The secret lives of media professionals

Who knew that behind those serious headlines and breaking news alerts lurked a cast of characters worthy of Britain’s Got Talent?

While you might know them for their articles and broadcasts, journalists are secretly harbouring an amazing array of hidden talents. From magicians to power-lifters, our lovely community is anything but one-dimensional.

I did not expect this many answers when I posted on LinkedIn last week, so here is my best attempt to do all the replies justice.

The life-savers

Some media professionals are not content with just reporting on emergencies - they are out there handling them. Ghislaine Couvillat, a troubleshooting film producer, spends her free time as a first responder on Lac Léman (think Swiss RNLI, but with better chocolate).

And if you are planning on holding your breath underwater for an unreasonably long time, you will want Tamara Davison nearby - this freelance journalist moonlights as a safety diver for freediving competitions. Talk about deep reporting.

The showstoppers

Hold onto your press passes - the media industry is basically a performing arts centre in disguise.

Monica Sarkar, senior editor at CNN Digital, is not just breaking news - she is breaking into song with her Indian classical training and also sings Western music. Ian Murphy, editor at Enterprise Times, rocks multiple genres as a journalist by day and musician by night. And then there is Martin Ochoa Montes, who brings opera to engineering work (because why shouldn't heavy machinery have a soundtrack?).

Steven Kelly, founder of Finnoah PR, casually drops that he used to tour with world-famous names (no big deal). Ralph Cunningham takes breaks from writing and editing at Sands Street Media to belt it out with the London Welsh Male Voice Choir. Meanwhile, Adam Thomas, when not founding Evenly Distributed, has quietly amassed over 500,000 Spotify streams as an ambient musician. Who needs a radio when you've got a newsroom?

Kent-based Steve Wilson-Beales, head of SEO and editorial product at Global, has been producing dark electronic tracks, otherwise known as "Gothic Bangers", for several years, and also released an album.

The stage calls to many others too. Esther Kezia Thorpe, publisher summits and awards director at Media Voices, had a whole other life in musical theatre, same as the head of marketing at 67 Bricks, Emma Watkins.

Esther Kezia Thorpe as Menu in The Beauty and the Beast.

Anna Geary goes from reporting news to channeling Evita and Dolly Parton in choir cabaret nights, while Ilona Vinogradova from Lovin Films PRO is a contact improv dancer and ocean racer.

And if you are looking for sea shanties (who isn't?), Miriam Wells, impact and strategy editor at The Examination, has spent a decade singing them with the world's largest community choir. Yo ho ho!

Anna Geary as Dolly Parton.

In the realm of dance and performance, Ketaki Golatkar, founder and CEO of GOOD DAY PR, has practised Indian classical dance for four decades, performing globally.

Betsy Tan, who helps businesses get featured in the news, is trained as a Bollywood dance instructor.

Annemarie Dooling, VP of audience experiences at USA TODAY NETWORK, takes to the stage as both a burlesque performer and magician, just like freelance video producer Carla Mende who is also a magician.

The healers among us

Talk about work-life balance! Some media pros are moonlighting as wellness warriors. Christine Cowin, founder of Golden Wild, doubles as a nutritional therapist, fighting toxins one client at a time.

Meanwhile, Lisa MacLeod, director at FT Strategies, could write a story about dialysis - or actually perform it, being a trained technician who helps her daughter with home treatments.

And if you are feeling out of sorts, you might want to book a session with Amira Jacobs, a filmmaker and production accountant who is also a practising healer. Who needs WebMD when you have got journalists?

The athletic ones

Ever wondered who could write a perfect headline and deadlift twice their body weight? Meet Laura Collins, publisher for National World's world division, who's crushing it at powerlifting with a 120kg deadlift. Hannah Storm, founder of Headlines Network, is not just winning the hearts and minds of newsroom leaders as a mental health coach - she is winning medals, competing for Team GB in duathlon and landing 15th at the World Championships (no pressure).

Belle de Jong, journalist and editor at The European Correspondent, is a certified PADI divemaster - perfect for those underwater exclusives. Khalil A. Cassimally, head of audiences, The Conversation, takes "going with the flow" literally as a long-distance open water swimmer and is also, quite randomly, an avid Lego fan.

Bhanupriya Rao, founder of BehanBox, also swims and plans to become a swimming coach.

We are not sure whether this counts as an athletic sport, but chief economist Vladimir Vano is also a competitive snooker player. Guess you need balls to be a chief economist in the current climate.

Simon Keegan in action.

The fighters

Journalists are natural-born fighters, some quite literally. Simon Keegan, editor at Insider Media, is a 7th Dan Karate instructor and has also authored five books. Nic Guttridge, who helps documentary makers build compelling stories, also helps people build some serious muscle as a personal trainer.

The peculiar ones

Some hobbies are just too good not to mention. Lars Boering, director of the European Journalism Centre, maintains an Instagram dedicated to...wait for it...vacuum cleaners in hotels. Yes, you read that correctly.

Lars Boering's weird and wonderful Insta account.

Speaking of unexpected pursuits, let's give a special shoutout to Leah Borromeo, a documentary film director who's also a level 49 (out of 50!) Pokémon Go player. When she is not catching 'em all, she is singing gospel with the LSO community choir and managing a massive London parents' WhatsApp empire. Now that is what we call multitasking.

To round up the list of weird and wonderful hobbies, Erika Marzano from Deutsche Welle watches 200-300 new films every year, fixating on the minutiae of actors, directors, screenwriters, and plots. Make of it what you will.

Meanwhile, Bob Mitchell, a senior copy editor, works part-time at a hobby shop and is passionate about model railroading.

From Lars Jensen's Insta account

The creative ones

As if working in a newsroom was not creative enough, Jasper Hamill, a tech journalist, buys and sells records worldwide. Reach plc podcast editor Daniel J. McLaughlin combines journalism with stand-up poetry while Joanna Cummings, editorial director, was a library storyteller. Pete Carvill has become a blow-by-blow sports commentator for international TV while publishing books.

Lars K Jensen, working in audience insights at Berlingske Media, turns his long walks home into photography sessions, capturing the beauty of Copenhagen.

Journalists and pubs just go together. Sarah Toporoff, who works in audio and news products, has been running pub quizzes in Parisian bars since 2013. Kris Wernowsky did stand-up comedy for a decade and helped found a midwestern festival, while Isabelle Roughol, a journalist and media executive, serves drinks and collects gossip at a local community theatre.

The brainy ones

Can learning be fun? Apparently, yes. Bianca Kriel, an editor-in-chief, completed a Master’s in Global Ethics during covid and she also works as a professional voice artist. Catherine Edwards, working in the audience and editorial strategy, is learning new languages including Spanish and Japanese, practices knitting, and has started ice-skating lessons (hopefully not at the same time - those knitting needles look dangerous).

The big-hearted ones

Louise White, a digital publishing strategy expert, works as a dog trainer and fosterer, finding these skills surprisingly transferable to her main career. Kat Duncan, director of innovation, volunteers as director for a local non-profit dog rescue, rehabilitating and rehoming abandoned and abused dogs. Three woofs to that!

Co-director of Open News Jessica Morrison runs The Baking Notification Project that helps home bakers share their surplus baked goods with their neighbours, while also learning improv and drums to bash out any work stresses.

The cheffy ones

Rishabh Lohia, who builds AI solutions for digital platforms at Bridged Media, is a self-proclaimed king of salads and a trained chef. Lisa MacLeod, besides her medical skills, spends time building and nurturing sourdough starters and baking with ancient grains.

Fortune’s Europe editor Alex Wood Morton is also an aspiring chef, training at Leith’s School of Wine. His family and friends get to enjoy the delicious fruits of his labour including double chocolate brownie cookies at the office and high-end restaurant-style meals at home.

Alex Wood Morton with fellow trainee chefs.

From the newsroom to the stage, from the gym to the Pokémon gym, our community shows that there is way more to journalism than just meeting deadlines and chasing stories. They are living proof that you can absolutely have your cake and eat it, especially if it is baked by Lisa MacLeod with her artisanal sourdough starter.

Who says news has to be all serious? These talented folks are proving us that sometimes the best stories are happening when the press pass comes off.

Now, if you will excuse us, we are off to sign up for Betsy Tan's Bollywood dance class, right after we check out Lars Boering's latest vacuum cleaner snap.

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