Best Podcast Producer Nominee!

Delighted to share that I've been nominated at this year's Audible UK Audio Production Awards! I've made the final nominee list for best podcast producer!

Who'd of thought two years ago when I first started out with ASFB Productions (pretty much an idea scrawled on a scrap of paper) that now I'd be on a list amongst some of the best audio presenter and producers in the industry?! Not me for sure!

The awards are at the end of November 2019, so my fingers and toes are crossed until then. In the meantime a few people have asked what it is that I do... So I've uploaded my entry onto soundcloud so you can hear a selection of my work.

These are podcast episodes which were produced between 1st July 2018 to 30th June 2019.

Here's the blurb I included to for those who don't know who an earth I am and how I came to be a podcast producer!

"Two years ago, Clare left her stable permanent job at the BBC to go full-time as a podcast producer.

Her dad thought she was mad.

She called her company A Small Furry Bear Productions after finding a note in her 10 year-old self’s diary.

Back in those days she presented a radio show on her ghetto blaster. That story of the little girl with big dreams playing with cassettes is one she uses to explain the DIY approach of today’s podcast movement.

Her first foray into podcasting was in 2012 with The Guardian. Then in 2015 she launched her own weekly podcast series, becoming the UK’s first female podcast host in the ice hockey world.

That first series went on to become a YouTube highlights programme, and was later headhunted for a weekly TV programme on a Freeview UK sports channel.

But back then - despite years of experience as a radio journalist - Clare admits she had to learn her craft all over again.

Frankly, it was intimidating being a lone female voice in a nerdy boy’s world.

These early experiences remain at the heart of her podcast coaching today.

Fast forwards to 2019 - and in just the month of September, she’ll publish 29 episodes over 7 series, record 7 episodes for another 2 series, present 2 on-stage public speaking events, run an in-house marketing workshop, 2 individual coaching sessions AND will have worked in Madrid, Birmingham, Manchester & Cheshire.

The subjects include weight loss, ice hockey, death, suicide, ageing, loneliness and football.

She’s interviewed drug dealers, prostitutes, a Nelson Mandela bodyguard and a 34 year-old waiting to die.

She’s recorded podcasts in churches, back rooms of pubs, surrounded by a model train set, in parks, in her bed, friend’s kitchens and her car.

This year, Clare’s presented her ‘How To Start A Podcast in 10 days For Less Than £50’ workshop to hundreds of people across the UK for the BBC and Creative England.

As a podcast coach, she supports individuals across the world taking their first steps in podcasting.

She’s a BBC Radio 5Live podcast reviewer.

She’s a consultant for The Space, green-lighting podcast funding in the UK arts and cultural sector.

But more importantly - alongside producing her clients’ branded content - she practices what she preaches - presenting three of her own series:

NHL Fans From Afar

The Fuck It Moments

Slimming World Food For Thought

The last series has grown from 0 to 100,000 listeners in 8 months. It’s a regular face in Apple Podcasts’ Top 200 Health and Fitness podcasts, with hundreds of listener reviews. In the last 6 months, two listeners have sent personal thank you emails saying her vulnerability and honesty around her mental health has meant they’ve signed up for therapy.

Whether producing branded content, or working on her passion projects in her bedroom in the early hours - Clare has a proven track record by having presented and developed more than 15 podcast series across a huge range of genres in the last 7 years.

Creatively, she’s not afraid to experiment in ways that she was never able to as a BBC radio journalist, often baring her soul - sometimes with tears - to truly connect with her listeners.

And it’s the opinion of her tribe that motivates and shapes her content - not the endless chase for empty numbers and stats."

Watch this space to find out what happens next! And if you're heading to the awards - come say hi!