The Great Pottery Throw Down: TV show sparks new wave of interest in hobby
From raucous hen parties inspired by Ghost to budding potters inspired by The Great Pottery Throw Down – it's a new age for one of Shropshire's most popular crafts.
There's a new wave of interest in throwing pots and mugs, which Wenlock Pottery's Mike Fletcher said is fantastic news for an industry that has always been linked with the county.
"It's very therapeutic, and people say they've really enjoyed it," he said.
"I'm a production thrower, so to me that's great. I've got three industrial wheels, so I plonk them down on one of them and they get to see how difficult it can be.
"It's fantastic, because it's a dying craft in many ways.
"The wheel work is magical, quite honestly.
"When you're there, you're making something out of mud. You're digging something up out the ground, and even if you thump it with your fist, you've got something that'll probably hold water.
"I always say when you open the kiln, it's like Christmas morning. Most of the time you know what's going to be coming out, but you still want to take a little peek to see."
Running the pottery classes and the B&B that make up Wenlock Pottery is only part of Mike's work.
He has been commissioned to create 400 tankards to celebrate this years' Ironbridge Regatta.
"They've had pewter for 50 years, but they wanted something different," he said.
"I've done them in the shape of the cooling tower, it's good to do something a bit different.
"I've been a production thrower for nearly 50 years. I throw a mug every 55 seconds. A tankard would probably take two or three minutes. Then you've got to fire them three different times."
When Mike isn't making tankards, pots or vases to order, he's helping to run hen parties inspired by the famous pottery scene from Ghost. The mothers-in-law-to-be love it," he said.
"The tears are just rolling down their faces the whole time. They put the music on – we have some great times."
Wenlock Pottery isn't the only place seeing a sudden influx of interest following the Great Pottery Throw Down.
Colleges are reporting waiting lists of six months for evening classes, while a first-of-its-kind Clay College will be set up in Stoke-on-Trent later this year.
Clay College offers a two year course teaching to a level at which people could run their own business.
