Latest news with #CharlieSmith
Times
13-07-2025
- Business
- Times
Why your local butcher's has had a hip makeover
Charlie Smith and Sweyn Hall opened Henwen's, their butcher's shop in Forest Hill, southeast London, on October 30 last year. It was close to the festival of Samhain, which to any British folk revivalist is a high point in the Celtic pagan calendar. The date was an auspicious one for the pair. 'We use herbs and products that have meaning to them, based in folklore and myth. We wanted everything to be delicious and unique to us. Our sausages are just salt, pepper, aniseed and mince.' Their shop is an example of a new wave of butchers who provide exceptional meat, service and skills steeped in a creative spirit. Smith, for example studied critical fine art Practice at Brighton University, and Hall product design at Central Saint Martins before working in restaurant kitchens, where he was known for his precision and technical skills with spicing, fermenting and charcuterie. For any self-respecting gentrifying neighbourhood, a hip butcher's is a must, like a decent coffee shop or a bakery selling proper sourdough. There's Littlewoods, famous for its incredible yellow fat (sign of happy cows with an ideal wild diet), in Stockport, a town known lately as the Berlin of the north; Lizzy Douglas's Black Pig in Deal; Northdown in Margate; Flock + Herd in Peckham; and Stella's in Newington Green, north London, which has a listening bar every Friday night. • Read restaurant reviews and recipes from our food experts Smith had to choose between butchery and being a conceptual artist. 'I was fascinated by abattoirs and carcasses as an artist,' he says. 'But you soon find out that the lot of a butcher is not simply the large chunks of meat and big knives of primal butchery. It's cleaning, curing bacon, it's meatballs and sausages and meaningful daily interactions with customers about food. In Europe there is a tradition of studying hospitality. Here, there are fewer rules, more space for creativity.' Slop, a magazine about all types of produce, has long-read interviews that treats these butchers like the rock stars they have become. The latest issue's cover star is a cow belonging to the Hereford-based farmer turned butcher Tom Jones. Slop's editor, Nicholas Payne-Baaden, spent ten years as a butcher himself: 'But I worked with great ones, incredibly talented people, and I knew I would never be that.' Butchery sits alongside traditional lifestyle and fashion content in Slop. 'The person who wants good charcuterie is also likely to want a £150 chore jacket. It's a more natural fit than you think.' The portfolio career is a defining and oft-mocked characteristic of the contemporary hipster class. But the blurring of the edges between creative disciplines and the savvy of the self-promoting entrepreneur has revived many British traditions that were somewhat stuck. Butchery is no exception. Henwen, for instance, has a range of cool merch including T-shirts and also sells — what else — natural wine. As is mandatory for any hipster food outlet, queues form down the street for its cult product: a pork pie. 'Hand-raised — we make it from scratch in-house including the lard, jelly and the pastry.' The roots of the hip butcher can be traced back to the game-changing Ginger Pig in Marylebone, which opened in 2003. Baaden-Payne says most of the new generation of butchers can trace their skills back to working for someone who had worked there. Other influential Noughties London butcher's shops include The Butchery and Turner & George, which brought butchers back to the nose-to-tail ethos of old, championed by the chef Fergus Henderson at St John. Another undeniable influence is the British meat revival that sprang from the farming community opening farm shops, including some very high profile and grand ones. The Chatsworth Estate was first, then the Windsor Estate Farm Shop, and Lady Bamford's organic brand, named after her Cotswolds estate, Daylesford. • Millennials turn their backs on veganism and take up butchery After three decades working across the royal household, estates and farm shops, the master butcher Christopher Murray left to work with the contemporary art gallery Hauser + Wirth, which owns farm shops in Mayfair and Somerset. 'What Hauser + Wirth and the royal household have is the Rolls-Royce of butchery, and that's access to the space to butcher an entire carcass of meat and dry-age it for 28 days,' he says. Murray is thrilled by these new-wave butchers and their eccentric approach to cuts including regional British variations, American, French and Japanese. 'I love it when someone asks me for a cut I've never heard of.' The era of meat'n'two veg is dying out. Today's twenty and thirtysomethings are more akin to plant-leaning omnivores with an 'eat less but better' approach to meat consumption, a bit like the 'drink less but better' approach to alcohol. 'Wellness has its role to play in this butchery revival,' says Danny Kingston, recipe developer at Turner & George. 'We've just launched a keto/carnivore box. We were responding to customers who were asking more and more about cuts with the high fat content required for ketogenic diets, and wanting to know the difference between dripping, tallow and suet, or the best bones to make broths [stock, basically, but cooked much longer] and gelatine. We see men, especially, geeking out over the American barbecue cuts: short ribs, deckle, flat iron, tri-tip, picanha and, of course, brisket. We call them the 'brisket bros'.' • How fabulous is your steak? The rise of the posh butcher Inevitably, this new style of butchery will be widely copied. Already there are short ribs for sale in Lidl. But many express their concerns about the 13,000 tonnes of cheap beef included in Starmer's trade deal with Trump. 'Some of the best meat in the world comes from Britain,' Murray says. 'My advice is to keep it British.' Smith says he knows he did the right thing choosing butchery over art. 'It's hard work but it's fun, and I'm still creative, sharing good ideas even when I'm selling two sausages to a little old lady. This work is worthwhile.'
BBC News
25-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Alderney ferry service secures subsidy for summer services
A ferry service will continue to offer a subsidised service between Alderney and Guernsey over the summer season. The States of Alderney said although Alderney Ferry Services was already running daily services between the islands, the subsidy period would begin on 26 May and continue until 26 Smith, Alderney Ferry Services co-director, said she was "very pleased" to have been awarded the subsidy for the service - which she said was "a vital transport link" for the States said there would be two scheduled round-trips every day, with more scheduled in August for Alderney Week. It added fares would cost £60 one-way for adults and £45 one-way per child up to 14 - with babies under two years old travelling for free. The States said while there was no extra charge for large luggage, dogs and bicycles would be £5 Clark, chair of the economic development committee said: "The States of Alderney is delighted to continue its partnership with Alderney Ferry Services which is under the directorship of a young local family."
West Australian
23-04-2025
- Sport
- West Australian
Australian all-female team rowing 4800km across the Atlantic Ocean for Telethon
An all-female team with no rowing experience will face unpredictable winds, waves and seasickness when they traverse 4800km across the Atlantic Ocean for Telethon. Australians Charlie Smith, Ena Ladd, Fiona McTavish, and Karla Pound will push themselves to the limits by rowing non-stop — alternating two hour shifts — for The World's Toughest Row in December next year. The 3000 nautical mile journey will take them from San Sebastián de La Gomera in Spain's Canary Islands to Nelson's Dockyard in Antigua. It's expected to take between five and seven weeks. But they are not just doing it for the challenge, they will be raising much-needed funds for sick kids across WA. Telethon will be put on the global stage, with the crew proudly plastering its logo on the boat as it crosses the ocean. And once the quartet has past the finish line, the boat and other row equipment will be sold and the proceeds donated to the charity. Perth-based teammate Ms Smith said it just made sense to donate to Telethon as it is a charity that has been close to her heart since she was a kid. 'I'm Perth born and raised and hence why Telethon came about as our charity because I've grown up with it on my screen and attended the weekend events when I was younger,' she said. 'I know that the girls and I will have some really difficult days on the ocean during our row but I think drawing on the fact that what we are experiencing is so minor in comparison to the challenges our Telethon kids and their families battle on the daily will be our driving force to make this row as successful as we can. 'Our boat is about $150,000 so once we sell that at the end of our race that'll be going back to Telethon. We're hoping to donate in excess of that and get the community to help us out as well.' Working as a deckhand and dive instructor for almost 10 years, Ms Smith was looking for her next water-based adventure when she moved back to Perth during COVID. When she asked her friends to join, it was a resounding yes. 'I am personally driven by challenges in all forms and when Charlie mentioned this one to me it was out of this world, I didn't really understand what she asked me but I immediately said yes,' Ms Ladd said. Ms Pound, who stars in the most recent season of Alone Australia, said she was doing the row to see what she was 'truly made of'. 'I'm always chasing the next adventure and this is going to be a doozy,' she said. 'Working in the marine industry, women are a minority so I like to push the boundaries of what we can actually do and aim to do it better,' Ms McTavish added. 'I've been lucky enough to be surrounded by inspiring women throughout my life so I would love to pass this on to future generations, if I can. The added bonus is doing this with three awesome friends.' Training has been hard for the four-person crew as they live on all different sides of the country but they are planning to spend some time in the UK to get their hours up on their specially made boat this year. The R45 boat is made to endure ocean rowing with spots for three rowers to row simultaneously and a cabin to sleep in. However, the boat isn't fish proof with the team's number one concern being Marlin strikes as the large fish is known to attack boats with its spike, which can pierce the hull and cause flooding. Smith said she was looking forward to whatever Mother Nature threw at the crew. 'Mother Nature, she is incredibly unpredictable, and I think we're not really going to know until we're out there,' she said. 'I think as far as maybe using a bucket as a toilet is going to be a challenge in itself as well. 'Me and the girls we have a wealth of maritime knowledge so I wouldn't want to do this with anyone else other than those three.' To see their journey or to donate visit the Atlantic Waterbirds donation page or the team's Instagram .
Perth Now
23-04-2025
- Sport
- Perth Now
All-female team takes on Atlantic ocean row for Telethon
An all-female team with no rowing experience will face unpredictable winds, waves and seasickness when they traverse 4800km across the Atlantic Ocean for Telethon. Australians Charlie Smith, Ena Ladd, Fiona McTavish, and Karla Pound will push themselves to the limits by rowing non-stop — alternating two hour shifts — for The World's Toughest Row in December next year. The 3000 nautical mile journey will take them from San Sebastián de La Gomera in Spain's Canary Islands to Nelson's Dockyard in Antigua. It's expected to take between five and seven weeks. But they are not just doing it for the challenge, they will be raising much-needed funds for sick kids across WA. Telethon will be put on the global stage, with the crew proudly plastering its logo on the boat as it crosses the ocean. And once the quartet has past the finish line, the boat and other row equipment will be sold and the proceeds donated to the charity. Amateur rower Charlie Smith is part of a four person squad that will compete in the world's toughest row next December. Credit: Kelsey Reid / The West Australian Perth-based teammate Ms Smith said it just made sense to donate to Telethon as it is a charity that has been close to her heart since she was a kid. 'I'm Perth born and raised and hence why Telethon came about as our charity because I've grown up with it on my screen and attended the weekend events when I was younger,' she said. 'I know that the girls and I will have some really difficult days on the ocean during our row but I think drawing on the fact that what we are experiencing is so minor in comparison to the challenges our Telethon kids and their families battle on the daily will be our driving force to make this row as successful as we can. 'Our boat is about $150,000 so once we sell that at the end of our race that'll be going back to Telethon. We're hoping to donate in excess of that and get the community to help us out as well.' Working as a deckhand and dive instructor for almost 10 years, Ms Smith was looking for her next water-based adventure when she moved back to Perth during COVID. When she asked her friends to join, it was a resounding yes. 'I am personally driven by challenges in all forms and when Charlie mentioned this one to me it was out of this world, I didn't really understand what she asked me but I immediately said yes,' Ms Ladd said. Ms Pound, who stars in the most recent season of Alone Australia, said she was doing the row to see what she was 'truly made of'. 'I'm always chasing the next adventure and this is going to be a doozy,' she said. 'Working in the marine industry, women are a minority so I like to push the boundaries of what we can actually do and aim to do it better,' Ms McTavish added. 'I've been lucky enough to be surrounded by inspiring women throughout my life so I would love to pass this on to future generations, if I can. The added bonus is doing this with three awesome friends.' Training has been hard for the four-person crew as they live on all different sides of the country but they are planning to spend some time in the UK to get their hours up on their specially made boat this year. The R45 boat is made to endure ocean rowing with spots for three rowers to row simultaneously and a cabin to sleep in. However, the boat isn't fish proof with the team's number one concern being Marlin strikes as the large fish is known to attack boats with its spike, which can pierce the hull and cause flooding. Smith said she was looking forward to whatever Mother Nature threw at the crew. 'Mother Nature, she is incredibly unpredictable, and I think we're not really going to know until we're out there,' she said. 'I think as far as maybe using a bucket as a toilet is going to be a challenge in itself as well. 'Me and the girls we have a wealth of maritime knowledge so I wouldn't want to do this with anyone else other than those three.' To see their journey or to donate visit the Atlantic Waterbirds donation page or the team's Instagram.
BBC News
03-04-2025
- Business
- BBC News
University of Suffolk says Esports degree offers more than gaming
A new Esports degree will enable students to learn new skills "through the medium of video games", its course leader University of Suffolk in Ipswich announced last year it would launch a "cutting edge" degree in competitive video gaming.A £1.6m renovation is currently underway to transform a vacant building in Long Street into a home for the course. Charlie Smith, course leader for the BA (Hons) course, said the first students would be joining in September. "One of the things we don't teach you to do is play video games because they're already doing that in their free time, they're already far better than we are," Mr Smith explained. "What degrees like this do is teach you transferable and technical skills through the passion of video gaming."On a course like this with its live streaming and business management and marketing skills, these are skills we can take to other industries such as traditional events, traditional broadcasting - sport as well."We can take that knowledge and experience, but we're learning that through the medium of video games." Mr Smith said the gaming industry was "absolutely massive" and was only expected to grow."The gaming industry itself is worth more than film, TV, media combined," he added."So universities need to be responsive to the changing market both nationally and internationally." Mr Smith, who has worked in the industry for 10 years, explained the building had been on the campus for "quite a few decades" and was undergoing a full internal refurbishment. The university has released CGI images of what the facility will look like once completed, ahead of September's cohort of students. The building will include a combination of teaching and recreational spaces, including more than 40 gaming-spec PCs, a professional-grade broadcast gallery and a live studio purpose-built for broadcasting and livestreaming. Students will be given hands-on gaming experience and will be taught skills that include managing live-streamed events, live and online broadcasting experience, digital marketing skills and more, the university said. Follow Suffolk news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
