Mmostynthomas
Melissa Mostyn-Thomas is a published writer and journalist who has contributed in print and/or online to The Hearing Times, British Deaf News, Disability Arts Online, Vogue, Esquire, The Independent, The Guardian and many others.
Trained to postgraduate MA standard at Central Saint Martins, Melissa initially freelanced as a fashion journalist and editor before beginning a portfolio career in the arts that included art project management/facilitation, exhibition curatorial work, arts and film criticism and BSL gallery talks at Tate, V&A;, The Wallace Collection and Modern Art Oxford.
In 2005-2008 she edited and produced an in-house quarterly, The Lounge, for Salon, a grant-funded visual art organisation which she founded, and executive-produced and presented several arts documentaries including the critically-acclaimed Salon in King's Wood (directed by Samuel Dore), available on DVD.
In mid-2011 Melissa made her debut as a scriptwriter and director with CODA, a TV drama short produced by Neath Films in association with the BSLBT that was broadcast on The Community Channel and Film4. The film is still live on bslbt.co.uk/zoom/films/zoom_2011/coda
In 2009 Melissa branched out into broadcast journalism with The Baby Diaries, a popular six-week video diary strand exploring her personal experiences of pregnancy and motherhood as part of See Hear (BBC).
Melissa has since expanded on the theme with The Mostyn-Thomas Journal, a blog that explores being a deaf parent to a childwith a disability.
MY BLOGS
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The Mostyn-Thomas Journal
http://themostynthomasjournal.com/
At 11 1/2 months, Isobel Mostyn-Thomas was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and symptomatic epilepsy - and her mother has blogged about her journey ever since.
LATEST ARTICLES ( 113 )
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Was Paralympic Runner, Pistorius in the Right?
Despite having caused controversy, he may have had a point Read more
Posted on 03 September 2012 CURRENT, SOCIETY, SPORTS -
Beauty is Not Skin Deep
In my callous twenties, I used to wonder if genetic beauty peaked like a mountain with each successive generation. Was it possible for somebody to be so... Read more
Posted on 31 August 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
Writing, BSL, My Deaf Identity and Me
(*Portrait coming soon)I am often asked how I came to be able to write so well. I always find it hard to explain, because I know it’s not necessarily a skill... Read more
Posted on 18 August 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
Remap: How They Transformed a Buggy Seat
Last time I wrote about the buggy, I knew that Isobel would still be dependent on it by age three.I knew that it wasn’t 100% perfect, but that it would be best... Read more
Posted on 15 August 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
Prometheus Awakes – and with It, a New Change
It was one of those decisions I left to the last minute, the sort I should have made weeks ago but didn’t until now.For one night only, Graeae was putting on... Read more
Posted on 11 August 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
Pistorius the Hero
Forget Andy Warhol. Fifteen minutes no longer matter – 9.63 seconds do. Usain Bolt’s historic victory caps an incredible weekend for Olympic sports, which also... Read more
Posted on 06 August 2012 ATHLETICS, SELF EXPRESSION, SPORTS -
Isobel’s First Week in Nursery
(Isobel’s nursery’s child safeguarding policy dictates no photos, so I have used a stock image here instead.) “I like Isobel.” “Can I climb on Isobel’s chair?”... Read more
Posted on 31 July 2012 DIARIES, FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
The Train Back to Work
Before motherhood beckoned, the world was just one railtrack away. Once I’d accepted that the best way to empower myself as a deaf person was to go freelance,... Read more
Posted on 25 July 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
The Horrors of Bureaucracy
Last month, Isobel turned three, the minimum legal age at which she could be assessed for the mobility component of Disability Living Allowance (DLA). Read more
Posted on 13 July 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
Isobel Turns Three – and the Blog Turns Two!
Hasn’t time flown?Until now, I hadn’t realised that when Isobel reached her third birthday last weekend, it also marked the second year of the blog. Read more
Posted on 04 July 2012 SELF EXPRESSION -
Reflections of My Father
My father on holiday in the ’60s, a decade before I was born.Can it really be that long?Ten years ago today, my father died surrounded by his wife and... Read more
Posted on 29 June 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
The Power of the Void
Southbank Centre is exhibiting works relating to the hidden and invisible over the last 50 years, including pieces (if you can call them that) by one of my... Read more
Posted on 20 June 2012 ART & DESIGN, CULTURE -
A Blogger’s Award
Boom! I have been selected for the Reader Appreciation Award by fellow blogger Jo of thoughtsfromthekitchensink. A fan of The Mostyn-Thomas Journal it seems,... Read more
Posted on 18 June 2012 SELF EXPRESSION -
A Father’s Day Accolade: in Praise of Miles
I was going to have a laugh and blog about the children’s weekend sniffles, but now I don’t feel like it.Isobel is in hospital with a temperature fluctuating... Read more
Posted on 17 June 2012 SELF EXPRESSION -
My Tastes They Are A-changin’
This is proving an incredibly hard post to write. In becoming a regular pursuit, I’m increasingly aware that music is placing me at risk of alienating deaf... Read more
Posted on 10 June 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
Happy and Glorious
If you’re deaf and you mingle regularly in hearing or mainstream company – regardless of choice – then today, you would have needed a long memory so to join in... Read more
Posted on 05 June 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
Inclusion in Education is an Afterthought
Ben started nursery today.I am so happy. It means that he can get on with his socialization, plus I get to stroll through one of the loveliest, most verdant... Read more
Posted on 28 May 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
The Pride in Aylesbury Vale Awards 2012
As if winning an Olympic-style medal wasn’t enough, Isobel has been nominated in the Child of Courage category for the Pride in Aylesbury Vale Awards 2012. Read more
Posted on 24 May 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
Isobel Gets a Medal
We thought we’d never get there – but we did. Eventually. It’s not that Isobel didn’t perform. Rather, as one of PACE‘s youngest children, she got too... Read more
Posted on 24 May 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION -
Six Days Left Until the Children’s Challenge
Just uploaded a video of Isobel in training for PACE’s Children’s Challenge event this coming Thursday – just six days away:She is working so hard! Read more
Posted on 18 May 2012 FAMILY, SELF EXPRESSION