It is hard to believe that this time last year I had just attended the British Theatre Technicians Conference at Alexandra Palace in London. I had also attended the Kick Off in Business course, hosted by the one and only Andrew Bishop, alias “The Firestarter,” in March 2026. The course was two weeks long and it taught business enterprise skills, literally how to “kick off” in business.
When the course began, we had to log in online at 9am, and little did I know that 9am is actually very late morning in business terms. I would not have believed that I was going to be getting up at 6am to deliver training quite soon after the two-week course had ended. On that day, we learnt about business structures, and I discovered that my research about business models a few years previously had done me proud. Andrew confirmed that Alternative Voices Theatre Company was a Community Interest Company, and he supported the learners through the process of setting it up.
Guest speaker Mip Phillips then spoke to us about the use of AI, its benefits, and ethical considerations. I have now been using ChatGPT for a year, and I can honestly say that I agree that it is not regulated properly and that it uses far too much water to run its servers. It also has ethical considerations such as identity theft, stealing actors’ voices and intellectual property, and taking work away from the arts, which is already a very challenging environment to work in.
At the same time, it has many positive uses, particularly for accessibility. It saves me tonnes of time, for example, structuring blogs, shortening word counts, and creating email templates. It helps me do Harvard referencing correctly. It enables me to meal-plan effectively and think of ideas for protein-rich foods. It helps me check spelling, sentence structure, and grammar. It helps me research facts when I have difficulties with working memory, such as remembering actors’ names and dates of research studies. It helps me search for “how-to” facts, such as getting stains out of sofa covers or the best way to clean an oven.
Its business uses are monumental, and it has the potential for so much good if only it were being used correctly. I strongly disagree with using it to make art, music, or steal stories from writers, or to claim work as your own when studying at university or college. You also have to be very careful what data you feed it; for example, never give it your bank details or anything that could be used to steal your identity, and always make sure you fact-check the responses it gives.
Anyway, I could go on, but my brain was still stuck in 2010 prior to this course, wondering what had happened to the world I knew.
At the end of the day, we set ourselves business goals, and one of my goals was to improve my communication. Little did I know that goal would lead me to sharing my story at Derby’s first ever Neurodiversity event, hosted by ‘Time to Talk Men’s Mental Wealth’. It would also lead to me being on the radio twice that summer to advertise my book, When I Grow Up I Want to Be a Cat: Surviving the Education System with Asperger’s.
At the end of the first week, we had created a marketing strategy to drive sales. I rang Andrew Bishop to ask him if I could practise sharing my story. It turned out that he was at my graduation ceremony at Queen Mary University of London in 2011, when I graduated from my undergraduate degree. He is the father of one of my course mates, Henry Bishop. It is such a small world, and at that point I knew being on the course was meant to be. I was actually meant to be with another trainer, but I had pushed the course back a week because I had not wanted to study on my birthday, and that led to meeting Andrew.
Prior to the course, I felt very stuck in life. My Personal Independence Payment had been taken from me in January that year, which left me with little money and desperate to find a job. I had considered working in the hotel near Derby bus station, and I applied for a programme at East Midlands Airport, but I was dismayed because none of that was what I wanted to do. None of it matched my skills or qualifications as an Occupational Therapist. I just did not know how to find my Ikigai, which Garcia and Miralles (2017) say is “my reason for being” or “my purpose in life”, or find out how to do the work I wanted passionately, which was in access and inclusion in theatre arts.
Once the course ended Andrew said he would help us however he could. We still have our group chat because as a group we got on so well for the two weeks and we still message each other to ask for advice and support a year later. A year on and Andrew has kept his word and he is still helping 100%.
After the course ended, I completed all of the Kick Off in Business Level 3 courses: Finance, Sustainability, and Marketing. By June 2025, I had been on the radio and had secured a funding grant from Arts Council England to develop my bespoke access and inclusion training programme for theatre arts venues.
I had also stepped foot inside Alexandra Palace for the British Theatre Technicians Conference. Prior to doing the course, I would have felt that I was unworthy to enter such a place. By the end of the event, I had spoken to five drama schools and had shared my idea with their business advisor because those were the goals I had set in my Kick Off in Business workbook.
By November 2025, we were a registered Community Interest Company. By December, we had our website set up on a green hosting web server space. Now I am in the delivery stages of my project, and I am travelling around the East and West Midlands to deliver our bespoke training packages to six theatre venues. I am also receiving regular mentoring from Paul Haslam, one of the best business mentors I have ever had.Not only that, but I am learning both personally and professionally. A year ago, I was jobless and in a pretty desperate state of mind. Now I am delivering training across the Midlands, and I am learning about myself, my grit, and my resilience, and that despite my Autism Spectrum Condition and my anxiety disorder, I am actually able to do great things. I can talk to other people, and I am actually pretty funny when I put my mind to it.All of this has helped me come out of myself and learn to be authentically me, and my friends and colleagues who have known me for a long time have noticed it.
In September 2025, Andrew launched his new idea, ‘The Fire Starter Foundation.’ It is an alumni space for past students where everyone who has been on his courses can connect together, innovate, and share ideas. It is a space to drive economic and business growth in the UK.
Over the winter months, we had fireside chats, and we learnt from each other. Now the sun is shining again, many of us are preparing for Climb 26 this summer. I do not know what this opportunity will bring. What I do know is that when somebody offers you a chance to do something, you take it with both hands because that opportunity may not come around again, and you may be left regretting the things you never did. Do not be that person.
If you are wondering what to do with your life, speak to Andrew Bishop. If you think you know what you are doing in life, speak with him anyway; you might be surprised at what he uncovers with you. To connect with Andrew, here is a link to his LinkedIn page and website below.
Andrew’s profile
Website
firestarterfoundation.com (Company)