1. Describe your hometown Manchester in one sentence.

A city full of Northern Soul and pride (1) in its working class roots.

2. What would you call typically Welsh?

Valleys (2), singing and a great rugby team!

3. Which are your 3 favourite places in Wales?

• Llanbadrig – a little church at the most northerly tip of Anglesey where you can see Middle Mouse Island
• Beaumaris – a pretty little town on the south coast of Anglesey
• Penmon point – a rocky beach, a lighthouse and a community of rockpools (3) full of wildlife. There are many more places I love here too!

Links: Blick von Porth Wen auf Middle Mouse Island in Wales 

4. Which are your 3 favourite places in Great Britain?

• Manchester (of course!)
• The East Lancashire/West Yorkshire moors, where the hills are wild
• Loch Awe in Scotland, as it is breathtaking and peaceful.

5. What is the idea and philosophy behind Middle Mouse?

To tell stories and to share a little joy in a turbulent world. I started the company with my Dad in 2018 – he was a cookery and garden writer and I was an illustrator. We invented the Cardlet to blend our two passions together and create something people could send to their loved ones that said more than a card could. His words, my pictures. Unfortunately Dad passed away on his birthday in 2018 and after some soul searching, I decided to keep the business going in his memory.

6. What were the milestones in your career?

I ran a bookshop in Lancashire with my dear friend, Sam Tickner, after graduating university. There we learned about customer service, great products, what sells and how to buy it. We then started a design studio, Firecatcher, which created graphics and illustration for companies such as The BBC, arts festivals, as well as working on several large projects in hospitals, designing artwork for Children’s wards. I still work with Firecatcher today.

A major milestone was overcoming imposter syndrome to exhibit at PG Live in London 2019 – where I launched Middle Mouse for the first time. Our first order was for a bookshop in London – coming full circle!

7. What or who inspires you most?

Stories, literature, nature and good fun. I like the idea that our products inspire, delight, amuse and entertain.

8. What was your best nature-experience?

Helping a baby seal reach its mother as it was stuck on a rock in Llanfairyngornwy, around 2005. We cheered as it reached the open seas!

9. What does your ideal weekend look like?

Brunch with my husband and friends at a quirky (4) café in the city, walking my dog, Pippin (a border collie), in the Lancashire hills, browsing a bookshop or two, then home to cook lasagne. I’d happily spend the rest of the next day reading and drinking tea!

10. What is your favourite British dish?

Welsh Rarebit – every time! It’s basically cheese on toast, but the beer makes all the difference. It’s great with a couple of rashers of bacon (5) too.

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