The best of The Notts Edit in 2024 — 5 features from the rebel county
Five fascinating long-reads, hand-picked by the editor
When I started The Notts Edit last year, I didn’t have a grand plan of what it was going to be.
It began because I believed quality, long-form journalism was hard to find in Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. I’m a lifestyle journalist and I’ve worked for regional and national companies, so I always knew it was going to be this style of writing, instead of news.
This was something I’d had the idea for it for years, but I wasn’t sure how to start and build it up. Then, one day I had the brainwave (I was walking through Florence!) to publish on Substack, so people could get articles in their inboxes. And now, here we are.
I had no idea it was going to grow this quickly, but I’m so thrilled that it has. We’ve published over 100 articles from a variety of writers. We’ve had tens of thousands of views. We launched Notts Going On, which is a weekly round-up of news and events that gets sent out every Monday. I’ve gone from working in-house at a huge magazine publisher to freelancing, because I wanted to give The Notts Edit the attention it needs.
The original concept for The Notts Edit was to just publish one article a week that people could take time to read with a cup of tea. Despite doing more than that now, I’ve never let go of doing long-form features and reads. There have been so many different and interesting ones, spanning entertainment, fashion, culture, history, and food and drink.
I’ve narrowed down my favourites from this year. I’ve written a little bit about each one, and from there you can click through and read what you’d like. I’m hopeful that 2025 will bring even more fascinating stories from around the county.
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Finally, I want to say a big thank you to everyone that has embraced The Notts Edit. Everyone that was willing to speak to, write for, and read a new publication… it just wouldn’t be what it is without you.
Here’s to another year of celebrating the best of the rebel county,
Eve Smallman
5 of the best The Notts Edit features in 2024
This year marked the 200th anniversary of Lord Byron’s death. He was a famous romantic poet and is one of the area’s most iconic historical figures. However, I’m not a huge history expert — but I knew someone who was. Ash Carter and I worked together at LeftLion, and he wrote the superb Out of Time features while he was there. I asked him to do a short history on Lord Byron, and he delivered this fantastic piece. Ash is great at making anything fun and interesting, and he did just that here.
Pete Hewitt’s street food Homeboys was legendary and I was sad I’d never had a chance to try it. Everyday People came around which was exciting, but I wasn’t sure it was worth me going as I’m vegetarian and there weren’t loads of alternative options (I was wrong — quality over quantity!). Then, Jay Rayner’s review and Tim Hayward’s reviews landed. Cue a little bit of chaos — trying to get a seat at the hottest restaurant in town and trying to interview the man behind it. I didn’t just want a couple of quotes — I wanted to do a proper in-depth feature that would have impact even once the hype died down. It took a couple of weeks, but it was worth the wait. It was also fab to see Pete on Adam Richman Eats Football in Nottingham this month.
Our county is known for its intricate textile history — but its modern day legacy isn’t often talked about. When Sam Swain told me one day that the world’s best t-shirts are made here in Nottingham, I was amazed. We thought it would be wonderful if we could actually speak to someone from Sunspel, but as it’s a huge international luxury clothing brand, I wasn’t sure if we’d even hear back. But we did, and Sam wrote this article that I really love. For me, it’s a great example of what sets us apart in terms of the type of content we do.
Marcus is one of the most well-known chefs in Nottingham — he’s a big foodie on Instagram and he co-founded Mesa in Hockley. I loved Oscar & Rosie’s, but I was happy to hear that he’d be filling the space with Raymond’s. The interview that we did could have been a podcast. He had such a brilliant backstory for the restaurant, was brimming with exciting food and ideas, and spoke so passionately about the local food scene. It was one of those interviews where I knew I could just let him talk and he’d shine. This is my favourite piece that I’ve written this year and I think it shows in the writing. Raymond’s has also just made it into the Michelin Guide just four months after opening, which is such an achievement.
I’d walked past EverWild so many times, and have seen it grow from a market stall to a store, so I was delighted when founder Tarnya got in touch on Instagram to have a chat. This was the first interview I did after going freelance, and I walked away from it feeling more confident in my decision. The space was cosy and relaxed, and we just sat, drank tea with stroopwafles on top (this has now changed my life!), and talked. No rushing around — just an excellent conversation. The floral studio is loved by local people and supports local businesses and makers, too. Speaking with Tarnya really reminded me how creative and brilliant the area is.
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