Steph's Packed Lunch

In March, I was given the opportunity to attend the set of Steph’s Packed Lunch, filmed for Channel 4 at Leeds Dock. The university hosts activities for Making the Grade Week every semester and The School of Humanities and Social Sciences have many activities ranging from Yoga to Industry Panel Q&As. Steph’s Packed Lunch was an opportunity I couldn’t miss.

The day started at the production offices and being introduced to the Production Manager who oversaw our visit. At this point, we signed our confidentiality agreements and split into three groups. We first watched Steph McGovern rehearse on a TV, and then we were whisked away by the production manager to start our office tour as the show went live at 12pm.

We were taken through all the departments and introduced to various staff members, sound, lighting, social media, and makeup technicians, to name a few. It was inspiring to see such a busy, fast-paced environment and learn about job roles I didn’t even know existed. We got to chat with the Social Media Manager about her role at Channel 4. She also invited us to shadow or do internships during the summer, an opportunity I wouldn’t have had without attending the trip. These conversations broadened my perspective of what jobs are available to me with an English Literature and Creative Writing degree.

My excitement built when we got to stage two of the tour, sitting in the production control room where the programme's composition takes place. It’s a small dark room with thirty screens and six important people announcing camera numbers and countdowns. It was both scary and exciting to be invited into this space to see how a production is finalised.

The final section of the day was becoming a Lunch Mate, as Steph calls them, where we were taken onto the set and sat amongst the other guests. During my segment, we watched Simon Rimmer cook and Clare Balding chat about Crufts. As the different segments happened, cameras were shuffled around the studio. This was suspenseful because we had no idea if the camera was on us or not, and it led to me sitting like a statue for half an hour, nodding occasionally and smiling like a Cheshire cat. 

After the show, we were invited to sit down with Steph in the studio for a Q&A session. This was the highlight of the day for me because Steph has worked her way up from being a showrunner to having her own TV show. She seemed genuinely happy to talk to us about her experiences and life. My nervousness inspired me to ask her if she ever experienced imposter syndrome, to which I received an insightful reply that yes, she often does, but it has never held her back. 

Ultimately from this experience and from hearing Steph's wisdom, I have learnt about some of the amazing job opportunities available after graduation. By combining the skills, I have learnt from my degree and the networking opportunities the university gives me, I am gaining real-world experience to thrive in a professional job.