The Great Pottery Throw Down is finally back with a brand-new 2025 series to brighten up our Sunday evenings! If you've missed Rich, Keith, Siobhan (we know we have!), and this wonderfully wholesome show, keep reading to find out everything you need to know about Series 8 and a round-up of each heartwarming episode.
Your guide to The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025
Looking for something specific? Jump straight to the section you want to learn more.
- When is The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 on TV?
- What channel is The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 on?
- Where to watch The Great Pottery Throw Down?
- Where is the Great Pottery Throw Down filmed?
- The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 episode guide
- Meet The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 contestants
- Who is the Pottery Throw Down's kiln technician?
- The Great Pottery Throw Down judges
- Meet Siobhan McSweeney, The Great Pottery Throw Down's presenter
- The Great Pottery Throw Down 2024 - series 7
- Who won the Great Pottery Throw Down 2024?
- Who won the Great Pottery Throw Down 2023?
- Who won The Great Pottery Throw Down 2022?
When is The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 on TV?
A new episode of the Great Pottery Throw Down will air on Sunday at 7.45pm on Channel 4 for 10 weeks, with the first episode airing on the 5th of January.
What channel is The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 on?
The Great Pottery Throw Down is aired on Channel 4.
The original two seasons were aired on BBC 2 in 2015 and 2017. The show was then bought by Channel 4 and has been a huge success ever since.
Where to watch The Great Pottery Throw Down?
You can watch The Great Pottery Throw Down on Channel 4's on-demand streaming service. You'll be able to watch the show live online as long as you have a TV license.
Alternatively, each episode will be uploaded to Channel 4 after the program airs meaning you can catch up with each episode whenever you like! You can also watch all the episodes from The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 on Channel 4 online.
Where is the Great Pottery Throw Down filmed?
The Great Pottery Throw Down is filmed in Stoke-on-Trent, a city at the heart of the UK which is known for its pottery industry.
The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 episode guide
Episode 3
For this week's main make challenge, the potters were asked to coil a children's Noah’s Ark toy, complete with five pairs of animals that could fit inside the boat. The judges also requested that the ark reflect aspects of the potters' childhood memories.
This task was definitely not child's play, despite the goal being to create a children's toy. Coiled pots are made by putting one coil on top of another, meaning they have many joins and can crack easily. Therefore, the potters would have to ensure they seamlessly blended the coils when making their arks.
"Noah didn’t build an ark in a day!"
Francesca
After building their arks, the potters added texture and sculpted their little animal figurines, before sending their masterpieces off to be fired. Natalie's ark in particular was looking extremely promising, with Natalie saying: "I think my ark ended up actually, dare I say, pretty good". And she was absolutely right...
Then it was on to the second challenge, and once again, it was another throw down! Rich demonstrated how to throw a terracotta flower pot with a folded rim and hole at the bottom. The potters would have to make three of these flower pots, with matching saucers, and had to match the profiles of 10cm, 15cm and 20cm.
Diana proved herself to be the queen of the second task and won first place for the second week in a row, the judges praising her for her clean throwing and accurate proportions. But for Stephen, this challenge went a bit to pot (excuse the pun!). He ended up with a hole in one of his saucers, causing him to place last in the challenge.
"We didn't want a hole in the saucer, just the pot!"
Keith
Finally, it was time for the potters to decorate their arks and harness their inner child. Unfortunately, a couple of the arks hadn't fared the kiln too well. Victor's ark came out with some stress cracks, and the top part of Stephen's ark was stuck to the bottom part.
Luckily for Stephen, the second firing loosened the top part of his ark, allowing him to separate the pieces. Victor attempted to turn the cracks in his ark into a feature, but sadly, this wasn't enough to secure his place in the competition, and he was sent home.
The judges loved Steve's 'Animal Astronaut Odyssey' ark and commended him on a well-thought-out concept and his affinity with materials. However, Natalie's showstopping 'Charlie's Garden Ark', inspired by childhood memories of her uncle coming to her house to do the gardening, was the winning make, and Natalie was named this week's 'Potter of the Week'.
Want to try your hand at coil pottery like they did on this week's episode? Try our coil pottery tutorial and create your own amazing ceramics today!
Bookmark this article and visit it every week for a round-up of each episode and all the latest pottery gossip!
Episode 2
For the first time in The Great Pottery Throw Down history, all of the contestants survived week 1, following the judges' surprising decision not to send anyone home. It was great to see all 12 potters on our screens again, but as the judges had warned that either one or two contestants would be going home this week, the stakes were high. The potters would have to bring their A-game to remain in the competition!
For the main make challenge, potters were tasked with slab building ornamental mantelpiece clocks that mark a moment in time with a loved one.
The hand-built clocks needed to consist of three parts (with a base, main body and lid) that would fit together securely. So having accurate measurements would be crucial. The judges also emphasised the importance of time management when it came to this task. Very apt for a clock-making challenge!
“I often think that a hand building challenge is about time management. Those slabs have to be pieced together when the consistency of that clay is just right.”
Keith
After constructing their clocks, the potters moved on to the second challenge. They were given twenty minutes to throw three identical candlestick holders - but the catch: they had to do it blindfolded!
The potters experienced mixed emotions during this challenge, with Jonathan saying: "I’ve never been this stressed throwing". But Diana sailed through the task with seeming ease, and won first place with her impressive candlestick holders. Keith even jokingly asked if Diana had her blindfold on, and called one of the holders "nigh on perfect".
Next, the potters decorated their mantelpiece clocks and presented them to the judges. Both Rich and Keith were blown away by Steve’s "A Hike into the Clouds" clock, which captured a time Steve and his partner (and two dogs) climbed Mount Snowdown. The judges were impressed with how the clouds concealed the joins of the three sections of the clock and loved the decoration, saying: "Aesthetically, it’s brilliant".
The judges also loved Natalie's mantelpiece clock, which was inspired by the four years she spent dancing at the Moulin Rouge alongside her sister, and Victor's sweet design of his family dog, Toby the Schnauzer.
Unfortunately, Chris and Olivia's makes were less successful, with the base and main body of Chris' clock sealing together during the drying stage and the middle section of Olivia's clock not fitting into the base after inserting the clock face. These oversights ultimately cost the potters their place in the competition, and Chris and Olivia were sent home.
But on a more positive note, Steve won potter of the week with his stunning mantelpiece clock and after placing 2nd in the second task. Congratulations Steve!
If you loved the slab building challenge and want to give it a go, check out our tutorial: Create amazing shapes with slab pottery.
Episode 1
The Great Pottery Throw Down is back, and what a first episode that was! Rich summed it up best when he said that the potters showed "a super high standard for week 1". So we suspect this series might be the most exciting yet...
For the first challenge, the contestants were asked to make a salad set, complete with a salad bowl, salad servers, an oil dispenser, a side plate and an olive bowl, and were told to take inspiration from a holiday they had been on for the decoration. This was no mean feat - as the potters had to ensure each item in their salad set was functional and user-friendly whilst also being imaginative and beautifully decorated. After sculpting their pieces, the potters handed over their salad sets to the new kiln technician, Princess, who popped them in the kiln to be fired.
For the second challenge, Keith demonstrated how to make a sangria jug and gave the potters 20 minutes to make as many identical jugs as possible. The judges were impressed by many of the potters, with Keith getting a little teary at Francesca and James's gorgeous sangria jugs. However, Steve came out on top and was named the winner of the challenge.
Then, it was time to retrieve the potters' salad sets from the kiln and get decorating! Some had fared better than others, with Steve seeing a crack in his salad bowl. However, the judges loved the fish tail stopper for Steve's oil dispenser and were blown away by the painted fish, which were inspired by a fishing holiday.
The judges were also wowed by Diana's Spanish-inspired salad set, which featured a bold pomegranate design, and Rich said that he wished he could take James's salad set home, which was decorated with a graphic and stunning sheep design.
Finally, it was judgment time, and Steve, Diana and James were all in the running for "potter of the week". Ultimately, the title was awarded to James, whose showstopping salad set made him an extremely worthy winner.
In a surprising turn of events, the judges announced that no potters would be leaving, as the competition was too close to justify sending anyone home. We can't wait to see all the fabulous potters again next week!
Meet The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 contestants
The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 is back! Let's meet this year's contestants.
Chris
Age: 36
Profession: Archer
Chris is a military veteran and retired from the British Army six years ago. During a deployment to Afghanistan, he lost his leg in an IED explosion but that hasn't stopped him!
He found his passion for archery and was selected for the Invictus Games and GB Athletic team where he met his now wife. He's also a keen skydiver and parachuted into his own wedding.
Francesca
Age: 28
Profession: Make up artist
Francesca discovered her love for pottery during a visit to see her mum in India. After experiencing their incredible pottery, she joined a local pottery course and her potting journey began! She's now based in Bristol after travelling all over the world.
Diana
Age: 62
Profession: Retired art, design and textiles teacher
Diana and her husband own a smallholding in Dorset and spend their days rearing their own animals and growing vegetables.
Diana's retirement kick started her passion for her hobbies which include pottery knitting, playing the piano and singing in her local choir.
Hayley
Age: 55
Profession: Social worker
Hayley lives in Suffolk with her husband and two children. Her love for pottery began as a way to relax outside her stressful job. Her pottery is inspired by the natural world.
Imy
Age: 22
Profession: Model and deaf advocate
Imy's passion in life is to help deaf young people feel less alone. She's travelled solo all around the world exploring countries as far as Thailand, Australia and Bali.
After her travels she returned home and took a pottery class. She was instantly hooked! She loves to take her hearing aids out and get lost in the clay.
James
Age: 42
Profession: Project Manager
James lives in Belfast with his partner and son, and previously worked as a cake maker. He discovered pottery three years ago after taking a night class with his sister-in-law.
Jonathan
Age: 61
Profession: Owner of a holiday let business
15 years ago, Jonathan broke his neck in a cycling accident and was briefly paralysed from the neck down. As paprt of his recovery he was given clay and this led him to a love of pottery. He now lives in Scotland with his wife where they run their business together.
Natalie
Age: 41
Profession: Swimming and aqua aerobics instructor
Natalie lives in Derby and previously was a dancer, which took her all across the world. She incorperates her travels into her pottery and is oftern inspired by the dancing costumes she's worn.
Steve
Age: 48
Profession: Animator
Steve lives in Herefordshire and has many hobbies, including beer brewing, fishing, gardening and shoemaking. Steve creates from a studio in his garden and added pottery to his list of hobbies a few years ago.
Stephen
Age: 58
Profession: Audio visual and IT technician
Based in Birmingham, Stephen has a pottery studio in his garage. Stephen has a huge list of unique hobbies aside from pottery which include Smurf collecting, hula hooping and treasure hunting.
Victor
Age: 31
Profession: Digital product designer
Victor is originally from Hong Kong but now lives in London. Victor enjoys running, cooking, catching up with friends and of course, honing his pottery skills.
Olivia
Age: 26
Profession: Art and design teacher
Alongside teaching Olivia is a cycle tour guide in her home city of Liverpool. Olivia is the musicial type, playing the drums in her dad’s political punk rock band. She also attends music and art festivals with her boyfriend.
Who is the Pottery Throw Down's kiln technician?
Princess will be a familiar face to loyal fans of the show, as she was a contestant on the last series of The Great Pottery Throw Down (series 7).
This year, Princess is back as the kiln technician, taking over from Rose Schmits, the technician for the previous four series.
Princess was born in French Guyana (and is bilingual) and attended school in France before moving to London with her family. She found clay after a short career as a pastry chef and hasn't looked back since - she's an extremely talented potter, creating some incredible makes in series 7, and really enjoys throwing functional items.
You can see some of Princess's incredible pottery on her Instagram page.
The Great Pottery Throw Down judges
The Great Pottery Throw Down 2025 will be judged by TV favourites Rich Miller and Keith Brymer Jones again this year.
Rich Miller
'Kiln man Rich' is back to judge the potter's creations and he's perfect for the job thanks to his wealth of experience.
Richard was the show's behind-the-scenes technician before becoming a judge, which means he's got an eagle-eye for the technical accuracy and techniques used in pottery.
Keith Brymer Jones
We interviewed Keith Brymer Jones back in 2020 about his love of pottery. He's an incredibly talented man and we love how emotional he gets at the contestants' creations! Read our interview with Keith Brymer Jones to learn more about the behind-the-scenes action at the Throw Down HQ.
We also spoke to Keith on our podcast: We've Made It. In this episode, we chatted to Keith about the teacher who inspired him to become a potter, how pottery has helped him to get through some tough times and why some makes on the show make him very emotional!
You can find the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Acast or wherever you get your podcasts.
Love a bit of crafty TV? Once you've become a Pottery Throw Down expert, check out our guides to The Great British Sewing Bee, Interior Design Masters, Landscape Artist of the Year and Portrait Artist of the Year, which cover everything you need to know about these creative shows!
Meet Siobhan McSweeney, The Great Pottery Throw Down's presenter
Irish actress and presenter Siobhan McSweeney has become a beloved member of the Throw Down team.
She's best known for her role as Sister Michael on the hit Channel 4 comedy Derry Girls, for which she won a BAFTA (Best Female Comedy Performance).
She stars in the Disney+ superhero comedy Extraordinary and has appeared in other hit dramas such as: Holding, Death in Paradise, Murdoch Mysteries, The Fall, No Offence and Collateral.
Siobhan has also appeared on the stage in As You Like It and Dancing at Lughnasa at the National Theatre and The Alchemist at the RSC.
She's a supportive presence on The Great Pottery Throw Down and always puts contestants at ease.
The Great Pottery Throw Down 2024 - series 7
The Great Pottery Throw Down 2024 saw the return of expert judges Rich and Keith and their trusty technician Rose. Irish actress Siobhan was also back on our screens with her trademark blend of warmth and humour.
Series 7 brought back Raku Week, Garden Week and Bathroom Week, as well as some new themes such as novelty, farm animals and salt firing, making it a particularly impressive and entertaining series.
According to the judges, the standard of the competitors in 2024 was higher than ever. "The standard was really high and really, really close," said Keith.
"Every week, it was very difficult. Some potters were amazing decorators, some amazing throwers, some amazing handbuilders. All of them excelled in different parts of ceramics. There was a real mixed bag, but there was such talent in the room," added Rich.
Who won the Great Pottery Throw Down 2024?
The winner of The Great Pottery Throw Down 2024 was the wonderful Donna!
Donna stood out as a true talent and deserving winner with consistent amazing makes over the weeks, plus a showstopping chandelier with a huge ornate design for the final firing.
Who won the Great Pottery Throw Down 2023?
Loïs was the 2023 Pottery Throw Down champion and we couldn't be happier with that result! From day one, Loïs impressed the judges with her artistry, attention to detail, and creative flair.
She grew in confidence over the weeks, creating everything from an abstract tea set to a sculpture of a red panda. As Rich said, 'she injects life into every brushstroke' and this passion made her a worthy winner.
Loïs now has her own pottery studio combining her two favourite things – earrings and clay! Keep up with her work by following her on Instagram.
What makes Loïs special is she gives us something of herself every single time she makes something
Keith
Who won The Great Pottery Throw Down 2022?
The incredible AJ won The Great Pottery Throw Down 2022. AJ was consistently brilliant, winning over five challenges throughout the show.
AJ displayed a distinct style and we loved the funny little characters that appeared in their work. They have now opened their own pottery studio! Check out their work over on Instagram.
It's a dream come true and a dream I never thought would happen
AJ
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