Andrew
Age: 48
Location: Hampshire
Job: English teacher
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/plaidough
Andrew teaches English in a secondary school in London and in his spare time enjoys gardening, painting and sewing, even making his own suit for his wedding. He started potting when a friend invited him along to an evening class, and has been throwing clay for 18 years ever since! Andrew enjoys making functional items and often makes gifts for his students.
Angharad
Age: 34
Location: Bridgend
Job: Communication support worker
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/crockashwt
Angharad used to work in the wig and makeup department in London’s West End and around the UK before moving back home to Wales in 2018. She now works as a communication support worker, currently assisting her mum who is the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager for a cancer charity. Angharad first got her hands on clay during a school trip to a museum but came back to it properly seven years ago when she took a hand-building course. She enjoys making illustrative pieces with lots of colour.
Bill
Age: 33
Location: Herefordshire
Job: Volunteer teaching assistant
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/billrollsceramics
Bill has dyslexia, dyspraxia and autism and enjoys living in a quiet, relaxed area. He was introduced to clay when he was young by his grandmother who loved sculpting animals.
Elham
Age: 31
Location: Sheffield
Job: Midwife
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hessavistudio
Elham’s pottery journey began during ‘nap time’ – a dining table, one bag of clay, a basic tool set, and snippets of time squeezed between family life.
Emily
Age: 39
Location: Inverness
Job: Habitat restoration ecologist
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/emilyheslingceramics
Emily has always loved art subjects but veered towards more academic studies for her A-levels. She never lost touch completely with the art crowd and returned to pottery a few years ago after attending a class with a friend.
Fynn
Age: 37
Location: Cornwall
Job: Tattooist
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fynn.made.this
Fynn was surrounded by creativity growing up, whether it was painting with his grandmother or doing textiles and printmaking with his mother. He first tried pottery as a six week addition to an illustration degree, but it was only two years ago that he began to take his hobby seriously.
Kayleigh
Age: 38
Location: Oxfordshire
Job: Art teacher
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kayleighopottery
Kayleigh is head of art at a prep school and enjoys passing on her creative skills to her students. She was disappointed that her art degree didn’t include ceramics and enrolled on an introductory course, and still attends evening classes now, with her pieces often inspired by folklore stories and nature.
Kaz
Age: 62
Location: Swansea
Job: Former psychiatric nurse
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kazwoodspotter
Kaz is currently studying ceramics at Carmarthen School of Art, where she has found a passion for sculpture and is proving to be a quick learner.
Mark
Age: 63
Location: Merseyside
Job: University facilities and estate manager
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/markburtonpottery
Mark has a number of hobbies, including sewing, bee-keeping, woodwork, kite flying and canoeing. It was Mark’s bonsai tree hobby that led him to clay, as the square pots were expensive and hard to find so he set out to make his own. He started classes and has now built his own pottery shed at home, acquiring a second-hand wheel that he refurbished himself.
Naveed
Age: 42
Location: Folkestone
Job: Actor and toy shop owner
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/naveedkhanpottery
Naveed was gifted pottery lessons three years ago and went on to do more courses as he loved it so much. It has become a welcome creative outlet and he now has a pottery space set up in his basement.
Olympia
Age: 28
Location: West Midlands
Job: Between jobs
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/augustno14
Olympia was inspired by pottery videos she spotted online before she started having a go herself. She has since progressed through a mixture of courses and online self-teaching and enjoys being part of her local community pottery studio.
Whitney
Age: 36
Location: Glasgow
Job: Chemistry teacher
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/macchoi_pottery
Looking to try something new a few years ago, Whitney took pottery lessons and was hooked. He enjoys bringing his scientific background to his potting, being very detailed and precise when making.
9×7
The seven remaining potters create floral posies and vases, and take on a surprise embellishing challenge. Who’ll bloom into the next round, and whose posy isn’t all rosy?
main make: hand build a realistic floral posy (minimum of 4 different types of flowers) and throw a vase
who made what: [Spoiler (click to open)]
Angharad – gran’s hedgerow flowers with cow milk jug, daisies, buttercups, poppies
Bill – wilting arrangement with poppies, dandelions, daisies, bluebells, pussywillows
Elham – winter wedding bouquet with pussywillows, red roses, hypericum berries, thistles
Emily – Scottish meadow wildflowers with foxgloves, moonwort
Fynn – tropical leaves with bromeliad, hibiscus
Kayleigh – healing flowers with dandelions, daffodils, chamomile, foxgloves, peonies, roses, lungwort leaves
Naveed – allotment arrangement with savoy cabbage vase, artichoke, courgette, & chive blossoms
spot test: embellish a plant pot (special guest judge Jo Taylor)
rankings: [Spoiler (click to open)]
1 – Kayleigh
2 – Angharad
3 – Fynn
4 – Elham
5 – Bill
6 – Emily
7 – Naveed
potter of the week: [Spoiler (click to open)] Kayleigh
eliminated: [Spoiler (click to open)] Emily
