In Hitting the High Notes episodes Sam Stafford chats to preeminent figures in the planning and property sectors about the six planning permissions or projects that helped to shape them as professionals. And, so that Listeners can get to know people a little better personally, for every project or stage of their career Sam also asks his guests for a piece of music that reminds them of that period. Think of it as town planning’s equivalent of Desert Island Discs.
Unlike Desert Island Discs you will not hear any of that music during the episode because using commercially-licensed music without the copyright holders permission or a very expensive PRS licensing agreement could land Sam in hot water, so, when you have finished listening, you will have to make do with YouTube videos and a Spotify playlist, links to which you will find below.
Sam's guest for this episode is Mike Best who many planners, especially in the West Midlands, will know from his twenty years at Turley.
Their conversation was recorded at Birmingham Podcast Studios in July 2024 and takes in Mike's early career in Local Government at Rotherham and Coventry and his move into consultancy with Jones Lang Wootton as was. Taking in retail parks, racecourses and regeneration, the projects that Mike talks Sam through highlight the breadth of the planning profession.
Some accompanying listening.
Mike’s Spotify playlist
Ignoreland – REM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03gauuHIgME
A Design for Life – Manic Street Preachers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TfEoVxy7VDQ
Limelight – Rush
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tgj2br-teu4
The Whole of the Moon – Waterboys
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBW8Vnp8BzU
Twice If You’re Lucky – Crowded House
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YcKh-VeFxX0
Inner City Life – Goldie
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-P98B2skts
Some accompanying reading
Mike’s Blog
https://mikesbestlaidplans.wordpress.com/
50 Shades T-Shirts!
If you have listened to Episode 45 of the 50 Shades of Planning you will have heard Clive Betts say that...
'In the Netherlands planning is seen as part of the solution. In the UK, too often, planning is seen as part of the problem'.
Sam said in reply that that would look good on a t-shirt and it does. Further details can be found here: http://samuelstafford.blogspot.com/2021/07/50-shades-of-planning-t-shirts.html
Any other business.
Sam is on Bluesky (@samuelstafford.bsky.social) and Instagram (@samuel__stafford). His blog contains a link to his newsletter.
50 Shades of Planning
50 Shades of Planning was Sam Stafford’s attempt between April 2019 and October 2024 to explore the foibles of the English planning system and it's aim was to cover the breadth of the sector both in terms of topics of conversation and in terms of guests with different experiences and perspectives.
50 Shades episodes include 'Hitting The High Notes', which are a series of conversations with leading planning and property figures. The conversations take in the six milestone planning permissions or projects within a contributor’s career and for every project guests are invited to choose a piece of music that they were listening to at that time. Think Desert Island Discs, but for planners.
Sam is on Bluesky (@samuelstafford.bsky.social) and Instagram (@samuel__stafford), and his blogs can be found here: http://samuelstafford.blogspot.com (from where you can also sign up for his newsletter).
The 50 Shades platforms were expressions of Sam's personal opinions, which may or may not represent the opinions of his past, present or future employers.
The 50 Shades of Planning Podcast and YouTube channels were produced in partnership with Cratus Group.
Why Fifty Shades? Well, planning is not a black and white endeavour. There are at least fifty shades in between....
