After his apprenticeship, Brymer Jones started out hand-making ceramics for retailers including Conran Group, Habitat, Barneys New York, Monsoon, Laura Ashley and Heal’s. He began to develop the Word Range for the first time; he was originally attracted to words because of their shapes, as he is dyslexic. Brymer Jones describes working with clay, shape and form as a natural affinity, as a result of his condition. It’s an attitude that baffles Brymer Jones. “I don’t get it. You’ll give yourself cancer — sit on it, and it’ll fester. No, let it all out.” Keith Brymer Jones is a British potter and ceramic designer, known for his homeware Word Range with retro lettering and punk motifs. In 2015, he debuted as an expert judge alongside Kate Malone on BBC2’s The Great Pottery Throw Down where his readiness to shed tears at the contestants’ work attracted comment. He has continued his role and remained as a judge when the programme transferred to More4 in 2020 and Channel 4 in 2021.

They obviously couldn’t do it in words, I say. “No! Of course not! They still call me a c*** now!” he tells me. I love watching The Great Pottery Throw Down. It might be a competition but it's so much more than that. It's about a group of like-minded people who like creating and are just enjoying being in the pottery and turning a lump of clay into something beautiful. to create simple yet stylish products which are pleasing to the eye, practical in the modern home and, above all, make people happy!’ 💕 He follows up with “As I walked through the factories I was highly aware of this connection between crafts and the process of production within a factory setting. It firmed up my belief that it was the material itself, the clay what it’s undoubtedly at the core of anyone who was involved in making ceramic pots and here I was, in China, experiencing first hand the enormous experience of the staff in producing it. I’m ok with China producing china (the clue is in the name! ) When I completed the final Season 5 I felt a void. I raced to my smartphone and searched for Season 6, and indeed another season seems to be in the works. I also discovered that Keith wrote his autobiography. I just finished the Kindle version and it more than filled my post-TGPT void.Keith will be releasing his autobiography "Boy in a China Shop" on the 3rd February 2022. In his book Keith will be covering his life from early childhood, his early years, meeting his wife Marj, through to finding fame with his pottery. Here is the official blurb on the book; Keith Brymer Jones is a master ceramicist and design expert who has over four decades of knowledge and experience under his belt. He is the designer behind his award-winning Keith Brymer Jones Word Range and also works collaboratively with every other brand under the MAKE International umbrella. Keith designs every single item on his potter’s wheel before he takes the prototypes to China to work with his colleagues at the factories. Keith’s Word Range has produced over 500 products and it is sold in over forty countries with a large and loyal following. To this day, the Word Range follows Keith’s design philosophy: ‘to create simple yet stylish products which are pleasing to the eye, practical in the modern home and, above all, make people happy!’

If I was producing clothing or cuddly toys, or for that matter mobile phones, would I feel differently? Who knows? But to produce ceramic from its very birthplace, it was a no brainer” Is Keith Brymer Jones Welsh? Keith has stated before what he loves about his ranges of mugs, cups, plates and bowls, especially in his now famous ‘Word’ range is the simplicity of the design, and the slightly retro feel about them. This has been coupled with some more, shall we say risqué, modern phrases some of which we won’t repeat here although you can find it here on this link😉 Designs range from the simple Happymug, to the wildly popular Daddy and Mummy ones. The whole range of the mugs can be found on this link What collaborations has Keith done?In addition to the Word Range, Keith has finally introduced his Studio Range in Summer 2023. A gorgeous range of stoneware products which has a more organic aesthetic compared to his Word Range. In 2016 Brymer Jones went to Australia to a ceramics festival called Clay Gulgong. He was to give a presentation there, but felt anxious, sure that he would be “looked down upon by the ceramics artists… I had a big chip on my shoulder about them not accepting me.” Once his presentation was over, two of the world’s leading experts on modern ceramics gave their own lecture. It featured Brymer Jones’s signature Word Range, which they described as “pots that talk”. “I was blown away. Absolutely blown away.” He felt recognised. “Isn’t that what we’re all really looking for, to be able to be seen? It’s a wonderful feeling.” I discovered The Great Pottery Throwdown on HBO here in the US in January 2022 and binge-watched all five seasons in nothing flat. TGPT was a welcome respite from the seemingly endless procession of depressing news – inflation, Ukraine, mass shootings, Covid, climate change... TGPT was the antidote I needed – a gentle show with gentle people and low stakes (no million-dollar prizes or scheming contestants here). At the helm, some wonderful hosts and judges who encouraged and supported the non-combatants with sensitivity and good humor, and sometimes even tears. That is, judge and master potter Keith Brymer Jones' tears. An engaging read by an endearing, unassuming man who has always stayed true to his passions.' - Daily Mirror Ballet dancer. Front man in an almost famous band. Judge on The Great Pottery Throwdown. How did all that happen?