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Harry Baker is Unashamed

Jan 8
2 min

Harry Baker is Unashamed

Brilliant poet, the youngest ever World Poetry Slam Champ, and all round diamond, Harry Baker, is coming home! On January 24th, Harry is bringing his show 'Unashamed' to Komedia, in his hometown of Bath... and I had a lovely chat with him on my Big Night In radio show on Friday. The thing I absolutely love about Harry is one minute he'll have you giggling about a diss track he wrote when Chris Evans couldn't grasp why Harry would run the London marathon dressed as a falafel (

Join the Big Night In, in January

Jan 8
1 min

Join the Big Night In, in January

Well, it's a New Year and there are a whole host of new Big Night In shows for you on BBC Radio Somerset in January. Join me (Jenna) every Friday evening from 6pm, when I'll be taking the ingredients of a great night out - entertainment, local music, food, drink and cracking conversation - and bringing it to you instead... so you don't need to go out anywhere at all. Thanks so much for all your messages into the show, and for your company. I hope you've enjoyed it so far and

Holm sweet holm

Oct 23, 2022
2 min

Holm sweet holm

One of the things that's very obvious as I chat with Chef Director, Nicholas Balfe, at his restaurant Holm in South Petherton, is how much his face lights up every time we mention food. That's quite a lot, of course! Whether it's talking about his formative years in the industry (we both discover we have a connection to a particular Harrogate restaurant), or about the whirlwind of starting a pop up in Brixton that actually becomes a mainstay of the food scene, there's a twink

Local Radio Day

Oct 21, 2022
1 min

Local Radio Day

Yes, it’s Local Radio Day and every day and night when people switch on their local stations up and down the country, it’s like having a friend in your living room, kitchen or wherever you may listen from! And, as those recent Liz Truss interviews highlighted, local presenters and producers really are top notch. I absolutely love creating and presenting shows on BBC Radio Somerset. There have been so many highlights. Listen to just a few of them below, including Spencer Flay,

Ageing, darning, protesting - a chat with Jenni Dutton

Oct 13, 2022
1 min

Ageing, darning, protesting - a chat with Jenni Dutton

What can I say about artist Jenni Dutton? Well, we could talk about her off-the-scale talent - her making huge portraits that might appear to be drawings or paintings at first. They're actually stitched with wool, combined to create work that brought me to goosebumps and other visitors to tears when I was in the gallery recently. We could talk about the twinkle in Jenni's eye as she chats about the mystery of cloaks, and the headdresses made to send a message and perhaps, to

Art at Wick Farm

Oct 3, 2022
2 min

Art at Wick Farm

Somerset Art Weeks is in full swing (until October 9th) and one venue that's really shone a colourful and creative light on art in the county is Wick Farm. It's a little slice of magic, just outside Langport. . Before the Somerset Art Works festival began, I headed to Wick to chat with owner Penny Horne, and artists Linda and Grace Green, about the farm, their work, and their plans for Somerset Art Weeks. You can here those conversations right here... Penny's Conversation Lin

Bring on the Barnacle Buoys!

Sep 7, 2022
1 min

Bring on the Barnacle Buoys!

Away (ho!) Haul away, we'll haul away together... I've got to say, 'Haul Away Joe' has been in my head ever since I chatted with Somerset's very own sea shanty group, the Barnacle Buoys, recently. I was bringing my 'Big Night In' back to BBC Radio Somerset, and decided I wanted to celebrate the release of the film Fisherman's Friends: One and All, and do it with a little Somerset twist (obviously). Enter Kevin, Rod and Maurice, three of the buoy band... and what a chat we had

More Big Nights In!

Jul 17, 2022
1 min

More Big Nights In!

Lots of Friday night 'Big Night In's' in store for you, on BBC Radio Somerset. Over the last two weeks I've welcomed some cracking guests, including Comedians Tessa Coates and Dani Johns, who both have Edinburgh Preview Shows at Komedia Bath... we've chatted songwriting in the cab of a crane with the brilliant Spencer Flay, headed to Visit England's Pub of the Year, The Cotley Inn, and chatted getting Middle Eastern food into the Michelen Guide, with Chef Ayesha Kalaji at the

A feast of festival food

Jun 25, 2022
3 min

A feast of festival food

If you're not at Glastonbury, what better way to spend a Glasto Friday than cooking up a storm on BBC Radio Somerset! As well as a special show packed to the Pyramid with great Glasto stories, I also shared what happened when I went to make a taster of festival food with awesome Somerset chef Steve James. Here are the recipes, in case you want to get into the festival food spirit too - and scroll down to hear our cooking session as well, if you missed it! P.S. Have fun creati

Pier talk...

Jun 19, 2022
1 min

Pier talk...

A couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of chatting with the Chairman of Clevedon Pier and Heritage Trust, Phil Curme. We set up a little studio on the veranda of the Pier pagoda and our time talking just flew by! The conversation aired on BBC Radio Somerset, but I also wanted to share some of our conversation with you here, because Phil chats so brilliantly about one of the jewels in the crown of Somerset - about the pier's history, his own stories about it and about how it

Pride and Jubilation

Jun 10, 2022
1 min

Pride and Jubilation

When you watched the Platinum Jubilee Pageant, were you waiting to spot this incredible 'Jubilation' cart and the host of wonderful performers surrounding it? If not, why not? ;) because the Bridgwater Carnival Clubs came together to create this dazzling cart which was literally the pride of Somerset. Over 200 people were involved in its creation and it captured the imagination of hundreds of thousands of people the world over! It's easy to see why, isn't it? Photo credit: Br

Join Jenn on BBC Radio Somerset

Jun 9, 2022
1 min

Join Jenn on BBC Radio Somerset

Lots of radio coming up on BBC Radio Somerset over the next couple of months. To join Jenn, here are the dates... - Wednesday June 1st from 6pm - Sunday June 5th from 2pm - Jubilee Special - Monday 6th and Tuesday 7th, from 6pm - Monday 13th, Tuesday 14th, Wednesday 15th, from 6pm - Wed 22nd and Thurs 23rd, from 6pm - Friday 24th, Big Night In, from 6pm - Monday 27th, from 6pm - Friday 1st, Big Night In, from 6pm - W/c 4th July every evening from 6pm - W/c 18th July, every e

Sharing stories on BBC Radio Somerset

Feb 27, 2022
1 min

Sharing stories on BBC Radio Somerset

March and February are busy months for sharing stories on BBC Radio Somerset and chatting with the people who make the county what it is. Jenn's presenting the evening shows on the following dates: February 2022 23rd, 24th and 25th, 6-10pm March 2022 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 8th, 6-10pm 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 24th, 6-10pm 28th, 29th, 30th, 31st, 6-10pm For any shows you miss, you can catch up on BBC Sounds by following these LINKS. We'll be posting some show highlights on Instagram and T

Nominate your Somerset Gem

Jan 9, 2022
1 min

Nominate your Somerset Gem

This week, we're marking six years of Somerset cool! Can you believe it? Six years since that very first blog about The Talbot Inn in Mells (which is still awesome of course). It's been an exciting six years, lots has evolved during that time and there's lots more to come too... but for now, to celebrate six years of Somerset cool, we also want to celebrate the independent Somerset businesses, creatives, makers and producers you love. So now, you can nominate your favourites,

The Enchanted Garden of Light

Dec 30, 2021
1 min

The Enchanted Garden of Light

There's nothing more magical than twinkling lights to create a stunning Winter atmosphere and this year, The American Museum & Gardens in Claverton, near Bath, has created a beautiful visitor trail, lighting up their landscape gardens. I caught up with Amelia Christmas from the Museum, who told us more about their Enchanted Garden of Light. You can hear that chat and discover more about what's in store, right here: The Enchanted Garden of Light is shining here in Somerset unt

Debbie Issit - The Festive Big Night In

Dec 22, 2021
1 min

Debbie Issit - The Festive Big Night In

For my Festive Big Night In show on BBC Radio Somerset, I recorded some fantastic conversations for you and one of them was with the brilliant Writer and Director of the Nativity! films, Debbie Issit. Nativity! is one of my absolute favourite festive films and every year we watch, we laugh, we cry and we sing 'Sparkle and Shine'... so it was wonderful to chat with Debbie and find out a little bit more about what makes it so magical (and hilarious ;)). Grab yourself a festive

Somerset drinks - The Somerset Bar

Nov 11, 2021
1 min

Somerset drinks - The Somerset Bar

Thirsty? Is yours a cocktail or a mocktail? Well, you can have both in the plush surroundings of Somerset's beautiful cocktail bar, The Somerset. It was great to spend some time there and around the historic market town of Ilminster last week, for my 'big night in' on BBC Radio Somerset. The bar is part of Alice Temperley’s Phoenix Studios and I caught up with Bar Manager, Tom Powel, to make some delicious mocktails... and also with Mark Cresswell, who has joined with Alice t

Somerset eats - The Barrington Boar

Nov 10, 2021
1 min

Somerset eats - The Barrington Boar

As part of my look at the Somerset food scene on 'The big night in' on BBC Radio Somerset, I headed to the historic village of Barrington and to The Barrington Boar, which is a gorgeous, modern country pub serving all kinds of refined Somerset comfort food. It’s at the very heart of the village and is run by husband and wife team, Alasdair Clifford and Vicky Collins, and I started off by asking Chef Alasdair what ignited his passion for food. He actually gave one of my favour

The Big Night In!

Nov 9, 2021
4 min

The Big Night In!

Over the last few weeks, I've been bringing my 'Big Night In' to BBC Radio Somerset. The show takes the best bits of a big night out, like comedy, food, drink, and music, and delivers them right to you... so you don’t have to go anywhere! Comedy Like a laugh? Well, I've had some great guests sharing their stories with you on the show. On the 29th October, I caught up with comedian and regular on our TV screens (on shows like Live at the Apollo, QI, Have I Got News For You an

Getting to know the Exmoor ponies

Jul 26, 2021
2 min

Getting to know the Exmoor ponies

Soulful eyes, a free spirit, galloping over dramatic terrain... I’m talking about my first impression of the Exmoor ponies of course and a little while ago, I realised that I kept liking social posts about these beautiful animals, but didn’t actually know very much about the free-living ponies who have made Exmoor their home. I decided that needed to change, so I got in touch with Dawn Westcott - author, wild pony whisperer, founder of the Exmoor Pony Project and twice Intern

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