Practical Bravery - RADICAL WATER!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - RADICAL WATER! How can innovative partnerships transform global health initiatives? What role does transparency play in building trust and driving impact in charitable organisations? This episode delves into these questions through the lens of global organisation, charity: water. charity: water, has revolutionised how charities operate and engage with donors. The organisation operates on a 100% model, where all public donations go directly to funding clean water projects, while private donors cover operational costs. This model ensures...
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Practical Bravery - CUTTING EDGES!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - CUTTING EDGES! In this episode we dive into the textured world of style AND substance, where creativity meets a profound sense of purpose. How do our expressions of style reflect broader cultural, economic, and personal shifts? How does the aesthetic we choose broadcast our identities and our values to the world? This episode takes us on a journey through the life and legacy of a creative industries pioneer who’s been shaping the public personas of icons across the globe with nothing but a pair of scissors and a flair for...
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Practical Bravery - CONSCIOUS CO-WORKING!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - CONSCIOUS CO-WORKING! In this episode we explore the transformative world of co-working spaces and the burgeoning professional communities they foster. As the traditional office evolves and the allure of flexible work arrangements grows, the importance of spaces that inspire, include, and innovate becomes increasingly clear. Our guest is leading an initiative with established roots in Brighton and plans for nationwide expansion, where workspaces not only meet modern needs but also cultivate communities grounded in equity and...
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Practical Bravery: VOLATILE INNOVATION!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - VOLATILE INNOVATION! What does it mean to be a global entrepreneur today? How do new technologies help entrepreneurs tackle big challenges? And what kind of bravery does it take to lead in such dynamic times? Join us as we explore these questions with a leader who’s redefining the boundaries of business and innovation. In this episode we're diving deep into how entrepreneurship not only shapes economies and sociey worldwide but also drives the bold leadership and bravery required to address some of our biggest global challenges....
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Practical Bravery: FUTURE-PROOFING WORKPLACES!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - FUTURE-PROOFING WORKPLACES! In this episode, we return to the nuanced interplay between machine learning and human ingenuity. Can machines complement our creativity, or will they eclipse the essence of human touch in professions once thought impermeable to automation? As we navigate the digital era's complexities, questions of equity, diversity, and the human experience within the technological landscape become increasingly pressing. How do we harness AI to foster inclusivity and bridge divides, rather than widen them? Amidst the...
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Practical Bravery: CREATIVE PARTICIPATION!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - CREATIVE PARTICIPATION! In this episode of The Possibility Club podcast, we're exploring the spaces where creativity becomes a conduit for connection, and where theatres and arts venues become the heartbeats of the communities they serve. Our guest is the Head of Participation at Southwark Playhouse, orchestrating a symphony of projects that resonate with thousands yearly, from all ages and backgrounds. His work is about creating a mosaic of experiences that reflect south London's diversity, challenges, and aspirations. Through strategic...
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Practical Bravery : EMPOWERED ENTERPRISE!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - EMPOWERED ENTERPRISE! In this episode, we navigate the journey of a visionary whose leadership has not just built businesses but has transformed lives. An architect of opportunity, whose blueprint for change is reshaping the landscape of social mobility. From the foundations of financial literacy to the pillars of small business support, her mission is to elevate the underprivileged, to turn the tide of poverty through the power of enterprise. By advocating for a model that combines training, seed capital, and ongoing mentoring, she's...
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Practical Bravery: MUSICAL POLITICS!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - MUSICAL POLITICS! Can artists change the world? Should they? And should it be through their art, or through their activism? In this episode we're charting the course of a journeyman whose guitar has graced stages worldwide, and whose convictions have spotlighted the corridors of change. From the euphoric highs of indie rock stardom with his band Gomez, capturing hearts and the Mercury Prize in 1998, to the critical acclaim and UK Top 40 albums, his artistry has been undeniable. But it's his transition from artist...
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Practical Bravery: CLEAR-SIGHTED SOCIAL ENTERPRISE!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - CLEAR-SIGHTED SOCIAL ENTERPRISE! How is it possible to mastermind commercially earned revenue alongside philanthropy in a growing business? Nurturing a purpose-driven enterprise that is centred around social impact at scale in turbulent times...? Our guest this week has been at the forefront of transforming lives through visionary healthcare strategies, with over two decades of experience in international development. Now leading an organization that has transformed the vision of over 10 million people, she has unlocked...
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Practical Bravery: EVOLVING MARKETS!
The Possibility Club
The Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - EVOLVING MARKETS! How is technology reshaping the landscape of global finance? What role do ethics play in the evolution of digital communication platforms? In what ways can resilience and innovation drive progress during crises? How will emerging technologies like Bitcoin impact the future of trading and energy resources? What lessons can leaders learn from the transformation of traditional trading floors to encrypted, digital platforms? So many questions, so little time. In this episode of The Possibility Club, we delve into...
info_outlineThe Possibility Club podcast: Practical Bravery - CUTTING EDGES!
In this episode we dive into the textured world of style AND substance, where creativity meets a profound sense of purpose. How do our expressions of style reflect broader cultural, economic, and personal shifts? How does the aesthetic we choose broadcast our identities and our values to the world?
This episode takes us on a journey through the life and legacy of a creative industries pioneer who’s been shaping the public personas of icons across the globe with nothing but a pair of scissors and a flair for transformation.
From working class boy with a Bowie obssession to the style sculptor of Princess Diana, Lady Gaga, Kate Moss at their most iconic. What does social mobility look like at the very top of high fashion? And what is it like to move from creating the faces behind brands, to becoming one yourself?
This is The Possibility Club, and our special guest is the hairdresser's hairdresser, Sam McKnight MBE.
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One of the most important image makers of the late 20th and early 21st century
— New York Times on Sam McKnight
“What I know is, people want their hair to look good. Having your hair looking good is an incredible mood booster. It’s a simple, relatively inexpensive way of making yourself feel better.”
Hair By Sam McKnight website
“We said from the beginning we want to bring some joy into the hair care world, which we have done. And I get lots of joy from that in return.”
Sam McKnight via Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_McKnight
“That generation of the sixties is when social mobility became possible, really.”
Sam McKnight via Gagapedia (the Lady Gaga wiki)
https://ladygaga.fandom.com/wiki/Sam_McKnight
Sam McKnight on X and Instagram — @sammcknight1
“When David Bowie exploded in colour, that was the start of it for me.”
David Bowie on Top Of The Pops, 1972, via YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOKWF3IHu0I
“My friends had a hairdressing salon. I took a Saturday job there and then very quickly I’d left teacher training college and started training as a hairdresser. I didn’t want to be a teacher.”
“I’ve always taken risks and that goes back to being a teenager. I like to think that I’ve carried that through to my sixties. I’ve always been a risk taker.”
David Bailey, photographer, via Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bailey
Twiggy (Dame Leslie Lawson), via Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twiggy
“It was pretty brave, to leave a secure job in the salon in Molton Brown, the best salon in London — before it was hand-wash it was the top London salon, in South Bolton Street — it was the shit, it was the place to be, and I left that in 1980 to be by myself, doing this thing called ‘photo shoots’ and two years later I was in New York working for American Vogue.”
Vogue (UK site)
Molton Brown via Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Molton_Brown
“There are much more opportunities now but there are much more people going after those opportunities.”
"There needs to be a revaluation put on the values of what we bring. You have to train for years to be a good hairdresser. You can’t just turn up with a hairdryer.”
‘Hair by Sam McKnight’ 2016 retrospective exhibition at Somerset House
https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/hair-sam-mcknight
“The exhibition gave me power in myself that I hadn’t really tapped into before. To see it all in front of me, all the people I’d met.”
“The creative industries are very attached to emotions. Not only does music, fashion and beauty bring in billions to this country, which is not recognised properly, but they reach people’s emotions. Your music, your makeup, your clothes, it sparks people’s emotions. When you’re working with people on a photoshoot, you’re touching them.”
“Usually I’m meeting people when they’re very young and forming themselves. You build very, very strong bonds with people and there’s a huge emotion attached to it. It’s a very special relationship.”
Kate Moss via Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Moss
"She doesn’t turn out of bed as ‘Kate Moss’ at six o’clock in the morning, there’s a whole process of becoming Kate Moss, becoming Princess Di, becoming Lady Gaga.”
Hair By Sam McKnight — the book, via Amazon
“I listened to Coldplay on the radio a couple of years ago now, it was touted as the first sustainable tour and Chris Martin was amazing, he was saying, look we’re a fifty piece troupe that’s going on big jets all over America, we’re not sustainable. But we are thinking about it, and we’re doing everything we can in the small ways to have less of a footprint. And I thought, that is really inspiring because it’s hard!”
“Now this is where the Internet is really incredible and positive, is people doing their own hair and posting the videos. There was a couple of decades when kids weren’t really doing much with their hair — and that’s completely and utterly changed. And I find that really inspiring, I love that the Internet has made that possible.”
"I’m a great collaborator but in the end it’s instinctive as well and I need to be happy with it.”
“I don’t really have to please anyone but myself.”
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This episode was recorded in March 2024
Interviewer: Richard Freeman for always possible
Editor: CJ Thorpe-Tracey for Lo Fi Arts
For more visit www.alwayspossible.co.uk