Oxfordshire craft centre to star in Channel 4 series

By Tom Kilkelly

1 June 2023

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The Business Magazine article image for: Oxfordshire craft centre to star in Channel 4 series

Kay and Jon at The Maker Space, credit: Annabel Lee

The Maker Space in Nuffield, an independent craft venue, is to star in the new series of Sarah Beeny’s Country Lives on Channel 4.

Founders Jon Doughty and Kay Surman run the modern craft venue, shop, café and community space in a former 17th century pub building near Henley-on-Thames. The Maker Space will feature in episodes of the new series during June, with episodes on air every weekday from May 29.

Country Lives will follow the founders journey as they work on restoration and creative projects, including creating a new event space, hosting workshops and craft fairs, and rolling out a new mobile café.

Jon said: “Reimagining the derelict pub and starting the business itself has been a creative project, and we are delighted to be able to share some of that through the new series. It was a wonderful experience being involved in the show and we can’t wait to share some of our creative journey.”

The Maker Space hosts a range of classes, socials, and multi day courses covering various crafts including silversmithing, crochet, jewellery making, sewing, quilting, beading, mosaics, printmaking and woodcarving. It has workrooms, a craft store, and a welcoming café.

Kay said: “Our goal with The Maker Space was always to create a community hub that allowed space for creativity and made crafts more accessible. There can be so many positive benefits to crafting, especially in a social setting. We want to be able to introduce people to crafts, provide a resource and give people the opportunity to create and build community too.''

By Tom Kilkelly

Tom Kilkelly started working as a freelance journalist for The Business Magazine following his graduation from UCL in 2022.

During his studies Tom became very interested in the works of Irish authors including Samuel Beckett and Flann O'Brien (Brian O'Nolan).

His current role as a freelance business reporter is his first exposure to the world of business journalism. Working at TBM has given Tom the chance to really get to grips with the goings-on in the business hive that is the South East.