Making It: How Love, Kindness and Community Helped Me Repair My Life

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Finding success when the odds for it to happen are against someone shows the true character, courage, and vulnerability needed to make it happen. Exclusive: The Repair Shop's Jay Blades marries Lisa Zbozen in romantic Barbados wedding". 4 December 2022. I admit to being a trifle skeptical about the content, I suspect that an autobiography doesn't have to be quite as strict with the truth as a fully-cited biography does. However, I do think that that bones of this story are true and it's worth noting that Mr Blades pulls no punches when it comes to explicitly detailing what society might be inclined to call his "failings of character". I liked very much that he calls out what he sees as failings in others and himself, although I do feel he was a little lax in applying the same standards to himself that he'd like to see in others, most specifically his father comes in for a pretty heavy lambasting throughout the book for his absence, deservedly so, but Jay has essentially repeated the "crimes" he so vehemently decries and although he's somewhat salving the wounds with money, the outcomes of some of his children's life indicate that there's potentially some element of Jay's absenteeism that could explain where they're at. That said, as he states in the book, " You can't live your kids' lives for them", he's done what he can, with who he is and even if he contributed to some of the problems, at least he's still trying to do something about contributing to the solution as well. Good morning all, I'm 50 today and I wanted to post this photo with my head down, (don't worry I'm not sad) I'm doing this as a mark of respect to EVERYONE, that got me here. 🙏🏽 Thank You. 😊 Against the odds, though, he took these circumstances to grow and create change within the communities he worked and cared for.

Making It by Jay Blades | Waterstones

Jay is a hugely popular presenter on craft TV show The Repair Shop, which has welcomed stars including King Charles and Dame Judi Dench. Murphy, Nichola (26 September 2022). "The Repair Shop's Jay Blades 'wasn't ready' to be a father". HELLO!.Furniture dealer turned TV star Jay Blades chats about his style in Wolverhampton". Shropshire Star. 18 August 2018 . Retrieved 31 October 2019. He has also appeared on Would I Lie to You?, Celebrity Masterchef, Richard Osman's House of Games, Michael McIntyre's The Wheel, and The Graham Norton Show. [16] [17] I admire him, on how he turned his life around, and how he helped young people to improve their lives. He is a furniture restorer, but most importantly, he has worked relentlessly to rescue those that find themselves in similar situations as he did. I have a major question, however, viz. how, given that undiagnosed dyslexia had left him more or less unable to read or write, he was accepted into university to study Philosophy and Criminology. Surely he should have acquired adequate reading skills first?

Making It: How Love, Kindness and Community Helped - WHSmith

Jay Blades, presenter of The Repair Shop, has decided it’s finally time to learn to read. He has been told he has the reading age of an 11-year-old. Throughout his life he has found ways of avoiding the written word, and this film digs deep into how this has shaped him. Loved this book and learnt a lot about the man behind Jay Blades. Love him even more now knowing what he's gone through in his life. He should be very proud of what he has achieved in his life and the man that he has become.He learned the hard way that as human beings, men are also allowed to feel emotions and deserve to be in tune with their feelings and display them. In one book, Jay shows the very best and the very worst of society - the amazing impact Gerald and his family have had on Jay, through to his absent father and the horrific racism and prejudices that have sadly followed him throughout his life. So many people in similar circumstances would have given up and not even tried to make anything of their lives, but fortunately for Jay (and for us!) he has often had the support and the love of the right people at the right time in his life. Daly, Charlotte (27 October 2022). "Social media goes wild for King Charles III's presenting skills on The Repair Shop". Country Living. PLOT: Blades’ memoir of his early life, education, stumbles, and career choices take us on his journey from innocence to awareness, racism, privilege, relationships to emerging as a transformative figure through his hard work, passion, and ability to talk to people but most importantly to listen to people, becoming an example that real change can happen to ordinary people.

Making It by Jay Blades | Waterstones Making It by Jay Blades | Waterstones

Jones, Emma (19 April 2020). "Jay Blades' degree in criminology led him on path to star in The Repair Shop". Daily Mirror . Retrieved 11 September 2020. a b Harvey, Ian (12 June 2021). "MBE for Repair Shop presenter Jay Blades in Queen's Birthday Honours". Shropshire Star . Retrieved 13 June 2021. However, aside from being entertaining, interesting and engaging, I think Making It is an important book. Through his own, very personal experiences, Jay Blades gives permission for readers, especially men, to show and accept their vulnerability without embarrassment. He gives hope to all that, rather like the items that feature in the television programme The Repair Shop, for which he is most well known, there is always the possibility to create something new and beautiful from something – or someone – broken or damaged. Although some of the aspects covered in Making It like the author’s dyslexia, have been alluded to, or even well documented, in recent times, Making It is a wonderful, detailed insight into the life and personality of Jay Blades. a b c Robertson, Dominic (10 August 2021). "Jay Blades: Why I have taken on challenge of reading at 51". Shropshire Star. p.8.

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He’s not alone in facing this issue. Research findings suggest that a quarter of all children in England leave primary school, like Blades, unable to read to the expected level. More than eight million adults in the UK have poor literacy skills, and half of all prisoners either can’t read or struggle to do so.

BBC One - Jay Blades: Learning to Read at 51 BBC One - Jay Blades: Learning to Read at 51

Making It is an inspirational memoir about beating the odds and turning things around even when it all seems hopeless, by Jay Blades, the beloved star of hit BBC One show The Repair Shop. I loved the honest, conversational style achieved with ghost writer Ian Gittins. What impressed me most was that Jay Blades doesn’t spare himself from an intense, unforgiving spotlight that sometimes belies the jovial cheeky chap we know from his television programmes. There are passages in Making It that are violent, brutal and very frequently accompanied by surprising expletives that, far from alienating the reader, draw them in and have the effect of making them love, admire and respect Jay Blades all the more. He has made mistakes, some of them quite appalling, and yet he comes across as the kind of man you’d want in your life. Even though I know the author is now a successful celebrity, I frequently felt tense as I read, wondering how he was going to overcome the latest obstacle life was throwing his way.a b "The Repair Shop's Jay Blades reveals incredible story discovering he has 25 siblings". MSN. Archived from the original on 13 July 2020 . Retrieved 12 July 2020. Blades lives in Ironbridge in Shropshire. [11] He has three children. His youngest, a daughter, is from his first marriage and he has two sons from previous relationships. Blades married his second wife Lisa Zbozen in Barbados in November 2022. [26] [6] [9] [27] [28] Honours [ edit ] Blades and his wife Jade set up a charity based in High Wycombe, Out of the Dark, to train disadvantaged young people in furniture restoration. [6] The charity lost funding, their marriage broke down, and he became homeless. [6] He was supported by friends and by the Caribbean community. [6] Around the same time, television producers saw a short film about the charity which led to his work as a presenter. [6] He moved to Wolverhampton and established Jay & Co, a social enterprise to support disadvantaged and disengaged groups. [11] I am a big fan of The Repair Shop, and when I stumbled upon this book, I was eager to give it a read. I did not know that much about his upbringing other than watching the Jay Blades: No Place Like Home documentary show.