Creative

Support Worker Required For Art and Adventures

1^st February 2024

A photo of Jess with a support worker in a colourful installation. Jess is in her wheelchair on the right of the image wearing a bright blue tracksuit. Her support worker is on the left on the image in a bright orange t-shirt, both are masked and are surrounded by colourful streamers and spherical paper lampshades.

I’ve never written an online dating profile. I did start one once but found the mix of expectation, self-promotion, and the pressure to be funny overwhelming. So, I abandoned the idea. But I’m also finding writing this post, which has some similar qualities, quite daunting.…

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Young Artist Development Programme 2024 - The Department for Wonder and Play’

8^th January 2024

Two years ago, we launched our Young Artists Development Programme (YADP) through which we commissioned and shared the work of 10 young disabled creatives. ‘Commissioned’ means being paid to produce a piece of artwork. It was great getting to know each artist, and to see the variety of their work took.…

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Moments of Breakthrough and Breakage

31^st December 2023

A digitally drawn image by Jess Thom showing a timeline of 2023 a bold black line runs centrally and horizontally across the image, along this line are the months of the year starting with January on the right and December on the left of the image. Coming off the central line both above and below it are twenty colourful circles of different sizes. Each circle represents one activity from the year. Above the line these include creative activities like Touring our new show burnt out in Biscuit Land, a children’s event called Journey to A Better World or going to the BAFTAS. Below the line are activities that are more organisational some of these are positive like becoming a National Portfolio Organisation (NPO), or our Practical Intervention Fund (PIF) for other disabled people but some are less positive like Team Bereavements and illness. You can find out more about the activities on the timeline in the end of year post this image is part of.

So that’s another year done! In just a few hours we’ll say goodbye to 2023 and welcome in the New Year. For the Touretteshero team, 2023’s been a year of contrasts. We’ve had incredible moments of joy, making and touring new work and becoming an Arts Council England (ACE) National Portfolio Organisation (NPO), and Biscuitland was nominated for a BAFTA!…

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The Lonely Reality of Avoiding Being Alone

22^nd September 2023

A digital image by Jess Thom, black title text reads – Visualising Care, six months of care related labour. The image below is made of colourful dots each with a black outline, these are grouped by six type of labour. The biggest quantities are at the top of the image, on the left are 276 blue dots showing care communication and on the right 136 green dots show cover. Below these are four smaller groupings of dots, yellow for care admin, red for disruption, black for support gaps and the smallest number of 30 dots is purple representing relationship strain.

As someone who requires skilled support 24 hours a day I’m never really on my own – but if I am it’s because I’ve failed. Failed, that is, to meet my most basic need, the continuous presence of someone who can keep me safe, someone who can administer emergency medication if necessary, who can prevent friction burns from my repetitive movements, or who can turn me over so I can breathe.…

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The Joy of the Journey

4^th September 2023

A photo with Jess Thom, a white wheelchair-using woman at the centre. She's dressed in a red and blue flight-suit and a face mask. Jess is joyfully encased inside a giant bubble. The word "TELEPORT" is prominently displayed in the background. The photo has a playful tone and is part of a space-themed installation titled "Journey To A Better World.

I’m tired, in a deep kind of way. On its own this might not seem noteworthy because I experience fatigue and energy-related barriers every day. But this tiredness is different because although my body is physically drained, my mind, heart and spirit are energised in new and joyful ways.…

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Burnt Out In Biscuit Land Tour Reflections

11^th July 2023

A digital drawing made up of a nine circles in a grid formation three circles by three circles. The circle at the centre contains a drawing of the blue and white Touretteshero van. The eight circles around the edge each have landmarks from the different towns visited on the tour these are: Wigan, Bradford, Bridlington, Stoke on Trent, Peterborough, Torquay, Gloucester and margate. The drawing is colourful and in a blocky, graphic style.

We got back yesterday after almost three months of touring our new show Burnt Out In Biscuit Land (BOBL). When we set out for the first stop back in April I had no idea how audiences would respond to the show.…

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“Oh Biscuits!”

18^th June 2023

A photo a Lego Bee-Bublance, an ambulance for bees. The view looks down on the creation made out of yellow, white & blue bricks. There are two bays for tired bees and a feed platform that holds a small plastic spoon containing sugar water

I was looking after my niece Bean and nephew Sausage earlier today. While Sausage had a nap, Bean focused on making a Bee-bulance – an ambulance for bees. They’d arrived late at the castle for a play date in part because Bean had stopped twice to administer first aid to bees.…

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Return of the PIF

9^th May 2023

I can’t believe it’s been two years since we launched our Practical Intervention Fund, which provides small items related to wellbeing and relaxation to deaf, disabled and neurodivergent people of all ages. We’ve run two rounds of the fund so far, with each receiving lots of interest.…

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I Pledge Allegiance

6^th May 2023

A digital drawing by Jess Thom of one of her involuntary tics in response to reading about pledging allegiance to the King. The tic is written at the bottom of the image and reads: “I Pledge Allegiance to the roots of rebellion, to the leaves of love and to drainpipes in a storm.” The drawing illustrates this tic. At the top of the image ominous grey storm clouds pelt rain into a network of interconnected drain pipes. Below this is a hundreds of tiny hearts bunch together like blossom some blowing loose around the image – others forming a colourful riot of tiny hearts. Beneath this a base of protest placards give way to a colourful mass of roots stretching out towards the bottom of the image. The elements are arranged to vaguely reflect the shape of a crown.

We’re back in London after the first week of touring Burnt Out In Biscuit Land. We came back through central London which is already heaving with flags for the coronation next week.

I read an article about the pledge of allegiance that will form part of the coronation ceremony.…

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Crip Culture, Prepper Culture

4^th March 2023

The poster for Burnt Out In Biscuitland by Touretteshero the main image is three people stare directly at the camera and are each wearing different coloured, knitted balaclavas where only their eyes and mouths are exposed. They are all wearing black stab vests with the words ‘NO DNR’ stencilled onto the vests in white paint. Charmaine is on the left of the image. She is wearing a knitted green balaclava and blue knitted snood. Chopin is on the right of the image. She is wearing a red and orange knitted balaclava. She is tugging the top of the stab vest with her left hand. Jess is in the centre of the image between Charmain and Chopin and is staring straight at the camera. She is wearing a blue and pink knitted balaclava. Poster text reads "We Refuse To Give Up Our Joy" and "Coming Soon" The partner logos run across the bottom of the image

Preppers are people who plan for emergencies in practical ways. Exactly what they’re preparing for varies but can include natural disasters, economic crisis, civil unrest, or a zombie apocalypse.

Prepper culture focuses on self-reliance, making detailed plans, stockpiling essentials, and doing everything possible to support survival in a catastrophic breakdown of society.…

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Creative

Support Worker Required For Art and Adventures

Young Artist Development Programme 2024 - The Department for Wonder and Play’

Moments of Breakthrough and Breakage

The Lonely Reality of Avoiding Being Alone

The Joy of the Journey

Burnt Out In Biscuit Land Tour Reflections

“Oh Biscuits!”

Return of the PIF

I Pledge Allegiance

Crip Culture, Prepper Culture

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