Made In Britain: A Road Trip to Save Britain’s Heritage Crafts

Britain is a country of craftspeople, yet the nation’s heritage crafts and traditional skills are dying out, with some close to extinction. From canal art in the Black Country to kilt making in Edinburgh, coopering in North Yorkshire and damask linen weaving in Northern Ireland, join Jay and Charlotte as they travel the length and breadth of the country, battling poor weather, Covid and Jay’s insatiable need for sustenance, to talk to some of Britain’s most inspirational artisans. Discover craftspeople such as heavy horse collar maker Terry Davis, who creates a bespoke collar for HRH Princess Anne’s Suffolk Punch, and basket maker Jonathan Coate in Somerset who is already passing on his skills to three young apprentices. Coracle boat making is alive and well in Shropshire and Wales, but for how much longer? Meanwhile the death of cricket ball making in the UK reveals how serious the situation is. With the help of Heritage Crafts, the national charity set up to celebrate, support and safeguard traditional craft skills, the duo learn of the vital need to encourage younger generations into the sector and connect with diverse communities, to ignite a Craft Renaissance for all and in turn create a paradigm shift with people valuing the real and handmade over the artificial. With a Foreworkd by British potter and ceramic designer, Keith Brymer Jones, a keen advocate and educator in the crafts field, and photography by Charlies Sainsbury-Plaice – generously supported by luxury jewellers 886 by The Royal Mint, who champion traditional craftmanship, Made in Britain marks the start of a new Arts and Crafts movement for the 21st century. Plate section photography by: Charles Sainsbury-Plaice Cover illustration by: Andrew Jamieson, artist whose work featured on the Coronation invitation for King Charles III and Queen Camilla – ASIN: 1804192465 | ISBN13: 9781804192467 | ISBN-13: 978-1804192467