For this episode, I interviewed fellow Ad woman Jane Evans. Jane is well known in our industry, she was one of her generation’s most successful advertising women, winning tons of awards for her creative campaigns. BUT and there is a big but here, in her fifties, she was made to feel completely invisible by the advertising industry. This became a bi…

For episode 46, I had the pleasure of interviewing fellow French woman and super talented artist Camille Walala. If you’re a Londoner, you will have probably seen her work around town- that’s because it cannot be missed. Camille uses buildings or any type of man-made landscape as her canvas, using a fusion of bold colours and playful geometric patt…

This episode features the amazing Sophie Williams. For those who don’t know Sophie, she is a TED Speaker, a leading anti-racism advocate, and the author of two great books. The first, Anti-Racist Ally is an Introduction to allyship at home, work, and in the community, and was published in October of last year. And just this week, I’m very excited a…

In this episode, I had a lovely conversation with Sarah Ellis. Sarah is the co-founder of Amazing If, an award-winning career development company with a mission to make work better for everyone. She’s also known for the great career podcast: Squiggly Careers and co-author of a book by the same name. This interview could not be more relevant for our…

For this episode, I caught up with Annie Atkins. You might not have heard of her name but you will certainly have seen her work. She's the mastermind behind some of the most iconic graphics props and set pieces for multi-award-winning films. Notably and probably one that stands out the most is her work for Wes Anderson’s Grand Budapest Hotel, Isle …

For this episode, I spoke to Olimpia Zagnoli. An Italian illustrator known for her incredible bold, colourful and sometimes ‘naughty’ illustrative style. She is prolific, her work has featured everywhere from the cover of The New Yorker to the shopfronts of Uniqlo, to a series of illustrations for Prada and she even has her very own line of homewar…

In this episode, I interview the artist Jade Purple Brown. If you don’t know Jade, you may have come across her work if you use Adobe illustrator as her work is the splash card that comes up when the application is loading. That’s how talented she is and so I was excited to capture her story. And what a story it is. I actually reference during our …

For this episode, I interview Yomi Adegoke. I first came across Yomi through her amazing book ‘Slay in your lane’ which she co-wrote with Elizabeth Uviebinené. Slay in your lane is an absolute must-read, from education to work to dating, this inspirational, honest and provocative book recognises and celebrates the strides black women have already m…

For this episode, I interview the super inspiring Anna Ginsburg. Anna is a filmmaker who specialises in traditional hand-drawn and stop-motion as well as live-action videos. Her films have earned her a lot of well-deserved accolades over the years, including a Bafta for the Bombay Bicycle Club's for the music video 'How Can You Swallow So Much Slee…

For this episode, I interview Hong Kong restaurateur Lindsay Jang, who is behind some of Hong Kong’s hottest restaurants. I’ve always been fascinated by restauranteurs. Simply because to be a successful one you need to combine a lot of different and varied skillsets – from branding to creating an atmosphere and of course making sure you serve up de…

For this episode, I recorded Liv Little, the founder and CEO of gal-dem -an award-winning online and print publication committed to sharing perspectives from women and non-binary people of colour. Here is a scary stat for you - the current journalistic landscape is 94% white and 55% male. What I love so much about gal-dem is that they are actively …

For this episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing the incredible French artist Malika Favre. Malika is as one of the most sought-after graphic artists in the UK with renown clients including The New Yorker, Vogue, BAFTA and Penguin Books, amongst many others. She uses positive and negative space to create bold, minimal artwork– often described a…

For this episode, I interviewed Lisa Smosarski. Lisa is the Editor in Chief and Board Director of Stylist magazine. Stylist is a free weekly magazine for women, known for its fashion, beauty, people and careers news. Over the years, it has featured Hollywood stars such as Angelina Jolie, Penélope Cruz, Jennifer Lopez and Jennifer Aniston on the cov…

In this episode, I catch up with a previous guest of the show, the amazing Caroline Pay. I originally recorded Caroline’s story in 2018 just before she relocated to California to take up her role as Chief Creative Officer of Headspace. This time, we discussed how her role at headspace is going as they go from strength to strength, with over 1m glob…

“Kids are usually described as the citizens of the future, but instead, in my opinion, they are citizens of the present, and they should be treated as such… this is why it is important to expose children to stories that are based on what is happening around them, rather than just fantasy stories…if you treat them as citizens, from the moment they a…

"Imposter syndrome? Absolutely. How you deal with that is by being graceful and empathic and supportive, and not protecting. Owning up when you don't know something? So majorly important. You don't have to know everything." Fiona McDermott 2020 This is a very special episode recorded live on stage at the APA future of advertising conference earlier…

For this episode, I interviewed Lillian Ahenkan aka Flex Mami – she is a DJ, Presenter, Influencer, Podcaster, Model, and Author. I got the chance to record this interview at her amazing colourful house in Sydney, Australia earlier this year. I had an absolute blast recording this - Flex is fun, vibrant and the biggest go-getter I’ve ever met! In f…

In this episode, I got to interview the brilliant Vicki Maguire. Vicki is the Chief Creative Officer of ad agency Havas and she is one of the most awarded creatives in the industry today. Her work includes the ‘Hands Only CPR’ ad for the British Heart Foundation starring Vinnie Jones – which has now saved over 50 lives – and The Angina Monologues, …

“I think there was definitely a negative aspect (to my ambition) that I think is still happening now where there's the ambition but when you take something so seriously, then if something doesn't got right or if you miss a deadline, and then there’s the stress and the anxiety that comes with that. And I think that's something that I've always strug…

I had the pleasure of interviewing Moreblessing in downtown Melbourne, Australia earlier this year. Moreblessing is an actor, activists and writer. I first came across Moreblessing through her amazing TED talk which I'll put a link to in the show notes. If you've got a set second, I really encourage you to take a listen. Moreblessing is an immigran…

“The perfect body does not exist, as there are no two humans on this planet that are the same. So you have to aspire to be the best version of yourself and not someone else.” In this episode, I interview the inspirational Felicity Hayward. Felicity is a model, activist and a true ambassador for body positivity. She was first scouted to be a model w…

“The first couple of years in business were really tough, and there's no end, just chasing the I'm never going to be done and feeling so anxious and so stressed by it all. I think a lot of women of our generation are just adding things into our to do list. So now I'm going to run a business and now I'm going to have children and now I'm going to wr…

“I've thought about my career over the years, and there have been a number of situations where it's got tough, it's got really, really tough and I probably gave up on things way too soon. Whether that's been a job, a role or a client relationship. But since having my own business, you realise you can’t walk away. And it’s because you can’t walk awa…

“I always I think it's inevitable that in certain music videos and certain artists they want to be sexy and that's just always been the way music has gone on…but I've also felt very much that I am responsible for not exploiting the artist and so I think I've just listened to my instinct, followed my taste and tried to keep it tasteful. I mean with …

“I think there's a lot of time, I totally feel out of my depth. This weekend being a prime example, I had to do three different events with the ‘Irishman' film lot, so you know - Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Harvey Keitel and it's just like literally A. Someone pinch me and B. What the hell am I doing here?” In this episode, I talk t…

"Just be confident and brave and just trust yourself and jump and go with it. Because if you don't, no one else will. And as I said, if you just stay on the safe side, then it'll be safe, and nothing will happen. So, jump and trust yourself. Your mind can do amazing things." Morgane Polanksi This episode was recorded Live on stage at the Design and…

“I looked around and I thought, if I stopped to think about what I'm here to do, launch an English agency brand into this market. If I thought about that, I would just go home, get into bed, pull the covers it never come out again.” In this episode, I had the privilege to interview Cindy Gallop at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity earlier thi…

In this episode, I talk to Maruska & Donna-Marie Mason. A couple who have built their very own successful photography studio. Working for big fashion titles such as @marieclairemag, @Vogue, @elleusa, as well as big brands such as @jomalonelondon and @spacenk - just to name a few. The Masons (@themasonsofficial) are two photographers who are togethe…

We know that pay gaps, all pay gaps, whether it's race or gender can’t thrive in a transparent world. But also, I found talking about money, really, has helped my friendships and my relationships, because…it doesn't get in the way of having a proper conversation. We learn from each other; we share our tips and knowledge. And also, you learn about y…

“And then you have to sell work to clients, and guess what? They are men, and then you have to get it made by directors. And they are men. And then, if you want your career to progress, you need to win awards. And largely in the past, all the juries are men and then you look back and you go, historically, the work that’s winning awards is sport, be…

“I was able to do things very differently that year [her year long gardening leave imposed by Sir Martin Sorrell], I spent a lot of time outside of the industry. Purposely, I wasn't trying to look at the industry. I was trying to explore how other people, other creative industries, and the world sees coms. As a result, I came back with renewed vigo…

Something I did, [when looking for investment] is that I made a list of all the asshole investors that I heard about in town. And for the first month, I pitched them first. And it was horrific. I was pitching all these awful alpha males [and] I was literally coming home to my husband in pieces. But what was great about that process is by the time I…

“It's a tough world, it's not easy. Everyone's battling with something. But my battles definitely come from feeling I'm not where I want to be, but I need to look back because it’s just like climbing a ladder" - Chelcee Grimes I’m pleased to announce another special episode of This Way Up. I was very privileged to talk with singer/songwriter, footb…

“We're all striving, looking to make something of ourselves. And when we do make something of ourselves, then we worry that we're going to lose it or that we're not going to be able to sustain it” – Debbie Millman I’m pleased to announce an extra special episode of This Way Up (www.thiswayup.io). It was recorded Live on stage at the famous Design a…

In this episode, I talked to Margaret Johnson, Chief Creative Officer of the famous Ad Agency Goodby Silverstein & Partners – known for producing big ads for the likes of Doritos, Pepsi and much more. There are a lot of great lessons that Margaret imparts during our conversation, including the fact that she sees having children as THE best thing th…

This is a special recording all the way from the South by South West Festival in Austin where I interview AJ Hassan, the VP Executive Creative Director at R/GA Chicago. In this interview, I uncover the stories behind her success. We talk about a multitude of things including the inspiration behind the Always 'LikeAGirl' campaign, the importance of …

In this episode, I talked to Caitlin Ryan the Regional Creative Director EMEA at Facebook. During our conversation, I got the chance to really dig into the big demanding roles she's had across her career. The good, the bad and the ugly and everything in between. Her advice could not be more valuable for anyone at any stage of their career - from ho…

In this episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing Caroline Pay. Caroline is Chief Creative Officer at Headspace and sitting in her kitchen over a cup of tea, we discussed her captivating career- from her humble beginnings at Kessel and Krammer, to working at Mother with famous director Kim Gehrig, to her last UK role as CCO of Grey London, finish…

In this episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing Tasha Cronin. Tasha is the co-head of interactive at Droga5 New York and during our conversation I got to really uncover Tasha’s amazing career as producer. Starting in the film industry, she developed scripts and acquired films for the likes of Samuel Goldwyn Films before working at Google creati…

In this episode, I talk to Tea Uglow. Tea is the Creative Director of Google Creative Lab, Asia Pacific. She is also known as ‘Experimental person in charge’, which perfectly describes her personality and the way she thinks. During our conversation, we discuss the importance of exploring ideas through culture rather than through profit, how to crea…

In this special edition of the podcast, I recorded my conversation with Clemmie Telford, in front of a live audience at General Assembly in London. We discussed her fascinating career- from her humble beginnings as a creative in advertising to becoming an Instagrammer/Consultant. I was hooked from the first few seconds of our interview. We talked a…

In this episode, I talk to Sophie Robison. Sophie is an award-winning documentary filmmaker. In this interview, we discuss her amazing career, how she learned the ropes of documentary filmmaking at the BBC and the obstacles she came across being a woman in the field. We also delve into two amazing documentaries she directed - the Emmie nominated Ne…

In this week's podcast, I talk to Film Director Sara Shelton. Sara is real tour de force. She is perceptive, creative, funny and doggedly determined when it comes to the things she is passionate about. In this episode, we discuss Sara’s journey from writer for big agencies like Johannes Leonardo and Droga5 to her taking the massive leap to become a…

In this episode, I talk to the amazing @rosieyakob. Rosie is a strategist and together with husband Faris Yakob (@farisy) they form the company Genius Steals, a strategy and innovation consultancy. What makes Rosie’s story so unique is that she is a nomad. Rosie and Faris left their last permanent home in New York 5 years ago to travel the world, w…

In this episode, I interview Katy Sumption. Katy is not only a creative director but also the co-founder of The Elephant Room. Katy has had an interesting journey, to say the least. From far, it might seem like your usual advertising path but for a young female creative rising up the ranks of old boys clubs nowhere near easy. We go through her jour…

In this episode, we have another special from Cannes Lions where I interview Aaisha Dadral. Aisha is the CEO of Crave. An advertising agency that she founded at the tender age of 26. In this interview, I uncover the stories behind her success and what it takes to start your own agency. We talk about the importance of staying true to yourself, the a…

THIS WAY UP is a podcast featuring interviews with leading women in the creative industry. Sharing the good, the bad and the ugly of their careers. It’s those valuable insights that make the journey up a little less hard.In this episode, we have a special from Cannes Lions where Rebecca Rowntree interviews Katy Alonzo. Katy is a Group Strategy Dire…