Actor and creative founder Nicole Miners joins us to talk about rejection, representation and building something of your own. Best known for Visions of a Vivid Life and They’re Outside, Nicole shares what it’s like to be “ethnically ambiguous” in the UK industry, why not hearing back hurts more than a no, and how running auditions from the other side changed how she sees her own.

We also dive into founding HOKOYO Productions with her fiancé, making a £10K short film while working a full-time job, and the story behind The Algorithm of Loss, a Black Mirror-style film about recreating a lost partner with AI. Along the way, Nicole shares her advice for anyone starting out: start small, share your contacts, and keep it fun.

Kevin Lam, co-host of Bunch of Bananas - one of the UK’s early ESEA podcasts - joins Nina to talk identity, community, and why he’d rather fail loudly than stay quiet.

Kevin shares how he met co-host Eric in uni, growing up as one of the only Chinese kids in Blackpool, and the push-pull of feeling “more British in Asia, more Chinese in the UK.” They dig into code-switching as a survival skill, Bunch of Bananas’ growth from sofa chats to a real platform (including a new ESEA football club with 50+ players), and Kevin’s long list of failed side hustles - gachapon machines, a Vietnamese coffee cart, sunglasses e-commerce - and what they taught him.

Follow Bunch of Bananas on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube and @kevinthelam. Follow The Tea House Podcast for more conversations on culture, identity, and the people behind the stories.

What does it really take to turn content creation into a career — and can you actually make a living from it?

On this episode of The Tea House, we sit down with Chantal Cooper to talk about her journey from tech sales to becoming a content creator, the reality of making money online, and what it takes to turn views into income. From brand deals and negotiating your worth to staying authentic in an industry driven by numbers, Chantal shares what goes on behind the scenes of being a creator.

But beyond the business of content, we also explore identity, belonging and growing up between cultures. As someone who is half-English and half-Filipina, with a childhood in Hong Kong, Chantal reflects on navigating family expectations, connecting with her Filipino heritage, and experiencing racism in the UK.

How do you build a personal brand without losing yourself in the process? And what happens when your identity becomes part of your platform?

Join us for an honest conversation about money, ambition, representation and finding your place in the world.

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