In this interview, Made in Plymouth Community Reporter, Chi Bennett, explores the fascinating world of Slain McGough Davey, the dynamic figure behind WonderZoo, an arts organisation rooted in Stonehouse, Plymouth. Slain is also Chi's husband.

Terry Flower is an artist born in Plymouth in 1961 and has lived in the city most of his life. From an early age, Terry spent his pocket money on paper and pencils as he loved drawing and recreating images from his comic books.

From working in hospitality, events, entertainment and property, Kate Pierce has forged a career that encompasses all of those experiences into one and puts her firmly in the middle of what makes Plymouth - and in particular its creative heart - beat. Here she shares with Bracken Jelier how this role has developed within the context of Alma Yard and what her dream is for Britain's Ocean City over the next 10 years.

Chi Bennett is not your average director of an arts organisation. Yes, she is articulate, confident and charming but she also rejects shoes, explains the benefits of consuming psilocybin mushrooms and wants to set the world free from dogma, discrimination and hierarchies, so that we can all live our best lives. Made in Plymouth Community Reporter, Jojo, went to meet her.

As the internet developed, so did the opportunities for ordinary people to have a significant chance to shape the content that we see. We no longer need massive media companies to provide us with news and entertainment, instead we are happily consuming content made by everyday people.

Ben Shearn is a trailblazer in the hospitality sector in Plymouth. He has designed, project managed and opened many venues within the city including bars, restaurants, pubs and cafes. He has been a serving board director of Plymouth Waterfront Partnership since its fruition, a Trustee of Jeremiahs Journey, Member of the Plymouth Area Business Council and was Chairman of the Association of Barbican Businesses for 11 years.

Rose Bonsier is Deputy Head of Lighting at Theatre Royal Plymouth. On a visit to the Theatre in December, Tricia Stubberfield talked to her about her job, and climbed into the highest parts of the Lyric to see where she does it!

Theatre Royal Plymouth is thrilled to announce that Dame Darcey Bussell DBE will become Chair of their Board of Trustees from 1 April.

My name is Louise Rabey, I am an illustrator specialising in children’s illustration and also currently working on writing and illustrating my own comics. I have been working professionally for about 7 years and originally studied BA (Hons) Fine Art at Plymouth University which I graduated from in 2013, most recently I graduated from MA Illustration with Falmouth University in 2021. 

My name’s Gabi Marcellus-Temple and I’m a freelance visual artist, writer and translator. I’ve been doing this for… ages and ages! I’ve been drawing since I could hold a pencil and began my working life as a translator, gradually working more and more in writing in general and the visual arts. My practice as a visual artist is really diverse - it can include drawing, installation, performance, ceramics…

We are a weekly art club within Devon and Cornwall refugee support, run to engage asylum seekers in various creative pursuits. We got involved with the British Art show to give a focus to our activities and engage everyone in appreciating art as well as creating it. We could experience each others’ views and share our own.

The object of my affection is this diary by George Winne, who was the merchant of Plymouth. And it's written in 1788 to 1789. And it's about the relationship between his daughter and Prince William, who later became William IV. In the diary, it sort of traces that royal romance that we wouldn't really know much about if we didn't have this fantastic diary.

I arrived in Devon at the age of 16, having run away from home. It led to a family rift which lasted 41 years, and meant that I was excommunicated from my family and wider community where I grew up. 

The street art scene is truly thriving in the UK, led by the emergence in the last 30 years of artists like Banksy.

Flying the flag here in Plymouth is Kevin Davison, a stencil and street artist whose creations can be seen across the city and beyond.

Borrow Don’t Buy is Plymouth's Library of Things. We believe "You should have access to the stuff you need without costing the Earth". 

If you want to become a successful artist, you need to put in the hours. But having inspiration for your work is just as important.

All artists will have days when they perhaps feel uncreative or uninspired. So, it’s crucial you find something to spark your imagination and get your creative juices flowing.

Stand-up is undoubtedly one of the hardest forms of comedy to truly master. It’s intimate, intimidating, and there’s nowhere to hide if it all goes wrong!

One thing’s for sure… you’ve got to have bags of confidence, not to mention pretty thick skin to stand in front of a room full of people and try to make them laugh.

Theatre Royal Plymouth has announced that James Mackenzie-Blackman will succeed Adrian Vinken OBE as its Chief Executive.

Currently Chief Executive of Eden Court Highlands, Scotland’s largest single-site performing arts venue, James Mackenzie-Blackman’s previous roles include Executive Director of Matthew Bourne’s award-winning dance company New Adventures, Executive Director of the National Youth Theatre of Great Britain and six years in a variety of roles at the Lyric Theatre Hammersmith.

Plymouth is home to a number of exciting, diverse and innovative filmmakers - and none more so than Amber Amare. Amber specialises in camera operation, sound recording and editing.

She has worked at the University of Plymouth (UoP) as a film technician by day, and at the weekend works for the British Film Institute at Plymouth College of Art, running the filmmaking academy - “which is awesome”, she says.

KARST started life with relatively humble beginnings - growing from a pop-up project in 2011 to staple of Plymouth's culture scene at the forefront of creative innovation, drawing international attention.

Ben joined the team in the midst of a global pandemic in 2020 after heading up Plymouth Art Centre alongside working on a host of national and international projects.