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Do you love hearing the secret stories of brilliant entrepreneurs? In each episode of The Big Swing, Sam Barcroft interviews a pioneer from the world of content to find out the three biggest decisions they made on their way to success. And to top it off, they finally decide which was their one Big Swing - the move that changed everything. And at the end of each episode, Sam uses his thirty years of experience in the media to uncover the brilliant insights in the episode that we can use to he ...
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FINALE: How I Trailblazed to the very top of TV: Dawn Airey, Media Chair
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Dawn Airey is a legendary leader in British Media. She has been at the top of ITV, Sky, Channel 4 and most famously Channel Five where she was the debut Director of Programmes before becoming CEO and Chair of the Board. And that’s before heading off to Yahoo!, before becoming CEO of Getty images and then moving upstairs into board roles at Thomas C…
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From PR Guru to Publisher: Justin Crosby, Founder, Boom Dialogue
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Justin Crosby founded Boom Dialogue 13 years ago. Boom is a go-to, international PR agency representing prestigious clients who produce and distribute award-winning TV and video content across all genres. Justin has successfully raised the profile of many companies, including my previous business Barcroft Studios. But when Covid hit, years of his h…
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How I reshaped history for the digital age: Dan Snow, Founder of HistoryHit
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Dan Snow co-founded History Hit - the world’s premier digital platform for all things history - on the sly, as a few anonymous social media accounts whilst presenting prime-time history shows for the BBC. As a top television presenter, Dan was living a charmed life. But he was passionate about joining the digital revolution - so he jumped in despit…
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How I developed into TV's go-to coach: Remy Blumenfeld, Founder, Leader and Pioneer
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Remy Blumenfeld is one of television’s original entrepreneurs. He is a trailblazer who set up Brighter Pictures, one of Britain’s most successful independent production companies from his front room in 1991. Remy built it into one of the UK’s leading production companies, identifying a niche that allowed the company to pioneer a television format r…
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How I became the king of viral videos: Jonathan Skogmo, Founder of Jukin Media
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Jonathan Skogmo is not easily put off. His first business was shut down for being deemed illegal by the grown-ups. He was 10 and had syndicated his newspaper delivery round. A few businesses later (including above ground pool installation and mobile DJing), he found himself unable to get hired as a valet in Hollywood, desperate to break into the en…
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How I Survived, Then Thrived: Debs Paterson, Skywalker Legacy and Willow Director
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Debs Paterson is a multi-award winning director of premier drama shows - especially fantasy and sci-fi - for the likes of Netflix, Showtime and now Disney+. Check out her work helming the resurrection of the Willow saga. But her journey to the top required unusual levels of resilience, persistence and positivity: she had to recover from a near-deat…
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Why we raised millions to make 14 Peaks: Nothing is Impossible ourselves : John McKenna, CEO, Noah Media
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Noah Media Group is multi-award winning production, distribution and technology company. They made their name producing lauded feature length sports documentaries that have won BAFTAs, Emmy’s and been selected for the most prestigious film festival in the world: Cannes. Not only that, they are now developing new technology to harness the massive am…
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How we built Barcroft Studios, with Alex Morris, CCO and Sam Barcroft, CEO
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In this special episode of The Big Swing, our host Sam Barcroft, is joined by one of his key business partners from Barcroft Studios, Chief Creative Officer Alex Morris to relieve the highs and lows of growing - and then selling - Barcroft Studios. The company was founded in 2003 in Sam’s spare bedroom in Tottenham, London in 2003. With a backgroun…
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How I started Hollywood's first digital photo agency: Paul Harris, Founder of Online USA
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Paul Harris is a world-renowned photographer who was the go-to for Hollywood’s A-list celebrities (and beyond) in the 1980s and 1990s. He counts Hunter S Thompson, Richard Nixon, Muhammed Ali, Carrie Fisher and the Williams sisters among the long list of icons who have trusted him to photograph their portrait. But Paul is also a pioneering business…
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How I Created a Subscription Platform from Scratch: Tobi Oredein, Founder and CEO of BLACK BALLAD
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Online subscription platforms are one of the toughest things to build in media-land. Even storied, venerated media brands like The Times have struggled to get this business model to work. But Tobi Oredein has successfully created and scaled BLACK BALLAD - the UK’s most popular multimedia platform for black British women - despite the odds being sta…
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To celebrate the end of the work year, Sam has shared his thoughts about how to end 2022 positively. Thanks so much for listening to The Big Swing Podcast, where we hear the secret stories of remarkable content pioneers. Produced in association with the brilliant Spirit Studios Executive Producer: Fred Casella Sound Designer: Will Horrocks Producer…
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How to become a legendary music producer - Jim Eliot, songwriter for Halsey, Ellie Goulding and Kylie Minogue
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Jim Eliot is one of the UK’s most successful and prolific pop producers He has written hit songs for Kylie Minogue, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Halsey, Olly Murs and Leona Lewis to name just a few. So how did Jim do from writing jingles in a broom-cupboard, to lounging by a pool in the French Riviera toasting his latest No. 1 hits? From Creatorville, the …
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How to succeed in Hollywood: Jessica Hargrave, producer of THE KEEPERS and GOOD NIGHT OPPY
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Jessica Hargrave is one of Hollywood’s most sought after documentary producers. But Jess started her career working in the mail room of a Hollywood agency, making films with her best friend in her spare time. And after years of hard work and some great independent movie releases, Jess hit the big time. She burst onto the scene as the producer of th…
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How to build the world's biggest platform for the LGBTQ+ community: Benjamin Cohen
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Pink News was founded by Benjamin Cohen when he was only 23. It was a side-hustle to his main job as an on-screen news correspondent on UK’s Channel 4 News. Fast forward seventeen years, and Pink News is now the world’s most popular online platform for the LGTBQ+ community, reaching over 60 million unique users per month across their various channe…
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How to become a real-life Indiana Jones: Explorer Levison Wood's biggest decisions
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The Times of London calls Levison Wood “Britain’s best-loved adventurer”. Levison is loved for his incredibly dangerous adventures (including being the first person to walk the length of the Nile) and the captivating way he chronicles his journeys through his photographs, books and documentaries. But there’s another story that is rarely told. It's …
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