The Catalyst project is an ongoing collaboration between the University of Cumbria, Art Gene, the Cumbria Local Enterprise Partnership and the Cumbria Arts and Culture Network.

Its aim was to find three artists with Cumbrian connections– to fund them to the tune of £25,000 each, to give them an opportunity to make a substantial piece of new art connected to the county over a year. Over 220 people applied.

Emma McGordon was one of the three award winners. She’s a poet, writer and storyteller originally from West Cumbria. She’s making a film about the area she’s from – something she’s never done before.

Tom Speight met up with her on the beach at St Bees, one of the key locations in Emma’s so far untitled film…

Rosehill is a beautiful arts centre based just outside Whitehaven high up overlooking the Irish Sea.

It’s a hub for all kinds of performance and brings both local and national talent on stage. But it’s also increasingly engaging with its local community too.

CACN’s Tom Speight went along to talk to the people who are now running Rosehill to see how their plans are coming together for 2025. And we also get a chance to hear a Rosehill performance too – by Glaswegian singer-songwriter Alice Faye, on her Cumbria debut! She spoke with Tom Salmon and played him one or two of her tunes too....

Lorna Singleton is one of Britain’s last remaining swillers, a specialist in weaving baskets using coppiced oak and hazel. Using simple hand tools and ancient techniques, she creates baskets based on traditional patterns from South Cumbria as well as patterns found on her travels.

She’s based in Grizedale Forest – and as well as running her own one woman basket making business, she’s spent the last year teaching seven basketmakers the unique skills of spelk basketry on a course called Wood Water Weave.

This autumn, a beautiful exhibition by the same name has opened at Grizedale Forest Gallery, showing off the wonderful products they’ve all made.

For this episode of Behind the Scenery, Tom Speight went to talk to some of the basket makers. But he began by visiting Lorna in her workshop – to find out how she works…