Hello You with Jim Hawkins

Jim Hawkins
Hello You with Jim Hawkins

I’m trying to give you something a little different. Hello You is about stuff, and things. People, and stories. Shrewsbury, and Shropshire. Mental health and well-being. History and heritage. Arts, culture and music. Faith, belief and the complexities of life. I’m a good listener. It’s what I do. And for Hello You, I’m listening to (and talking with) fascinating people, mostly but not always from Shropshire, so that you can hear what they have to say. It's public-service local journalism that cares about people. Audio that brings you the voices of people you might not hear from otherwise. Interviews conducted with compassion and empathy. Thoughtful, positive, good-humoured conversations, informed local storytelling, and commentary that’s not afraid to get righteously angry on occasion. jimallthetime.substack.com

  1. 6 DAYS AGO

    Hello You 78: Sewing Sisters and the Band of Brothers

    Visits to two marvellous groups of wonderful people, in the run-up to Christmas. Includes a knitted chicken, lager shandy, getting the right PVA glue, Mouldy Old Dough, a half-finished Freddie Mercury and plenty of Jingle Bells. Meet the Castlefields Yarn Bombing Crew … and the Telford Men’s Breakfast Club run by Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin. I’ve got lots more amazing people for you to meet on Hello You in 2025! And I’d like your suggestions for places I can go to record conversations or just the sounds on location, for subjects to talk about and for people whose stories you’d like to hear. Message me, or leave a comment? And if you enjoy this episode, please hit the ‘Like’ button, and also share it with other people? Why not subscribe, so you don’t miss any future episodes? Getting through Christmas and out the other side I’ve got some really interesting, helpful and funny articles about Christmas which might help you through it, one way or another. You’ll find them in this week’s Hello You Sunday Supplement, which will drop into your inbox on (unsurprisingly) Sunday morning … as long as you’re subscribed to my Substack: Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Thank you for being there Take care of yourself, and the people around you. This can be a challenging time, and I hope the next couple of weeks go smoothly and are as joyful as they can be. Get full access to Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack at jimallthetime.substack.com/subscribe

    1h 11m
  2. DEC 13

    Hello You 76: 'How bad can it be?'

    Lots of people leave Shropshire and then come back, either straight away or eventually. Patrick Lappin’s route back to the county of his birth took in Edinburgh, Norwich and the stand-up circuit in London … but then, despite being afraid of flying and not a natural-born traveller, he found himself living in Mexico, Albania, Bulgaria, and for a truly terrifying few days, Grenada. Enjoy the stories of a (very) Englishman abroad in this episode of Hello You. Crucial life lesson within: ‘Embrace being stupid’. Please share this episode with anyone you think might enjoy it: *waves to new subscribers* I’ve had a whole bunch of lovely new people sign up to the Hello You Substack over the last week or so. If you’re here because you can’t bear to miss any of the compelling content, I’m very grateful. You may well, though, have been recommended to follow Hello You by a new Substack on the block. Him, Her and the Hare is the work of my friends, author and artist Phil and Jacqui Lovesey. Follow them to make sure you receive their newsletter when it launches in a few weeks’ time. Not yet a subscriber to Hello You? Treat yourself to at least two deliveries of good stuff in your inbox every week by clicking here: It’s free (helpful at this time of year) but if you like what I do and want to help ensure I can keep doing it, there are paid options too. At the moment you don’t get much more for your money other than my endless gratitude, but I’m working on what else I can offer. If you have any ideas about benefits I can dangle before people like the content carrot on a Substack stick, let me know what they are by replying to this email or message me: And if you’re stuck for a last-minute present for someone, you could treat them to a gift subscription to Hello You! That’s a present for two people at once: Thanks for being there I hope the complexities of life aren’t being any more complex than they need to be, right now. Watch out for a big juicy chunk of interesting links and recommendations - the Hello You Sunday Supplement - landing in your inbox on Sunday morning! Get full access to Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack at jimallthetime.substack.com/subscribe

    46 min
  3. DEC 6

    Hello You 75: Mummy Wine Culture

    Kate Taylor as been on a remarkable life journey, from London ladette to Shropshire-based sobriety influencer. That journey’s taken her to some very interesting places: New York, Italy, Costa Rica … a heroin den in Tottenham … ‘I used girl-power as an excuse to get hammered’ We’ve all had nights where things have got a little out of control. Not many of us have woken up in a different country to the one we started drinking in. Kate’s not an alcoholic, she told me, just a social drinker who drank too much, too often and for too much of her life. ‘I don’t think I had a lot of self-respect’ But almost three years ago, all that turned around in one single day. Kate tells me how and why in this episode of Hello You. ‘The way I care about myself has massively changed, and I never really knew I was missing that’ I’m really grateful to Kate Taylor for sharing her story with me … and with you. Both she and I would like to know what you think. Sharing. It’s caring You might well know someone else who’d be interested in Kate’s story. Please share this episode of Hello You with them? Send them the link, or maybe post it to your Facebook page or WhatsApp chat group? And if you have a story to tell, some thoughts to share or a subject that you’d like to hear talked about more - even if you’ve never opened up about it before - get in touch? Thank you for being there I’m glad you’re part of the Hello You family. If you want to hear more fascinating conversations with humanity and empathy, make sure you’re subscribed to Hello You! Have the best weekend you can? Take care of yourself, and the people around you. I hope that they’re taking care of you, too. Get full access to Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack at jimallthetime.substack.com/subscribe

    41 min
  4. NOV 29

    Hello You 74: Dungeons & Drag Kings

    Imagine you never encountered anyone else quite like you. And then you find a whole roomful of people you can identify with. Not only that, but they’re proudly being themselves on a stage in front of an adoring audience. If you’ve kept the real you under wraps for years, or if you’ve never had the opportunity to explore who the real you might be, how liberating would that feel? ‘We regularly get people coming for the first time, they come up to us and say “This is the best night of my life”’ Dungeons & Drag Kings is, says founder Jenn Deere, Shropshire’s ‘first, best and only’ drag troupe. They’re also behind a monthly queer cabaret show, which takes place downstairs at Shrewsbury’s Nerdy Café. ‘It’s amazing how vibrant and varied the talent within the queer community is, and how rich Shropshire is with talent’ In this episode of Hello You, you can hear what happened when I went along to the November evening and spoke to the passionate, eloquent Jenn themselves. ‘They’re seeing people who are just like themselves being adored, and being successful at it’ Dungeons & Drag Kings’ next show is on Sunday December 15th. Get tickets here! If you’re looking for a sign … this is it After hearing about and seeing my hastily-made ‘Talk to me …’ sign, hurriedly scrawled as I was setting off to record a session of random conversations on a bench somewhere, Amanda Mullins of Shrewsbury’s Battlefield Printing Group took pity on me, and decided I needed some more robust ones! So she very generously created two waterproof A4 boards bearing my message and information, that I can take with me on Hello You recording expeditions. Amanda clearly gets the Hello You ethos and aesthetic. Rather than having the boards neatly typeset, she realised that reproducing my original, somewhat shonky effort would be much more authentic and in keeping with the Hello You vibe. I’m hugely grateful to Amanda and her colleagues for adding two crucial items to my kit bag! Join and help build the Hello You family! If you’ve enjoyed this episode of Hello You, please share it with someone you know? Because they’ll probably enjoy it too. Finding and sharing something you both enjoy … that’s the sort of thing that helps build bonds between people, isn’t it? To make sure you never miss a future episode of the podcast or an issue of the Hello You Sunday Supplement, my weekly guide to the good stuff that’s worth reading (here’s the current issue so you get the idea), simply subscribe by clicking here: Tell me what you’re thinking? Leave a comment, or send me a message? Thank you for being there It means a lot, and I really, really appreciate it. Take care of yourself, and the people around you … and I hope the people around you are taking care of you, too. Get full access to Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack at jimallthetime.substack.com/subscribe

    25 min
  5. NOV 22

    Hello You 73: Three Beasts and Unicorns

    Shropshire-based artist, designer, author and filmmaker Sally E K Warner has been creative since childhood. But she didn’t expect a story she wrote whilst in primary school to spring back to life! Hear her story in this episode of Hello You, then check out her books at Waterstones or Amazon, or better yet in your local independent bookshop. ‘Being social causes us stress and anxiety’ You may lack self-confidence, for whatever reason. You might find interacting with people, whether in real life or online, challenging. But your voice, thoughts and opinions deserve to be heard, too. Whilst talking about ways of helping all the good people in your community to get to know each other, how do we include people who aren’t comfortable in a forum? Your thoughts on this, or on anything at all from suggestions of potential guests to ideas for future topics, the locations of benches where I can sit to talk to people or details of forthcoming events I could come along to and record, are very welcome! The Hello You Sunday Supplement This week’s Hello You Sunday Supplement might (no promises) include a lot of powerful and pertinent pieces about journalism, because I have quite a backlog of such. If you’re in the least interested in the media, journalism, the press and how news gets to us, I think you’ll find it a compelling read. And if nothing else, you’ll discover how much journalists simply love to write about themselves and their colleagues! Subscribe to make sure you don’t miss the Sunday Supplement, or future episodes of Hello You! You dig? If you do … And if you enjoy Hello You and find it interesting, you almost certainly know someone else who’d like it too. Do them a favour, and do me a favour at the same time? Share it with them right now by clicking this here button: Thanks for being there Take care of yourself, take care of the people around you, and I hope that they are taking care of you, too. Get full access to Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack at jimallthetime.substack.com/subscribe

    34 min
  6. NOV 15

    Hello You 72: Beaver Moon

    It’s not just a full moon right now. It’s the Beaver Moon. The what? The Beaver Moon is a time related to survival in many cultures. It marks the turn towards winter, breaking free from old habits to start something new. In traditional North American cultures, it is a moment to consider hard work and readiness to face difficult times, related to beavers preparing for winter. I’m very aware of the Beaver Moon at the moment. It’s definitely shining on me right now. What if the most caring members of your community all knew each other? I love this idea. Who would you call the most caring members of your community? Do they know each other? Do they know the people that others regard as the most caring members of their communities? It would be so powerful if all of these people were in touch with one another. Can we make Hello You a kind of clearing house or contact point for the most caring members of our community? However you want to define community: geographical community, community of interest, faith community … The power of podcasts? How can we make podcasts a force for good? For increasing numbers of people, legacy media is an irrelevance. It’s not where they get their news or information, it’s not what helps them form their opinions. That leaves them vulnerable to the torrent of disinformation that fills their brains and shapes their attitudes. Don’t we need to make sure they have something better to listen to? I have some thoughts on this, but I’d love to know what you think, too. ‘The potential for humanity to perpetrate immense harm against fellow human beings is always there’ So says Simon Bell in this episode of Hello You. Simon’s from Shropshire, a former mental health nurse with an MA in Holocaust Studies, and the author of Remembering the Holocaust and the Impact on Societies Today. Why did I want to talk to Simon at this particular moment in history? Take a listen to the conversation we recorded in Palmer’s café in Shrewsbury, to find out. The other book that Simon mentions is The Anatomy of Fascism, by Robert O. Paxton. Thank you for being there It means a lot, particularly right now. Take care of yourself, and take care of the people around you. I hope that they’re taking care of you, too. Get full access to Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack at jimallthetime.substack.com/subscribe

    55 min
  7. NOV 8

    Hello You 71: Chords Crush Cancer

    Hello You is about people, and stories. Particularly people in, from and connected to Shropshire. People who are doing good things, people with interesting stories to tell and thoughts to share, that you can listen to and then share with others as well. If you know someone who fits that description - maybe it’s you - get in touch with me? A future episode of this podcast could be built around them, or you. In this episode of Hello You, I want you to meet Mark Fielden. You may have met him before, if you’ve been into some of Shrewsbury’s biggest retailers over the last quarter-century. Or maybe you’ve been to one of his Chords Crush Cancer fundraising events, supporting Lingen Davies Cancer Care. Mark was inspired to start these by his family’s experience when his late mum, Margaret, was living with cancer. He’s now written a book about her, and his journey as a fundraiser over the last eight years. You can buy Mark’s book Memories of Margaret at Amazon. Bonus reading this weekend There’s be two, count ‘em, two Hello You Sunday Supplements this weekend! On Sunday morning, I’ll drop Issue 10 and Issue 10a into your inbox, giving some good stuff to read with your toast and coffee. To find out why, you’ll have to listen to the podcast! But I think you might appreciate what I’m doing, and why. To make sure you don’t miss the double helping of Sunday Supplements, or future episodes of the podcast, make sure you’re subscribed to Hello You And don’t forget to tell your friends about it, too! Thank you for being there I’m glad you’re part of the Hello You family. Have the best weekend you possibly can, in whatever your circumstances might be. Take care of yourself, and I hope the people around you are taking care of you, too. Get full access to Hello You - Jim Hawkins’s Substack at jimallthetime.substack.com/subscribe

    39 min

About

I’m trying to give you something a little different. Hello You is about stuff, and things. People, and stories. Shrewsbury, and Shropshire. Mental health and well-being. History and heritage. Arts, culture and music. Faith, belief and the complexities of life. I’m a good listener. It’s what I do. And for Hello You, I’m listening to (and talking with) fascinating people, mostly but not always from Shropshire, so that you can hear what they have to say. It's public-service local journalism that cares about people. Audio that brings you the voices of people you might not hear from otherwise. Interviews conducted with compassion and empathy. Thoughtful, positive, good-humoured conversations, informed local storytelling, and commentary that’s not afraid to get righteously angry on occasion. jimallthetime.substack.com

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