Hit BBC show to star Brislington jeweller

Jack Mitchell never thought he would end up on prime-time TV.

After seven years of travelling the world, the 35-year-old Brislington-based jeweller is now competing in the second series of BBC Two’s All that Glitters, to be the UK’s biggest name in jewellery.

For those that have not heard of the show, it sees a group of talented jewellers from across the UK compete using some of the most precious metals and gemstones known to humankind to prove they have what it takes to be one of the UK’s great jewellers.

Jack originally trained as a goldsmith under his dad, making his own jewellery from the age of nine.

Despite his budding talent, Jack struggled at school, and his dyslexia often meant that he didn’t feel as able as his peers.

“Schools weren’t as adaptable as they are today,” Jack told Bristol24/7.

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So when he returned to goldsmith work at 19, it was liberating: “I could just pick it up. This makes perfect sense to me. I was asked to do a task and I could just do it.”

It was his apprenticeship with the Bath-based jeweller Tina Engell that eventually made Jack consider being a jeweller professionally.

“She opened my eyes up to a whole other side of jewellery-making,” he says of his time with Tina.

“You can study it, there’s competitions, there’s shows, she showed me the arts, and that put me on the path back into education.”

During a significant travelling stint that took Jack across Australia, Japan and New Zealand, he released his first jewellery collection in 2019, before releasing a second collection while working on a ski resort in Japan, influenced by the volcano on his doorstep.

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Jack returned to the UK during lockdown, for what he thought would be a temporary settlement. That was when a producer from the show reached out and asked if he had ever thought about going on All That Glitters.

He says that it was an “oh my god moment” – especially as a friend had told him to apply only a few days earlier.

“I’ve never done anything like (All That Glitters) before. Jewellery making is a slow process of design, creation and perfection. And all of a sudden everything you think gets thrown out the window. It’s very stressful but very fun. Everyone was very sweet and caring, there was no malicious or vindictive competition.”

It wasn’t easy to break out of his traditional training, and the same difficulties Jack found at university were placed in front of him on the show.

“Because I was trained as a goldsmith I found it really difficult. When you’re a goldsmith you make things in a specific way. You learn one pathway to do something and you never use your imagination.”

When asked what advice he would give to kids struggling at school today, Jack’s answer is simple. “Don’t stress,” he laughs.

“You can start a career at any age as long as you’ve got ideas. All you’ve got to do is work hard at whatever you choose.”

Despite an often uncertain future, Jack is proud of where he is today, and is keen to stress that grades are not the only measure of success.

“School puts pressure on you with grades, and for some people that’s important, but at the same time there’s so many other options out there.”

“I’m very proud. When you fail at school, and you get told your whole childhood that you’re not clever and you’re not good at stuff, leaving school, I really struggled to believe in myself. But having the opportunity to be on the show made me think maybe I am better than I think I am.”

Series two of All That Glitters begins on Thursday at 9pm on BBC Two.

Main photo: BBC

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