About
The Early Years
As a child, my earliest memories are of my older brother playing video games. I would stand next to him in arcades, watching the flashing lights and the sheer determination on his face. It was mesmerising, and I longed to experience that thrill for myself. Eventually, my brother got a Nintendo 64, and I was finally allowed to play. The first time I picked up the controller, I was instantly drawn into the game’s world, lost in a bubble of excitement and wonder. It was at that moment that my love for gaming was born.
My brother was always into shooter games, and I quickly caught on. From Army Men and Time Crisis to Medal of Honor and the Call of Duty franchise, I couldn’t get enough. Even if my brother had double the experience, I was determined to beat him on any game we played. When Xbox Live came out, I was mildly addicted. Competing against people I had never met before was an adrenaline rush that I craved. But it wasn’t until I started playing on PC that I truly found my calling.
Watching my brother play Rifle-Only Call of Duty servers on his PC, I knew I had to try it for myself. The customisation of servers, mods, and top-tier graphics had me hooked. And the moment I loaded into my first game on a mouse and keyboard, everything just felt right. It was like my hands were made to play this way.
I spent hours learning the maps, mastering the guns, and perfecting my skills. And the feeling of winning a game was indescribable. I was so hooked that I couldn’t even sleep after my first experience playing a multiplayer game on the PC.
Looking back on my gaming history, I realise that it has been a journey filled with excitement, challenge, and growth. And I can’t wait to see where it takes me next.
Growing Up
In my youth I was an unusual blend of sporty and lazy. On one hand, I played rugby for my school and local team, but on the other, I loved nothing more than spending hours on video games with my buddies, immersing ourselves in alternate universes like Call of Duty, Oblivion, Fallout, Guitar Hero, and even MMO games like Runescape, World of Warcraft, and City of Heroes.
Despite my love for gaming, I was also a diligent student who did well in most subjects, especially French, Information Technology, and Music. Things quickly changed when I discovered the power of sharing gameplay experiences on YouTube. I was fascinated by the idea of designing stories and sharing them with others after seeing Syndicate running Zombie Trains and Minecraft Stories. I asked my mum for ‘permission’ and decent internet. Whilst I didn’t get the permission to post videos, I did get the internet, which lead to hours of time spent consuming content.
It wasn’t until I entered 6th Form (here in the UK that’s an extra couple of years in school before University where you complete ‘A-Levels’) that I discovered a new passion that would change my life forever. I walked into the school grounds on my first day and saw someone run up a wall and backflip, and I was blown away. That’s when I met my new friends who were obsessed with parkour and freerunning. I NEEDED to learn how to do that. I spent a lot of time with these guys who were in love with freerunning and they taught me Parkour. This was a phase of my life were training and physical activity started to pick up rapidly.
My first class in the gymnastics club was an eye-opener. Despite being sixteen, I had a fire in my gut to learn new moves and push my physical boundaries. I wasn’t the fastest learner, but I became obsessed with core conditioning, handstands, and bodyweight balances. It wasn’t easy, but after months of failing and practicing, I landed my first front-flip and backflip, and it was an unforgettable rush. As time went on, my friends and I attended these classes religiously, and we got better and better. We even got jobs at the gym, teaching freerunning classes and learning how to become gymnastics coaches. It was an opportunity we couldn’t decline, and we all loved the work we did.
Years went by, and we became pros in our own right, working on films, TV shows, and performances. We had to decide whether to pursue stunt qualifications or look into acrobatic work in the circus. I wanted to become a stuntman, but the courses were expensive, and I couldn’t afford it. So, I decided to keep freerunning as a hobby and look for other ways to stay active.
And so began my crazy journey from the warehouse floor to the world of recruitment and business development. After deciding to keep freerunning as a hobby, I started my career as a warehouse worker. My life took a turn when I was unexpectedly recruited by a staffing agency. Before I knew it, I was a recruitment consultant, and things moved at lightning speed. Things really got crazy when the entire office team quit, and I had to take on the responsibility of running the warehouse with 300 agency staff all on my own! With so much work on my plate, my beloved freerunning hobby took a back seat. So to stay fit, I decided to take up powerlifting and weightlifting.
But my career was just getting started. At the age of 21, I was offered a job up north and moved hundreds of miles away from home. I continued to climb the recruitment ladder, managing larger teams and taking on new contracts with warehouses. It was challenging, but meeting new people and solving different problems every day was a total thrill. And then, things got even crazier. I was headhunted by a company even further north, for a Business Development role that I simply couldn’t resist. So, I packed my bags and moved another 200 miles away from home! But no matter where I lived or how hard I worked, there were always two things that kept me grounded: My passion for hitting the gym, and my love for unwinding with my trusty Xbox.
After years of hard work in recruitment, the company I worked for decided to shut down their division and make everyone redundant. But instead of letting this defeat me, I saw this as an opportunity to pursue my dream of creating videos and sharing them with the world. I figured at this point I was old enough to not have to ask my Mum for permission! I knew it was time to take the leap and get started.
To make time for my passion, I took a less serious job that allowed me to have more free time. I started working in various warehouses again, from mattress manufacturers to aerosol can manufacturers, and even a bed company that built bespoke beds for customers. But even with a more flexible schedule, I still struggled to find the time and courage to get started on my content creation journey.
At some point I had a stern word with myself and put my foot down. I decided I had to give it a shot. I started streaming on Mixer, despite not having any overlays, bots, or even really knowing what I was doing. I would stream during the middle of the night, after 12-hour shifts, and then wake up at 6 am to start my day. This put immense strain on my relationship at the time, which wasn’t working out for either of us. I realised that I wasn’t where I wanted to be, geographically or mentally. I made the tough decision to move back to Wales, closer to my family, and continue my journey alone.
My Streaming History
Once I moved back to Wales and started getting myself back on my feet, things began to look up and my content creation journey finally found it’s starting point. I met my partner Tara. Everything clicked. Tara sat me down and gave it to me straight. If streaming was something I wanted to do for a living, then I HAD to rip the plaster off and get it done. And then, COVID-19 hit the world. The company I was working for at the time were one of the last companies to tell staff to stop working but then lockdown kicked in. The timing was pretty ideal.
I logged back into Mixer, determined to make a proper go of it this time. I invested in a basic PC so I could start streaming games like Apex Legends at a higher quality. Mixer was pretty cool, I met other streamers, both new and inexperienced like me, and some veterans with established communities. I didn’t find a game that I could call my ‘main’ game, but I dabbled in more Apex and some PUBG. PC gaming and my love of FPS games lead to me discovering Escape From Tarkov, which definitely got its claws into me. Just as I was settling into a rhythm, the announcement came out. Mixer is closing down. I had no idea what to do. I had only just gotten to a point where I was getting 5-10 viewers coming into the stream and I was hooked.
I couldn’t let Mixer shutting down scarper my dreams of content creation, so I decided to get onto Twitch sooner rather than later. Once again I felt like I was back at square one, with a renewed determination. I had learnt some stuff, but there was still so much more to get my head around. I spent countless hours on YouTube learning how to make logos and overlays. I spent ages figuring out which bots I liked, what features they had and how to leverage them to make my channel an inviting place. I had some overlays. I had more than once scene?! I was READY!
By this time, Escape From Tarkov had me properly hooked. From the get go I decided EFT was going to be my focus on Twitch. It’s competitive, it’s hardcore and has a vicious learning curve. Maybe I could try and help other learn the game, whilst I learned more about Twitch. I remember my first stream very well. I clicked ‘Go Live’ and then didn’t speak for 2 hours! I was so nervous. Tara shook her head and called me out: “You have to speak, even if nobody is there!”. She wasn’t wrong!
I’m not sure there’s such a thing as a ‘bad streamer’ but there’s definitely types of streamers, and I had to spend a lot of time thinking about the kind of streamer I wanted to be. I knew that I personally loved learning from others in a relaxed and welcoming environment. I decided to emulate this on my channel. It felt rewarding and somewhat addictive. Whilst the channel has been through a lot of changes, I’ve tried to keep that theme consistant throughout, no matter what games I’m playing. Throughout my time on Twitch I’ve met some amazing people, streamers and viewers a like. Something about knowing that I was entertaining people, even just 1 or 2 people in the beginning, is what continue to drive me in my passion for content creation.
Future Plans
- To continue to provide and grow a safe space for people to connect and enjoy their time.
- To push mental health awareness and remove the ‘taboo’ of the topic.
- In connection with the above, to promote self-care and fitness by getting fit myself, without a gym membership so as to be inclusive to all.
- To provide relevant information regarding current and new games whilst providing entertainment, regardless of my experience level in said games.
FAQ’s
How old are you?
30.
Where are you from?
South Wales.
Favourite games?
Siphon Filter, Splinter Cell, Conflict: Desert Storm, Ark: Survival Evolved, World of Warcraft (TBC/WotLK Era).
Favourite films & TV?
Luck Number Slevin, Unknown, Along Came a Spider, Red Dragon, Banshee, Into the Badlands, How to Get Away with Murder, Bones.
Favourite bands?
Of Mice & Men, Asking Alexandria, Dance Gavin Dance, Avenged Sevenfold
Got any tattoos?
Got any Pets?
