Are you unsure how to get into the television industry after graduation? Well, this is the episode for you!

University of Glasgow alumni Claire Tippet reflects on how her passion for television and film helped curate her career as a freelance producer in unscripted and factual television. Her role as a television producer allows her to remain ‘50% practical and 50% creative’ and involved throughout; from planning, to production, to editing.

The episode highlights the importance of harnessing your enthusiasm for the industry and remaining truthful in your careers direction, despite uncertainty. Levitt emphasises the importance of reaching out and remaining engaged, allowing continuous movement and progression.

While the television industry is renowned for being inaccessible, Levitt reflects the importance of remaining honest in the areas you are passionate about and taking roles that enhance these passions. Active responsiveness leads to opportunities, setting you apart from competition. While this is a key point Levitt expresses, she also highlights the importance of knowing your worth and knowing if something is not right for you.

The episode ends with a reflection on the need to be interested in your own passions and the world around you, allowing these to nurture your career and create opportunities.

This episode pulls apart the intricacy of the term ‘hate-watching’, with the help of Dr. Amy Holdsworth, a researcher in television and domestic media. How does the strong emotion of hate become pleasurable? How does social media motivate and encourage engagement with hate-based watching? What is the definition of bad tv and pleasure? How does communal viewing enhance and shape the way we watch television?

Amy takes us on a deep dive into the different aspects of hate-watching, and how these are affected by personal taste, social media, community viewing, marketing and cultural ideologies. The episode discusses the thin line between hate-watching, ironic viewing and guilty pleasures. Does this impact the television produced globally? And is there a sense of hierarchy placed upon the television deemed ‘bad’?

The episode concludes with a look at how shifting contexts and different audiences can subvert the ‘hate’ for characters. How do audiences navigate the joy felt in the karmic watching associated with the defeat of the villain? How the success of the antihero and the ‘good’ character's downfall with the audience, is often perceived through sexism and misogyny. And the gender politics and anti-fandoms created in the wake of hate-watching female characters.

Find out how Glasgow Caledonian Alumni, Insha Aslam curated her role as a Background-checker in the BBC Dragons’ Den tv series. Working on Scottish based productions she used her connections to develop opportunities, internships and roles within the television industry. Insha reflects on her ‘happy accident’ into the industry after completing a science-based degree and swapping to the arts-based world, and how she hopes to combine the two differing background areas. The interview highlights the importance of networking and building relationships to help consolidate some job security in the hard to navigate industry. It also includes some tips for developing these memorable moments and creating a purpose-built film and television CV.