Explore every episode of the podcast The Factory Next Door

It’s truly one of our greatest materials. We make shoes from it; clothes, books, bags and furniture. Leather is extraordinary.

Over the millennia, we’ve become adept at using it. Today, in a West London workshop, a group of craftspeople continue to experiment with leather – learning how to manipulate it to create floors, stairs, tables, and freestanding stools.

On today’s The Factory Next Door, we meet the team at Bill Amberg Studio, the globally celebrated experts in architectural leatherwork.

Number 56 on our list of the greatest things we manufacture here is The Rivet Stool.

Bill Amberg shows us around his studio as we learn what it takes to build a client list that goes from Apple to Aston Martin, Boodles to Burberry – and then right down through the alphabet!

Also on the show, we consider the importance of the Mingei movement, contemplate the things we think about before we go to sleep, contemplate politicians working in a factory, and hear why leather work is far from a dying craft.

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For 500 years highland dress has been synonymous with Scotland, but these days there are more kilt-makers in India than within its home country.

On today’s The Factory Next Door we head to a workshop just off Edinburgh’s Royal Mile, where efforts are being made to preserve the art of traditional kilt-making.

Number 55 on our list of the greatest things we manufacture here is The Hand-Sewn Kilt.

As we tour Nicolson Kiltmakers, directors Gordon and Louise reveal the gamble they took to set up the Edinburgh Kiltmakers Academy, we learn the maths behind the pleats, request a brief history of the kilt, and hear the importance of provenance.

Also on the show, MoD contracts leave us confused, a refugee from Europe’s war reminds us to value our roots, and I get my trousers off… again.

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You never quite know what you’re going to find when you visit one of our manufacturers.

On today’s episode of The Factory Next Door, we head to Avonmouth to visit a bespoke storage maker – but what we discover is far from expected.

We hear stories of serious fraud, do our daily stretches, go welding with Daft Punk, and see the frame of a 15-meter-high slide being lovingly bent into shape.

Number 54 on our list of the greatest things we make here is The Helter Skelter by Moduflex.

Managing Director Richard Blunden shows us around as we learn what it takes to keep a company going through its darkest days, discuss the importance of a strong employee culture, and consider the benefits of designing next door to the factory floor.  

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When you need someone to escort the King’s crown to Parliament for the state opening, you call on his Majesty’s Gentleman at Arms – with their distinctive red and gold jackets.

And when you need someone to make a new uniform for this historic corps, you call Jules Walker and her team at Gieves and Hawkes.

Number 53 on our list of the greatest things we make here is The Ceremonial Uniform.

Jules is head of the tailor’s military team, and on today’s show she gives us a tour of her workshop in the basement of 1 Savile Row.

We learn what it takes to make uniforms for the King’s Guards, discover what an epaulette is, and consider the parallels between tailoring and plumbing. 

Also on the show, we mull the need for a Ministry of Made in Britain and question why buyers from overseas appear to value our crafts more than we do.

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The epicentre of the global pen industry used to reside in Birmingham. Then the plastic biro arrived and everything changed.

But in the city’s jewellery quarter, a team of skilled silversmiths are ensuring the history of Birmingham’s pen industry continues to be written.

Number 52 on our list of the greatest things we make here is the propelling pencil by YARD-O-LED.

Owner Giles English shows us around the company’s historic workshop as we celebrate a 100-year-old design, admire irreplaceable machines, and learn the meaning behind the company’s distinctive name.

Also on the show, we explore the power of loss, Giles talks about the birth and sale of the Bremont Watch Company, and we discover the important distinction between chasing and engraving.

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Inspired by a poem about the horrors of war, the red poppy is worn by millions of people every year to commemorate those who have died in conflict.

And every November, on Remembrance Sunday, poppy wreaths of varying sizes are placed beside graves and war memorials. Each one is made by a small team in Richmond, Southwest London.

Number 51 on our list of the greatest things we make here is The Remembrance Wreath.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we head to The Poppy Factory to see how they are made.

Director of production Jeff Short shows us around as we learn how to manage people with PTSD, make a lapel poppy with one arm, and celebrate paper coffee cup off-cuts.

Plus, we learn about transferring skills from the boxing ring to the production line, give thanks for the SS America, and hang out with a biker gang.

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We’ve hit number 50 on our list of the greatest things we make here, so I thought it would be nice to share some of my favourite moments, as well as your most replayed clips.

Since we started The Factory Next Door, we’ve spent hours and hours hanging out with business owners, chatting to them on factory floors and in their offices.

They come from different walks of life, creating a wide range of beautiful products.

But there’s a unifying factor that comes up time and again in our chats. An element that is repeatedly identified as being crucial to success.

Family.

Mum, Dad, Brother, Sister, Children – they are often credited with direction and drive. Even when they are not employed by the company, we hear about their influence on business strategy.

We start in the city of Gloucester – and close to its beautiful cathedral sits the shirt-maker Emma Willis (Ep. 21). It’s a company that makes shirts for royalty, actors, musicians, as well as for injured service personnel through its Style for Soldiers charity.

In this clip, Emma reveals where her company’s strong sense of societal responsibility comes from.

For our second clip, we travel to Walthamstow, North London. Here, Han from Black Horse Lane Ateliers (Ep. 24) is explaining to us why he pivoted from making clothes for high street brands to launching his own label making the very finest jeans.

For the final clip, we go back to the beginning, to the custom motorbike (Ep. 4).

For this episode we went to hang out with husband-and-wife team Vic and Lin from Destiny Cycles – makers of the finest choppers this side of the Atlantic.

In this clip, Lin discusses her pride for Vic’s work.

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We’ve hit number 50 on our list of the greatest things we make here, so I thought it would be nice to share some of my favourite moments, as well as your most replayed clips.

Our manufacturers are undoubtedly facing strong headwinds. Many business owners tell me it’s tougher now than it’s been for decades.

Despite this, on our travels around the country, we’ve met a few extraordinary people who have decided to face the challenge head on and buy a factory.  

In this compilation, we begin in Stoke-on-Trent, where we met the wonderful artist, Susan Rose (Ep. 41). Before asking her why she’d recently taken-over a pottery – I wanted to know from the previous-owner Tony, why he was exiting the family business.

In Ep. 30 we met Paul Jacobs. He lives in the Netherlands but spends a lot of time in Sheffield these days. Can you remember why he bought scissor-maker Ernest Wright?

For our third clip we stay in Sheffield, with Buffalo Systems – which makes outdoor clothing.

Having just bought the factory, Ben Fogle and James Sleater (Ep. 42) invited us along to have a look around, but before asking them why they’d bought the brand – we wanted a quick gossip with the team.

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We’ve hit number 50 on our list of the greatest things we make here, so I thought it would be nice to look back at some of my favourite moments from the show, as well as your most replayed clips.

Over the coming weeks, I’ll share a few compilations.

We’ll start with moments that hit me hard.

The Factory Next Door might be about manufacturing, but it’s also a love letter to people making things in our communities; people who have stories to share.

In this compilation, we begin on the Isle of Wight, at the RNLI’s factory making inflatable lifeboats (Ep. 23). Who would have thought the name of a boat would leave me choked up?

In Ep. 37 when I sat down with Merry from Border Oak to ask why she does what she does, her love for her dad caught me completely off-guard.

Finally, we have a clip from Ep. 46. If you want to manufacture things in Britain, your company must show extraordinary resilience – but when I started my chat with Naomi from lingerie company Edge o Beyond, I had no idea about the personal resilience she’d brought to her brand.  

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When you’ve been learning your craft for almost two and a half centuries, you can confidently call yourself ‘the world’s finest’. John Smedley have been making their knitwear in Derbyshire since 1784.

Number 50 on our list of the greatest things we make here is The Knitted Polo Shirt.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door we head to Matlock to visit John Smedley’s historic Lea Mills.

Managing Director Jess McGuire Dudley gives us a tour as she reflects on her first year in charge. We hear why there’s a renewed interest in apprenticeships at the factory, consider the therapeutic qualities of linking, discover which job requires the steadiest hand, and chat about collaborating with actor Bill Nighy.

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Spend a day in any major city from Seoul to San Francisco and you’ll spot them weaving through the traffic – a bicycle with distinctive small wheels and arched top tube.

Brompton’s folding bike is an example of a great British design that’s loved around the world. More than 1.2m have now been sold.

Number 49 on our list of the greatest things we make here is The Folding Bicycle.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door we head to Greenford in West London to meet the team making these beautiful bikes.

CEO Will Butler-Adams OBE explains why they are an engineering company that makes bicycles, not the other way around. We go for a quick ride, see bikes being beaten up, and learn why manufacturing in London is integral to Brompton’s future.

Plus, we chat about what success looks like, learn where the name ‘Brompton’ came from, consider truck-driving in clogs, and explore how businesses can help drive positive change.

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Over the past 20 years, the amount we spend on shoes in the UK has tripled. It now stands at £14bn.

During the same period, our domestic footwear industry has dramatically shrunk. The vast majority of shoes we buy are now made overseas.

One town remains synonymous with shoemaking. Northampton. And it’s here that you can still find craftspeople making some of the finest shoes in the world. Brands like Crockett and Jones, Edward Green, Tricker’s and Joseph Cheaney & Sons are still selling their shoes to the world.

In this special episode of The Factory Next Door, we head off on a tour of Northampton to ask a simple question:

What can we do today, to ensure that in 10 years time Northampton’s historic shoe industry is growing again?

We begin at last makers Springline, where director Michael chats to us about how we can help ourselves. He also shares a story that breaks my heart.

Chris, founder of Crown Northampton shows us around his factory making the world’s finest trainer, as we consider overhauling the benefits of working in the industry.

And then we pop in to visit a friend of the show, William Church from Cheaney to discuss the challenges facing the industry right now – and how to overcome them.  

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Pitching a 24-metre-long tent is one thing. Manufacturing one requires a whole different set of skills, including cloth cutting, sewing, woodwork and a good understanding of mathematics.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door we head to North Yorkshire to meet a team striving to keep alive the ancient art of tent making.

Number 48 on our list of the greatest things we make here is The Wedding Tent by Wills Marquees.

Co-founder Chris Brawn gives us a tour of their workshop as we learn about the beauty of light cutting through cotton, consider why tent-making is both easy and difficult, and ask whether nice people can succeed in business.

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When the world’s best surgeons spread a rib cage or clamp a blood vessel, they rely on instruments hammered and filed by skilled hands in a Sheffield workshop.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door we head to Platts & Nisbett, manufacturers of surgical instruments for almost half-a-century.

Number 47 on our list of the greatest things we make here is The Surgical Clamp.

Alyson Nisbett gives us a factory tour as we learn why machines can’t make these instruments, we consider the responsibility that comes with hand-crafting life-saving equipment, and we ponder where a five-inch nail goes in the body.

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Smalls are a big market. Annual underwear sales in the UK top £400m. Much of it used to be made domestically (with a thriving cluster in south Wales), but, in the past 15 years, that industry has dramatically shrunk. Today, just a few artisan lingerie companies survive.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we head to New Tredegar in South Wales to meet Naomi Edmondson, the founder of lingerie company Edge o’ Beyond.

Number 46 on our list of the greatest products we make here is The Luxury Lingerie.

Naomi gives us a tour of her factory as we chat about the challenges of keeping lingerie manufacturing alive in the Welsh valleys. Plus, we talk about the physical power of beautifully made underwear and being banned from social media.

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What does it take to make a product so special customers will wait years to get their hands on one?

In the world of horology, Rebecca and Craig Struthers have built themselves an enviable reputation using traditional tools and methods to craft extraordinary timepieces. Their watches are so popular the waiting time for one is currently seven years (they are working to bring that down!)

Number 45 on our list of the greatest products we make here is The Mechanical Watch by Struthers Watchmakers.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we visit Leek in Staffordshire to meet the husband-and-wife team who say their journey into horology was an accident.

We learn about the joys of vintage lathes, consider why it matters that kids can read analogue watches, and celebrate the humble white piece of A4 paper.

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Every company has a lifespan. Some have two.

Over the course of a century, glasses-maker Curry & Paxton went from pioneering new optical instruments, to becoming a key supplier to the NHS, to appearing in iconic movies. Then, in 1987, they vanished.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we visit the workshop where they are breathing new life into this heritage British brand.

Number 44 on our list of the greatest products we make here are The Optical Glasses.

Peter Lynes, director at Curry & Paxton tells us why, after a 30-year career working with British clothing brands, he wanted to jump into the world of eyewear and revive this glasses maker. During our factory tour, Peter shares insights into how to build a brand and explains why he now wakes up with a heightened sense of purpose.

Also on the show, glasses maker Mila gives thanks to his Grandad and celebrates a machine maker who transformed his life.

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The market for jams and preserves might seem… well, jam-packed, but get your recipe right and you’ll find space to grow.

Number 43 on our list of the greatest products we make here is The Premium Preserve.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door we visit Bristol to meet Nicola Elliott, founder of award-winning jam maker Single Variety Co.

Nicola gives us a tour of her expanding factory as she explains why consistency is so hard in jam-making. She also reveals how a cancelled wedding helped transform her business and shares her big dream for the future.

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There are somethings you can’t know about a company until you’ve bought it and had a riffle through the filing cabinets. In the case of clothing maker Buffalo Systems, it was numerous letters of appreciation from special forces, the military, and mountain rescue teams.

Number 42 on our list of the greatest products we make here is The Mountain Shirt by Buffalo.

Broadcaster and adventurer Ben Fogle and Savile Row tailor James Sleater acquired the Sheffield-based company earlier this year. On this week’s show, they explain why they had always wanted to buy the company.

Plus, we also get an exclusive look at a special new product, consider why Britain has so few global luxury brands, and hear why slow growth is sustainable growth.

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There’s plenty of reasons to buy a British manufacturer right now. On this week’s episode, artist Susan Rose reveals why she’s just done that – acquiring a pottery in Stoke-on-Trent.

We take a tour to learn about getting the thickness of mugs just right, the art of the kiln-stack, and why the random-shake of a cup in water is not always what it seems.

We also hear about overcoming dyslexia to build a business, and why a little help from your friends is so often invaluable.

Plus, Susan gives thanks for the birds, saves a butterfly, and makes a mug for The Factory Next Door.

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When the ultra-wealthy want a new set of bespoke bedding for their mansion or superyacht, they email a mill that sits just outside Blackburn, Lancashire.

Peter Reed – whose customers include the Royal Household – has been producing handcrafted bedding for more than 160 years.

Number 40 on our list of the greatest products we make here is The Bed Linen.

Managing Director Sean Clayton explains how the company survived as the British cotton industry rapidly declined, questions why some skills are under-appreciated, and reveals why he never talks politics or religion.

We also learn how a single duvet cover can take five hours to complete with 12 embroidery machines, each with nine bobbins on, stitching simultaneously.

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The global market for saw blades might be worth $16bn a year, but there’s only one saw factory left in the UK.

In today’s show we visit Sheffield’s Thomas Flinn & Co to learn how they’ve been cutting teeth for the past 100 years.

Number 39 on our list of the greatest products we make here is The Musical Saw.

Director Katie Ellis’ family have owned the company for generations. She explains why heritage crafts must be preserved, how her company has pivoted to survive in the era of cheap imports, and why she’s moving to new premises – just don’t suggest leaving Sheffield.

We also learn how to file 200 teeth in under two minutes, get a quick explanation of how musical saws work, and find novel ways to use Lego.

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Earlier this year, Blue Ghost became the first commercial lunar lander to touch down on the moon.

Crucial to that mission’s success was its engine – a rocket designed and built in the Buckinghamshire countryside.

Number 38 on our list of the greatest items we make in Britain is The Rocket Engine.

At a former military base, Dr Ian Coxhill, chief engineer at Nammo UK, shows us around the workshops where propulsion systems are made for space agencies and commercial operators.

Ian demonstrates how to recreate the conditions of space at ground level, reflects on the art of engineering, and offers evidence to suggest robots aren’t going to replace humans yet.

Plus, we hear the roar of a rocket engine as one is put through its paces at the test facility.

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We almost lost the art of building homes from oak in Britain. Thankfully, someone in Herefordshire wasn’t going to let that happen.

In today’s show we celebrate a dad who revived the medieval craft and built a business.

Number 37 on our list of the greatest items we make here is The Oak-Framed Home.

Merry Albright is creative director of Border Oak, and daughter of the founder, John David Greene. She shows us around the firm’s workshops in Leominster as we celebrate the skills her dad had to relearn and then teach others.

Also on the show, we consider why we stopped making homes from trees, invite MPs to look through the company’s business accounts, question why the planning system became so combative, and fall in love with a boxed heart.

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The American sneaker market is worth $25bn. It is the biggest in the world – and growing. But it’s a crowded market. You need a stellar USP to stand out.

Sheffield-based trainer-maker Goral has one – and it’s finding success selling to US sneakerheads.

Number 36 on our list of the greatest items we make here is The Resoleable Sneaker.

On this week’s episode of The Factory Next Door, Dom Goral shows us how they’ve designed leather trainers with soles that can be replaced.

We chat about relocating the factory from Poland to a former school in Yorkshire, how influencers have helped build the brand in America, and why it’s good to question every part of the process.

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Design a timeless classic and the ripples from that one idea can be felt across industries for decades.

Take Ercol’s Windsor Dining Chair, number 35 on our list of the greatest items we make here.

It may be more than 70 years old, but its impact and influence remains significant. Today it’s even helping revive the British wood industry decades after being ravaged by Dutch Elm Disease.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, Ercol’s Chairman and Creative Director, Henry Tadros, shows us around their purpose-built modern factory close to High Wycombe, the historic heartland of UK furniture-making.

We question what makes a design timeless, watch the beauty and drama of wood bending, and learn why some outsourcing has been an important part of the company’s survival.

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You must be delicate shaping it. You must be aggressive smoothing it. Glass might be full of contradictions, but it’s consistent in its beauty.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we head to Rothschild & Bickers’ glassblowing studio in Hertford to learn what it takes to turn molten silica into art for the walls and the ceiling.

Number 34 on our list of the greatest products we make here is The Glass Lampshade.

Founders Victoria Rothschild and Mark Bickers explain why glass making is a team sport, celebrate the fire in glory holes, and consider the perfect size for their business.

Also on the show, I have a go at making my own water glass and am reminded that, no, I cannot do two things at the same time.

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When you’re in the business of making cider, you need to be able to predict the future.

Growing a single apple tree for cider-making takes years. Plant an orchard, and you’re betting on customers’ taste buds decades ahead of time.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door we head to the village of Sandford by the Mendip Hills to visit Thatchers Cider.

Number 33 on our list of the greatest products we make here is The Somerset Cider.

Martin Thatcher, 4th generation cider maker, and his daughter Eleanor, 5th generation cider maker, give us a tour of their apple library, explain the unique challenges of brewing cider, and celebrate the joys of remaining a family-owned business.

We also visit the world’s most-beautiful orchard, learn the importance of regenerative farming, and I get the tables turned on me and must explain myself.

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These are tough times for Britain’s celebrated shoemakers – sales to Europe have been squeezed since 2019, tax-free shopping for overseas tourists has been scrapped, and recent geopolitical events have dented consumer confidence.

To survive, it helps if your brand has a long history and a cult following. Thankfully for Tricker’s they have both.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we head to Northampton to visit Britain’s oldest shoemaker.

Number 32 on our list of the greatest products we make here is The Country Brogue.

Martin Mason, Managing Director at Tricker’s, chats to us about pushing forward a brand that’s 196 years old, competing with warehouses for staff, and the joy to be found in vocational work.

We also contemplate size 18 shoes, wonder what a gimping machine is, and marvel at glazed brick tiles.

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Thirty miles south of Glasgow, in the grounds of a country house, thousands of students visit every year to learn heritage skills such as stone masonry and stained glass making.

Dumfries House is home to The King’s Foundation, an educational charity set up by King Charles III.

For this special episode of The Factory Next Door, we take a tour of Dumfries House with the Foundation’s Head of Education, Dr Simon Sadinsky.

During our walk we consider the value of preserving heritage crafts, the importance of looking beyond our areas of specialist knowledge, and question whether our education system is too focused on learned expertise rather than practical experience.

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The world loves Scotch whisky. Forty-four bottles are exported every single second – that’s 1.4bn a year.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we head to the remote Ardnamurchan peninsula in the Scottish Highlands to learn what it takes to build a distillery.

Number 31 on our list of the greatest products we make in Britain is The Single Malt.

Alex Bruce, Managing Director of the Ardnamurchan Distillery, tells us why he’s not worried about US tariffs, explains why he does worry about dust, and reveals the reason they put the distillery in such a remote location.  

We also see a giant underground bunker, consider whisky Jenga, and learn how the whisky is bringing families back to the area.

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Sheffield is about to embark on a brand refresh which celebrates the city’s role in the history of cultural phenomena such as football, electronic music, and cask beer. But we’re heading there to champion something omitted from the marketing rebrand – the city’s skilled steel workers.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we’re visiting the workshop of Ernest Wright, where they’ve been hand-making beautiful scissors and shears since 1902.

Number 30 on our list of the greatest products we make in Britain are The Kitchen Scissors.

Owner Paul Jacobs explains why he bought the company before he’d even visited it, discusses how to ensure younger workers want to join the team, and looks to start an argument with a colleague.

Also on the show, we gate-crash birthday celebrations, give praise to a very specific chunk of metal on a saddle grinder, and team member Jonathan reveals the sign that stood in his way and commanded him to become a scissor-making.

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Being a tailor is a profession. It has been since 1563 when laws were passed that stated you could only trade as a tailor if you had served your term learning the craft.

Today, there are around 13,000 tailors across the UK, and while Savile Row may be synonymous with the craft, most tailors are working their magic in our satellite cities and market towns.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we head to Macclesfield to meet Brita. She’s a celebrated tailor in her own right, as well as being the driving force behind The Tailoring Academy – a school teaching our next generation of tailors.

Number 29 on our list of the greatest products we make in Britain is The Three-Piece Suit.

As we explore the Academy, Brita explains why having an engineers' mind helps to be a good tailor, the zen-like state you must journey into when spending hours hand-sewing, and we celebrate operatic tenor Luciano Pavarotti.

We also catch up with a former student to learn how the craft has changed his life, and discover why tailors, when they first meet, never look each other in the eye.

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Across Europe, we’ve been cooking with iron pans since the 1600s (the Chinese were using them 1,000 years before that), but they fell out of favour after the invention of ‘non-stick’ chemicals.

Now, following studies suggesting some of those chemicals may be bad for our health, iron pans are returning to our stoves. The UK market is currently estimated to be growing at almost 10% year-on-year.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door, we head to Shropshire to meet the team crafting the iron pans that celebrity chefs and Michelin star restaurateurs seek out.

Number 28 on our list of the greatest products we make in Britain is The Prospector Pan by Netherton Foundry.

Founder Neil Currie shows us the beauty of spinning iron, explains his love of industrial design, and reveals why he once called home to ask his family to throw out all their cooking pans.

Also on the show, we celebrate the versatility of flaxseed oil, recognise the power of local provenience, and hear about exporting woks to China.

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Around 1.5 million umbrellas are reportedly made in the UK every year. We need them. The UK gets around 171 days of rain every year (though that’s across the entire country, thankfully not in one spot!) 

On this week’s The Factory Next Door we head to East London to visit one of our last remaining umbrella makers.

Number 27 on our list of the greatest things we make in Britain is The Doorman’s Umbrella by Ince Umbrellas.

Managing Director Richard Ince chats about the pressures of running a 215-year-old family business, the need to move away from plastic components, and reflects on what he believes are his weaknesses as a boss.

Richard also tells us about making umbrellas for Coldplay, why he entered the business as a 17-year-old, and questions the industry stats as his company doesn’t tell anyone how many umbrellas they make!

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Making sparkling wine is an old craft that’s found a new home. The French (and other European nations) may have been producing it for 300 years, but since the start of the 21st century, the UK has become an increasingly significant player.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door we head to Kent to meet the team making some of our most internationally celebrated wines.

Number 26 on our list of the greatest things we make in Britain is The Sparkling Wine by Gusbourne.

Chief Vineyard Manager Jon Pollard explains why the number of hectares under vine in England and Wales has quadrupled in the past 25 years, talks about managing the changing climate, as well as getting back to traditional farming methods and why sheep are welcome visitors to the estate.

Also on the show, Gusbourne’s head winemaker Mary Bridges chats about the ‘salt’ and ‘pepper’ of winemaking, the joy of harvesting, and reveals she occasionally wants someone else to pick the wine when out with friends.

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Cars are made by robots – often articulated robots that resemble giant human arms… except, there’s a tiny percentage of cars that are still made using real human arms. On this week’s The Factory Next Door we head to the Malvern Hills to meet the team still using their hands to craft cars.

Number 25 on our list of the greatest things we make in Britain is The Coachbuilt Car by the Morgan Car Company.

Chief designer Jonathan Wells chats about the challenges of evolving a car without changing its silhouette, revels in the joy of mixing metal, wood, and leather, and reveals the 115-year-old company still knows where 90% of the cars it’s built are in the world.

After tuning in, please consider buying me a coffee to keep this show on the road

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More than three billion pairs of denim jeans are made every year. But not all jeans are made the same. Just 10% are produced using selvedge denim - a denim that takes more time to weave and is significantly longer lasting.

The UK may account for only a tiny percentage of global jean production, but we have some of the finest makers.

Number 24 on our list of the greatest things we make in Britain is The Selvedge Jeans.

On this week’s The Factory Next Door we visit one of our finest jeans makers - Blackhorse Lane Ateliers in east London. Founder Han Ates tells us why jeans are the new craft beer, the importance of connections, and gives thanks to those who dig old clothes out of disused mines.

We also chat about families, our planet’s future, and what it takes to change your direction of travel when you’re not happy with the path you have followed.

Hit the play button and let’s hang out. Afterwards, say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor

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Since 1824, if you’ve got into difficulties on the British coastline, volunteers from the RNLI will race to your aid. They’ll arrive in a distinctive bright orange boat. A boat built in Britain.

Number 23 on our list of the greatest things we make in Britain is The Inflatable Lifeboat.

In this week’s episode of The Factory Next Door, we head to Cowes on the Isle of Wight to meet Glyn Ellis, Business Operations Manager at the RNLI’s Inshore Lifeboat Centre.

We learn about the craft that goes into making boats built to rescue people. Last year alone, the RNLI saved 269 lives and came to the aid of more than 10,000 individuals.

Also on the show, we celebrate the CNC machine, talk kids’ paintings, and fall in love with a boat name.

Hit the play button and let’s hang out. Afterwards, say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor

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In a leafy science park in Surrey, there’s a team of engineers making something that’s not intended for our world – it’s designed to live in space.

Number 22 on our list of the greatest things we make in Britain is The Space Satellite.

In this week’s episode of The Factory Next Door, we head to Surrey Satellite Technologies to meet with systems engineer Lily Forward and head of marketing Andrew Greenhalgh. We chat about the magic of working in the space industry, launch day nerves, and the dangers of lunchtime snacks. We also talk Elon Musk and offer sympathy to finance directors.

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A thread runs across the shoulders of King Charles, Stormzy, and David Gandy, and leads to the city of Gloucester. There, in a beautiful 18th century house, you can find Emma Willis and her skilled team making shirts for royalty, celebrities and anyone wishing to look sharp.

Number 21 on our list of the greatest products we make in Britain is The Cotton Shirt.

In this week’s episode of The Factory Next Door we head to Bearland House, just a short distance away from Gloucester Cathedral. Here, Emma chats to us about starting her business, why she felt her career was a ‘fail’ for so many years, and the importance of celebrating the skill to sell. We also talk love in the workplace and dying at your sewing machine.

Hit the play button and let’s hang out. Afterwards, say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor

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For this special episode of the show, we sit down for a chat with journalist and broadcaster Evan Davis.

Before becoming presenter of Radio 4’s PM programme, Evan was the BBC’s Economics Editor. In 2011, he presented a documentary series, and wrote a book, called Made in Britain. Since 2006, Evan’s presented the business show The Bottom Line. He’s also the presenter of BBC Two’s Dragons’ Den.

We sit down in a disused car park to discuss how Britain pays its way in the world, why entrepreneurs look to China to help kickstart their businesses, and the joy of quality over quantity. We also discuss the efficiencies of resilience, and consider why the manufacturing resurgence he predicted a decade ago hasn’t happened – yet.

Hit the play button and let’s hang out. Afterwards, say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor

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The world’s biggest exporter of horse saddles and harnesses? China. Today it accounts for almost half the entire global market. But British-made saddles are still celebrated for their craftsmanship, and they are still in demand - particularly from riders in places such as America and Australia.

Number 20 on our list of the greatest products we make in Britain is The Horse Saddle.

In this week’s episode of The Factory Next Door we head to Walsall, to meet Jane, co-owner of Ryder Saddles. She tells us why a young workforce matters, the joy of blinged up saddles, the pain of posting to Europe, and why the industry is built on cold wet January days.

Hit the play button and let’s hang out. Afterwards, say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor

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This year we’re on course to spend a billion-pounds on stuffed toys and dolls in the UK. The vast majority will arrive in shipping containers, but a small, select group of stuffed toys will be born on our island.

Number 19 on our list of the greatest products we make is The Teddy Bear.

In this week’s episode of The Factory Next Door we chat to Kerstin, managing director of Canterbury Bears to discuss the importance of being fair in business, turning away big orders, believing in work with a social purpose, and popping round to Uri Geller’s house. 

Also on the show, we learn how teddy bears got their name, reminisce about our childhood teddies, and give praise to Michael Buble’s jeans.

Hit the play button, let’s hang out. Afterwards, say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor

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In East London, at a former Burberry factory, jackets and shirts are being manufactured with a unique twist – every element of them, from the buttons to the labels, the thread to the cloth, has been produced within the British Isles.

In this week’s episode of The Factory Next Door, we meet husband-and-wife team Paul and Debbie, co-founders of clothing brand MISSING. They explain why they set out to source everything from the Isles, despair about fake ‘Made in Britain’ labels, and reveal how to resolve a Mexican stand-off.

Also on the show, we chat to factory manager Alex from Apparel Tasker. She tells us where her love of manufacturing came from, shows off possibly Britain’s best factory canteen, and introduces Peanut the dog.

Hit the play button, let’s hang out. Afterwards, say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor

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There are 181 companies making footwear in the UK. In this week’s show we visit one of the oldest, Norfolk’s Bowhill & Elliott, to celebrate its Albert Slipper.

These slippers, traditionally made from velvet and often featuring intricate embroidered motifs, are still crafted by hand in a workshop behind the company’s shop on Norwich’s high street. They've been based there since 1874.

Marc, Bowhill & Elliott’s Managing Director, tells us about rolling the dice of good fortune, the origins of the slipper, the power of fresh starts, and his backup plan if it all goes wrong.

Hit the play button, let’s hang out. Afterwards, say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor

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As the summer sun finally arrives, it’s time to celebrate an item we commonly hear in our villages and towns during the warmer months – the morris bell.

Morris dancers wear dozens of these bells strapped to their legs, giving their routines a distinctive sound. On today’s show, we head to Birmingham Stopper – one of the last factories in Britain still manufacturing the bells (it also produces a host of other much more sophisticated componentry such as car engine parts).

Chairman Roger Varley tells us what it’s been like leading a British manufacturer for the past four decades, shares the single-most important decision he’s made in his career, and gives thanks to his wife.

We also learn about power presses, remember the Vauxhall Viva, and chat about spirits with a morris dancer. Hit the play button, let’s hang out.

Afterwards, say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor

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We celebrate a watch on today’s show – one made using 3D printing technologies (or additive manufacturing as the technique is referred to in the industry).

Apiar are new-comers to the horology world, but their use of additive manufacturing, and focus on British-sourced parts, makes them particularly interesting.

We travel to Ebbw Vale in South Wales to visit the factory making Apiar’s intricate watch cases. There, we chat to engineer Youssef about his journey from the steel works of Egypt to the green, green, grass he now calls home.

Youssef reveals how to be beat the Far East on price, reminds us why British manufacturing is legendary, and explains why he’s so proud of his machines.

We also speak to Apiar founders Matt and Sam about launching a new brand, the power of lattice structures, and why sending out your first products is like waving your child off to university.  

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It’s time to add a piece of footwear to our list of great British-made products. This week we head to Northamptonshire, the traditional home of our shoe-making industry, to tour Joseph Cheaney & Sons’ factory.

Our guide Martin celebrates The Derby Boot, shows us what makes a Goodyear welted shoe special, explains why clippers are more skilled than cutters, and reveals he wants to be buried in a shoe box.

We also speak to owners Jonathan and William Church about being the guardians of a 140-year-old brand, how they’re growing the business, and why Japanese customers love British craft.

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For number 13 on our list we head to 13 Savile Row, W1. There we meet Ruby, founder and creative director of Banshee, to learn how she makes her exquisite bespoke velvet jackets.

As we tour Banshee’s workshop, we discuss bespoke clothing for women, the joy of British fabrics, the importance of marrying business and creativity, and the unpredictability of imposter syndrome.

We also appreciate Savile Row from above and chat with Charles, a tailor who’s worked on this famous street for decades and knows the inside leg measurements of quite a few movie stars.

Say hello on Instagram @thefactorynextdoor or email steve@thefactorynextdoor.com

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