SO, THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED

Six people tell a true story.

So, This Is What Happened is back! Our popular storytelling night returns.

Connection is more important than ever, so we invite you to laugh, cry and celebrate stories from the lives of real people.

7 FEB
7 MAR
4 APR
7PM
£10 STANDARD
£9 CONCESSION
#SoThisIsWhatHappened
Tickets

SPEAKERS

Ian Hawkins

Ian is an author and business journalist whose work has appeared on CBS, Reuters and BBC World.
Ian has hosted events in Europe, the USA and Australia, and coached Olympians, cabinet ministers and CEOs.
Ian’s career began at the UK’s largest speaker bureau, working with some of the biggest names on the circuit. At the same time, he was a professional stand up, writing for BBC comedy shows including The News Quiz and Loose Ends.
Business journalism has taken Ian from pharma labs in Gothenburg to water purification in Nicaragua, dodging muggers in Panama City and filming from a helicopter over an active volcano.

Yulia Samoylova

Yulia was born and raised in St Petersburg, Russia. She is a Sales Engineer at Datadog, a leading observability and security platform. In her role, she works closely with customers to help them explore and adopt the platform. Before joining Datadog, Yulia built a strong foundation in technology, starting as a developer at BT and WhatsApp, and later transitioning to IT consulting at Accenture.
Outside of work, Yulia is passionate about ballet, a pursuit she began over two years ago—proving it’s never too late to follow a dream! Whether perfecting pirouettes or helping teams optimize their observability strategies, she brings dedication and enthusiasm to everything she does.

John Chiu

John is an American who has spent the past 8 years living in London. He is a consultant at Deloitte: he leads the AI transformation strategy for their Tax and Legal practice. Whilst digital and tech are his areas of expertise, it is the people, culture and organisational change elements behind these that really excite him.

On a personal level, he is passionate about stand-up paddle boarding, having coached, competed and tested the boundaries on the adventure side as well – he once stand-up paddled from England to France!.

Sudeshna Choudhury

Sudeshna developed a deep love of storytelling from an early age listening to her mother who was a wonderful storyteller, as well as her own keen observation of life around her, and the unusual childhood experiences growing up in Uganda where her extraordinary artistic parents took her on exciting wildlife safari adventures during the school holidays, not to mention surviving many life and death situations during the turbulent political years that followed.

Sudeshna and her family moved to London in her teens, where she studied and worked in many various fields and honed her storytelling skills at her toastmasters club, various true storytelling clubs and theatre events, winning several competitions.

She is currently creating a storytelling podcast to be released later this year, encouraging us to capture our family history from our elders before it’s too late and inspire the younger generations.

Chris Binns

Chris was born in Hackney and raised in the vibrant streets of Tottenham, North London. He is a multifaceted professional, qualified as a carpenter, building surveyor, and project manager by day, and a wedding DJ and master of ceremonies by night. Describing himself as a workaholic, Chris remains steady and reliable when the going gets tough. He is passionate about personal development and possesses a wicked sense of adventure.

Balancing these two careers has honed his organisational skills and creativity, setting him apart from his peers. Whether behind the turntables or on a construction site, Chris is dedicated to delivering outstanding results and making a positive impact in all his endeavours.

Outside of work, Chris is married with two older children and he enjoys mentoring, self-development, exploring new music, keeping fit, and telling stories. He embodies a spirit of continuous growth and learning whilst always expressing enthusiasm in all aspects of life.

Fiorella

Fiorella is the founder of Mumskool, a company that works to empower mothers to lead and influence their children’s academic education for the better. She is a teacher, educator and a passionate advocate of life-long learning. She considers herself to be a ‘learner for life’ as she battles to master the Japanese language or wonders on the best way to keep up with her vibrant 60 year old + yoga students. She finds the most enriching experiences happen in connecting with others and sharing in the joys, challenges and beauty of life.