Originally broadcast 25th June 2026
Live from Australia
In June 2025, the Academy of Cheese brought together three of the most respected figures in the world of artisan cheesemaking for an evening we won’t forget in a hurry. Will Studd — cheese expert, affineur, author, and filmmaker — joined us live from Australia to celebrate the release of his landmark new documentary series, Cheese: Searching for a Taste of Place.
I’ve watched it. It was fabulous and such an eye-opener. It offered so much to learn.
Sangeet Kauer
Guest Speakers: Graham Kirkham & Andy Hatch
Alongside him were two of the remarkable makers featured in the film: Andy Hatch of Uplands Cheese in Wisconsin, and Graham Kirkham of Kirkham’s Lancashire in England. What followed was over an hour of stories, science, and genuine passion — the kind of conversation that only happens when people who have devoted their lives to something sit down together and talk honestly about it. They covered a lot of ground.
Will traced his cheese journey from the underground cheese shops of 1970s London — where selling a raw milk Cheddar was, as he put it, not unlike getting caught with cannabis — to the courtrooms of Australia, where he faced jail or a $100,000 fine for fighting for the right to import Roquefort. Andy explained why Uplands only makes cheese in the summer months, and why he waits for the smell of his cows’ breath to change before he begins. Graham took us inside the invisible microbial world of a traditional Lancashire creamery — and what happened when his family moved into a brand new dairy and the cheese simply refused to cooperate.
Raw Milk Cheese
And all three talked about raw milk — why it matters, what it gives a cheese that nothing else can, and why it’s worth fighting for. Whether you’re a cheesemaker, a cheesemonger, a student of the Academy, or simply someone who loves great cheese, this is an evening worth your time.
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