales!” “I have never read them as I always find the headings tacky, and some times feel that they are over dramatized.” “No. Not usually very tactful, very “in your face”” “I feel they publish these stories with a sense of sarcasm and as if they are laughing at the people who are telling the story.” “they obviously over exaggerate them which is probably a bit disrespectful” “I think the stories I see on covers tend to be the same “Mum left Dad for brother” type headlines which do not interest me and exploit real people for what I think is shock and comedy value.” “no its never good to see someone else’s distress commodified” “They make them embarrassing spectacles and a source of humour not interest” “they are very trashy, and often use shock tactics to get the attention of readers, often taking advantage of the vulnerabilities of those involved in the content” How do you think magazines such as these, which deal with real life stories and the experiences of ordinary people, could be improved? “I do think they need to be improved visually they are very outdated” “They’re ugly magazines with no interesting imagery or innovative publication style.” “They look cheap and flimsy and maybe thats why I dont buy them.” “By being visually appealing and tasteful in all senses.” “not make the whole aesthetic of the magazine so tacky, I would never chose to pick something like those up in a store “A generally more up market image” “More tasteful layout, images and design.” “Not being so tacking and trashy.” “just calm the hell down! both visually and in terms of language.” “visually they need a make over” “By focusing on inspirational stories rather than lurid love tangles.” “Stop talking about hurtful and negative things people think they care about and start talking about interesting things.” “Use stories that are more relatable” “Visual asthetics, maybe get a wider range and variety of different people, maybe more relatable people like students, young girls etc?” “Maybe less sensationalism.” “Real inspirational stories of how people have overcome obstacles” “Telling inspirational stories about their pasts or interests as opposed to making you feel sorry for them or horrified. “It would be nice to have more positive stories and less judging / laughing at people.” “For the most part I think stories should be less about tragic experiences and more about positive ones. Although everyone likes a juicy horror story/ heart-wrencher, it’s much more satisfying when the story has a happy ending!” “A chatty but informative tone of voice that allows the consumer to relate and form an emotional response to what they’re reading.” “they could do with taking a more appreciative and sympathetic tone of voice”

Do you ever buy or receive any brand magazines? (e.g. ASOS Magazine, Acne Paper, Colors etc) If so, please detail which ones, and what you like and dislike about them. “Top Gear - Mostly real life events/facts that inspire thought and a passion with a lust I guess for the shiney things on wheels” “I’ve subscribed to food-type magazines: Food & Wine, Simple Life, Cooks Illustrated. I like Simple Life (I think that’s what it’s called) the best of them because the recipes are more for “common” people. They have practical recipes and aren’t pretentious, like the Food & Wine recipes/articles are.” “Asos, h&m, they are easy to read with all required details straight there in front of you!” “Empire. I love films, sometimes too much content. MacFormat. I am a Apple Fan. F1 Magazine. Because it keeps me up to date with F1. Doesn’t go into the story of the people of F1 enough.” “No I don’t but I have read colors. You can’t buy it anymore and they are ridiculously hard to find and expensive. It was one of the most interesting magazines I have read.” “Generally I don’t but if I was to I would want to see effective imagery and find out more about the history of the brand” “RED magazine, this ,magazine relates to my age group and has a good selection of real life and celebrity stories. The real life articles are often based on career, families, babies etc which is relevant to my life now.” “Yes, I collect as many as I can get, but maily high st only... ASOS, Topshop, Boots ect ect... some do it better than others, its important to have life style focus and not be completely centered on selling merchandise more just the brand in general!” “ASOS I read online and have had a flick through Acne paper. I always flick through brand zines in store though although they’re mostly promo led e.g. Topshop mag. I love the layout of them as they often come up with creative and unusual concepts but the content is often a little tired and uninteresting (Topshop) Asos I like because its clothes led I look at it more as a catalogue than because I enjoy the read. Acne I think is good from what I’e heard.” “i receive asos magazine, i like that it seems to explore other areas of content other than direct asos advertisements, but it could do with exploring other areas of culture which could also be interesting to asos consumers”

B - EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE: FOLK PR From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Final Year Degree Project - Magazine for Folk Date: 25 March 2013 To: Folk PR (press@folkclothing.com) Hello! My name is Alice Hammerton and I am a final year student studying Fashion Communication and Promotion at Nottingham Trent University. I am currently undertaking a final project where I am creating my own magazine, with an observational focus on real people and everyday life. In order to give this new publication some authority and a clearer identity, I would like to explore the idea of hypothetically attaching it to a brand. Alongside this individual project, I am also currently undertaking a live project in a group for David Keytes at Universal Works. Throughout our research for this project into similar markets as well as the store’s location on Lamb’s Conduit Street, I have repeatedly come across Folk, and learnt a lot more about your brand than I previously knew. I think it would be a brilliant fit for my project, as you seem to share similar ideals and values to my magazine, appreciating community, small details, independent thought and real people (your name says it all!). The collaborative work you have done with photographers is also great to see as my vision for the magazine would be very photography and portraiture-focused. I would love to discuss this with any member of your team who is interested in promotions/marketing/ communications for Folk, or even just ask a few questions relating to my idea. If you would be happy for me to send you a few questions, or perhaps put me in touch with a relevant member of your team either via email or phone, it would be extremely helpful for me and I would really appreciate it as I’d love to hear the brand’s thoughts on this. I look forward to hearing from you soon! Best regards, Alice Hammerton

NOTE: Followed up with multiple telephone attempts but unfortunately never had a response from Folk.

C - EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE: BENNETT DEAN From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Final Year Project Date: 3 April 2013 To: Bennett Dean (benxbha01@yahoo.co.uk) Hi Bennett, Thanks so much for agreeing to speak with me about my project, I’m very excited about it, but have also given myself a very large task in what I have decided to do! And being a real lover of photography (but not a photographer myself), I could do with some help from an expert! I have seen a lot of your work through Mum, and have always really admired the portraiture that we have up on the walls at home. What I really want to get across in the magazine that I’m producing for my project, is a respectful appreciation of real, ordinary people. So, what makes us all unique, individual and interesting. From what I have seen in your pictures, you always manage to show a real depth of personality and honesty, as well as a real appreciation for that person, which is exactly what I want to convey in the images in my magazine. I am going to have a mixture of written articles and features, and purely photographic spreads and editorials, but with a lot of emphasis on a really clean and minimal approach (design-wise) where a lot of the time the beautiful photography will be able to just speak for itself. A couple of publications which I have taken some inspiration from are Kinfolk (http://www.kinfolkmag. com) and Cereal (http://readcereal.com/cereal-magazine/) in their clean and simple imagery, but I want my magazine to just be filled with amazing pictures of people! So, I have a couple of ideas which I wanted to discuss with you.. First of all, I would really like to include a purely photographic feature focused on human contact. I really like the honesty that comes with candid photography, especially the emotion/ intimacy that can be caught in a moment such as a hug. I was wondering if you might already have some imagery like this in your archives of work, that I might be able to use to create a feature - I’m thinking between 6 and 10 images maybe? I’d like to go for a fairly British-feel throughout the magazine, in order to make it as relatable as possible for the readers, so any images which you’ve taken in the UK (or look as if they could have been!) would be brilliant. The second idea which I wanted to ask you about would be for a feature I’m doing about a really interesting neighbour of ours called Andy. He is an amazing character, full of incredible stories (and with a brilliantly expressive face!), so I am planning an interview to carry out with him at the moment, and for the accompanying imagery I’d really like some photos taken of him sort of mid-speech, just throughout the interview, to really capture his emotions and expressions as he’s speaking and communicate his personality. A bit like Corinne Day’s portraits of Kate Moss for the National Portrait Gallery (http://www.npg. org.uk/collections/search/portraitLarge/mw129573/Kate-Moss). As I’m heading back up to Nottingham for the remainder of my course, unfortunately I will not be able to actually carry out the interview, but Mum has very kindly agreed to carry it out for me! So, we were thinking, if you might have any time to help us out with this perhaps one weekend, Mum could collect you from Brighton (we’d also pay for your rail fare) and take you to Hawkhurst to carry out this interview, then maybe the two of you could go for a beer or two afterwards?? If you think you might be able to help with any of this I would really appreciate it and I think it would really add to my final magazine and the vision I have for it. Any of your work that you would be happy for me to use in the magazine would of course be fully credited (and celebrated!), and I would also like to include a small feature about each of my contributors as well, if you would be happy with that too. I look forward to hearing from you! Many thanks, Alice p.s. sorry for the very lengthy email, I thought it would be best to give you as much info as possible at this stage!

From: Bennett Dean (benxbha01@yahoo.co.uk) Subject: RE: Final Year Project Date: 4 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice Thanks for getting in contact and telling me about your project - it sounds exciting as well as a lot of hard work. It’s great that you already have ideas for articles and features as finding sources of inspiration can be the hardest bit of all - well it is for me! Your very generous with your comments about my photography and i would never consider myself to be an expert, but i’m happy to help in any i can. I’m sure i can find time to take some images of your neighbour, Andy. It would have to be one weekend, probably a sunday, unless you can wait until May when i know that i’ll have some Saturdays free. At the moment they’re taken up with football which could possibly help provide some contributions towards a spread of pictures of human contact: footballers hugging each other to celebrate a goal. As for other moments of contact i’m not sure if i have that many taken in the UK, but i’ll have a look through my archives to see if there is anything that might be suitable and send them to you. Perhaps something from a wedding? I’ll try to do that this weekend when i’m back at home. Leave it with me. Bye for now Bennett From: Bennett Dean (benxbha01@yahoo.co.uk) Subject: RE: Final Year Project Date: 4 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice Here are some pics i’ve picked out...are they the kind of images you had in mind? Think most of my more recent work is at the football club office where I was working last year. I’ll be there tomorrow and will try to remember to pick out some more shots for you. I’ve had a look through my travel stuff but most of it looks quite exotic and nothing at all like the UK - also there is very little human contact unless contact through the camera lens counts From: Bennett Dean (benxbha01@yahoo.co.uk) Subject: RE: Final Year Project Date: 6 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Here are a few more shots, Alice. A cross-section of humanity...i know you’re not producing a football or wedding magazine, but it seems that most of my work in the UK involves these two topics. LEt me know what you think and what other ideas you have From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Final Year Project Date: 6 April 2013 To: Bennett Dean (benxbha01@yahoo.co.uk) Hi Bennett, Thanks so much for sending some images over. I really like the first one of the footballers celebrating, its very real and I like the honest pure emotions that you get from it - perhaps this could be the best option for a spread? I think it could actually be a really interesting way of tapping into the sports interest side of the reader, but in a new way purely through images and a visual commentary about the human side of football and its players, the camaraderie and team mentality etc, as opposed to a sports 79

feature focused on technicality and league tables. Interestingly, today I came across a new football mag called Field (http:// magculture.com/blog/?p=16913), which looks like its attempting a similar new approach to sports culture - intriguing! So if you might be able to dig out any more similar shots from your football photography that would be absolutely brilliant, thank you. I think Mum’s been in touch with you about arranging a date to meet with Andy? She mentioned Sunday the 14th as a possibility, thank you very much as well for agreeing to help out with that - I’m actually really sad I won’t be able to be there, I think it will be very interesting.. he’s quite the character! Thanks again :) Alice From: Bennett Dean (benxbha01@yahoo.co.uk) Subject: RE: Final Year Project Date: 7 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice Hope all the pics i’ve sent have got through to you - i’ve tried to include different aspects of the football club including soccer schools for kids, community work (kids with disabilities) as well as players/media shots. If you need any more goal celebration shots let me know. Should be hooking up with your mum next sunday and looking forward to meeting Andy. Bennett From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Final Year Project Date: 8 April 2013 To: Bennett Dean (benxbha01@yahoo.co.uk) Hi Bennett, These look great. I think I’m going to focus the spread mostly on the sort of intense celebration type images which show a lot of raw emotion. I’ve picked out about 6 which I think will be great, and if you did happen to have any more goal celebration shots and can easily get your hands on them then that would be absolutely brilliant! Thanks a lot, Alice From: Bennett Dean (benxbha01@yahoo.co.uk) Subject: RE: Final Year Project Date: 14 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice Thanks for asking me to take photographs of Andy...he’s a unique character and has got more than a few stories to tell. I don’t know about a magazine, but he’s got enough tales for a book! There are so many photographs to choose from, very similar in style and i’ll send you a selection of the initial edit by we-transfer. Let me know if you need any others or bigger file sizes. All the best Bennett 80

D - EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE: JAMIE STOKER From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Loch Ness shots for Magazine feature Date: 26 March 2013 To: Jamie Stoker (jamiestoker@gmail.com) Hello Jamie! My name is Alice Hammerton and I am a final year student studying Fashion Communication and Promotion at Nottingham Trent University. I am currently undertaking a final project where I am creating my own magazine, with an observational focus on real people and everyday life. As part of the concept for my magazine, I am interested in potentially involving the brand Folk as a sponsor or co-editing body, as I feel that they share a lot of similar ideals and values to my magazine, appreciating community, small details, independent thought and real people. I came across your work and exhibition with Folk whilst carrying out research into their blog, and feel like it would fit in perfectly with the tone and message that I want to communicate through the content of my publication, as well as connect well with the brand. If you are happy for me to, I would love to feature some of your Loch Ness work, particularly the shots youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve taken of people, and you will of course be fully credited (and celebrated!). What would be really great for this feature would be a few words from you about the project from your perspective, and perhaps some stories about some of the individuals in your shots? If you have any time to speak to me about this, I would love to ask you just a few short questions. I look forward to hearing from you soon! Best regards, Alice Hammerton From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Loch Ness shots for Magazine feature Date: 28 April 2013 To: Jamie Stoker (jamiestoker@gmail.com) Hi Jamie, Just following up on the previous email I sent you. My concept for the project has changed slightly as I have been developing the idea. The publication I am creating will still be in association with the brand Folk (hypothetically), and therefore I would like to reflect a lot of their blog content and cultural projects within the features. As your Loch Ness project is clearly something that the brand was very interested in and helped to promote, I feel that it is an important feature for me to include in the magazine (if you are happy for me to). However I would no longer require you to write or say anything additional about the work, as I would like to include some of the written content from your website about the project and the people you photographed instead, is this ok with you? I would like to also point out that this is a purely academic project only, and the resulting magazine which I create will not be distributed or sold anywhere, only handed in for marking by my tutors as a concept and idea. I would of course still be fully crediting you and your work, and the piece would be a feature specifically about your Loch Ness project. I hope to hear from you soon. Many thanks Alice Hammerton 81

From: Jamie Stoker (jamiestoker@gmail.com) Subject: RE: Loch Ness shots for Magazine feature Date: 29 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice, Sorry for not getting back to you sooner! Have been waiting for a free afternoon to sit down and reply to emails properly rather than just shooting off quick responses. I see no problem with you using my work in your academic project, just let me know if you ever intend to take it further than your tutors in future, but otherwise sure why not, and good luck! Thanks, Jamie JAMIE STOKER // PHOTOGRAPHER JAMIESTOKER.COM SUN STUDIO // 90 DE BEAUVOIR ROAD LONDON // N1 4EN

E - EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE: CAROL PARKINSON From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Interview Date: 6 April 2013 To: Carol Parkinson (carol.parkinson@ntlworld.com) Hello Carol! My name is Alice Hammerton and I am a final year student at Nottingham Trent University. I recently read a piece about you and your travelling, and it was absolutely brilliant - exactly how I’d love to live the rest of my life! The article touched on your involvement in the Women of Influence awards, and I’d be really interested to find out a bit more about this? I’m currently in the process of creating a new magazine for my final year project, all about interesting people and their stories. The magazine will have a focus on the beauty of human nature and how important it is to appreciate one another, and just the stories and experiences that make us all unique and make life so interesting! If you would be happy to, I would absolutely love to set up an interview with you for an article in my magazine - it sounds like you have some amazing stories to tell! Do you think this is something that you might be able to find time for? I look forward to hearing from you soon. Many thanks, Alice Hammerton From: Carol Parkinson (carol.parkinson@ntlworld.com) Subject: RE: Interview Date: 6 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice Thank you for your email - your magazine sounds fascinating!. As an ex lecturer of mature students and a keen advocate for the achievement of unique personal potential I would be more than pleased to meet up with you if you feel that I could be helpful to you. Please feel free to give me a ring to discuss a meeting Regards Carol 0115 9145940 - 07931 778886 From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: RE: Interview Date: 7 April 2013 To: Carol Parkinson (carol.parkinson@ntlworld.com) Hi Carol Thanks so much for your prompt response. I’m so pleased that you would like to take part in an interview for my magazine! I think that it will be a brilliant piece to help me get across the message I’m aiming to communicate through it. I’m actually planning to work on this particular feature with my cousin Harry, who is also at Nottingham Trent studying journalism in his first year. I will speak with him about setting up the interview and then either he or I will be in touch with you soon. Thanks so much again. Regards, Alice 83

D - EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE: PHIL SHARP From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Stoke Newington portraits for use in magazine Date: 26 May 2013 To: Phil Sharp (sharp.phil@gmail.com) Hi Phil! I’m a final year student studying Fashion Communication and Promotion at Nottingham Trent, currently putting my final major project together. I’m putting together a beautiful new keepsake magazine, dedicated to presenting amazing stories and images of ordinary people with the appreciation they deserve (an antidote to the throw-away celebrity obsessed magazines we see everywhere!). I came across your Stoke Newington portrait series whilst doing research, and I would absolute love to do a feature on them in my magazine, you will be fully credited (and celebrated!) of course. I should make clear that it is purely an academic piece of work, to act as a prototype magazine for my project’s concept, I will not be selling or distributing it anywhere. I think your images would really fit in well with my idea and help communicate the message I am trying to get across. If you are happy for me to feature the images, might there be anywhere I could download some high-resolution versions? I am currently in the final design stages and looking to go to print next week, so if you could get back to me as soon as you can I would really appreciate it! I look forward to hearing from you soon! Many thanks, Alice Hammerton From: Phil Sharp (sharp.phil@gmail.com) Subject: RE: Stoke Newington portraits for use in magazine Date: 28 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice, That’s fine although I’m away till Weds..... www.philsharp-photo.com From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: RE: Stoke Newington portraits for use in magazine Date: 26 May 2013 To: Phil Sharp (sharp.phil@gmail.com) Hi Phil, That’s great I can’t wait to put them into the magazine! I’ll send over a copy of the finished spreads. I’ve actually managed to copy then into photoshop from your website and convert them to the right res so I won’t need you to send me any larger images after all! Thanks very much, Alice From: Phil Sharp (sharp.phil@gmail.com) Subject: RE: Stoke Newington portraits for use in magazine Date: 28 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice, Would love to see the finished spreads when they’re finished. Best, Phil

G - EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE & INTERVIEW: TOM MALEM From: Tom Malem (tom@malemdesign.co.uk) Subject: RE: Interview Questions Date: 11 May 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice, Hope this is useful, I like the Folk brand, it’s great. Good luck with your project, catch up soon I hope, maybe over the summer we’ll see you in Tumbridge Wells. Tania has a copy to fill in too. Tom My family was… Numerous, there were five of us kids, our mum was/ still is amazing and not only did she look after us, she made lots of our clothes leaving me with home hair cuts and floral trousers to match my sisters. My Dad was/ is caring and supportive, it was a good middle England up bringing in reality, although where we lived seemed a bit boring to me at the time. I thought I would grow up to be… A car designer or a mechanic, I just loved cars so I would draw them all the time, and tried my best to fix my mums old Ford Escort, hmmmmm I think it was mechanically past my capabilities, so I would buy cans of spray paint to smarten it up. I wonder what the neighbours thought of this twelve year old kid spending Sundays spraying paint onto this old banger at the roadside. If I could change one thing about myself… Be more unique. My recurring dream… I have never had a recurring dream, just the usual stuff I see myself as… Curious, focussed on design, loving my new family life, looking for inspiration all the time, a social animal. My home is… An on going project, it’s old but new to us so we are making it our own. My favourite souvenir… Memories Its not very cool but I like… Vampire weekend My favourite image… This could be so many things, and image of the plane Concorde in flight is true design purity, function, beauty, wonder, technology, and an insight into the future - all in one, even still. Movie heaven… Goodfellas A book or film that changed my view… Wild Swans The last time I cried... Thinking about my Dad The person who really makes me laugh... Simon Pegg My five-year plan… Build a challenging business, maybe maybe move to New Zealand, see lots of stuff The biggest obstacle I’m trying to overcome… Planning for the future for my partner and our two children, not just the now I really should… Be able to speak a second language My life in six words… Happy, demanding, lucky, surprising, a journey, family

H - EMAIL CORRESPONDENCE & INTERVIEW: OWEN CUTTS PREVIOUSLY CONTACTED OWEN ON HIS FACEBOOK PAGE IN ORDER TO ASK IF HE WOULD PARTICIPATE IN AN INTERVIEW FOR THE MAGAZINE, HE AGREED AND WE ARRANGED TO CONDUCT IT VIA HIS EMAIL. From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Interview Questions Date: 10 April 2013 To: Owen Cutts (owencuttsmusic@gmail.com) Hiya Owen! I’ve already been spreading the Cutts gospel up here in notts don’t you worry, and I will of course continue to do so! So here are the questions for the interview. The first part focuses on your songwriting (particularly about your approach to honestly and what makes life so interesting), followed by a couple of questions just about you. I’d like to get your professional and personal perspective on writing songs, as well as just a little bit of info about you as an everyday person as well. Hi Owen! We here at These Folk truly believe in the beauty of everyday life, and the uniqueness of each human being on this earth. What makes you unique? You put a lot of importance on honesty and realness in your songwriting (which we love), why is this? What would you say is one of your most honest songs? What’s it about? Can you talk us through what it means to you personally? (I’d like to include the lyrics of the song here, so it would be great if you could pick out a few lines or lyrics and explain them?) ‘I Stretch My Arms’ was the first song of yours that we came across a while ago, and we loved it instantly because of the everyday nature of its subject matter. We gathered there was a slight misunderstanding of one of the lyrics - ‘crack in my..’? What do you think are the most interesting things in everyday life? Which of your songs do you feel really reflect this? Do you think that today people often try to over-glamorize their lifestyles and own identities? Both within the music industry and songwriting, and also ordinary people and our modern society? What are you trying to communicate through the lyrics of your songs? Or is it more about pure self-expression for you? Impact (whether delayed or instant) is important to you in a song. When it comes to the meaning and benefits of a lyric or a story, what is most important to you? Where do you think this philosophy and attitude towards songwriting has come from? What is your process for writing a new song? Getting inspired? Who would you love to work with in order to write a brilliant song? GETTING TO KNOW OWEN: We want to know a bit more about Owen the human too. What’s been your favourite day of life, so far? Who is your best friend? What is your personal motto in life, and the one piece of advice you would like to share with the world? Thanks Owen! (The article will end with some information about the new EP etc and a massive big up to you!) On a separate note, for another small feature which will be bringing all of my fascinating interviewees together, can you answer one more simple question: Tell us a funny story or experience? And that’s it! Your answers don’t have to be philosophical explanations or essays, just honest truths to and your own personal perspective is what I’m really after (but obviously the more you’d like to elaborate or get into any subject the better!). Thanks so much again for agreeing to help me out on this. I can’t wait to read your answers! Thanks again, Alice

From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Interview Questions Date: 25 April 2013 To: Owen Cutts (owencuttsmusic@gmail.com) Hey Owen, Sorry to chase you, I’m sure you must be extremely busy at the moment promoting the EP (still spreading the word in notts by the way - all good responses so far!) - just wondering if you might have had a chance to take a look at the interview questions yet? My deadline is looming so I need to get all of the content for the magazine organised as soon as possible. Hope everything’s going really well! Thanks a lot, Alice From: Owen Cutts (owencuttsmusic@gmail.com) Subject: RE: Stoke Newington portraits for use in magazine Date: 30 April 2013 To: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Hi Alice, Sorry for the late reply I’ve been really busy. Here we go: You put a lot of importance on honesty and realness in your songwriting (which we love), why is this? I literally couldn’t do it any other way. I understand why some songwriters don’t focus on being as honest as possible but for me I can’t bring myself to portray something that i’m not. What would you say is one of your most honest songs? I think ‘Little Boy’ is the most honest song i have written. I say alot of things in that song that you don’t really admit. However alot of people have said how much they like that song because it reminds them of their childhood. What’s it about? Can you talk us through what it means to you personally? It’s about my childhood, that early teen phase. But its also about realising that, hang on, i’m not that little boy anymore and to stop being a dreamer. It mixes little worries of a kid with the bigger worries. It reflects on what i wish I would have done more of, for example I say “I wish that I had the balls to fight, the balls to skate board the balls to make the wrong situation right, the front to stand up and take a punch bleed for the sake of love, I guess I didnt speak my heart enough”. (I’d like to include the lyrics of the song here, so it would be great if you could pick out a few lines or lyrics and explain them?) ‘I Stretch My Arms’ was the first song of yours that we came across a while ago, and we loved it instantly because of the everyday nature of its subject matter. We gathered there was a slight misunderstanding of one of the lyrics - ‘crack in my..’? Hahaha yes there was a misunderstanding. The line “Crack in my blind” was thought to be “Crack in my blood”. Which being as the song is simply about waking up, doesn’t quite fit. What do you think are the most interesting things in everyday life? Which of your songs do you feel really reflect this? Life is interesting. It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do. I’m fascinated with humans and the weird things we do and the strange places we build to do them in. Take indoor bowls for example. We have built a whole arena to roll oval shaped balls down to get close to a smaller ball. Everyone has something that is interesting to someone. I feel like ‘This City’ is the one of my songs that touches on this the most. I tried to describe a city where everything is happening to ordinary people in ordinary places.

Do you think that today people often try to over-glamorize their lifestyles and own identities? Both within the music industry and songwriting, and also ordinary people and our modern society? Definitely. But I don’t begrudge them for doing it. It’s a trait of humans to make out we are doing better than we are. Some artist glamorise their lifestyles because thats what alot of people want to hear. They want music to take them away from their lives and put themselves in the shoes of the artist. Most people don’t want to listen to how normal everything is. In my case people react to how honest I am but thats just because I think people find it refreshing. It annoys me when people only sing about wealth but most songs are about love so I’ll get over it. What are you trying to communicate through the lyrics of your songs? Or is it more about pure self-expression for you? I guess i’m just trying to put across my views and my experiences. I love lyrics more than anything and I get a buzz when someone recognises my word play of a clever line. Impact (whether delayed or instant) is important to you in a song. When it comes to the meaning and benefits of a lyric or a story, what is most important to you? For I know if i’m going to like a song as soon as I hear it. I often prefer verses to choruses. In the long run I think Lyrics are more important. Where do you think this philosophy and attitude towards songwriting has come from? It’s come from UK hip hop actually. When I first started writing there was a big uk hip hop scene in London. I was obsessed with the rappers at that time. Jhest, Chester P, Farma G, Mystro, but in particular the was a rapper from Leeds called Braintax, he had an album out at the time called Biro Funk. He was so honest with his lyric that it just inspired me so much. What is your process for writing a new song? Getting inspired? I always start with the music. Once i have about four bars running on a loop, either on guitar or on my computer I start to try and write down how the music is making me feel. Then once I have a melody I start to pop lyrics into the flow of the melody. From there it usually carries it’s self home. Who would you love to work with in order to write a brilliant song? I’d love to work with RZA. He’s just a genius. GETTING TO KNOW OWEN: We want to know a bit more about Owen the human too. What’s been your favourite day of life, so far? I don’t know!! There has been some classics. Too hard to just pick one. Who is your best friend? I have 4. I know its a bit greedy but I cant help it. What is your personal motto in life, and the one piece of advice you would like to share with the world? Live fast die dumb. Hope this is ok, Let me know. Owen. From: Alice Hammerton (alicegracehammerton@gmail.com) Subject: Interview Questions Date: 25 April 2013 To: Owen Cutts (owencuttsmusic@gmail.com) Hey Owen, No worries, I know you must be really busy at the moment. The answers look great - exactly what I was hoping you’d touch on, with some really interesting extra insights in there as well :) Thanks so much again, I really appreciate you taking the time to help me out with this. I’ll send you on a copy of the finished article! Best, Alice 88

I - INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT: ANDY RICHARDSON - 14/04/13 THE FOLLOWING TRANSCRIPT IS FOR THE INTERVIEW OF ANDY RICHARDSON FOR FEATURE IN THE HUMAN FOLK MAGAZINE. INTERVIEW ARRANGED, DIRECTED AND WRITTEN BY ALICE HAMMERTON. PARTIES PRESENT: NICOLE MALEM (INTERVIEWER), BENNETT DEAN (PHOTOGRAPHER) NICOLE MALEM: What’s your day to day life like at this point in your life? ANDY RICHARDSON: I completely working on being healthy, and keeping it together. But healthy, survival. By the time i’ve done all the shopping I’m really hungry [laughs]. ‘Cause to make a ham roll can mean I’ve got to walk up to the baker’s, and then I’ve got to walk up to the Moor to get the right ham, and then I get home and I find that the mustard’s gone so I’ve gotta go up to Tesco’s to get the mustard. And so I come back and I’ve done 2, 3.. and so it could be a 3 to 4 kilometre ham roll! [laughs]. But yes I spend most of the day on a healthy breakfast, out to go shopping, come home, do some practice on whatever instrument I want to play on, so tenor alto, or flute, or piccolo, and then I have to get lunch, and then perhaps there’s something on TV I wanna watch, or the news of course, and I’ve been a rueing brewing hibernating bear in the winter [laughs]. Its really surviving and sleep probably, and not worrying, no stress. Always making sure there’s just enough money to do whatever I wanna do. And my health, you know, I’ve been through this year of MOTs for the over 60s club, and it’s great to find that I’m in good health having had such a wonderful, exuberant career! N: So you’re focusing on keeping a healthy lifestyle for yourself these days? A: Yeah. Well I’ve been watching the Stones film, and I’ve watched some David Bowie, and they’re all very honest about their, um.. habits, and delights. And in the end, you know, it does tell on you and you’ve gotta stop, and counter-balance. But yeah.. It’s fun! And when I got shopping, to go to the shops up the road, which should take 5 minutes, 2 minutes to get there, 3 minutes to get back, it could take an hour..! It can take an hour to actually get there and back because of meeting people and talking, because people are social. And meeting new dogs and cats [laughs]. Health before wealth is the thing! N: If you weren’t doing this interview with us right now, what would you be doing? A: I’d be out for a walk, and then go home, later and practice. N: You are well known and affectionately named Mad Andy throughout Hawkhurst and the local area, somewhat of a celebrity, what do you think of this? A: Well it actually started when I was a teenager, by my mother. And I was on tour with the European Youth Orchestra in Germany, 35 brits, and we went to the Deinhard wine champagne cellars in Koblenz and enjoyed ourselves so much, and the Koblenz girls’ choir became my girlfriends, all 200 of them! And we phoned up my mother, in England! And my friend went round and said you know, “have you heard from him?”, and she said, “yes he’s M-A-D in Germany, he’s got himself into some trouble with the Koblenz girls’ choir, all 200 of them!”, and he said “what he’s gone mad?”, and she said “no, Missing-Assumed-Drunk!” [laughs], and it stuck! N: So that’s actually been a part of your name for a really long time then, since you were a young lad? A: People know me worldwide for it. N: And there’s a Mad Andy Appreciation Society online isn’t there? There are a lot of people who are members of that, it’s amazing. There’s hundreds! A: Yes, yes.. Lots of girlfriends!

N: So you don’t mind being called Mad Andy at all then? A: I don’t like it very much. Not really.. I had an old Chinese friend who used to call me “Andy Boy”. When I was 40 they had t-shirts printed, and in Cranbrook, in Hawkhurst, everyone was wearing “Mad Andy’s 40th Birthday”, and my tshirt said “It’s My Birthday!” [laughs]. But as you get older you want to drop these sort of silly things really.. But it came out because it was used, when we were in the Harrow boys gang, and there’d be the Wembley, and the Uxbridge, and the mods and rockers in the 60s, there were lots of Andys! And there were Ands and Andrews, and so I was Mad Andy. And of course, my love of the vino, in vino veritas [laughs]. I think it wears thin. I’ll leave that to my mum when she’s passed away! But I’ll just tell you where it worked once, was in a club in Tunbridge Wells called Smiles, at the bottom of the hill where there’s a church and a big block of flats, but it was a hotel and they had a club downstairs. And we put on jazz, this was with Jeff Beck and his sidekick, and the jazz starts at 11 til 4, at night, and a lot of people came that we knew, but it wasn’t what we expected. So the following week Steve, who was the man on the door, put out “Mad Andy Jazz Tonight”, jazz and blues, and the place was packed! N: Talking of your mum, you come from an interesting family don’t you, what was your childhood like? A: Interesting. Born in Devon, Challaborough Bay, my father and another man owned the bay and turned it into a caravan site for people to have holidays after the war. So that’s south Devon, near Totnes, next to Bigbury Bay. And my mother went to Cambridge, and my father was a man of many trades, in the building trade, in woodwork, he was trained in bricklaying. And so then after the war, he ran Plymouth Docks, so then he bought the 10 pound ticket, sold out his share in the caravan site, built a big bungalow which is still there overlooking the bay, big L-shaped thing. For about a million now I think it would sell, and he gave it all up for 10 pounds each, and me and my sister went for nothing and we went to Australia! N: Amazing! For 10 quid. So do you know why they took that decision? A: To get away. And I was having t-bone steaks and eggs for breakfast and people were still on rationing books back there. So I was about 3 or 4 then. And then I started playing the flute. N: How did that come about Andy? Did somebody just give you a flute, or..? A: My father played the guitar and the banjo. And mother played the piano. And my sister, when she was about 6 or 7, was found playing his steel string guitar. So they bought her a Spanish gut-string guitar for her fingers, and then she went to the Sydney Conservatoire on the train, which was a steam-engine train so we were in the real wild west in the 50s! And one day, because we had a shop, a drug-store that sold everything, and we went to Sydney to buy things for the shop and also to get some guitar strings for my sister, next to the Conservatoire, and there was a flute in the window. And I said I wanted it, I was four, a nasty little redhead! My mother used to say that, you know the Harry Enfield when he does the skit with the sister and brother and he’s a nasty red-head - I was a bit like that! [laughs] But anyway, we went into the shop, and she’s told me this story so I don’t doubt it, and she said in the shop she bought the strings and then I said I wanted the flute, and she said “I told him if he could play it he could have it”, and of course to their amazement, I picked it up and I played it! And so she had to pay 30 pounds in 1954.. so 300 pounds equivalent now? N: That was a lot of money! Oh I’d say more than that! So she must have loved her boy, mustn’t she? A: Same colour hair..! [laughs] No but anyway, so then on the train on the way back about 2 or 300 hundred miles back up the pacific coastline to Brooklyn, and she said “Oh what’s your father going to say?”, and he said “if you practice, and learn music properly with your sister, you can go on the train to Sydney. And that was is wasn’t it. These great big steam engine things, it was brilliant [laughs]. And where I lived was where they made Skippy the Bush Kangaroo, just up the river, and we were right on the Pacific, so going to school was, well, it was about half a mile to walk to school or a mile towards the Pacific highway, and so we would go fishing instead! [laughs] We had our own skiff so we would just go off fishing and not go to school. N: But you did go to the Conservatoire and do that, because you loved it? 90

A: But I went there, yes. I went for 12 years. And then came here [Kent], and I went to a school in Harrow, and the music teacher, this is total coincidence now, this is where musicians fall apart and young musicians will lose interest because the teacher goes, dies, or you move, and you’re going into a completely different structure of teaching. And Peter Seymour, he would have been the percussionist in the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and his wife Nicky Schnacker was the second flute in the Sydney Symphony Orchestra but had studied under Harold McMahon like I had, of the french school. I didn’t know this, so I go to the school, and I have an argument with a boy in the class who says he wont listen to the classical music, and I get told off by the teacher, and I said well i play the flute, and so it was “Stay behind”, so I thought I was gonna get told off, but it came out that she played and then I went on holiday to Paris with them! N: So they worked in the school in Harrow? A: He did, and she stayed at home and played. And I became the only pupil, and she got me straight into the Royal School of Music. It was a fluke! And through them, that summer I was taken to the American School of Modern Music in Paris. But that was doing Schoenberg and Copeland, which was great fun, you know! And Birtwhistle of course. But yeah, what a contrast. N: So I remember you telling me as well that when you were growing up in Australia, in the village it was very quiet, you grew up with local Aboriginal kids and ran about with no shoes on.. A: Yeah nobody moved in there for 80 years. We were the only pommies. The parents had worked and opened the Blue Mountains road over the Blue Mountains into the other side, when they were convicts, so if they got to the other side they’d earned their freedom and they were given a bit of land and could choose where they wanted. And these guys, they came from oyster people, fishermen, so they chose the harbour which was perfect for growing and supplies the whole of the east coast of Oz, and still does now. N: So how old were you when you went to Harrow in London? A: I was 14 or 15. And then I left there at 16 and went to art school. I became a technical assistant for pottery. I still did the music though. I did a year as a technical assistant working for the pottery and sculpture department. And then, I had a sabbatical for two years and worked in pottery in studios, and frame making. Good frame making, Malborough Fine Arts, framed for the Tate Gallery. And then went to the art school properly for two years as a student, because I couldn’t go until I was 19. And then I did television for a bit! N: So tell us about the different careers you’ve been involved in then? Sounds like all sorts! You started training as a classical musician, then you started training as a ceramicist and then you got into television? A: Well when I was at art school, they were making children’s programmes about the Romans, the Greeks and all sorts. Period stuff, for the sets, it was ITV. And they wanted a potter and I was the only one who could throw properly because the others were all students and I’d worked in pottery. So I got 50 pounds every time I did it, dressed up in togas, throwing pots on a leach wheel, because it looked good, and made Roman shapes and Greek shapes, and I had a good time yeah. They offered me work actually, but I said I’ll finish what I’m doing. But in all that time I did bands, and played in bands, and I played at Apple [Records], it was open door accompanying people who wanted to record with Apple. And I had The Beatles open the door of the studio and Paul McCartney said “nice flute”, and he had spoons on his shoes and I said “nice shoes”. N: So you quite quickly got into jazz from your classical training? A: No no, the jazz came through the classical. That’s a funny story actually.. The classical started, well years before. I was doing Baroque music, and studied Bach intensely, and Handel, Haydn, Gluck, Telemann, Vivaldi and all that stuff. And also Beethoven, right through everything, anything with dots. So I went to school and there was a chap called Bob Balden, and his older sister had a boyfriend who had been at the art school but he’d left and he was running a series of record shops in Wealdstone, Wembley, Kilburn, Paddington, Harrow, you know. All around these six shops, and they were up market you know, and there were tons of records, and there was a back room in Bob’s house with stacks of records, and it was jazz because nobody bought it! So there was John Coltrane, Miles Davis, Charlie Mingus and all was just this stuff! And of course I had my flute with me, sitting there in the 91

afternoon I was just playing along with all this music and learning it and going of to do the classical, I was at Westminster then, and going and incorporating this jazz into the classical - and getting told off! [laughs] Yeah, great stuff! But my mother even took the flute away from me. To say that she didn’t want to hear me play that. It cost 50 thousand pounds in 15 years, the musical education. And that was each, my sister now plays Flamenco classical, hence why she lives half the year in Spain [laughs]. N: For you, whats been the most interesting place that you’ve lived? A: Errrm, well I wouldn’t change my childhood, but you couldn’t live like that there now. Times have changed, its advanced, everybody’s got a computer. I liked Japan very much. And France, I worked in the middle of France, near Sancerre which was very nice, Côte-d’Or. N: So would you say that Australia was the favourite out of those places? A: As a child yes. But throughout my whole life.. I think Japan was my favourite. I just found it really very.. just so kind and so pleasant, I put on two stone as well! [laughs] And you’re supposed to not do that with seafood, but I was spoiled. And we’re still friends though.. N: Your Japanese lady? A: Yeah we still write, yes. And that’s nice. But I’ve lived in Slovakia, properly. And that was interesting. A winter there 30 below is quite something. Yeah I went to the Zeta tractor factory as well. I know all about tractors. I liked living in Frittenden [Kent] on the farm. I did that for 30 years, because I’ve known them 40 years, so yeah. Really, apart from my couple of years away.. I mean I’ve still got stuff there [at Frittenden]. I could fill the flat up, a couple of garages, and not be able to get in. That’s how much stuff I’ve got. I’ve got a bench, a huge old work bench in pine planks, dated 1883. Bought it for 20 quid. Its a beautiful bench yeah, and that’s at the farm. In Japan I’m known as a Kenzan, a master [of ceramics], because I studied under Shoji Hamada, and Bernard Leach. And so I had a great time doing all of that. I’m very earthy, a country bumpkin, see. When I was a kid, and this is funny, I used to dig holes. In Devon I’d dig a hole that big I couldn’t get out of it, and I had to be taught to make steps, to get out. It’s digging and playing with clay. N: We’ve heard tales of many exotic girlfriends throughout your life, have you ever been married? Or come close? A: Never been married. But come close, oh yeah. N: Was it your Japanese lady? A: Yeah, yeah.. Oh I’ve been out with all sorts of girls, all sorts. And we’re friends too, with every single girl that I’ve been out with it’s never ended in tears. No no. So they’re still friends now. I mean the Slovak one I know where she is now, she’s in Croydon. The door’s always open, if she’s in trouble. She’s lovely. I describe her as being like Elizabeth Taylor, she’s like that. Eleven languages, yeah, she’s a smart lass.. But a real crook! [laughs]. Yeah she’s on Facebook. She got married to a Jewish guy, I knew it wouldn’t last. She’s 22 years younger than me, I think. In her 40s now. She’s very very lovely. Sonja Domikova, that’s her name. I lived in Trencin, in Slovakia. N: So how did you sort of occupy yourself while you were there? Or shouldn’t I ask..?! A: Well in Japan I did her mother’s gardening. In Osaka, up near the golf club, because they cut it in the top of the mountain and would light it up at night you know [laughs]. But there is one part where all the apes are, and theres a river coming down, and rocks that had been rolling about, and I went down, because you have to have a new car there every year by law, yeah and they export them, its good business.. And anyway, so I went up there and got loads of rocks and rounded them all lovely, and did the garden, properly. Because her mum she didn’t have time, yeah so it was a zen garden. And I made a kiln in the garden, I made pots by hand, and I fired them up to stone using her mother’s hairdryer as a blaster [laughs hysterically]. “Can I borrow your hairdryer?!”. And her father and her, they split, which is unusual in Japan. They don’t get divorced but they don’t live together. And he’s in the printing business. Now this will be interesting for you, JTB, you’ve heard of them haven’t you, Japanese Tourist Bureau? Well his printing 92

company which does magazines, I can genuinely tell you he’ll sell 20 million magazines, because 16-20 million Japanese go abroad. And she works for JTB, she’s an accountant. She’s a clever, clever, clever clogs. She speaks English, because I said “Speak properly, I don’t wanna hear that American twang!”, ‘cause otherwise I could go back to being a ruddy Aussie! [laughs]. But that helped her immensely in her job. And if you wanna have a laugh, ask a Japanese who doesn’t speak English properly, “What does a sheep have on it’s back?”, and they’ll say “Ool.”, [laughs] because there’s no ‘w’ in Japanese. So it isn’t “wool” it’s “ool”! It made me laugh for some unknown reason..! [still laughing]. N: So following on from that, and people who are important in your life.. so the most important people in your life now, Andy, would you say that thats the ladies and the friends that you’ve met throughout your life? Or would there be one particular person? A: There’s a number of ladies, yes, I’ve been out with lots of ladies. But anybody. Yes things change, you go different ways don’t you, you know. But for instance I’ve known Julie at the farm for 40 years, and I phoned her up on the 23rd of July last year and I said “ello!”, and she said “happy anniversary” she said, and she knew. So she’s a doctor for me as well, but as a lady friend tremendously, I’m very very close to her. But in a platonic way. N: You seem to manage to achieve that with the people that are important to you in your life? A: Oh yeah, yeah. I’ve got a lady friend at the moment, who shall remain a secret. She’s a blonde, and very beautiful, in her late forties. And we get on really well. We really do. And she’s single, she’s been split up for about 15 years. N: So you have a secret special person in your life now? I see, how exciting! A: Yeah, yeah. And then there’s another one, who I see. Well you know Lorna, you know Lorna pops in to see me. But I don’t know what that is, you know I think that’s more paternal. It is. But you know, I’m the only man she trusts, poor thing..! [laughs hysterically] What a wally! [continues to laugh]. N: No but I’d say you’re a very trustworthy character. You’re very loyal Andy, aren’t you? A: No criminal record..! No but anyway, if I see someone go down I pick them up. Yeah, yeah. Well thats what we’re all here for. N: When you look back, what would you say are the high points and low points in your life? A: Um, I suppose it was really... there were several ladies that I should have gone off with. There was Isabel Kerr-Jarrett who owns Montego Bay in Jamaica [laughs], we were at art school. And that’s funny I’ve just remembered, she was sitting on a kick wheel at the art school and I walked in, and she was a year ahead of me, she was long, tall, 6 foot and good looking, and she said to me “Are you Mad Andy?” in that sort of white Jamaican, you know they talk sort of colonially don’t they? And I said, “Yeah, why? Only my mother calls me that”, and we became friends. And she kept it secret for a whole year that she was going out with me. She had a Morris Minor convertible, and she didn’t want anybody else to know, and loads of blokes tried to take her out... I had a flat, a house around the corner, kind of like the Young Ones, but interesting painters and film students, and she had her own flat. And they were all sworn to secrecy, otherwise I’d kill ‘em. And that was it, you know, seriously. N: So is that a bit of a regret maybe? I can’t imagine you having a regret as such. A: No no I don’t regret it. Because if I was to get the money and get a ticket and go to Jamaica and knock on her door, she’d be over the moon! I saw her after she got married a couple of years later, in Paddington I bumped into her. And she was with Lord Geddes’ daughter, who was at art school, Marion. They’d bought a house together in London, in a mews you know, round the back of Paddington, very up-market, nice area. And she told me all about the guy she’d married and how it didn’t work, and she found out he was a coke dealer. He had the high-speed boats, he was a real flash top of the range everything, but he got caught. And she divorced him in jail within a year of doing it. But I was busy, I was off to Holland, and Germany and Sweden and Norway, making pots and playing music.. Walk past a bar, there’s a man playing, and I’m there! [laughs]. 93

N: Sounds to me like everyone should go to art school, that’s where the interesting lives happen isn’t it! A: Yeah! Well did you ever have the career’s officer at school? Who would say, “Oh, I think you’d be very good in the MET, the Metropolitan Police, with your height.”, and I said “You’ve must be joking!”. I said “Do you who my cousins are? My surname’s Richardson”. But I did have an uncle in Old Scotland Yard, but he married one of my father’s sisters. N: But you’re not related to those Richardsons though? Seriously? A: Yeah my my father had 21 brothers, 4 sisters. And they’re cousins of mine the gang. Yes yes yes. And the Richardson scrapyard in the East End, yeah! N: You’re always telling me you know some tough people I ever needed anybody to sort someone out..! A: Yes! One of the old mob who lives down the road here’s from London, and he said “Are you going to your uncle Charlie’s funeral?”, that was Charlie Richardson, that died yeah. And I said “No no, I went to me Dad’s he was called Charlie Richardson as well!” [laughs]. But when they had the mods and rocker fights, and all that gangs in Margate and everything, and say I’d be in the hundred club and there’d be a fight start between Wembley and Harrow, or Uxbridge or somewhere like that, and they’d say “You don’t wanna touch him, he’s one of the Richardsons”. So I used to say “Shall we go to the pub down around the corner, its really nice down around the corner”, you know in the East End down Covent Garden, when the market was there, I could go in when I was 16 or 17 I used to go in there, because I worked around there, into the pubs at 4 in the morning, and have a drink. N: And they’d open up for you? A: Well they were always open for the market boys, but you know it was only for them. But because I was one of the mob I was allowed in [laughs]. N: So that was quite a useful thing! A: Yeah! My mother’s going “You mustn’t have anything to do with them! After all this education, what did we bring you back here for? I wish we’d left him where he was!”, she always said that. Said that they should have left me there [Australia], eating oysters. [laughs] A bit of a joke really. N: Your Mum was proud of you though wasn’t she? You know you were close to your Mum weren’t you? A: Yeah. Yeah and my Dad. Yeah I mean when she said to me “I think you ought to trim your hair you know”, and I said “Oh..”, and he said “No no that’s all part of his trade, that’s all part of his trade” he said. And then he got cancer in the ear, and it came later because he was auburn. And then she said, then it became “You must keep your hair long, to keep the sun off your ears!”. Do you like that eh [laughs], typical Mum eh, isn’t it! N: She’s just got your welfare at heart, eh Andy! A: So anyway, the other thing when I’m at home, is that I let my hair down. Yeah I’m still auburn. N: That’s a proper mane, Andy. That is a proper lion’s mane. I’ve never seen you with your hair down before, it’s fantastic. A: It is, yeah. Oh yeah, and I’m a Leo. Sixth of the eighth, yeah. It’s a good haircut! [laughs] N: You should wear it like that, it is a good haircut!

A: Well I do! You know. I’ll tell you a little story, when I was with Cranshaw, Martin Cranshaw, he’s got a good villa place in Portugal now, he and I went to Jersey gor a long weekend and the only pace to drink on a Sunday, because all the women made the bars shut at 1 o’clock was a Chinese restaurant open just for drinking. So all the old soaks are in there and I’m in a white cino suit talking to Martin and one of these guys comes in and swears and says ‘Oh sorry Ma’am’ and I had a bit of a close beard and I stood up and turned round (laughs) and he thought I was a woman - isn’t it fun? and we became good friends. When I brush, all the grey hairs comes out and the reds stay behind, when I go in the sea, its all colours. Well I was gonna play you a song. This is what I call a philharmonic flute, it has an extra key, its longer, its an Armstrong and I’ve wanted one of these for 40 odd years and Johnny Gray, who was in the BBC Light Orchestra for over 40 years, I bought his alto saxophone and his 2 flutes. The other one just has the C, standard, and is open holed, I’ve got these ones plugged. I’d wanted one for over 40 years and he passed away and my friend Dan, who’s a dealer and lives down in Seaford, Pat Chapman, a great clarinetist, great friend he’s about 75 now, he phoned me up and said I’ve go these and the alto sax is the one used on the pop hit Tequila, which he made 18 and a half thousand quid on and then nothing else, I can hear it in Tequila at the Eight Bells - he’s got a 32 thousand cover juke box. I’ve played it in there anyway (plays English Country Garden and Greensleeves on the flute). Stella the dog barks... N: Thats wonderful...how perfect is that, sitting out in the sunshine in my garden listening to Andy playing English Country Garden? A: I played on 8th December outside The Royal Oak with a band I’m in called The Blue Buffoons for 40 minutes until we really got frost bite playing Christmas carols, all from The Royal College of Music, guitarist and cellist girl, I love cellists ‘Can I carry your case for you? I’ve only got the flute? Its a winner! N: You’ve got a bagpipe as well, one of the smaller ones, a flageolet, I’ve heard you play that outside on occasion and the flute on New Year’s Eve... A: Yeah, that was Auld Lang Syne and about a week later this elderly lady, with this lovely old face, she said to me ‘You shouldn’t have stopped, the other evening, I opened the window and I heard you and you shouldn’t have stopped...’ N: I think people love it, I’ve had my window open and listened to you playing.. A: I got a new mouthpiece for the sax and I didn’t know if I was in tune and old Doug, Scottish Doug, lovely guy ( laughs) sarcastic old bugger, I said ‘You alright?’ And he said ‘You were out of tune’ just like that, but he was right when we got into the studio, he’s a card. I gave him some flowers the other day because his wife was 90 and he said ‘if I see her I’ll give them to her’ ... We’ve got lovely neighbours round here.... N: We have, we have.... Can I ask you my last few questions, Andy? A: No you cannot .. (Laughs).... N: Some I can answer myself already, Health not Wealth is your philosophy, I’d say... And do you have any regrets? Clearly no, you have said No, you don’t.. The last two I’ve got... one is a bit personal, so you might not want to answer it but here goes.. We all know that part of a jazz musician’s life is the booze and the drugs and all that stuff ... Would you say that that has changed your life in any way? Or was it all just so much all part of it ? What effect has it had on your life, do you think? A: I think it opened my eyes and it also gave me a diversity to mix with all sorts of people and to realise that although those people, we’ll say, are conservative and they keep tailors in business making suits and they might have lots of money, but when they party and you’re invited to play, they don’t even bother to talk about it... That’s you, its accepted.. N: So that opened a side of life for you that you might not otherwise have had access to? A: Really, it didn’t matter and also, like the buzz and finding out things like Stephan Grappelli had quite a few large whiskies before he went on stage and it’ll give you a little lift, a buzz... 95

N: So that’s a really interesting answer, so its been a really positive influence actually, you’d say? A: Yes, yes and I’m not ashamed of what I’ve done and the law have ignored me and ignored it and don’t bring it up... Um... Its nothing to bring up, that’s like do you wash your hands after going to the toilet... (Laughs) but in the wrong hands, some people, I don’t know why they even bother doing drugs because they get no inspiration, they’re not doing anything ... they’re not painting a picture out of their head at that moment... I’ve had over 500 different drugs, they grow naturally, made or found by botanists for me, you know and boom! Its another big trip, dude... N: So its all a voyage of discovery, really? A: It is, it is... And the LSD I had for over 2 years out of R Whites lemonade bottles, I was convinced that R Whites was the best lemonade in the world (laughs!!) and you only needed a pipette drop and we kept it in the fridge... It was made by a research chemist at ICI with all the best chemicals that you could get, most refined, so it was absolutely like ‘today we are going to be in the blue room indoors and out and the whole place was BLUE and so... It didn’t detract from the fact that you must have questions and be looking .... Everything’s to be seen and you miss so much.. In a blink you can miss something.. And through other people’s eyes ...um.. And especially when under the influence and there’s several of you who are all cultured, intelligent and educated-looking people, through their eyes, you discover other things that you would have totally missed! And as far as LSD goes and a relationship with a lady, you get as far as looking at her hand .. And discover you’ve got eyes that are microscopes.. (laughs) true.... No, there’s nothing wrong with a bit of old weed, no-one ever died of it... (Laughs) N: Ok, so for her last question she asks : what makes you scared in life and what makes you happiest in life? A: Oh scared... Um... Threats... Um... Aggression.... N: So thats been handy being a Richardson in that respect? A: No, no I didn’t know anything about all of that until I came to England. I was brought up in a fairy land. N: Like Skippy the gush kangaroo? A: That started when I was just leaving Aussie for a more ‘cultured’ education. There’s this thing at universities in Aussie where they would give a head of department to a retiring English Head of department at the Royal College of Art or Music so he would give in the last 3, 4 pr 5 years of his working life his knowledge of say 50 years, whereas to the annoyance of Aussies, they’d only done 10 years or something but to the benefit of the students. N: So looking back at the questions, what scares you is threats and aggression - that’s not something that happens to you regularly presumably? A: No, no... Or another person being injured and not knowing what to do.. N: How about happiness? What makes you most happy in life? A: Being able to breathe, being alive, the sunshine, sitting here with you (laughs..) N: So the simple things? A: Very simple .. I’d make a good monk..I’d like to make some more pots again, which I think I will, I’d like to I’d like to go to Dartington in Devon and I actually could arrange that and at the moment I’m very happy with my music and we’re playing together once a week, its very social, we’ve known each other a long time, 30 years and I’m the eldest and they’re from different parts of England and they’re playing different instruments : trombone, soprano sax, alt and tenor sax, I’m on flute and alto sax, piccolo or tenor and there’s a guitarist and there’s a baritone player and he’s from New Zealand and this blend of sound comes through ... 96

We can add a bass player and drummer on there if we want, but just working as that 4 or 5some.., boy it comes out, qthe blend of sound.... We do some daft songs, we do Laurel and Hardy (we’re The Blue Buffoons after all)... We also do Blues and Dylan and Motown either in the studio or the lounge and we all come out with job satisfaction. N: Final thing Alice asked for: You’re known as a great story-teller, Andy, what’s your favourite story to tell people ? A: A fresh one: I was in the bank the other day, because I love going to the bank, and um there was a very attractive red- headed gypsy granny in there and I was talking to the cashier and telling her how I had seen a little shi-tsu and it was outside and it was called Billy and then she said ‘oh, they’re lovely, aren’t they?’ And then I said, ‘the other day I saw a labradoodle’ and she said ‘oh yes, they’re a bit odd aren’t they?’ And I said ‘and so was the awfully nice lady who owned it’ and there was an awfully nice lady standing behind, so I had to be a little careful about what I was saying, at which point the gypsy lady said ‘somebody asked me what my dog was the other day and I told her it was a bullshitter, a cross between a bulldog and a shi-tsu’ and I had to lean over to the cashier and say, ‘I think she’s taking the piss’ And the awfully nice lady behind didn’t say anything and as I was leaving, I said, ‘ Cor I can just see that at Crufts, cant you, oh look, here comes that lovely little bullshitter right now!’ (much laughter) N: I also love your story about the horse and the beer .... A: that was at a horse dressage show at Chiddingley after the pubs shut. There was a small tent as a beer tent. Joe Day, whose horse used to be put outside the pub on a Sunday morning with a bucket of ullage.. N: what’s ullage? A: ullage is the dregs of the beer when they’re brewing and they used to put it into leather hats once when they’d finished brewing and re- sell it. Anyway, the horse smelt the beer and it charged with the cart, with Joe on it into the tent. Joe was stood up on this little 2 wheeler trying to stop it going in and the other gypsies pulled it out with all their braces on backwards and as it did so, its teeth were gripping onto the tent so as it did go backwards, it took the tent and everything with it, the bar and the beer and everything and then a voice came over the tannoy ‘Would Joe and all his crowd pleaseleave the grounds’ and I was there playing the flute and I had to leave as well. (much laughter)... N: after this huge thanks and much playing of flute ....

ESSENTIAL MAD ANDY FACTS: Born in 1949 At Royal College of Art and the Royal College of Music in the early 60s Andy played ‘Flute Salads’ with a friend of his Andy was friends with Dizzie Gillespie for 15 years through playing at Ronnie Scotts Andy is friends with Keith Emerson of ELP Cows love the flute - if you stand by a cattle truck playing the flute, ancient 2000 year old strings of notes, they will walk straight in. Stella the dog’s favourite note is D sharp major. When Andy plays sax, if she’s not in the mood, she goes under the duvet. Andy used to play in a band called The Assorted Nuts. He’d be fine on a desert island because he can entertain himself with music, make pots, do metal work, rear and slaughter animals and grow veg and poppies!

J - INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT: CAROL PARKINSON - 26/04/13 THE FOLLOWING TRANSCRIPT IS FOR THE INTERVIEW OF CAROL PARKINSON FOR FEATURE IN THE HUMAN FOLK MAGAZINE. THIS IS A SAMPLE TRANSCRIPT, FULL INTERVIEW IS AVAILABLE DIGITALLY VIA ALICE HAMMERTON. INTERVIEW ARRANGED, DIRECTED AND WRITTEN BY ALICE HAMMERTON. PARTIES PRESENT: ALICE HAMMERTON (INTERVIEWER), HARRY HAMMETT (INTERVIEWER) ADAM DAVID (PHOTOGRAPHER) THE HUMAN FOLK: So, first off, after you’ve been on all these amazing adventures, what’s your life like day to day? CAROL PARKINSON: Well, it’s pretty normal to be honest with you. I’m sixty seven and I still work, I do executive coaching looking at performance in managements. I’ve also raised over 500,000 through volunteering over 17 years though. And, of course, I started the women of influence award 19 years ago as a senior manager. We launched the award for women who do extraordinary things in the community, like running youth activities, hiring 200 volunteers, making a park from a derelict area, we had one woman who did a link between the local private school and disabled children. Another lady, a midwife, noticed that pregnant women needed winter coats and couldn’t get any, because they were constantly getting bigger. So she started a way for them to borrow them, and she won the Women of Influence award, the award’s all about things like that. The criteria for the award are that they make a difference, that they do it voluntarily and that they do something to bring the community together. THF: So, who was the most interesting person you met on your travels? C: When I was in Vietnam I went to the Demarkation. I didn’t stay in any hostels in Vietnam actually, because they’re very basic, some countries have hostels that would be decent hotels over here, but Vietnam doesn’t. I stayed in Hanoi, and got 26,000 dong to the pound, which is amazing when you think about it. So, on this trip I actually met a guy, I don’t know if you knew that? THF: I think I’ve heard... C: *smiles* Because I was on top of a mountain with my camera, and we’d woken up extra early to see the sunrise, which was meant to be beautiful, and it was, but I tried to take a photo, to take it home, and my camera jammed when I was taking the photo. So, he was next to me, and I turn to him and say “Do you know anything about cameras?!” and he says “No” so I go “Well, can you take a photo of it for me?” and he looks at me and says “I’m not sure if I know how to use this one” *she sighs* Anyway, yes, so it was 26,000 dong to the pound and I bought a trip for the day for 28,000 dong, which is amazing. It went to the Demarkation and to Ho Chi Minh’s tomb. The tomb was really creepy, looking at this dead old man all embalmed, looking like he was made of ivory. It was so cold in there too, and behind me in the line was a couple from England, and the man was clearly really cold, so he put his hands in his pockets to warm up, and this guard comes up to him and hits him, because, of course, it was unthinkable to have your hands in your pockets in Ho Chi Minh’s tomb. But I was sat next to the tour guide on the bus, and he was well spoken and friendly and chatty, and I thought he was too clever for his job, to be a tour guide, and it turned out that he’s used to be an English teacher. There was the obligatory few questions that you always get in places like Vietnam, like “Where your man?,” It’s always inconceivable that I could be there on my own, but I didn’t want to say that I was divorced because of all of those follow up questions, so I said “Oh, I’m a widow, my husband’s dead” and he looks at me and says how sorry for me he is, and then “My wife ran off with another man” which is why you must never tell a lie, you see, because now I couldn’t say “Oh, I know how divorce feels” or anything. Anyway, he talked to be about being a child, in the war. Being terrified when the American bombers came over, hiding in the Vinh Moc Tunnels. So I was curious and I asked “well then, how do you feel about taking Americans on tour of this country on holiday?” and he looked at me and he said that he was sad for Americans, they won the war, he told me, but ‘we’ won the war really. It was hard for the American soldiers coming home, he told me, because they were just following orders, but when they came home, their own people didn’t accept them back, while we were the heroes of our own people. “They Scarred our land, but not our hearts” he told me. I also met some English people in Perth and on the pacific railway, you have to sleep in your seats, and curl up in your sleeping bag on the train. And I met these two women. There was one young woman who’d been there on her gap year and was coming back to marry the kiwi guy that she’d met on the travels, and she thought she might as well make the most of the airfare and make a trip of it. The other lady was a woman from Leicestershire, and we still meet up and go for walks now actually. There was another boy that I met three times in Vietnam, not deliberately, just by coincidence; we ended up in the same areas at 98

the same sort of times. Now, not even my daughters know this story, but I’ll tell you. I was in Hanoi and I was going on a trip that I’d booked, and I asked how I’d get to the station to get the train and the person I booked it with just goes “Man come for you!” So I’d only packed a little day pack, and it’s after dark, and this man comes to pick me up on a little 125 bike, out of the pitch black, 12 at night. So I hopped on the back and off we went, we had to get around a fire at one point, where the locals had felled a tree across the road and set it alight, just huddling around it to stay warm. The station its self was covered in pistachio shells, because they love them over there, about an inch deep in shells, and I have to climb out, through these massive railway sidings, pitch black at night, climbing over rails, it all seemed a bit dodgy. Anyway, we finally got to the train and it was one of those carriage & corridor type affairs, and he had my ticket, and they’re all on the make out there, so I asked for my ticket and he wouldn’t give it to me, and he opens the door and goes “You go here” and I looked in there and there was three men and four children in there, and I said “No, I booked a sleeping carriage, there’s no room in here” but he starts trying to shove me into this compartment. I’d paid extra money so I could sleep on my own “You go” he keeps saying, trying to push me into the compartment and I’m pushing back, and eventually I left, I walked off and got off the train, I got back onto the station and he’s going bananas, so he went off to get a woman, she takes me back to the compartment again “No, I’m not going in there” and he finally gave me my ticket back and he’d changed something, I’m not sure what, but one of the letters had been changed on my ticket. So I went back in there eventually and all the children had gone, so it was just the four of us to the four beds, and I noticed that one of the men was this 18-year-old English boy that I kept bumping into. He explained to me how these men’s wives were in the other carriage and that they’d tried to foist the kids on these too men. The men were quite nice, after the first few “Where your man?” questions they were lovely, and upon finding out I was English he produced a bottle of rum from somewhere and tried to get us to drink to England. I hate rum, so every time he filled up the glass and passed it to me I’d make this big show of drinking it, and then throw it over my shoulder. You don’t really want to pick anything up from an unwashed glass either. Then suddenly he just says “Bed time” and falls asleep. Then the snoring started, it was so bad! This English bloke was in the top bunk opposite to me and we just looked at each other and laughed. So, he passed me this yellow tablet, and I used to be a psychiatric nurse, so I knew that it was Valium. I said no, and he went “Oh go on, everyone uses it to get to sleep” so, after putting up with the snoring for a while I took it and went to sleep. THF: Have you had any meaningful experiences on your travels? C: Oh, all of them are meaningful. I was interested in Buddhism and frequently visited temples in the hope of finding it quite spiritual, like you always hear, but it wasn’t spiritual for me. I went to a temple in Thailand, the biggest Wat in Bangkok, on what turned out to be a holy day. I remember being handed chains of lotus blossoms and I thinking ‘this is amazing’, the whole place smelled of joss sticks too and I love the smell of joss sticks. Then I looked to my right and there was a Buddhist monk leaning against the wall with a cigarette in his mouth, talking away into a mobile phone and drinking a can of coke, which slightly flattened my dream. THF: So, tell us a little more about the Women of Influence Awards C: Oh we’ve had some cracking speakers! Stella Rimmington, The Calendar Girls, Edwina Curry, Rebecca Stevens MBE, the first woman to climb Everest, Dr Mary Archer the scientist, talking about their own life, talking about challenges they’ve faced, things like that. I talk about my travels at dinners, and at W.I.s and such too. THF: Is your age relevant to your travelling? C: There’s a common theme that people experience of other cultures. If you’re approachable you’ll get along with people on your travels, in Perth I was staying in a youth hostel with a pair of Essex girls, they were really rather pretty and really nice too, and they warned me something along the lines of “We’re partying later, we’re sorry if we wake you up” which was nice. So anyway, I fall asleep expecting them to stagger later on and that night one of them brought a man back to the other girl’s bed. *laughs* So, as they were there mid-act the other girl comes in a bit of a bad mood, going “Where’s my washbag?” at her friend. I think she was a bit annoyed to find her friend in bed with some bloke really, which makes sense. Anyway, the first girl answers her and the friend stomps off, and the pair resume relations the second the door shuts. It was quite lucky that they were in her friend’s bed actually, since that girl’s bunk was under mine and I don’t think I would have enjoyed sleeping above that. So anyway, the next day was Valentine’s Day and I came in to the room to see that the first girl had received roses, so I go up to her 99

saying “Oh, you must have made an impression” or whatever, to which she replied “My fiancée in England sent them, do you want them? We’re going grape picking later” *smiles* I don’t think the married life would have suited her really. THF: Do you have any future hopes and ambitions? C: I want to do Machu Picchu in Peru. I’d like to go to South Africa too but I’ve got nothing planned. I don’t have a planning process; in the winter I just go ‘where can I go that’s warm?’ you know? THF: You talked about meaningful experiences, did you have any scary ones on your travels? C: I learned a lesson in Kuala Lumpur. If I don’t have command of the language I get a card with the hotels address on it in their language. I got talking at breakfast to this Kiwi guy, him and his girlfriend took me to see the twin towers in the morning before they left, but I couldn’t find my way back to the hostel. So I had a quick look around and went into a posh looking hotel to talk to who I assumed was the Concierge. Posh hat, posh coat, you know? So I asked him “Can you tell me how to get back here?” “Why are you staying in this hostel?” he asked me. So I sort of explain “Oh, it’s because I’m a backpacker,” about travelling, so he explains how to get back to my hostel and off I pop, and I’m walking back when I hear a pip from a horn and I turn around and see this limousine sat there, which I walk up to. It turns out that guy was a limousine driver, we had a brief chat again and he offered me a lift, which I declined and carried on walking. I walked round the next corner and he’s there in his limousine and he offers me another lift, it’s getting dark by this point, but I say “no thanks” again and carry on. Next corner I just stuck my head around he’s sat there with the lights on, so I ran and hid for a while. Eventually two women walked past me and I asked them about the hostel, it was in the opposite direction. He’d lied about it to me and sent me off completely the wrong way. From that I learned to never say I was there on my own, I’d say I was meeting my friend or my husband was in the room or something.

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K - INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT: MOHAMMED ASSADULLAH - 26/04/13 THE FOLLOWING TRANSCRIPT IS FOR THE INTERVIEW OF MOHAMMED ASSADULLAH FOR FEATURE IN THE HUMAN FOLK MAGAZINE. INTERVIEW ARRANGED, DIRECTED AND WRITTEN BY ALICE HAMMERTON. PARTIES PRESENT: ADAM DAVID (INTERVIWER& PHOTOGRAPHER) ADAM DAVID: So, how are you doing? Basically I just wanted to know what got you into playing the piano in the first place? MOHAMMED ASSADULLAH: Yeah I’m alright mate! Well um, when I was a kid, I used to watch a lot of old movies, black and white movies. I never used to go out a lot so, my parents were fairly strict so I stayed inside, I used to watch a lot of black and white movies and they always used to have a lot of old classical performances. A: What like silent movies? M: Well no not necessarily silent movies, for example I watched um, probably way before your time, but I used to watch a lot of Marx Brothers’ films. And one of the brothers in the Marx Brothers was a guy named Harpo Marx, and he never used to say anything, but he used to be able to play a lot of instruments. And so he’d play the piano and he’d play the harp and he’d play all sorts of instruments. So um, I used to watch a lot of those films. And i used to love to listen to him play when he’d play the piano, and he’d play Rachmaninoff and all sorts of things, and plus i listened to lots of other things. A lot of other black and white films, but not the silent movies, they all used to be based around some musical performance which had been put together. Everything was all broadway shows, you know Singing in the Rain and all the rest of it, and they always revolved around guys, a show had to be put on, and all this other stuff going on in the background, but everything would always turn out really well and there’d be all this wonderful music and stuff, so I watched a lot of movies like those, you see. So i listened to a lot of classical music through the tv, when I was a kid. And I used to like classical music and i always wanted to play the piano but I never had a piano. When i was at school i played the clarinet, for 5 years, and through high school. A: So is that how you learnt to read notes? Through the clarinet? M: Yeah because of that. In fact I took clarinet lessons at school ‘cause i thought it would get me out of some other boring lessons at school. So there was about 5 or 6 of us who had the chance to learn instruments, I learnt the clarinet so that enabled me to read music. Really frustrating, because when you play the clarinet its a really squeaky instrument because its a reed instrument, its really hard to get the muscles in your mouth ready to play. But in the background I always wanted to play the piano but i never had a piano, so i just played the clarinet while i was at school. A: So do you play any other instruments? M: No no it was just the clarinet at school but then I wanted to play the piano, so i used to go into my local college around the corner, a Clarenden College just up the road, early in the morning at about 6 o’clock in the morning, before i went to work. SO id go and practice a little bit there and then id go back in the evenings, but what i thought was id teach myself as much as i could and then later on id get some lessons. but because i never had a piano i never got around to having any lessons. A: So you never had any lessons? M: So I never had any lessons! But people would say “Why don’t you get some lessons?”, and i’d say “Because I haven’t got a piano”, so i couldn’t guarantee that id be able to practice on a regular basis. But ironically enough it meant that id just go and find a piano and i’d practice all the time. A: Why don’t you have a piano? M: We just never had the space. So i mean i bought a small keyboard, and i practiced for a while on that until the notes went off. But the funny thing is, because i never had a piano, i made more of an effort of going and finding one so that i could practice. So when i did practice, i used to spend as long as i possibly could, because i thought “well tomorrow i might not be able to practice”, so you end up practicing for 2 or 3 hours. The problem is that you could practice during term time, but during vacation time and holidays everywhere was closed, so any progress you made during the term time, you’d lose a lot of it again so you’d end up going backwards and forwards and backwards and forwards.

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A: Are there not any other pianos that you go to or are you mostly here? M: Um, no I’d go to.. Well theres the YMCA on Mansfield Road, that i used to pop into. And theres actually a music shop on Mansfield Road that I’d pop into, because they’ve got a good grand piano there, I practiced there for a while. Um, in Lenton, theres a church, I’ll pop in there when its open sometimes. And theres another music shop called Clements and I’d sometimes pay £3 and practice in there for an hour. And sometimes I used to go up to Nottingham University during term time and practice in there. So i’ve been sort of all over the place. A: Roughly how many different pianos do you think you’ve played on? M: Erm, wow! Well i used to practice at the music school at Nottingham University when it was the old music school and now its the new one so there must have been about 5 or 6 there. And I used to go to Clarenden College and i must have played on all the pianos in the practice plot so 6 or 7 there, and the main rooms so 8 or 9 there. So I’ve been to lots of locations, about 10 or 15 different locations, with different pianos, all sorts of conditions and things. A: So do you do this like just for yourself or..? M: Well the thing is, I base my practice around.. Well with music lessons in this country, you have, do you know anything about the Associate Board Method? A: No. M: Well the music lessons are very structured, in that they follow a particular guideline. After a couple of years you take grades, they start at 1 and go up to 8, but people normally start at grade 3, and every couple of years you take another grade. The aim for most students is to get to grade 8, they’re the ones who normally go on to music college. Normally when you’re at school you normally get to grade 5 or 6, and the way they do it its based on lots of scales, and they do a particular classical piece, in terms of period they do a classical piece and a romantic piece at a certain level. Then once you’ve done that you move on to the next grade. So I base my practice around that method. So every couple of years I’d go and buy the examination pieces, and work through the examination pieces and the scales, and so it would give me a sort of basis of where I’m supposed to be. And it would give me a marker as well because when you take exams, you have to play the pieces that you’re given. You have to learn the pieces and by doing that it forces you to learn things you wouldn’t normally learn. Because the temptation is to learn the things you like, and miss out the things you don’t like. But when you have a structured method you learn the things you don’t really like and that improves your technique. A: So what do you like? M: Ummm, well now, I like all types of classical music.. When I was younger I used to listen to lots of Bach, i used to listen to lots of Chopin, traditionally which is romantic music. Obviously you listen to Beethoven’s piano sonatas and things and stuff on the radio.. But in terms of playing, I like Bach but Bach for me is very difficult to play because its very structured. And with romantic music like Chopin, you have a lot more freedom in terms of expression. So I mean I’m not saying that I’m like an expert pianist or anything, but in terms of playing its a lot more pleasurable learning pieces of Chopin. But Bach when you actually get it right it sounds really good, but its just very difficult to get it right. A: So would you say that what you like to listen to is different than what you like to play? Or does it go hand in hand? M: Well, the thing is.. A couple of years ago I bought some Rachmaninoff CDs and that took my listening to another level because before I listened to Chopin and Rachmaninoff takes everything to.. Its like another level all together. And so but the only problem is you just don’t have the technique to play it, so you like listening to certain pieces and perhaps there are one or two pieces which you can tackle, easier pieces you can tackle and so you learn and tend to stick with those over and over again. But generally what i play is what i like. You get to the stage after a while where you can start playing what you like. When you’re learning you have to go through the hard work of playing things that you don’t particularly like. But you know you need to learn to play them in order to get the technique which is going to take you to the next level, and is going to take you to the point where you can play the things you do like. A: Alright sick man! How long have you been playing? M: Me? Over twenty years. Around twenty years. But its all stops and starts and on and off, and for me it takes twice as long because you don’t have lessons. So it does take twice as long. But, i try not to miss things out. Like i used to do lots of scales and lots 102

of exercises and things like that. A: Alright, and do you go to these exams or do you just like look at the thing and just try and do it for yourself? M: No. But I did some music exams when I played the clarinet and theres lots of whats called sight reading where they place pieces of music in front of you and you play, and I’m not very good at things like that you see. Im ok if i can go through pieces very slowly and after a while get the gist of whats going on. Plus when you dont have exams you haven’t got to go through the nerves and the stress of having an exam you see. A: Yeah, its more enjoyable.. M: It is. But what i tend to do as i was saying, is i do look at the examination pieces, and i pick out some of the pieces to learn. And i always make sure that, you know, I’ve actually covered them. A: So do you know what level or grade you’re at? M: Probably at about grade 7. About grade 7 yeah, in terms of playing. A: Oh really? That’s pretty sweet! Is there a big like gap between 7 and 8? Is it every single one is like a big gap? M: Yes. Um each one seems to be.. Well when you think about it, there is a fairly large gap between from, 3 to 4, say 4 to 5 and 5 to 6 and 6 to 7, but grade 8, it takes things to another level. Because grade 8 is the basis by which you’ve covered everything. Think of grade 8 as, really in terms of classical music, grade 8 is the beginning. Yeah all the other grades, what they do is they’re covering all the different aspects of playing a piece, you see. So grade 8 it brings everything together, for example you’d play the opening, the first part of a piano sonata, you’d play a Beethoven piano sonata or Haydn piano sonata and in that you’d have all the elements that you need, which you’ve covered over the years in playing the different grades. So you’d have all your scales and arpeggios and your exercises, it’ll all come together in your expression, in your reading. All those will feature in that particular piece and thats what grade 8 brings out. In a way you have to think of grade 8 as like a first sort of level, in terms of playing a standard piece of classical music. A: Because by then you know everything, and you can actually start putting all that stuff together? M: Yeah well you know all the basics, in terms of what it is to play a nice piece of music. To sit and play say, a nice sonata or a nice piece of Chopin. A: Alright sweet. What would you say your favourite piano to play is, out of all the ones that you’ve played? Like your favourite spot? M: Its interesting, in fact, ironically, in the corridor in Bonington building, in this building. A: Really? And why is that? M: Because the piano is the nicest, in terms of the feel and the touch, the piano is beautifully weighted, it is a really nice piano to play. In terms of the weight and the richness. A: More than this one? M: More than this one yes, yes. Just because a piano is a grand piano, it doesn’t necessarily mean it has a nicer touch and a nicer feel basically. Because really an up-right piano is like a grand piano its just in a different position. Umm, when I first started to play in the corridor, ironically i only played there because i had no choice. I couldn’t play in front of other people, i was too nervous, too many nerves and too many people, it was too nerve-wracking. For years i couldn’t practice in front of anybody else. Then came the day when no other piano was available. I knew there was a piano in the corridor, and i thought in order to practice I’m gonna have to be brave in front of people. And so what happened is i sat outside, and a number of people congregated outside the lecture theatre, this lecture theatre. And then the number grew and grew and grew i was extremely nervous, nerve-wracking, sweating like crazy! And people were watching and looking and everything. And that forced me to relax, to get over the hurdle of not playing in front of other people, because it forced me. Because I thought, in my mind, “you’ve got no choice, yeah, you’ve got to learn how to do it” and I never thought id be able to play in front of other people. Never, never. A: Really? Do you not even notice them walking by now or is it just like..? 103

M: Now, yeah well what happened was before when people walked by i used to sort of stop all the time and look over my shoulder, or if someone said something i found it distracting. But now i can block that out. Its about blocking out whats around you and just focussing on what you’re doing. So its not.. its no longer a major issue. A: So I guess like, that would even make it even um.. Like you have to concentrate even more when you’re out there rather than in here? Or does that not matter? M: Well after a while the two melt.. Initially, you did concentrate more out there, because you’ve got to. I mean you are aware when people walk by, especially when young ladies walk by with stiletto heels on and they’re making the noise, you know. You do notice, in terms of, not necessarily the visual aspect, but the sound! You can hear people walking by all the time, you see, and sometimes people stop and say hello, you know. And ironically, people think if you’re playing classical music, it must be really serious, you know, you must be studying the thing or whatever. So people tend not to disturb you and not to say anything, but thats not necessarily the case, because if people stop and say hello I’ll say hello and have a chat, yeah, its not a big deal you know. I mean I’m not sort of like, in my own head space where i don’t want to talk to anyone or anything, its just that people just assume. You know its classical music it must be serious. Its bizarre, because if people sit and mess around people think “ah its not too serious” but if you played some Chopin or something they think “Oh my god, he must be studying it” or something you know but its just not the case. A: Yeah, yeah. I guess it might also be kind of intimidating maybe, because like you’re so into it, people think “Yeah i might leave him to it”? M: Yeah. But then again i’d do the same. If i see someone practicing, I mean there are a couple of people who i see out here practising who I know to speak to now, so i can stop and say hello, but i think, “Well, I’d better not disturb them”, because they’re working through something and they may have just got it right and if i disturb them then they’ll make a mess of it, you see. But for me its not a big deal, because you should be able to stop. Because really you’re practising, you’re not performing. So it doesn’t matter if you stop and have to go back and do something again because its all practice isn’t it. A: Yeah, fair enough. How long have you been using the one outside Bonington for? M: Here? Well i came here, i started coming here a couple of months before last summer. A: Oh so really recently? M: Yeah about a year and a few months. Yeah, because i think the up-right was in here, and they moved it out there. When it was in here i didn’t have a problem you see as i could come and practice and i thought “yeah this is cool”, and then it disappeared and i think it went to Goldsmiths or something, they moved it somewhere else, and then they put it back and they put it out there. Yeah and then i started practicing out there. But the problem with practicing out there, is if theres a lecture in here, well the up-right piano has a third pedal in the middle which dampens the sound, it puts a line of felt in between the hammers and the strings, but even so you can still hear. So when there was a lecture in here I couldn’t practice out there. So what i did was i started putting some tissue paper down the back, so there was something extra to dampen the sound down even more. And now I’ve got a piece of cotton which i have and i actually use some clothes pegs, and i put it down the back of the piano, and i attach it with the clothes pegs and that dampens the sound down completely, so I’m the only one who can hear it so i don’t disturb people if theres a lecture in here. A: Fair enough. Thats pretty cool man. M: So i had to think of all these little techniques, but i started doing that at the YMCA first because when i was practicing in the sort of main hall, and downstairs theres some classes going on so the woman said you know “You’ve gotta stop” so the next time i thought i know what i’ll do, i’ll put a bit of tissue paper down the back. And it worked, they didn’t realise that i was there you see, so thats one of the techniques i use. A: Have you ever played anything live? Or do you think you will maybe? M: No, no I haven’t. No in my head, there are some pieces which I like, and you always think “i’d love to learn to play that before i die” or something, and i think there are some pieces which are nice which i think i will tackle that next, or i’ll do this Chopin nocturnal, this piece of Rachmaninov.. A: Fair enough man. Do you have anything that you want to like accomplish out of this, other than just teaching yourself? Like do

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you wanna teach some time or..? M: No I don’t really, when i think about it.. well someone recently just asked me if i’d do any lessons, but because i haven’t had lessons myself, i don’t think it would be fair for me to try and teach other people. I wouldn’t want to make a mess of, you know, to mess up their particular playing technique or anything. A: Yeah but surely everyone learns in their own way, I mean you’re really good at what you do.. M: No no I’m not good at what I do, I’m just very tenacious. I’ve realised that initially what people call talent isn’t really talent at all. Its just practice. I mean i was watching this thing about, a lot of Chinese kids who play the piano, and its because their parents insist that they practice an awful lot and they play an awful lot from an early age. So when you see something that they’re playing, and you think that its talent, what people don’t realise is that a person may have practiced that piece a thousand times. And then they sit and play it and people think “oh that sounds really cool he must be really talented” but what they don’t see is the fact that they’ve spent hours and hours learning that piece of music, going over every single note. So when it comes to people who just sit there, its like when you see someone on tv, and they just sit there and start playing, and it sounds really cool but you don’t realise that when they started they probably thought theres no way i can learn to play this thing.You see but they’re just tenacious. A: Yeah definitely, but at the same time you did teach yourself, you know what i mean theres something there..? M: Yeah yeah, but um, I dunno i think one of the advantages i had was when i had clarinet lessons one of the things, the format of the lessons would always be, the music teacher would always present and play said piece of music in front of you, he’d play through it once. And then you’d have a go and you’d make a lot of mistakes, it would be really difficult. And they’d give you the thing and say basically “Take it away, learn it, and bring it back next week.”. Yeah, so you’d go away and you’d practice and you’d bring it back the next week, and then you’d try and practice playing it in front of them and you’d make some mistakes. At home you played it perfectly and then in front of them, because you’re nervous, and sometimes you think “Oh he thinks i haven’t practiced it” and it would be “Take it away, and bring it back next week!”, and that, what i call that whole take it home and bring it back next week format, is the same format i use. I always imagine myself as if I’m in piano lessons, and a music teacher is saying “Right, go over this very very slowly, break it down, right? And take it away and bring it back next week”, you see, and thats how i imagine it, i imagine it like a strict piano teacher, so sometimes you don’t wanna practice and you think I’ve got to practice I’ve got no choice you see. And if you don’t practice then really you’ve ruined your previous practice session, because anything you learnt there, when you practice the following day and you build on top of it. But if you don’t practice then you lose some of it, and thats the important thing, is to build on what you did the last time by practicing it as soon as possible. A: Do you ever feel like sometimes you’re just like “Oh I’m here and I can’t be arsed, I wanna go”, do you ever get that? Or are you always just come here like “Yeah I’m down”? M: I always say the time for practice is when you don’t want to practice. There are times when you’re tired and I don’t feel like doing it, thats when you should do it. A: Really? Why do you say that? M: Because if you can do it then, anything else is easy. Thats the time to practice, its like you know working out or anything. When you don’t want to do it.. and the other thing is, a lot of the time you might feel like you don’t want to practice, but the moment you sit down and you play a few notes or you play something differently, you mix things around, then after a while you get into the swing and time just flies by, you know? Its like when you’re doing an assignment, you’re thinking “Oh my god I don’t wanna do this” but you know you’ve gotta hand it in next week or whatever, and the hardest part is sitting down and actually starting it. But once you’ve started it and then ideas start to flow, you just think “ooh Ill just finish this next section, and then i’ll finish this next section” you know and a couple of hours have gone by and you’ve done a lot of work. A: Yeah definitely, thats a great way to relate it actually. Have you ever written anything yourself? Or do you ever just improvise? M: No no I can’t write. I’ve never done any improvisation. Things like, learning all of the chords I haven’t done any of the things like that. One of the things is i feel as though if i get the opportunity to practice, i have to make the most of it by learning some of the classical pieces. So i tend not to do that because i feel I’m taking time away from learning. People have said things like “Oh have you ever thought about writing?” and i always say “Well I’m not gonna write anything better than Bach or Chopin or these guys” so I’m gonna try and learn some of the pieces that these guys have written. Because you know once you’ve learnt them they’re so wonderful to learn. And the other thing of course, a great place to listen to music is Youtube. Because the great thing about Youtube

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is theres a whole archive of great performances by guys who are no longer around, and you get to hear these guys playing and performing pieces and you realise how wonderful you know the piece sounds when they play it, yeah, and normally now i mean you have to pay money to go and see guys live playing things, and the other thing about Youtube is that a lot of the performances weren’t necessarily for public consumption. They’re just a guy in a studio, or a guy in private or a guy in his house playing and its been recored, so its great, things like Youtube. A: Yeah thats pretty sweet. That’s one thing, like I used to take piano lessons when I was eight years old. I hated it. I was really good and that’s one of my biggest regrets that I didn’t stick with it. M: yeah, its really hard. The thing is a lot of it depends on your piano teacher, when you’re having piano lessons. Because I remember when I was at Clarendon College, I used to speak to the visiting music teachers who used to go in, one of these guys used to be a concert pianist and he would say things like you need to do a lot of work on scales and he’d be preparing his lessons while I was in the room practising, so if I played a wrong note, he’d say that should be... Whatever ... And it was great to talk to him, whereas another teacher was completely unapproachable and different pupils have different teachers, so if you’ve got a teacher who’s nice and engaging and friendly, you don’t mind and in a way you want a lesson and if you’ve got a really strict teacher who’s not engaging and they just say,”learn this!” Or “you’re rubbish, you haven’t learnt this”, then you dread going to your piano lesson. A: nah, I was just a hyper eight year old.. The reason I took piano lessons was because I was a little kid and my parents bought me a little keyboard and that song from Titanic was on and I just heard it and it was a simple one note thing and I got it the right way and they thought what? Right, piano lessons. And I was just a hyper kid and I would never read notes, i would hear it and just like play it out and they’d say no that’s not right, you have to learn to read the notes, but I could just hear it so it was like what’s the point, you know? M: Well that in itself, that’s a natural thing that I’ve never had. And I was listening to one of the students here who used to come in and she was playing all sorts of stuff and she just played by ear and I thought it was great and if you develop that, then so many things can come out of that because you are enjoying something and can hear something and play it. So things like that are to be encouraged. A: That’s why I didn’t like it because she was like, no you have to do it the other way and read the notes and I was like, i don’t wanna read notes. We had electronic pianos in a group class thing and I would change my effect to some random thing and she was kinda like no no and I didn’t like her, so ..... M: because she was not allowing you to express yourself and do what comes naturally to you. Eventually, the two things will come together, because Parkinson was doing an interview with a guy, a jazz pianist and he couldn’t read music and these guys just sit at the piano and they play like Elton John, they are playing away and that sort of natural ability, which people have is to be nurtured and encouraged. And eventually what will happen is, of course, is you’ll come across some music and you’ll think I just cant play it without looking at the music, so that will encourage you in itself to read the notes, just to help you out. A: I played guitar for like 6 or 7 years when I was at High School and I learnt how to read tabs but never notes and sometimes I’d just play by myself. M: Well I remember just a couple of years ago, when the Indie bands were exploding all over the place, the thing to be was in a band. In Nottingham you’d see loads of guys carrying guitars all over the place, trying to be the next Oasis and I would speak to guys who used to play in bands and they couldn’t read music, but the fact was they knew the chords and the fingering, the position of the hands and so they’re on stage and they’re playing away and its a cool thing to be the guitarist in the band and at high school, its the thing to be, isn’t it ? A: I wanted to play drums originally, and my Mum was no way, no drums in this house and she got me a guitar instead. M: but when you’re there, and you’re playing on stage and all of a sudden you’re cool, its a great thing. So you don’t really need to ..... The thing is when you play and you’re in a band like that, you’re playing for an audience and its more recognised but when you’re playing classical music, most of the work is done on your own, in isolation, alone, you see, so until there’s a time for performance or something, most people never see you or hear you, you’re locked away. But when you are playing guitar or you’re playing in a group, you learn some chords and you learn some songs and you’re out there, you could be out gigging every week or busking or something, so its is... But its all music, so long as its enjoyable that’s the main thing. A: I think I can kinda relate how you’ve put it to me because I cycle a lot. So when I cycle, obviously, like the only thing that is on my

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mind, because I am in the street, in the zone, you know, doing my thing ... So do you find that when when you are playing the piano, do you have anything else on your mind or is it just ...? M: Sometimes, actually, just, its a bit bizarre but I can be thinking about something completely different. When I am struggling with a particular section, um, then you focus on that, but sometimes your mind, I find it easier to let my mind wander onto something else, yeah, i don’t know if anybody else does that but my mind can be thinking right, tonight I’ll download and watch the latest episode of the Vampire Diaries or something and that’s gonna be on my brain and I’ll be thinking... Yeah..yeah.. Vampire Diaries... At the same time, that’s in the background when I’m actually playing the piece and it sort of relaxes my mind .. A: You see I don’t actually understand that, looking at that, I don’t think I’d be able to concentrate on anything else, like, other than that. M: Part of it is initially, when you come across something like this, you go through it very very slowly, for the benefit of the recording, the piece I am learning is the Chopin nocturne and you go through it very very slowly. It looks very complicated and when you break it down, its not that complicated ... A: Can you play a little bit of it M: Its ..um.. [plays] It starts like that .... When I first saw it, I thought this is crazy, it looks intense, but if you’ve done things like scales, it doesn’t become that intense because the root position is the chord of C minor, arpeggio is where you play the first, the third and the fifth note so in C minor, its C, E flat and G and C again. If you played all the notes together at the same time, its a chord. Now all that’s happened here, Chopin has taken the chord of C minor and he has started on a different note. So you just play the chords. It looks very complicated and it sounds complicated but when you break it down, its not that complicated if you’ve done exercises where you’ve played scales and arpeggios. What I did a few years ago was I worked through a book of exercises by a guy called Charles Hanon. The purpose of those exercises was basically to strengthen your fingers. So you did lots of exercises and all that sort of thing, you did scales and you did arpeggios and when you did lots of exercises, then all this business here is just scales and octaves. When you out them together, the pieces make sense and its a lot easier. And that’s all, the composer has just taken all the basic elements of scales, arpeggios and chords and just messed around with them, which is exactly what jazz pianists do, but they just do it on the fly. They learn the basic chords and then they can improvise in between, but for people who cant improvise like me, what we do is, the composer has done all the work, creating a nice piece of music out of their improvisation, you see. Imagine if a jazz pianist had actually written down everything he had actually played, and then said right, ok then, you can go and learn this and thats what people like Gershwin and these guys have done. A: Have you tried any jazz? M: [laughs] No I haven’t tried any jazz... I like what I play, so .. Things like improvisation, I haven’t done any of that .. A: I think if I were to play the piano, I think I would be into the Blues, you know, because like whenever I’m playing the guitar, I find myself playing some simple blues or something, I’d be into like blues or jazz because that would be kinda like daunting to look at at the beginning, do you find that, or..? M: For some strange reason, even though its daunting, I find it challenging, because what happens is, you play the slow parts and the easy parts and initially you think the rest is too difficult, I’m not even going to attempt it, but for some reason, one particular day, without even thinking about it, you sit and then you start and you think, right, I’ll just try this particular bar here or this note here and then, a you go through it slowly, you realise its not impossible. I mean, its difficult to get it right to the point where it sounds really nice but in terms of actually playing it, its not that impossible - difficult, yeah, so what happens is you slowly work your way through and then you get halfway through and you think I’ll just do a few more and then you see the end in sight and once you see that the is an end in sight, you think oh, I can actually play this, I could actually attempt this and then it becomes a challenge and so you think, yeah, I’ll keep going. A: Fair enough! What do,you think the hardest thing you’ve ever learnt to play is? M: The hardest thing I’ve ever learnt to play? Um.. There’s a piano sonata by Scarlatti, which I’ve learnt, its called K87, its an examination piece [plays] I’ve forgotten it now, I’ll have to go over it again... One of the reasons is, most pieces when you listen to them, you can sort of work out what the theme is, you know, there’s certain melodies and certain themes and so certain bits of it are repeated, but in this piano sonata, K87 by Scarlatti in B minor that doesn’t happen. Every section is different. Normally, you hear a nice tune or something and then you can recognise what its gonna be and there are some changes and some variations and then

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you go back to a similar sort of theme, but this changes all the time. Way, way beyond its time, I think, although its a baroque piece, written over 300 years ago by Scarlatti. Scarlatti was massive. Dominico Scarlatti wrote over 300 sonatas for harpsichord. When people think of the sonata, they think of the Beethoven piano sonatas, the midnight sonata, they think, but for me, the king of the sonata is Domenico Scarlatti. A: Would you say he’s your favourite composer? M: Well no, because, what happens is when you listen to things for the first time and they blow you away and you think this guy’s wonderful, then you hear other things because for ages, for a long time, I used to always listen to everything by Chopin, I mean I listened to the Beethoven piano sonatas but Chopin was my favourite to listen to and then, as I said, I bought some Rachmaninov and then that was my favourite and then recently, fairly recently, I started listening to Robert Schumann, wonderful composer, his music is very rich [plays] . I heard it on Youtube, I typed it in and that piece is called Carnival in Vienna and I listened to lots of Schumann and thats wonderful, romantic music and if you listen to Scarlatti, 300 years earlier, and you’ll hear a sonata which, when its played on a piano, blows your mind because for Baroque composers like Scarlatti, there wasn’t a piano, it was all harpsichord you see, the piano was invented afterwards. So pianists come along and they pay this music on piano and it sounds even better. Some people like harpsichord but .. A: Have you ever played a harpsichord? M: I did mess around on one. When I was at Clarendon College there was one, because you have two sets of keys, one in front of the other, so when people play, they can cross their hands in front of each other. But if you have the same music written for the piano, it becomes more difficult if you have to cross your hands. A: have you played an organ or a clavichord or anything like that? M: No I’ve just been fortunate enough to be able to get my hands on playing the piano on a regular basis. A: Fair enough, sweet dude! M: That’s cool! A: Thanks for that. M: Is that a wrap? A: Yeah, yeah, its all good.

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L - CONSENT FORMS: INTERVIEW AND PHOTO

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M - PRESS RELEASE

Press Release June 2013

Folk Clothing 49 Lamb’s Conduit Street London WC1N 3NG

Magazine Launch: The Human Folk. Brand new human interest magazine The Human Folk are launching Volume 1 this June, in association with collaborative sponsor Folk Clothing. The magazine is focused on delivering real human content, in a considered and beautiful bookazine format, encouraging all of us to take some time out from our hectic lifestyles of today, to escape and appreciate some wonderful individuals. The magazine’s independent website, www.thehumanfolk.com, includes snippets of content from Volume 1, including video teasers of intimate interviews and taster shots of original editorial photoshoots. It also includes information detailing the values and aims of the magazine: MISSION STATEMENT: The Human Folk strives to share and to celebrate the uncelebrated. We aim to present personhood and to reignite our connections with one another, inspired by real people, their stories and their everyday lives, be they ordinary or extraordinary. ABOUT THE MAGAZINE: Alongside kindred spirits Folk Clothing, we collectively believe in celebrating the value of detail, the fine details that make us who we are, whether it is through the clothes we wear or the histories of our lives. We believe that it is in our stories, experiences, opinions and preferences that we all become individual people, and therefore both interesting and valuable. We step away from notions of celebrity. This magazine celebrates every person’s uniqueness, our own from the moment we arrive, within our community of mankind, the human folk. To find out more, and discover the beauty of The Human Folk for yourself, visit the magazine’s website or stop by at any of Folk’s four London stores to pick up a copy of Volume 1.

Notes to editors: Please find enclosed the accompanying imagery of Volume 1, with cover photography by Bennett Dean, for use in relation to this subject only. For more information please contact: Alice Hammerton (Editor): alicegracehammerton@gmail.com Folk PR: press@folkclothing.com

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ALICE HAMMERTON / N0330978 / FASH30002

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