Tempus fugit doesn't it when I pen that I've been Editor of Menopause Matters magazine since 2017 and in b2b publishing for over three decades!

Those years have been spent editing and writing about healthy eating, meat, farming and food industries, a brief foray in life science publishing with the creative thinker Peter Houston and now I edit the UK's only printed and digital menopause magazine, first published back in 2005!

Off screen it's now a chosen quiet life in my garden, surrounded by trees, with my labrador, try to grow veg, travelling, reading, walking, feasting with friends, trying to open my ears to newer music but most tunes playing in the background are pre-2010 I admit! I'm heavily involved with the wonderful charity that is Farms for City Children, help a struggling village hall, rant and rave on a parish council, always intend to write a book and reading is a lifelong love...

Andy is the founder of Cowles Media, a design consultancy specialising in brand identities powered by exceptional content. His leadership roles include Editorial Development Director of Time Inc. UK, Creative Director of Mademoiselle for Condé Nast, and Creative Director of Rolling Stone - both in New York City. He's also a Guardian Masterclass trainer, a visiting lecturer on the UAL University MA programme, and the winner of the BSME Mark Boxer Award for lifetime achievement in the publishing industry.

Director, The Good Vikings boutique content agency

Editor, We Are Makers magazine
Non-executive director, International Magazine Centre
Former Head of Content, August Media
Former Chair, British Society of Magazine Editors.

Happiest when making, thinking about or sitting back with highly crafted editorial and elegant design. Far too many magazines and bookmarks on the ‘to read’ list. 

Gemma has worked for 1919 since its launch in 2021. She has nearly 20 years of experience working in journalism, with most of those spent working in the Scottish media, including almost a decade at the Edinburgh Evening News. She previously worked for Holyrood Magazine, where she was named Scottish Writer of the Year 2020 in the PPA Scotland awards. Last year, she was highly commended in the writer of the year category for her role with 1919.

Hailing from Toronto, I came over to the UK in 1994 for what was supposed to be a 3 month music exploration of my favourite bands. One thing led to another and I ended up working in the music industry before moving to Edinburgh in 2000. A role was created for me at The List magazine as Promotions Executive due to my connections in the music industry but it wasn't long before I knew that working at The List was much more than a job to me. Fast forward 22 years and after the pandemic threatened to shut The List down for good, myself and my team re-launched The List 2.0 in Jan 2022 and have been rebuilding it ever since.

Simon is an award-winning editorial, portrait and documentary photographer, and an award-winning designer of museum and gallery exhibitions and events. He is the founder of JANVS Design and the VIDAR Media Group of companies (JANVS | VIDAR) with over thirty years experience in communication design and arts project management.

Simon’s photography has appeared in many newspapers, journals and magazines, including National Geographic, the Sunday Times, the Telegraph and the Observer, as well as numerous books and periodicals in the UK and Europe.

In 2017, Simon became the first British photographer to win the International Art Portrait Photography Award; he is a former Kodak Photographer of the Year and, in 2019, he was named Professional Photographer of the Year by the British Institute of Professional Photography. In 2020 Simon was awarded Invited Fellowship of the Master Photographers Association (FMPA) and of the British Institute of Professional Photography (FBIPP).

Simon is President of the Royal Photographic Society (RPS), the learned society for photographic art and science incorporated under Royal Charter, with HRH The Princess of Wales as its Patron. In 1991 he was awarded Fellowship of the Society (FRPS) and in January 2021, on his election as President, Simon was made an Honorary Fellow (HonFRPS). Elected for a further term in 2023, when his Presidency ends in September 2025 he will become the longest serving President of the Society since the late 1800s.

Simon is also Chair of the Society of Illustrators Artists and Designers (SIAD), a position he has held since 2003. SIAD is an international not-for-profit organisation which awards professional accreditation through peer-assessed reviews of professional practice and experience.

Simon’s exhibition and event design projects have won many awards including AHI Best New Museum, HLF Renaissance Museum of the Year and the HLF Arts Inspiration Award. His landscape designs for the Woodland Trust have won bronze and silver-gilt medals at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show. Most recently, his project at 'Fortress Spike Island' in the Republic of Ireland was voted European Tourist Attraction of the Year at the World Tourism Awards, and Global Attraction of the Year at the International Travel and Tourism Awards.

A former Special Adviser in Cultural Heritage and the Arts to the Council of Europe (Strasbourg), UNESCO (Former Yugoslavia) and McKinsey & Company (UK & Europe), Simon is currently a consultant in cultural heritage and public art to AECOM and Colliers International.

John Innes

Chair PPA Scotland, Executive Director Think

If you live in Scotland you will probably have received one of the magazines that John’s team write, edit, design and publish. Based in Glasgow, John runs a team that publish digital content, print magazines, podcasts and virtual events on behalf of brands including the National Trust for Scotland, Historic Scotland, Royal British Legion Scotland, Royal Photographic Society, The Arts Society and the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.

I've been a journalist since 1995, working on newspapers at a local and national level across the UK. I joined TFN, Scotland's magazine and news website for the voluntary sector, as news editor in 2014 and have been editor since 2020.

Mike is Managing Director of Mearns & Gill, a creative marketing agency based in Aberdeen. As the longest-standing marketing & design agency in Scotland, Mearns & Gill are dedicated to making an impact in delivering outstanding graphic design, brand strategy, website development, digital marketing, and event management services to their clients. The business works across all sectors and Scottish geographies, collaborating with ambitious brands and people in providing marketing that makes a difference.