Opening Ceremony Podcast with Jess May
Podcast blurb
Welcome to ‘Opening Ceremony Podcast’ with me, your host, Jess May.
I'm on a mission to keep ceremonies alive! Join me to hear all about why!
In the UK people are giving up on ceremony and I believe it is making us sick.
I don’t want that for you and that is why we’re here.
Ceremonies remind you that you belong here, you’re precious and you’re never alone.
I hope that this podcast will do that too.
On my podcast we connect with Academics, Professionals, colleagues, friends & clients share their life events, passions, careers and the ceremonies associated with them.
Ceremonies hold power to create meaning and are a vital source of connection and belonging for human beings.
As cultures evolve, ceremonies do too, how we approach that shift matters, because even as they disappear and change shape, they continue to hold power for both good and bad.
I want to empower you to create ceremonies which honour your values and remind you that you and yours belong in this world.
Good ceremonies tell your own story and help you to find your own meaning by reflecting who you are, healing you and showing you how much you matter.
But they can also be used in damaging ways.
If you don’t claim that power and choose your own way of celebrating your life and telling your story, someone else will do it for you.
Even as they fall from fashion, they will continue to matter to us societally, historically, personally & culturally.
There is never a time in human history where people don’t use them somewhere in the world for myriad reasons.
Focusing on ceremony shows us the interconnected multitude of human lives throughout history and across cultures. Ceremonies help us to hear those voices, their differences and similarities and understand the world-views behind the ceremonies they create.
Jess May is an Award Winning Celebrant who started her career in 2013 creating hundreds of life changing ceremonies for every occasion.
Join the Opening Ceremony constellation to learn more about why ceremonies still play a central part in human and animal societies.
Episodes
23 episodes
YOU CAN CHANGE HISTORY...MARRIAGE LAW REFORM with Professor Russell Sandberg & Miranda Ash, Independent Celebrant
MARRIAGE LAW REFORM is a subject close to my heart.Consultation to update an archaic legal system is currently starting to happen in the UK.I am joined by 2 experts in this field.In it we discuss what is at stake, wha...
Samhain! Is it CHRISTIAN or the OG of HALLOWEEN? with PAGAN specialist Dr Jenny Uzzell
HERE'S ONE FOR HALLOWEENIf you'd like to support the show:https://www.buzzsprout.com/2368233/supporters/newDr Jennifer Uzzell is a freelance researcher and academic in the field of Pagan Studies and Death and Bereavement St...
CEREMONY & SELF WORTH with MIRANDA ASH
SELF WORTH & CEREMONIES WITH MIRANDA ASHhttps://www.mirandathecelebrant.co.uk/Miranda Ash is a Celebrant with a rich and varied career behind her and ahead of her now...
WHY DO WE PUT THINGS IN GRAVES WITH OUR DEAD? DR JENNIFER RILEY
Hi there! My podcast is a free resource and I'd love it if you could support it. Click here to donate if you'd like to: THANK YOUhttps://www.buzzsprout.com/2368233/supporters/newDr Jennifer Riley is a research fellow in Divinity a...
REAL LIFE WEDDING FOLLOW UP, Gareth Tanner
REAL LIFE WEDDINGS FOLLOW UP SERIESMEET MY COUPLES AND FIND OUT HOW THEY FEEL ABOUT THEIR WEDDING CEREMONIES. HOW HAS LIFE CHANGED? WHAT IS GOING ON FOR THEM?I loved this opportunity to meet up with one of my grooms Gareth Tanner ...
"Why I married the river Avon" with Mrs Meg Avon & Celebrant Ruth Sidgwick
Megan Trump who recently featured in the film Rave on for the Avon married the River Avon...for real.On Opening Ceremony this week we meet 2 incredible Environmental Activists passionate Wild Swimmers taking peaceful Direct Action to aff...
THE DEAD PET GIRLS
INTRODUCING THE DEAD PET GIRLS!This platform and community delves into the world of pet death, offering a welcoming space for honest conversations whilst exploring the quirky cultural aspects of pet loss that are often left unspok...
SOUL FILMS with Wendy Pye & Sybil Ah-Mane
Meet the founders of Soul Films! Wendy Pye & Sybil Ah-Mane Soul Films are sensitively produced short films that remember and celebrate someone who has died or is reaching end of life. A QR code linking to the film online can ...
Karen Sutton THE WIDOW COACH
THE WIDOW COACH Karen SuttonJoin us as we chat about Widowhood and the amazing way in which Karen re-invented herself and found new purpose after the sudden death of her husband whilst her children were still young.Determined not ...
POSTAL SERVICE FOR THE DEAD & BRIGHTON DEATH COLLECTIVE
Janelle Ketcher from POSTAL SERVICE FOR THE DEADPostal Service for the Dead is an ongoing, collective project where people send letters to anyone in their life who has died. Birthdays, death days, anniversaries, holiday...
SACRED STONES & long barrows for memorials with Toby Angel
Toby Angel is a co-founder and Manager and Director of Sacred Stones a community memorial provision for cremation ashes...Toby is part of a development in reclaiming ancient burial traditions including BarrowsThe long barrows are ...
EXQUISITE SHROUDS. Dagmara Rudkin from Sacred Wings Burial Shrouds
Today we have Dagmara Rudkin sharing with us about her astonishing shrouds. I first met Dagmara a couple of years ago and was blown away by her gorgeous shrouds which are unlike any I've ever seen. I can't wait for you to hear more a...
Sally Garozzo Menopause Mindset Mentor on ceremonies for life transitions
MEET SALLY, Menopause Mindset Mentor and hypnotherapist based here in Brighton.We had a lot of fun laughing out our former selves in this episode, but also acknowledging the importance of the ceremonial at different stages of our live...
'THE DAVIDS'...Meet Dave & Dave...Dave the Plant Man and David Holmes from Ashes to Blooms
This episode is long for a reason.It's fun, it's hopeful it's insightful and it has Dave the Plantman....internet sensation... who will tell you all about his 45 year relationship with plants, memorial roses and the use of trees and pla...
Amy Dugmore on the language of death
I love this episode so much!It is all about how we use language in our current age here in the UK, how euphemism can serve a purpose and all the different assumptions professionals make about how the general public want to use death lan...
Coffin Club UK with Kate & Kate Celebrants
Warning...your life may never be the same again!Meet Kate & Kate, Comediennes of the Funeral scene, all round good eggs, founders of Coffin Club UK, a Funeral Training Programme for would be Funeral Revolutionaries, and full time Ce...
Death of the Party NYC founder Melanie Wilson invites 'Grievers' to the Party!
Meet Melanie Wilson, Funeral & Memorial Celebrant, Founder of Death of the Party NYC as she shares her journey about founding DEATH OF THE PARTY NYC.In this episode we discuss her grief journey and how she founded th...
Professor Howard Williams, Archaeologist of Death & Memory on Donkey Sanctuaries as memorials!
Howard Williams is an Archaeologist with a passion for The Archaeology and Heritage of Death and Memory - Past & Present He is Professor of Archaeology at the University of Chester (2008–present). He specialises in mortuary arc...
Lucy Rabbit's Legacy with David Holmes from Ashes to Blooms
David Holmes is the founder of Ashes to Blooms and Sussex Seed Balls and he creates memorial seed balls form the ashes of your loved ones!Listen to the story of his pet rabbit and how she started his business!Handy Links<...
Roxy Celebrates Love; Award Winning Humanist Celebrant talks about The Hoffman Process, Relationships & Love!
Roxy is an award winning Humanist Wedding Celebrant, who marries couples all over the south of England and abroad. A lover of all things ritual, she creates bespoke, fun, joyful wedding ceremonies for couples who want to stand out from the crow...
Drag Idol Semi-Finalist Celebrant Maria Hurtz talks Safe Spaces & Allyship in the Wedding industry
Martin Fox AKA Maria Hurtz is a Celebrant friend and genuinely wonderful person. Martin's Celebrant business is known to us as Proudfox Ceremonies and anyone who is anyone needs to know about it.Martin is the first UK Celebrant to condu...
Exploring Plant Medicine & Ceremony with Nigel Pedlingham!
Let me introduce you to Nigel Pedlingham he is an incredible person and we are very lucky to have an opportunity to hear all about his ceremonial experiences.He is a change maker and social justice advocate, a consciousness gu...
'Death should not be a surprise!' Katie Costello, Multi Award-Winning Soul Midwife & Funeral Celebrant
Meet Katie Costello, force of nature and all round brilliant human! A multi Award-Winning Soul Midwife & Funeral Celebrant she has tended to hundreds of people at the end of their lives and created hundreds of funerals too.&nbs...
