BRISTOL UPDATES

A student who fell in love with comedy when he was 12 years old has won the Chortle Student Comedy Award 2023. Riki Msindo joins a rollcall of former winners that includes Joe Lycett, Jamali Maddix and Phil Wang.

The 24-year-old battled through multiple heats to make it to the award finals, where he faced nine of the UK’s best young comics – including fellow University of Bristol student Muhsin Yesilada. The final was hosted at Up The Creek comedy club in London by Bristol-born comic Mark Watson, and was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 Extra.

“It felt incredible to win,” said Riki. “In comedy you do so many gigs – often after driving to the middle of nowhere – and a lot of the time you aren’t sure if you’re any good or if you’re progressing. The award was recognition that I’m actually entertaining people. I’ll really hold on to that.”

In Bristol, Riki was able to indulge his dual loves of medicine and comedy. “I fell in love with Bristol as soon as I arrived, it’s just such an incredible city. It also happens to be the home of loads of the country’s best comedians!” he said.

Riki hosts a podcast with established comic Mark Olver called Oh Captain My Captain, where Mark helps Riki navigate the highs and lows of starting out in comedy. Along with discussing gigs and material, they have also interviewed the likes of Jimmy Carr, Russell Howard and James Acaster about their craft. Now graduating, Riki will continue gigging as he takes up his first job as a doctor in Brighton.

A non-profit that has lifted 13,000 refugees and vulnerable people out of period poverty has now been awarded charity status. The Pachamama Project is run by 23-year-old Ella Lambert, who started sewing reusable period pads on her kitchen table in the first lockdown. Since then, she has built a global network of 2,000 volunteers who have sewn 100,000 of the colourful Pacha Pads. They are delivered to refugees and vulnerable people in 10 countries, including Lebanon, Greece, Pakistan and the USA.

Ella launched The Pachamama Project as a non-profit in August 2020 from her home in Chelmsford, Essex, while studying at the University of Bristol. Almost exactly three years on, and now graduating from the University, Pachamama has been granted charity status in the UK.

“It is so, so exciting,” said Ella. “I just didn’t think this would ever happen. A few years ago, I had a little lightbulb moment and today we have this beautiful community – it’s really snowballed.”

Ella was driven to act by her own often debilitating period pain. She learnt to sew from YouTube so she could help others who were experiencing similar pain but in incredibly difficult circumstances. After graduating with a degree in Spanish from the University of Bristol, she is now going full-time on The Pachamama Project, where she has a single aim: eradicating period poverty.

“I’m really excited for the future. When I think about what impact we’ve had in just three years, with no one working on it full-time, I think we could triple our impact. We want to eradicate period poverty and eradicate period stigma.”

• thepachamamaproject.org

The B&Q Gardener of the Year competition has revealed its winner as Bristol local and gardening enthusiast, Matthew Symonds. Crowned at a ceremony attended by the judging panel, including celebrity maître d’ Fred Sirieix, Matthew will receive a £10,000 cash prize, a £2,500 B&Q gift card and B&Q’s highly coveted Golden Trowel for his innovative, versatile garden.

Matthew has been working on his garden since he and his husband moved into the house nearly 20 years ago. Since then, he has transformed the 5.6m x 6.5m space from what was once a concrete square with weeds, into a cleverly designed multi-functional garden. Matthew describes his gardening style as ‘trial and error’, which has resulted in his garden encompassing two entertaining areas, a greenhouse, a pond with a waterfall, a water butt that also hosts a potted lily, a place to store the bike and a myriad of plants including hydrangeas, hazel bamboo and roses ensuring every space is used. Nature is encouraged too, with his beloved trees and pond providing a haven for wildlife and a nesting place for birds all year-round. Matthew’s split-level, urban garden highlights that any outdoor space can be made into a paradise, no matter the budget or space.

This year’s competition judges, including Sirieix, B&Q Outdoor Category Director, Steve Guy and award-winning garden designers, Matt Childs and Humaira Ikram, were particularly impressed by how brilliantly versatile Matthew’s garden is and how innovatively he has used a small space.