Feeling fresh from a long Easter break they talk about unread messages, professional anxiety and whether you should save the good stuff for “special occasions" or just enjoy them now!

They round out with wedding-industry horror, Build-A-Bear trauma, the weirdness of collecting things.

Its the usual mix of insightfulness and chaos

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media

Izzy opens up about the weird creative-business paradox: the more attention and praise she gets, the less confident she feels, then covers ways to quiet her brain  - Think repainting the kitchen pink, learning embroidery, and leaning fully into “grandma chic.” 

Then the conversation does what this podcast does best: veers hard into culture and chaos. Repetitive tasks (crochet vs soul-crushing science), British bureaucracy, national trolling and the big question: if a show or film is rubbish, do you leave or do you sit there out of spite because you paid for it?

Expect strong opinions on Avatar, unexpected drive-in trauma from A Star Is Born, a love letter to terrible films (including Titanic 2), and a comfort-watch roll call from Brooklyn Nine-Nine to Twilight 

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media

in this one Issy’s away recharging this week, so Martin’s drafted in special guest James for a proper catch-up.

James is a music guru and an Synth savant and currently works around the North East helping primary school kids work together to create a band - think school of rock but with all the required checks and qualifications!

James is here to tell us all about his launching of the Junior Producer Club, where kids step into an “imaginarium of synths” and leave with a track they actually made. 

Expect tangents, chaos, and at least one conversation about strangled geese, so in other works the same as every other week.

To get in touch with James about his Junior Producer Club and anything else to do with synths or music creation, email him at juniorproducerclub@gmail.com

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media

Martin’s thriving after saying yes to a huge opportunity: photographing the Business Beats Cancer annual gala dinner at St James’ Park and experiences the special kind of exhaustion known as shoot tired.

Izzy’s thriving too leaning hard into self-care, think skincare routines, solo Metrocentre shopping, and a serious reading streak!

Along the way, they go off-road into airports, duty-free perfume chaos, business class lounges, the weirdness of selling channels at 2am, and Izzy’s childhood cruise memory where money had no meaning and the bill definitely did.

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media

Martin’s thriving after sitting down to map out proper short, medium and long tem goals.  

Izzy’s thriving too but theres a quick hard left into mortality: the weird comfort of planning your own death, the fear of a stupid death, and what “legacy” actually means when you strip away money and status.

Somewhere between McDonald’s orders, coffee slander, and the ethics of saying “bougie”, they stumble into a surprisingly solid branding conversation: why audiences can sense quality, why consistency matters more than constant rebrands and how a few stable “brand DNA” elements can carry everything else.

This weeks teachable moment: “People change their brand rather than fixing the problems underneath.”

This is all about us having a chat, a laugh and hopefully share some hints and tips to help survive life!

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media

In Episode 5 of Allegedly Thriving, Martin and Izzy finally attempt a proper intro (names included… eventually) before diving into the weekly check-in.

Martin’s thriving after a genuinely enjoyable commercial shoot photographing mobile phones, who knew something so mundane could be so challenging!

Izzy is surviving, it’s been a rough week, and her brain keeps escaping to a cosy fantasy life running a bookshop-café in a quiet Lake District village.

From there, the conversation swings through coffee snobbery, cake loyalties, and the reality of learning new skills as an adult which includes a couch-to-5K epiphany and frustration at the  “TikTok-ification” of hobbies.

Finally the biggest question of all - what’s the actual difference between nipping to the shops and popping to the shops?

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media

Issy says she’s thriving but admits that success makes her more anxious, because she’s constantly waiting for the moment it all goes wrong.

Martin relates from the other side: the strange self-employed paradox where you get the freedom to choose your hours as well as the freedom to worry in every single one of them.

We get into the guilt of taking time off, the weird “enforced rest” fantasies that show you you’re edging toward burnout, and why adulthood never quite feels as adult as you expect. 

Then we swerve into reality TV, creative work, and a genuinely specific phobia that’s inconveniently common at National Trust properties.

Quote of the episode: “I’ve dabbled in the ‘just a little coma’ fantasy.”

This is all about us having a chat, a laugh and hopefully share some hints and tips to help survive life!

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media

Issy is firmly in survival mode after a brutal run of seven speaking gigs in four weeks, followed immediately by her body dropping the “you’re ill now” hammer.

We talk about what speaking teaches you (including the surprisingly strategic role of clothing), why nerves don’t always get quieter with repetition, and how small business life is basically a rotating set of comfort zones and panic zones.

From networking tactics (white-knighting strangers via the tea station) to Martin’s pothole-of-doom tyre saga and a sudden breakthrough on sales funnels , the episode lands on a surprisingly wholesome truth: everyone is winging it!

Also we talk about nursery apps, scarlet fever headlines and the spiritual power of one sunny day in the North East.

This is all about us having a chat, a laugh and hopefully share some hints and tips to help survive life!

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media

Issy’s been surviving her daughter’s third birthday celebrations (think soft play that feels like Saving Private Ryan), while Martin’s thriving work-wise but battling a brain that won’t switch off at night. 

From recurring stress dreams and the pressure of “soaking in” success, to whether your heart is “cheering you on” or just panicking, we end up where we always do: honest, a bit chaotic, and weirdly relatable.

Also, what furniture would you be, which animal would you rather fight and why petrol roulette might say more about your personality than you’d like.

This is all about us having a chat, a laugh and hopefully share some hints and tips to help survive life!

Warning - we do go off topic - a LOT!

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media

Join Issy Howell (Howell Media and Howell Studios) and Martin Newham (Martin Newham Photography) as they talk about the stresses and challenges of running small businesses in the North East and Life in General

In this debut, we talk perception vs reality in business, imposter syndrome, and why “looking like you’ve got it together” rarely matches what’s happening behind the scenes. 

Issy shares what self-employment looks like when you’re also raising a toddler, and Martin admits that social media can make all of us feel like we’re falling behind.

Also: dead artists, rescue chickens, tech detoxes, and a very strong opinion on how to pronounce aluminium.

This is all about us having a chat, a laugh and hopefully share some hints and tips to help survive life!

Thanks for listening to Allegedly Thriving and for coming along for the inevitable detours.

If you want to learn more about the two potentially unhinged presenters:

Martin - Photographer and Owner of Terry Harrison Art: Martin Newham Photography  and TerryHarrisonArt

Issy - Director, Owner and all round Digital Genius:  Howell Studios and Howell Media