SPEAKER_00 0:05

Welcome to the B-Knight Show with Sarah Bee Knight, where she covers topics such as spirituality, investment, entrepreneurship, and personal performance. Her goal is to hopefully inspire you to reach your full potential while maintaining your equilibrium.

SPEAKER_02 0:24

Hello everybody, welcome back to the Be Night Show. This is Sarah, and today we are stepping into the world of storytelling, creativity, and the magic of live theater. Our guest is a powerhouse in the stage production scene, bringing stories to life in the most captivating way. From the vision to the stage, we'll dive into the journey of producing a play, the challenges behind the curtains, the passion that drives it all, and what is happening in 2025. So get ready for an inspiring conversation with a brilliant, and I say I don't say that lightly, a brilliant stage play producer, Jude Bachelor. Welcome to the show, Jude.

SPEAKER_01 1:13

Hi, thank you for having me. And thanks for that nice intro.

SPEAKER_02 1:18

So I'm so glad you're here. And I will tell you what, this is the first time we're doing anything in production and creativity. And most of our guests have been from different walks of life, but the theme remains the same. We are here to inspire, we are here to tap into that thing that drives everyone to go for their goals and perhaps also to connect and network with our audience. So I would like to invite you first and foremost to tell the audience a little bit about yourself, a little bit of who you are and what you do and how you do it. Just a brief introduction of Jude.

SPEAKER_01 1:56

Okay. Well, I'm the youngest of six girls. So I have five older sisters. So I'm the youngest. So I think I'm leading that to say that I got away with a lot of things. So where my sisters would get in trouble, I really wouldn't. And I think that this that allowed me to be fearless because I didn't really have any consequence, but you know, like with being told off or anything like that. So I was fearless. And I've taken that attitude and that way of being through the rest of my life. So creatively, I started as an actress and did that for a few years, well, quite a long while, and produced a lot of my own work. And then I got bored of being an actor and I just didn't like, I really just didn't like the treatment of, you know, behind the scenes of how it is when you're treated, when you when you know, when you go through an audition and you get a grumpy casting direct and you get somebody who really feels they're above their station, and I just really got fed up of it all. But what I was always intrigued with was the work behind the scenes. So I moved away from acting and I became an acting coach. And I worked for Femi Oggins, who runs the identity drama school. He's really well known for producing a lot of well-known Hollywood actors like John Boylega and Letitia Wright and the likes. And I was one of his first acting coach. So started doing that and really started to enjoy that. Went on to do a lot of drama facilitation in schools and then started to do coaching privately, you know, working with a lot of other actors who are on screen and on TV. Carried on with it within the world of media and theatre, and I went to work for Warner Brothers as a film company, was there for about four years, but that was just secretarial. But I still got to see a lot of behind the scenes and how it how it all worked. And to bring it all forward, I decided to then do all of that, only then to want to go back into acting after leaving it. And I ended up doing and writing a play, producing a play, and when we spoke before the interview, we both mentioned we've got a mutual friend, which is Omar, and I wrote a play called A Mother Speaks, which his production company produced. So I did this as an actress, then I got bored of it, and then I decided to leave it, went back again and started doing the coaching, and got bored of that, decided, okay, I think I like producing, and I've stuck with kind of producing stuff ever since. So that's that's a lot that's that's me, Sarah. You shouldn't have asked the question.

SPEAKER_02 4:53

Oh God, I like how versatile you are. And I think this is this can be both a challenge or a challenge and a something positive for creatives because sometimes creatives find it hard to decide on where to put their energy or what to focus on. Like if somebody is maltalented and they can write and they can play and they can, you know, produce and all those sorts of things, I believe which most creatives are uh it is it must be a challenge just to decide, okay, today I'm going to do this, or tomorrow I've decided to do that, or even to bring everything together and be able to juggle the the whole line of things. So, how do you go about that? How do you wake up and go like, okay, I've decided to do this, or do you do you follow your instinct, or do you do you how do you navigate through the the the talent that you have?

SPEAKER_01 5:51

I'll I'll I'm gonna let you into something, and this is just a little bit more serious. I I came down with a chronic uh illness called rheumatoid arthritis. I bought my property in 2015 after leaving Warner Brothers, and whilst I was at Warner Brothers, I used to get aches and pains in my knees and in my ankles and things like that. And then as time got on, in 2016-17, I got told I have rheumatoid arthritis, which is something that really does debilitate the uh joints. And I if we're gonna be honest and transparent, which is you know what I think is the main ingredient for your podcast, be nice, I'm gonna be honest. I am now in a position where I need a wheelchair, and also I, you know, I have dexterity issues with my hands, I have a need support. So this is where I'm at physically. So to answer your question, when you said, so what do I do? And and when I get up and what do I think, having all these multiple talents is that before this disease happened, I think I was had the talents, did what I did when I've explained every all the all the kinds of things I've already achieved, but I never had my backup against the wall. And I have my backup against the wall due to being somebody that is housebound and in in has to have a carer and things like that, which is what my situation is at the moment. And so it makes my decision making and what I do creatively even greater. So I would say that sometimes, you know, when a bad thing happens, it's really, really just to kind of give you a message to say, you know, you can either look at it this way or the other way. Now I'm looking, I'm taking from it strength, even though I'm weak and weak in joints because of the debilitating joints, I actually am strong in mind. So when I get up in the morning, and where I will deliberate whether I should write a play, coach somebody famous, or you know, in what I used to do, now I get up with a bit with 100% focus, and I just literally say, I am going to do this, and I am going to do that. And so whether I get up and say, I am going to produce this play, sorry, this show that we're doing for Sisters on Screen, that came about when I was just in bed and I thought, I'm going to do something celebrating all of the black and black and Asian actresses and TV stars that I have admired. I'm going to do this, I just said to myself, and that's it. And then when my Kira arrived, I was ready, sat up, ready for her to tend to me and help me out. They assist me to uh get into the chair. And then I then, you know, proceeded and said, I'm gonna make this happen. So that's the difference with me, is that how I choose the choose from the multiple, you know, talents that you say that I have, and I believe I do have, actually, is that I do believe that I have them. Whereas before it was like, part winging it, part know that I can try it, let's just see. Whereas now I fully believe in myself because of what I'm going through. So does that yeah?

SPEAKER_02 9:08

So much for being honest and being vulnerable at the same time. And I I I've always said that there's strength in one being vulnerable because at the end of the day, and again, the purpose for this show is to show people that you know what you can always make it no matter what. And you are living proof that these things that have challenged the challenges that you you you you are faced with have not become, you have not become those challenges. However, they have even helped you to narrow down to get to to get even more focused on a certain area, to even create a new path that never was there before. And we're going to talk about that new path, but however, going back to the to the blessing, it's a blessing and a caste. It can't be a blessing, depending on the mindset that you bring to the table, depending on like if somebody's got so many talented talents, rather, they are going to either get overwhelmed and get confused and drive themselves into depression, or they can choose to go like, you know what, I'm so blessed, I can do this, and then they get a different energy that actually drives them and pushes them to do even better. So when I was reading a book, I was reading a book about analytical music uh therapy, and it's written by a very famous lady, Mary Presley. She passed a few years ago. And I remember she did mention in one of her interviews that the reason she was initially an artist, a performing artist, she was a musician, and she could do so many other things. But what drove her to actually discover and bring this new thing to the world was when she went through a challenging time. And this was she she suffered from an event happened in her life that made her suffer from bipolar. And in that process, she ended up in hospital. And even much as she was there for like a period of time, like we're talking months, she was able to write letters every day just to make like note of what was happening and what wasn't happening. The fact that she was bipolar, there were moments when she was aware of her surroundings and everything, and then she was able to see the loopholes on in how people were treated and how somebody could step up and do something positive. And that became a thing in a way that she, when she came out, she decided to retrain. And believe it or not, she introduced the analytical music therapy, which has gone to help so many people, and it is studied at different universities in the world. So again, it's the mindset that we bring to the table. It is how we translate these things and and what we choose to do challenges that have been thrown to us. So you spoke of Black and Asia actors and celebrating them and all that, and this is how we connected. I I I came across your we are Sisters on Screen, yes, which is I believe coming up very soon. Can you talk us through that? How do you get to that level and what it is first and foremost? What is what is it? And yeah.

SPEAKER_01 12:22

Yes, yeah. Well, well, as I said, when I came up with the with the whole idea, it was to choose a selection of women from from be it that they're TV chefs, their presenters, or they're actors, or they're news readers, that through my life, I'm I'm 56 years old. So through my time, I've always admired. And so I decided to first of all choose the two actresses that I really admired, which was Tamika Epson and Diane Parish. And I think when I spoke to them and you know proposed the idea, I said, I don't know if you're aware that you've made history. And they were like, What do you mean? I said, You're the longest-running black women to play sisters on television. So wow, when you look at the years that they've, and I don't remember exactly the years, but it's been a really long time, well over 10 years, that they've played sisters as characters, as black women on British soap. That's never happened before. So there's that. So I wanted to really highlight that, but the name Sisters on screen was born way before I approached them. It was just an idea of the endearment that we as black women always will say, You're my sister, you know, you're my brother. We always have that because of our kinship. So that's where the name comes from. And to include Asian women, because I think it was just a case of, of course, you know, black women, and as a black woman myself, we're to the forefront. I believe we are the leaders, okay? But to include the Asian women, there have been some that I had to admit, no, I have admired Nadia Hussein, who does the cooking, you know, and I have admired, you know, there's the lady who's got the pixie haircut, I can't remember her name, she reads on BBC News. So I thought, no, you know, credit, credit is, you know, you give credit where it's due. So that's why I did include to say black and Asian women as well. So when I put the idea, so the idea for Sisters on Screen is that you're when you when the audience does come, it's going to be a wonderful conversation with the actresses about their journey. And there used to be a show way back called This Is Your Life, and what they were doing, where they were presenting whatever personality, stage personality, with their life story. So it's a bit similar in that it will be this is their life, meaning this is your career journey, and we are going to celebrate it and talk about it. So there'll be the first half is a celebration of their careers, how they met, you know, just the ins and outs of of how they've navigated their success. And because they've got such a big following with the show, you know, in East Enders, there are people that are going to be keen to know the person behind the characters that they see. So there's a lovely QA, and it'll be a real fun one. And in the second half, it will be a performance that they'll buzz give. A nice short performance. I can't give that part away, but there'll be a performance, and it's a treat because most people have only seen them through the TV lens and they've never seen them together live. So they themselves are looking forward to it because they are going to step out of the characters that they play on EastEnders and they're going to become whatever they're going to become without giving it away. They're going to do what they're going to do. And that's that's to me, then showing both sides of the coins of these two women, showing, giving you who they are in their journeys, and then showing you what they can do and what you've always loved about them. Because they really are, really are loved. Because I've having done this and seen the response I'm getting in the DMs I'm getting, and uh, will we get to meet them? And will there be this and will there be that? And you know, it's people so excited to meet these two actresses, and it's it's it's a wonderful thing for me as a black woman to see, you know what, these two ladies are truly loved, and we're in Britain at the moment, we're not out in America where we usually do, where we have, you know, a lot of the American stars that we idolise. These are two homegrown ladies, you know, and so the whole show will be a, as I said, a lovely conversation, a performance, a chance with some great audience interaction, and then we're gonna continue the party with once the show ends, we'll be in the bar and everybody will have a chance to have a photo opportunity. Well, not everyone, as much as we can get that there'll be some photographers there to take photos of you know the their die hard fans and things like that. So we're gonna continue this kind of party feel, and it's just one whole big celebration. I'm even planning on buying some chocolate celebrations and handing them out.

SPEAKER_02 17:04

So that's what we're doing. I'm loving this. Um I've already envisioned myself and being there and seeing these women being celebrated, and I must admit, oh gosh, I'm a big fan of the these two ladies, especially Tamika. I love I love her character on EastEnders. Yeah, I just checked she's been on East Enders since 2009. Okay, there you go. There you go. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's a long stretch. Yes, and you've given us uh details on what's going to happen and how things are going to unfold.

SPEAKER_01 17:39

And this is in March, right? Yeah, it's on March, Saturday, March the 29th. And I have to say, Sarah, that the tickets are flying off the shelves. They there's yeah, they are. So if you gotta grab your ticket, you've got to grab your ticket.

SPEAKER_02 17:55

And for the benefit of the listener, um I already know where to get my ticket from, but uh for the benefit of the listener who is a big who could be a big fan of the two sisters, how can they get where can they find the tickets? And you say this in March 29th.

SPEAKER_01 18:09

Yes, yeah, how can they find these tickets? Well, you'll just go to all the W's, www.millfieldtheatre.com, or you could just Google Millfield Theatre, and it's in Edmonton Green. I don't know if people are familiar with Edmonton Green, which is the neighbouring borough to Tottenham. And I think the nearest train line, if people are coming from afar, which a lot of people are, I think there's a silver silver street, I think is the nearest train that brings you very close to the actual theatre itself. And yeah, that's where it will be. If they go on to We Are Sisters on Screen Instagram, the link in our bio will bring them straight to the page where they can click and get a ticket. And if they have any problems, because so few people have been a bit like can't find it on the website. What do we do? There is a telephone number on the website that you can ring and you could just ring through to the box office. And unfortunately, I'm not in control of that side because it's not my theatre, I'm just somebody, you know, using their wonderful space, but really all the bookings are through through them. So if they get any problems with the website, milfield.com, then please ring the box office. Cool.

SPEAKER_02 19:32

And that's Milfield M I L L F I E L D. And what time does it start? Sorry? What time does the show start?

SPEAKER_01 19:42

Oh, so it's an evening performance starting at 7.30. And 7.30 till around 9.30 is the whole performance inside the theatre. So that there's the Q ⁇ A and everything else. And then when we come out into the bar area, we can be in the bar till about say 10:30. So the bar will still be open for people to buy drinks. But as I said, a lot of people will probably be queuing up to take photographs with them. And also they're coming with some prizes as well. They're coming with some, we'll do a raffle where we're hoping to get a few, you know, East Ender memorabilia that the ladies add and a few, not just EastEnders, but you, you know, Tamika and I are both well known for shows such as The Bill, such as Big Life and Three Non-Blondes. So definitely there will be hopefully adding that to the mix of the gifts if they can, if they can. So somebody could win a a raffle as well. Oh, brilliant.

SPEAKER_02 20:40

I'm so looking forward to just seeing them on stage, to be honest. And speaking of which, after that, what what's in what what do you have planned for what is building after beyond Sisters on Screen?

SPEAKER_01 20:53

Well, beyond you see, Sisters on Screen is just a small subsidiary to my company. My company's called Bachelor of Arts Theatre and Media. And it's been a little bit quiet due to my health, as explained earlier on in the interview, but I still kind of keep it active here and there with events like this. So Sisters on Screen is just a small subsidiary to Bachelor of Arts, it's just one of the many things that we'll be producing. The next Sisters on Screen, my aim is to honour TV chefs. So I've sort of been in talks with the British Library, and I may be now going for it for next year, May. They did say they did talk about me being slotted into their food season, and that would be work really well with the next Sisters on Screen celebrates. But I'm going to probably, Sarah, make it happen for the following year. This is also just being transparent. Next month I'll be going for my first knee replacement. So that's just a bit of transparency for your listeners. That's also why once this is on screen with Tamika and Diane is done. I need to have a break, revive again. And the next one we bring out will be the TV chefs. Hopefully Nadia Hussein, Lorraine Pascal, Rusty Lee, who's a very she's a veteran as a TV chef, and possibly Andy Oliver. That's my dream lineup, I would say. And that's who I'll try and aim and go for. So hopefully I'll be speaking to you again on on your podcast and speaking about that particular sister's on screen when it when it happens.

SPEAKER_02 22:30

Brilliant. We'll look forward to that. So for someone listening right now, someone sitting on the fence, someone wanting to probably go for their dreams, especially the theatre production and the rest of it, what advice would you give them?

SPEAKER_01 22:44

Any Yeah, I think if you're on the fence, you need to get off of it. It's not a very comfortable seat anyway, a fence. So jump off of that fence. And if you can take anything from this interview, then just take my first things that I said to you, Sarah, which was the honesty about my health and condition. And just know that, you know, we are blessed to have health. And if you are blessed to have health, then go for it, get off the fence. And if you are having health challenges like me, also get off of the fence because it's but it because things are possible. So that's what I would say to somebody who's sat on the fence, they're deliberating, they're not sure, then get brave. Get really, really brave, I would say.

SPEAKER_02 23:30

I like that. I just finished a program about setting goals for 2025. And one of the things that stood out was courage, getting brave, being courageous, and just going for it. Because at the end of the day, the more we hold back, the more painful it becomes. And the why or how what if, what if I done this, what if you know? So there's no better way to go around this than actually going for the goals. As we learn this, I would like to do you have any words of wisdom, any memorable codes, or somebody that has inspired you over the years that has that you look back to and go, like, oh, if it wasn't for this person in this industry, I wouldn't be here. And the reason I'm asking that is because, especially in the Black, Asian minority communities, we have very, very few people to look up to, very few people who inspire us. And like uh, like we said, we have a mutual friend Omar who has put together an amazing thing, the Black Um British Words. And prior to that, there was very few people to look up to in that area, in that industry. So I was wondering growing up, who did you used to look up to, who did you used to admire, or who did you want to be like that inspired you to go for your dreams?

SPEAKER_01 24:49

Well, I would first of all say my mom, but I'd also have to sort of kind of slightly disagree with with the statement of there isn't enough. I think if somebody does their research, they're going to find out there's tons of inspiring black women and black men in the world of the arts, be it behind the scenes and in front of the camera or off the stage and backstage. There are tons. People need to not just accept what's been offered, they need to delve in even more, and they will find those inspirational people. Because there's tons. There is tons. Equal to the white man, there is tons. They've just not been spoken up enough. That's all it is. So what was the it was to was you saying, I would say, who's inspired me? Okay, my mum. My mum always used to say, if you don't ask, you don't get. And so keep asking, keep asking questions, keep saying why. Keep saying, well, well, well, why isn't there a continuous show of of say like loose women with or all black females all the time? Why does it have to be a speciality thing? So why, why, why? So my mum used to say, if you don't ask, you don't get. So keep asking, and you will get. And if you don't know, if you if you can't ask an actual person, ask yourself and say, why am I in this predicament? Why am I not off that fence just yet? Why? You know, turn it in, turn it internal to yourself. And if you're gonna look for somebody inspirational, then be the inspiration that you're looking for, then. Because if you don't feel there's nobody out there like me, thinking of me, the ideas that I've got, then then create and be that person so that whoever else is coming up behind you can then say, oh, it's her. It's it's Sarah, it's how Sarah is. That's how I'd like to be. Because so had Sarah not have created this podcast and is not on a journey to becoming, you know, an Oprah and somebody that she deems. If there was no one, if Oprah didn't believe she was an Oprah, there would have been none. So you do that. So I think instead of seeking somebody for somebody to be an inspiration, just say, okay, you know what, I think I'm just gonna become who I'm looking for.

SPEAKER_02 27:06

I like that. And I'm glad you tapped on that because when I first started, I used to know quite a few people that well, connections and that sort of thing. But I always, always had questions growing up. And believe it or not, of course, my mom used to say, Oh, you'll find out when you grow up. Like I had tons of questions. But then when you grow up, it's very hard to call up a friend or to phone somebody and go, like, hey Tamika, what uh, or or hey Jude, what what drives you? What do you think about this? So I sat down one day and thought, hang on a minute, what if I sat down with these people and actually not only asked the questions that I want I would like to be answered, but I also asked on behalf of other people. So, like what we're doing here, I might quite be in the industry that you are in. But I believe and I know quite a few people who are in the creative industry, who are in the theater, and uh many have doubted their abilities or even the possibilities that are out there. So, in a way, I sort of had to create a space to answer those questions for myself. And I knew that if I had these questions, so many other people have the same questions as myself. So, yeah, I like how you've put it that if you cannot find that person, become that person. It would can be difficult, but then again, who said it was going to be easy?

SPEAKER_01 28:30

That's right. I think just enjoy the just enjoy the ride, enjoy the keep enjoying the journey and know that there'll be you know many, many more journeys, you know, like a tree that has many branches. That's what you you know, that's what you'll realize. It doesn't just have an end, it doesn't have an end. So you just inspiring yourself, that's what you're doing, inspiring others through through conversation. And I've really enjoyed this, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 28:58

I'm so glad you you you you you showed up. I'm so glad you did this with us, and I look forward to doing uh more with you in the near future. However, if somebody due to mentorship, you said you do coaching, and how if somebody got inspired and wanted to get in touch with you, how how can they go about that?

SPEAKER_01 29:17

Well, I think if they do it through Instagram, through the the DM, but I would have to sort of just just kind of have a bit of a caution for now and just let me get over the the obstacle of my health and healing. And once that's done, then yes. But if if I I'm quite happy to repeat that again if somebody were to reach out to me and and they'd heard the podcast, I'd say, yes, I I you know, I could have, I will have the availability at some point, but just not now, you know. But I still, I still occasionally have friends, or I have a lot of friends who are still in the industry who'll ring and say, Oh Jad, I've got an audition. And sometimes I do some coaching over the phone, and then they call me and say, Oh, I got that audition, thanks, and stuff like that. So I know I've still got it, but I'm again, you may, as I said at the beginning of the conversation, I jump from I'm still in the creative field, but I jump from from each thing, like, oh, do a bit of coaching. No, I don't want to do that anymore. Now I want to do this, da da da da da. But you know, so I think my sweet spot, I think I'll stay out, which is producing. But I am happy to obviously give anybody any tidbits or any guidance if they're gonna ask about just just something to help to help them along the way. Brilliant.

SPEAKER_02 30:31

Thank you so much. So for the listeners, uh, you can find, you can connect with her on Instagram, and that is Six Sisters on Screen.

SPEAKER_01 30:40

And um yeah, we yeah, we are sisters on screen. We are sisters, yeah, and you can send me a DM. All right. Thank you, Sarah. I really hope I meet you. I hope I get to meet you. If you've not met Tamika personally, then I will try and make sure that I get you to meet her.

SPEAKER_02 31:00

I'll be more than happy to do that. I believe I I shall be at that at a theater, and yes, I would love to meet her.

SPEAKER_01 31:08

Yes, we'll we'll make it happen. And then you'll come and introduce yourselves to me. Yeah. Yes, and you'll get a hug and I'll hug you back. There you go.

SPEAKER_02 31:19

Thank you. Thank you so much. Um going to with those few words. Uh, it's been a pleasure talking to you, and we look forward to connecting very soon. Same here. Pleasure.

SPEAKER_00 31:32

Thank you for tuning in to the latest episode of the Be Nice Show. Be sure to subscribe on iTunes, Google Store, Spotify for the latest show, or visit www.sarah be nice.co.uk forward slash podcast. Stay tuned for the next episode. Be nice.