Chats Around My Table Franka Philip, Lifestyle and Entertainment writer

Chef Khalid Mohammed is one of the Caribbean's leading chefs. In this chat with Franka, he reflects on how Covid has affected his restaurant business and reveals why he believes fine dining can't succeed for the foreseeable future in Trinidad and Tobago.

Full Bloom is the newest band to hit the streets of London for the annual Notting Hill Carnival. Featuring designs by two of Trinidad's leading designers - Sandra Hordatt and Shari Cumberbatch, along with London-based Michelle Lucas, bandleader Jean Pierre Poteon promises something for every kind of mas player. 
JP, as he's more commonly known, tells Franka how he came to the business of Carnival and explains his commitment to raising the standard of band management and customer service for the summer festival with his entertainment company Frolic Nation. 

David Prendergast is a Jamaican who loves parang and pastelles.
He developed a penchant for these uniquely Trinidadian things during his four-year tenure as High Commissioner to Trinidad & Tobago.
This edition of Talk 'Bout Us features an interview he did with Franka just before he returned to Jamaica earlier this year.
In this conversation, he speaks about the sometimes tricky relationship between T&T and Jamaica. The rivalry between the two countries usually manifests as light-hearted banter about football or food but in recent years, issues like immigration and trade have created some high tension. 
Prendergast also speaks about how culture has been a unifying force and the ways in which this country captured his heart.

Carnival fetes are driving the success of the season and promoters want the authorities to cut down the red tape involved in putting on major events.
This was the view of three major players in the fete industry during a recent discussion that looked back on the Carnival 2019 season. The discussion is featured in this bonus episode of Talk Bout Us.
Paige de Leon of the Fete Promoters Association; Jules Sobion, commander-in-chief of Caesar's Army and St Mary's College Past Student Union president Brevard Nelson cited inconsistencies in the process to obtain bar and dancehall licenses as one of the major challenges.
The three joined Franka and LoopTT's Ricquolia Phillip for the chat at Uncorked Wines and Spirits in Port of Spain.

Four-time Olympian Cleopatra Borel is the star on this edition of Talk 'Bout Us. She joins Franka to speak about women in sport - the athletes and the journalists.
"Cleo" speaks frankly about her challenges as she attempts to compete in her fifth Olympic Games in Japan in 2020, the shortcomings of athletics in Trinidad & Tobago and what she envisions as her future after she retires from competition.
Also featuring in this podcast are Naasira Mohammed, the first woman to be appointed media and communications manager for the West Indies men and women's cricket teams; Rachael Thompson-King, senior sports journalist at the T&T Guardian Newspaper and Barbadian journalist Alex Jordan, formerly of Caribbean sport cable channel Sportsmax.

A visit by American jazz giants Spyro Grya kicks off what has now come to be known as "Jazz Season" in Trinidad and Tobago.  In this bonus episode of Talk 'Bout Us, Franka speaks with Carl "Beaver" Henderson, promoter of the new concert, Sunset Jazz.
Henderson also discusses why he brought promoters of other local jazz shows, along with officials of  Trinidad Tourism Ltd and the Trinidad Hotel, Restaurants and Tourism Association together to push for Jazz Season to be promoted internationally.