Latest news with #JoWhiley
Scotsman
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
New interactive map reveals the Scottish locations behind hit songs
A new interactive map containing hundreds of places featured in the songs, music artwork and music videos of Britain's favourite artists has been released by National Rail - with places across Edinburgh and Glasgow featured. It is being released alongside new research showing how intrinsic music is to those in Scotland. Sign up to our daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to Edinburgh News, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... The new map features locations across Edinburgh and Glasgow with a connection to iconic artists such as The Proclaimers, Jockstrap, Abba, The Fall, Passenger and more. Locations such as Leigh, Killermont Street and Byres Road feature - revealing the stories connecting these Scottish spots to famous artists. The map has been released alongside new research showing the deep-rooted connection between music and those who reside in Scotland. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad It reveals that nearly half of Scots (46%) have attended a gig in the past 12 months, with almost a quarter having been to a music festival (23%). National Rail - Behind the tracks Amongst them, the artist seen the most was Taylor Swift (23%) followed by Pink (9%). Other popular artists with Scots include Sabrina Carpenter, Coldplay and Bruce Springsteen (all 8%). Music mega fans, over half of Scots have travelled to visit a place associated with a musician they are a fan of by train (52%), with over a third (40%) visiting locations featured in their music videos, and travelling to their hometown (40%). In addition, National Rail has launched a new series of audio guides, narrated by Jo Whiley, and features contributions from former All Saint Melanie Blatt and DJ Yinka Bokinni. The guides cover key geographical areas of Britain and reveal the links they have with a range of homegrown and international acts - plus how music fans can explore these locations by train. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Listeners will hear of the untold stories behind some of music's most memorable moments, from the Cromford railway station which acted as visual inspiration for one of Oasis' biggest hits, to the Notting Hill street where All Saints found their voice and name. The guides aim to inspire music lovers to get out there and discover the iconic British locations that have inspired our favourite artists – because when it comes to music, nothing beats being there. National Rail - Behind the tracks Jo Whiley, DJ and broadcaster said: 'Locations in Britain and the railway have been a source of inspiration for music artists for as long as I can remember. There's no better way to connect with the music and artists you love than going to see the locations that inspired them in person, which is why I've worked with the rail industry on a new series of audio guides, and encourage people to use their new interactive map to plan their next musical adventure by train." Jacqueline Starr, Executive Chair and CEO at Rail Delivery Group, explained: 'With this year marking the 200th anniversary of the birth of the modern railway we wanted to highlight the role rail has played in inspiring music artists and how it continues to help connect Britons to the people, places and experiences they love. It was great to team up with Jo again on a new series of audio guides, which are now available alongside an interactive map that highlights 200 locations that have inspired some of the nation's favourite songs, music videos, album artwork and are easily accessible by train.' Discover the audio guides and the musical map of Britain on the National Rail website:
The Sun
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Jo Whiley's favourite £3.99 plant that adds instant colour to your garden and lasts for 6 months
MORE and more research is pointing to the benefits of gardening for mental health. Which comes as absolutely no surprise at all to legendary DJ Jo Whiley. 3 3 3 She's joined forces with Monty Don for his first ever Show Garden at Chelsea Flower Show - along with 25,000 BBC Radio 2 listeners. Kicking off on Monday, the 'The RHS and Radio 2 Dog Garden' isn't the average outside space usually seen at the swanky show - where tickets regularly change hands for £137 a head. Instead it's a celebration of man's best friend. There's a normal lawn for the canines to roll on, a dog house with a battered old sofa, a stream for 'wallowing' - and it's filled with daisies, dandelions and clover. Plus there will be a TV screen showing all the Radio 2 listeners' dog photos that they sent in to Jo's evening radio show - after around 25,000 submitted pictures. Speaking exclusively to Sun Gardening, Jo said: 'My garden makes me happy when I'm sad, it gives me something to do when I'm really stressed and angry. 'And it brings me a lot of joy when I'm with my dogs in the garden. 'When my boss told me that Radio 2 were doing a garden at Chelsea with Monty Don - and they wanted me to be involved, I nearly fell off my chair. 'It's been so exciting to work alongside garden designer Jamie Butterworth as well - he's got such a great reputation, deservedly so. 'They're the dream team, they really are, Monty and Jamie. The Sun's Veronica Lorraine visits the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 'I went to Chelsea last week and saw the trees actually going in, and saw the dog house that had been built. "And then last night, they sent me some photographs with all the plants in, and it's mind-blowing. Honestly, the colour scheme, the tones, it's so beautiful.' The mum-of-four, 59, added: 'Growing up, my mum and my granddad were both into gardening, and then throughout my life I've been really heavily invested in every garden that I've had. 'I used to go to open gardens as my source of inspiration. I'd see what people were doing there, and I'd take photographs, and then I'd go and buy those plants and put them in my garden. 'But now there's these amazing, inspiring gardeners on Instagram, and you can learn so much. 'I think this is a really brilliant time to be able to get into gardening." WIN the battle against against garden peste with a Nemasys bundle Win a Garden Pest Defence Bundle Nemasys is offering ten lucky readers the chance to win the ultimate pest-protection bundle, featuring a trio of its top-performing nematode products. Each winner will receive one pack of Nemasys Biological Leatherjacket Protection, one Nemasys Biological Fruit and Veg Protection, and one Nemasys Biological Vine Weevil Killer – everything you need to defend your garden from common pests this growing season. To enter visit or write to Sun NEMASYS Competition, PO Box 3190, Colchester, Essex, CO2 8GP. Include your name, age, email or phone. UK residents 18+ only. Ends 23.59GMT 07.06.25 T&Cs apply. Jo added: 'My garden is probably more cottage than anything. So it's quite big and blousy, and I've got very deep borders, so obviously I'm just constantly throwing plants and money at it all the time. ' Peonies are undoubtedly the most spectacular, beautiful things. 'But then I also really like the humble geranium, because they will give you so much colour for so much of the summer, and there are so many different varieties. I think they're fantastic, absolutely fantastic" You can currently get Geranium for just £3.99 from Gardening Express. She added: 'Penstemon are also really good because they last forever. 'But I'm also developing a Woodland area and I'm so enjoying that. I'm beginning to appreciate the different leaves and textures and the colors, like ferns and hellebores. 'Chelsea, I suppose, is the Glastonbury of the horticultural world, isn't it? It's the main event, where everyone really gets to show off all their talent and innovations. . 'It just feels like this amazing ceremony - a real celebration of gardening.' Jo, Monty and Jamie will be on The Scott Mills Breakfast Show which is broadcasting live from RHS Chelsea Flower Show on Monday 19 th May from 6.30-9.30am. Its Time For Chelsea Flower Show AN APP that helps you talk to trees, stone balancing sculptures, dogs designing gardens and new toilet technology. It can only mean one thing - Chelsea Flower Show is back. Famed around the world for its extravagant exhibitions and stunning showgardens, tickets go like hotcakes - and they're also very expensive - with all day tickets upwards of £137. Thankfully here at Sun Gardening we're able to preview some of the more interesting show gardens - so you can enjoy it from the comfort of your own outside space. Tackle HIV Challenging Stigma Garden by Manoj Malde see Statues in tribute to lives lost to HIV, hexagonal paving reflecting a key chemical structure found within many HIV medications while water flows under a bridge, symbolising the transition to a healthy life supported by community. The Glasshouse Garden by Jo Thompson is made for the participants of The Glasshouse programme – women based in UK prisons who receive horticultural training, employment and resettlement support as they approach the end of their sentence and plan for a successful return to society. A wonderful idea. The Avanade Intelligent Garden - by Tom Massey - is an urban forest garden designed to support urban trees. It's equipped with sensors that track tree health – monitoring growth, sap flow, soil conditions, air quality, and weather patterns. But not only that - an app will help you talk to the trees one to one. Seawilding - by Ryan McMahon, is inspired by the landscape found at Loch Craignish on the west coast of Scotland, home to Seawilding. The garden has a distinctly coastal atmosphere with a salt water pool and pebble beach. The Garden of the Future, by Matthew Butler and Joshua Parke - showcases some of the inspiring solutions being developed across the world by scientists, innovators and growers in the face of climate change. More importantly, it features the Cranfield Circular Toilet - which converts human waste to benefit your garden. Babylon Beats designed by James Whiting of Plants by There and The Little Botanical reimagines the Hanging Gardens of Babylon through a 1980s lens - and houseplants - looks bonkers but brilliant. Stone Balancing It looks crazy, but its amazing - with sculptor Adrian Gray bringing a three boulder balance to the show.
The Irish Sun
17-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Jo Whiley's favourite £3.99 plant that adds instant colour to your garden and lasts for 6 months
MORE and more research is pointing to the benefits of gardening for mental health. Which comes as absolutely no surprise at all to legendary DJ Jo Whiley. Advertisement 3 Jo has spoken candidly about how gardening has helped her mental health Credit: Getty 3 Jo with her two dogs Django and Brodie - and cat - in her garden Credit: instagram/jowhiley 3 Monty Don will be creating his first ever show garden at Chelsea Flower show with Ned Credit: PA She's joined forces with Kicking off on Monday, the 'The RHS and Radio 2 Dog Garden' isn't the average outside space usually seen at the Instead it's a celebration of man's best friend. There's a normal Advertisement Read More Gardening Plus there will be a TV screen showing all the Radio 2 listeners' dog photos that they sent in to Jo's evening radio show - after around 25,000 submitted pictures. Speaking exclusively to Sun Gardening, Jo said: 'My garden makes me happy when I'm sad, it gives me something to do when I'm really stressed and angry. 'And it brings me a lot of joy when I'm with my dogs in the garden. 'When my boss told me that Radio 2 were doing a garden at Chelsea with Advertisement Most read in Fabulous 'It's been so exciting to work alongside garden designer Jamie Butterworth as well - he's got such a great reputation, deservedly so. 'They're the dream team, they really are, Monty and Jamie. The Sun's Veronica Lorraine visits the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 'I went to Chelsea last week and saw the trees actually going in, and saw the dog house that had been built. "And then last night, they sent me some photographs with all the plants in, and it's mind-blowing. Honestly, the colour scheme, the tones, it's so beautiful.' Advertisement The 'I used to go to open gardens as my source of inspiration. I'd see what people were doing there, and I'd take photographs, and then I'd go and buy those plants and put them in my garden. 'But now there's these amazing, inspiring gardeners on 'I think this is a really brilliant time to be able to get into gardening." Advertisement WIN the battle against against garden peste with a Nemasys bundle Win a Garden Pest Defence Bundle Each winner will receive one pack of Nemasys Biological Leatherjacket Protection, one Nemasys Biological Fruit and Veg Protection, and one Nemasys Biological Vine Weevil Killer – everything you need to defend your garden from common pests this growing season. To enter visit or write to Sun NEMASYS Competition, PO Box 3190, Colchester, Essex, CO2 8GP. Include your name, age, email or phone. UK residents 18+ only. Ends 23.59GMT 07.06.25 T&Cs apply. Jo added: 'My garden is probably more cottage than anything. So it's quite big and blousy, and I've got very deep borders, so obviously I'm just constantly throwing plants and money at it all the time. ' 'But then I also really like the humble geranium, because they will give you so much colour for so much of the summer, and there are so many different varieties. I think they're fantastic, absolutely fantastic" You can currently get Geranium for just £3.99 from Advertisement She added: 'Penstemon are also really good because they last forever. 'But I'm also developing a Woodland area and I'm so enjoying that. I'm beginning to appreciate the different leaves and textures and the colors, like ferns and hellebores. 'Chelsea, I suppose, is the Glastonbury of the horticultural world, isn't it? It's the main event, where everyone really gets to show off all their talent and innovations. . 'It just feels like this amazing ceremony - a real celebration of gardening.' Advertisement Jo, Monty and Jamie will be on th May from 6.30-9.30am . Its Time For Chelsea Flower Show AN APP that helps you talk to trees, stone balancing sculptures, dogs designing gardens and new toilet technology. It can only mean one thing - Chelsea Flower Show is back. Famed around the world for its extravagant exhibitions and stunning showgardens, tickets go like hotcakes - and they're also very expensive - with all day tickets upwards of £137. Thankfully here at Sun Gardening we're able to preview some of the more interesting show gardens - so you can enjoy it from the comfort of your own outside space. by Jo Thompson is made for the participants of The Glasshouse programme – women based in UK prisons who receive horticultural training, employment and resettlement support as they approach the end of their sentence and plan for a successful return to society. A wonderful idea. - by Tom Massey - is an urban forest garden designed to support urban trees. It's equipped with sensors that track tree health – monitoring growth, sap flow, soil conditions, air quality, and weather patterns. But not only that - an app will help you talk to the trees one to one. - by Ryan McMahon, is inspired by the landscape found at Loch Craignish on the west coast of Scotland, home to Seawilding. The garden has a distinctly coastal atmosphere with a salt water pool and pebble beach. designed by James Whiting of Plants by There and The Little Botanical reimagines the Hanging Gardens of Babylon through a 1980s lens - and houseplants - looks bonkers but brilliant. Stone Balancing It looks crazy, but its amazing - with sculptor Follow me
BBC News
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Giovanna Fletcher brings star power and inspiration to new BBC Sport Couch to 5K Podcast
Best-selling author, actress, presenter, and beloved podcast host Giovanna Fletcher is fronting a brand-new Couch to 5K podcast, launching exclusively on BBC Sounds from Friday, 25 April. Created by BBC Sport in collaboration with the Department of Health and Social Care, this fresh audio companion to the popular NHS Couch to 5K app is designed to inspire the nation to get moving. Each week, Giovanna is joined by special guests – including Jo Whiley, Charley Marlowe, and Lindsey Burrow – who share powerful, personal stories to keep you motivated with every step. Whether you're lacing up for your first run or getting back into the rhythm, the podcast brings warmth, encouragement, and real-life inspiration to help you stay on track. Giovanna Fletcher said: 'Being part of The Couch to 5K Podcast has been such a joy. Running can do wonders for your mind and body, and this podcast is all about offering support, motivation and a friendly voice to keep you going—no matter where you are on your journey.' Ashley Dalton, Minister for Public Health and Prevention said: "Getting active isn't just good for your body – it works wonders for your mental wellbeing too, clearing your mind and boosting your motivation. And that's true for every single one of us, regardless of our starting point. 'As part of our Plan for Change, we are committed to preventing ill health before it starts, including breaking down barriers to exercise and getting the nation fitter. 'The NHS Couch to 5K App is a brilliant example of this– it offers exactly what we all need: support, encouragement and a friendly voice cheering you on at every step.' BBC Radio 2 presenter, Jo Whiley, who once disliked running, reflects on how coaching for the Couch to 5K app has been one of the best experiences of her life. Jo Whiley says: 'It's one of the best things I've ever done in my career. 100 per cent.' 'I have been at so many different festivals where such a variety of people of all different shapes and sizes and fitness abilities coming over to me and saying 'Couch to 5K! It's changed my life!' Also set to join Giovanna in upcoming episodes are Dr Punam Krishnan, a GP who shares insight into the health benefits of running, Coronation Street star Colson Smith who talks about how running helped him with weight loss and Olympic champion Dame Laura Kenny. With more guests to be announced, Giovanna's podcast brings humour, heart and real talk to support and keep you company on your Couch to 5K journey one step at a time. BBC Sport has long been at the heart of the nation's most iconic sporting moments, from global tournaments to local triumphs. With a huge summer ahead, including the Women's EURO and the Women's Rugby World Cup, The Couch to 5K Podcast reflects BBC Sport's commitment to not just covering sport, but encouraging participation, by making movement feel accessible, inclusive, and something that brings people together. Listen to the first episode of The Couch to 5K Podcast on BBC Sounds, Friday 25 April. Further episodes will be released weekly from 5 May. CF About NHS Couch to 5K NHS Couch to 5K is a running plan for absolute beginners. It is based on the plan designed by Josh Clark in 1996, who wanted to help his 50-something mum get off the couch and start running. The plan involves 3 runs a week, with a day of rest in between, and a different schedule for each of the 9 weeks. The idea behind the programme was to gradually build endurance and stamina over the course of several weeks, starting with short intervals of running interspersed with walking.
BBC News
14-04-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
BBC Radio 2 wants a photo of your dog for its Chelsea Flower Show 2025 garden
On The Scott Mills Breakfast Show this morning, Jo Whiley joined Scott to launch Radio 2's Puploader as she revealed how the listeners and their four-legged friends can get involved with The RHS and Radio 2 Dog Garden, which was announced last October and will be unveiled at the world famous RHS Chelsea Flower Show in May. With the UK renowned as a nation of dog lovers and garden enthusiasts, the RHS and Radio 2 have joined forces with Monty Don who is designing his very first garden for The RHS Chelsea Flower Show. He has created it especially with man's best friend in mind, to lift people's spirits and celebrate our deep love of dogs and the gardens we share with them. A keen gardener, Jo joined Scott and together they announced the specially created Puploader, where Radio 2 listeners can upload a photo of their special doggy friend! A selection of these images will then be displayed in a special part of the Radio 2 Dog Garden. To share your dog pic with Radio 2's Puploader, go to and follow the instructions. In her evening show (Monday to Thursday, 7-9pm) Jo has also been encouraging listeners to suggest songs for a special doggy playlist which will play in a beautiful dog-themed house within The RHS and Radio 2 Dog Garden. Jo Whiley says: 'For the RHS and Radio 2 Dog Garden at Chelsea Flower Show, we will have a very special dog house for all your very special dogs. People will be able to walk around and look at the garden and see these beloved dogs, and we absolutely want the Radio 2 listeners' pups to be represented. So we'd love you to go to Puploader to send in a photograph of you and your dog so everybody can see them!' The RHS and Radio 2 Dog Garden hopes to inspire the millions of dog lovers in the UK to create their own green havens for them and their pets. Monty wants the garden to be both an exemplar of all the things that dogs love - regardless of horticultural fashion - and also a beautiful space that any dog owner would love. At the centre of the garden will be a neatly mown lawn which, whilst tended, is essential for canine sprawling, sleeping, rolling, flopping, itching and chasing balls, whilst a large tree will cast shade on the grass to stretch out under on a warm afternoon. The lawn will drift into longer grass planted with ornamental spring flowering bulbs to create more of a tameflower meadow than a wildflower meadow and brick paths will run straight creating vistas, with one providing the route through the garden for visitors and another at right angles to this leading to the summerhouse. The RHS and Radio 2 Dog Garden will live on after Chelsea Flower Show at Battersea Dogs & Cats Home for all the rescue dogs and the people who work and volunteer there to enjoy for generations to come. As Patron, Her Majesty The Queen's adopted Jack Russell Terriers, Beth and Bluebell, will feature on the path in the garden. SH8
