Andy Palmer: Setting up Thrive Live, a live stream where deaf women talk about things from a women’s perspective (BSL)

To watch Thrive Live on YouTube, click here.

I’m a big fan of YouTube. I watch it every day. But one thing that’s always got to me is how little British Sign Language (BSL) content there is on the platform.

Of course, there are some great content creators like Jazzy Whipps and Socially Sound’s Sarah and Kirsty and podcasts such as The Inadequate Mother by Hayley Brown, which is BSL-interpreted. They’re fantastic, but they barely make a dent compared to the millions of hours uploaded to YouTube every day.

I always wanted to do something about that. That’s why, during Covid, I was able to do plenty of live streaming with Cambridgeshire Deaf Association (CDA). In that time, and in the years after, we created over 100 hours of content in BSL—quizzes, football shows, panel discussions, and really influential conversations, like the one we did on Deaf inclusion in arts and media. But still nothing really compared to the content not in sign language. I wish there were a lot, lots more.

For the past couple of years, live streaming had to take a backseat as my attention was pulled in other directions at CDA. But today, we’re back—this time with a brand-new series, and the first of its kind. Think Loose Women, but in BSL. It’s called Thrive Live and is live stream where deaf women get to talk about issues from a women’s perspective. It’s something Nadia Nadarajah, the host had always dreamed of doing and it fits with CDA’s aim of creating informative content in BSL especially where there are gaps.

We don’t think there’s ever been a series like this before, so as we joked in the pub afterward, there probably needs to be a blue plaque on the coffee shop to mark where it all began.

Friday morning, I woke up at 5:30 am—probably nerves, knowing the live stream was happening today. Can’t think of much else. That’s when I realised one of the cameras I needed was still in Cambridge. The live stream was happening at Bewitched Coffee in Peterborough not far from where I live. There was only one thing for it: get in the car and do the 80-mile round trip to fetch it.

By 7:30 am, I was in Cambridge, grabbed the camera, and then headed to our office in Huntingdon—where I realised I’d also forgotten my laptop. Not ideal but traffic was on my side.

The live stream was set to take place at 3:00 pm at Bewitched Coffee in Peterborough. If you haven’t been, it’s a fantastic little place—built in an old engine shed at the site of the former Peterborough East railway station. It’s got this cool industrial look, the perfect setting for a live stream.

The wheels got in motion for this live stream late last year when we approached Bewitched Coffee to see if they’d be interested in hosting. Thankfully, their staff and management were brilliant, and we agreed it would take place every month. We even found a sponsor—video relay service provider SignWow—who were more than happy to support the project. Big thanks to the team there for backing it and for providing the interpreters who were to feed the live captions.

By 9:00 am, I was finally back in Peterborough, at our office next to Peterborough United’s stadium, where I met Matt Wheeler, CDA’s new Communications Manager. Today would be his first-ever live stream. To people who haven’t done it before .. it’s a whole new thing to learn.

There’s a lot to take in when it comes to live streaming. The cameras and lighting? Fairly easy to figure out. But the software side—the streaming software, setting up scenes and graphics and ads, making sure everything is going to the right places—is another beast entirely. The real headache on Friday? Getting the captions to work. There was a technical issue and I just about resolved it with minutes to spare. It wouldn’t be a proper livestream without a desperate last minute technical puzzle for me to solve with everyone staring at me; but we got there.

The Setup

By 1:30 pm, we were at the coffee shop setting up. No matter how much time you allow, it’s never enough. And with a small budget and only a couple of people, it always feels like a race against the clock.

At 2:15 pm, the host, Nadia Nadarajah, arrived with the three guests—local women Charlene Spires and Ann Ratcliffe, plus Joanne Harrison, who had travelled from Nuneaton. For all of them, this was their first time on a live stream. As you can imagine, the tension was building. JoJo Wash was in the role of floor manager and took care of everyone so well. Also kept us all to time.

For Nadia, hosting her own talk show like this had been an ambition of hers for a long time. She told me she’d had a few restless nights recently thinking about how it might go.

Live streaming is always chaos before it all comes together—cameras, cables, internet connections, Zoom links, the streaming software. And I left the cushions for the set in the car (parked in a multistorey next door) But the big snag this time? The coffee shop’s Wi-Fi wasn’t great. We had to hotspot the whole thing through mobile phones. Image all that work resting on a personal hotspot connection.

Thankfully, technology has come a long way—5G is incredible these days. We just about got away with it.

Showtime

As 3:00 pm approached, the room fell still, waiting for the cue to begin. The titles rolled and then suddenly—we were live.

Watch the episode here:

And just like that, the next hour melted away in wonderful conversation in BSL. The guests were natural, candid and funny. Nadia was at ease in the role of presenter. Everything seemed to go really, really well … except for the sunlight in Ann’s face (which we didn’t predict) and one disappointing fumble from me at the end.

One of my jobs was to keep the autocue going for Nadia as she signed. But right at the last moment, I lost concentration—too focused on making sure the live stream ended properly. If you watch the stream back, you’ll probably notice that things wrap up a bit abruptly. My bad. The feeling I had after that mistake is what I imagine a striker feels like after missing a winning tap-in with the last kick of the game. No! So close – but it’s over. I’ll have to live with the mistake.

But you know what? It was great to be back doing this again. I love the feeling of accomplishment mixed with knowing it could be better and the challenge that presents.

And with the support of Matt Wheeler and JoJo, it was a much smoother (and more enjoyable) experience.

To watch Thrive Live on YouTube, click here.