CITYIST

THE CITYist My BRISTOL

The former Tapestry Brewery in Totterdown has been purchased by PROPS, a charity that supports people with disabilities to gain work skills. Meet the project leader, Tom Medland

Harrods’ new Bristol beauty store OPENS

Harrods has officially opened H beauty Bristol, its fourth standalone beauty store in the UK, this time located in The Mall, Cribbs Causeway. Offering an unparalleled beauty utopia, the 25,300sq.ft space brings together a diverse portfolio of must-have products and exceptional services from over 86 international beauty brands for customers to enjoy. The store is an experiential playground, where beauty novices and experts alike can discover some of the industry’s most forward-thinking and vibrant brands, as well as stock up on their forever-favourite product.

The Bristol launch also welcomes several new brands to the H beauty portfolio, including fragrance must-haves from Escentric Molecules and Frederic Malle, as well as wellbeing brand, Neom. In addition, H beauty also continues to support local talent and up-and-coming ‘Born &Bred’ brands, whose values directly connect with Harrods own, with the inclusion of Wild Source – a home grown Bristolian brand, which offers a holistic approach to skin health.

Throughout the store, customers will discover creative beauty experiences, including blow-dry product and salon phenomenon, Drybar; offering a quick, accessible, and elevated blow-dry experience, state-of-the-art play-tables; providing access makeup demonstrations and experiential product testing, the Skincare Station; offering bespoke consultations and treatments, and finally the Click & Collect boutique. Additionally, H beauty’s largest 34-seat Champagne Bar offers an indulgent menu of cocktails and patisseries created by Harrods renowned food and beverage team, providing the prefect space for beauty lovers to sit, sip and reunite with friends.

I was first drawn to Bristol a few years back

from visits to the big city as a child. Growing up in Cornwall, Bristol was seen as a far-off place that everyone's older sibling would move to for at least a couple of years. When my turn came, what I found was a city whose community felt more similar to a small town than any of the other city that I have spent any real time in. I feel a strong connection to the maritime history of the city, to the prominence of amazing small business and to the arts and culture scene that stands up for what is right and looks out for everyone.

Tapestry By PROPS is the latest enterprise

brought about by the charity, PROPS, who have been working since 2001 to provide meaningful training and job opportunities for adults in the city with learning difficulties. By taking over the former Tapestry brewery in Totterdown, we’ve opened up more opportunities for our trainees to learn new skills, experience long-term employment, brew top level craft beer and provide great experiences for those who visit our taproom.

My role, with the help of an amazing team at

the charity, is to manage the brewery as a whole, to facilitate the production of great beer, and to ensure a career pathway is established for PROPS trainees. As we are in the initial stages, much of my recent work has been in the background, getting the project off the ground, but also getting to know the trainees who will be engaging with the brewery. I'm so excited for the good that will come out of this project that if I had to narrow down my favourite part, I would put my house on the fact that it is yet to come.

We are aiming to open the brewery and

taproom to the public from mid to late June, and we will be serving our first three beers. People should keep an eye out for the return of the All In Pale Ale, brewed by PROPS and Tapestry last autumn, as well as the launch of two new beers that will be super light and sessionable to compliment the amazing summer sun that I am imagining into existence. This gives us a few weeks to get brewing and get our team up to speed with customer service. art scene. Artists and designers like @zed_in_the_clouds @artyswami @nataliegraydesigns and @aim.artinmotion combine their work with making art accessible to Bristol's next generation of school children and to the PROPS trainees by showcasing the talent this city has.

I am a big fan of comedy and am currently

reading Bob Mortimer's autobiography, And Away, which is absolute gold. I also find myself listening to every episode of Off Menu, Ed Gamble and James Acaster’s podcast.

There are so many great spots around the city for eating and drinking. I love pizza and Pizzarova make the best that I have found in Bristol. Small Bar on King Street is one of my favourite craft beer spots. In terms of being entertained, Strange Brew and Rough Trade are right up there for events. The Hare on the Hill Sea Shanty nights are also not to be missed.

If I could have dinner with anyone from any

era it would be Chef Gusteau from the film Ratatouille, I know he would not disappoint in both food and great anecdotes.

My philosophy in life is: look to make positive steps no matter how small.

Major outdoor live music series returns with big name talent

Forest Live 2022 –a major outdoor live music series presented by Forestry England –is taking place between 9 –19 June at Westonbirt Arboretum, near Tetbury. Introducing forests to new audiences in unique, natural woodland arenas around the country, over 1.9 million people have attended a Forest Live gig in the last twenty years, enjoying great music and supporting the nation’s forests.

Going to a concert not only helps Forestry England create beautiful places for people to enjoy but funds important conservation projects. Every year, teams plant some eight million trees and care for the nation’s 1,500 woods and forests, which welcomes more than 296 million visitors every year.

This June, Forest Live will be welcoming big name talent to the stage. This year’s headline acts are Rag‘n’Bone Man, Will And The People, Keane, Madness, Texas and more. Grab a ticket while you can!

• For further information and tickets, visit: forestryengland.uk/music

Bristol author publishes new book after Penderyn Music Book Prize win

Darryl W. Bullock’s critically acclaimed 2020 book The Velvet Mafia was announced as the winner of the coveted Penderyn Music Book Prize –the first UK-based prize specifically for music titles –at the annual Laugharne Weekend Festival on 27 March. Following on from the success, the local is set to publish the sequel, Pride, Pop and Politics on 9 June by Omnibus Press. In this muchanticipated follow-up, he charts the development of gay culture and the rise of LGBTQ politics in the UK from the formation of the Gay Liberation Front to the present day, through the music that provided the soundtrack.

Featuring new interviews with musicians, DJs, performers and activists including Andy Bell, Jayne County, John Grant, Horse McDonald and Peter Tatchell, Pride, Pop and Politics hears from those whose art has been influenced by the campaign for LGBTQ rights and those who have been instrumental in its advancement. It is the first book to focus on the relationship between gay nightlife and political activism in Britain and fifty years on from Britain’s first Pride march, the long road to LGBTQ equality continues and the performing arts still play an influential part in every great stride made.

Bullock explains: “This time, instead of writing about the people behind the scene, the hedonism and excess of the 70s and 80s music management, I wanted to write about the musicians and political activists whose courage and bravery helped give us the freedoms that the LGBTQ community enjoy today. Not just the big names that everyone knows, but those who spent decades chipping away at the coalface of equality in order to make Britain a safer, more inclusive space for LGBTQ people.”

• Preorder Pride, Pop and Politics by Darryl W. Bullock at: dwbullock.com or omnibuspress.com

Blue Earth Summit returns

Blue Earth Summit has announced its first wave of speakers as it prepares to return to the city for an extended three-day summit from 11 –13 October in Bristol.

The 2022 summit sees the return of key speakers including founder of the Eden Project Sir Tim Smit, multi-award-winning environmental entrepreneur Kresse Wesling CBE and Surfers Against Sewage founder Hugo Tagholm.

Joining them are business change leaders Mike Barry and Jonathon Porritt, elite ocean racer Pip Hare, outdoor diversity leader Maxwell Ayamba, MD of Iceland Group Richard Walker, youth activist Poppy Stowell-Evans and head of River Action UK and former chairman of Teneo Charles Watson.

The pioneering summit aims to redefine how we live and work. The world class content programme covers all aspects of purposeful business, outdoor lifestyles, food production, land use and ocean conservation. The overarching theme of ACTION is a call to all attendees to cross-pollinate from all sectors, share their purpose in real-time at the event and for the summit to act as a lightning rod wherever people are on their regenerative journey.

The Wave will host day three, one of the leading inland sporting venues in Europe and now with plans for multiple sites including London, and will feature an Outdoor Showcase. Leading brands from the outdoor industry will be coming together to allow attendees to test products and mix with speakers, company founders and athletes in a unique setting. Attendees can surf, run, cycle, climb and stretch their bodies and ideas in the company of their peers and establish new connections to fuel their plans for business and life.

Bristol is the natural home, a city of culture with historical significance and a modern view on our green future. Key organisations in and around the city are part of the event as it enjoys increasing significance nationally and internationally, with strong links to the south west business community, a foundational stone of the summit.