The Great Pottery Throw Down 2026 line-up confirmed ahead of new series

It's time to return to Gladstone Pottery for the ninth season of The Great Pottery Throw Down!

As ever, 12 talented potters will all compete to be named Britain's Best Home Potter as they take part in a series of challenges from making bricks, bookends, puzzle jugs and animal sculptures to name just a few.

Siobhán McSweeney returns as host once more with regular ceramics superstar judges Keith Brymer Jones and Rich Miller.

They'll be joined by Princess – a potter from season 7 – as the kiln technician, and guest judges Nick Mackman, Gabriel Nichols, Jo Taylor and Cleo Mussi.

So, who are the potters taking part in The Great Pottery Throw Down? Scroll down to find out more!

The Great Pottery Throw Down 2026 line-up

• Andrew
• Angharad
• Bill
• Elham
• Emily
• Fynn
• Kayleigh
• Kaz
• Mark
• Naveed
• Olympia
• Whitney

Read on to find out more about this year's cast.

Andrew

Age: 48

Location: Hampshire

Job: English teacher

Andrew teaches English in a secondary school in London and in his spare time enjoys gardening, painting and sewing, even making his own suit for his wedding.

He started potting when a friend invited him along to an evening class, and has been throwing clay for 18 years ever since! Andrew enjoys making functional items and often makes gifts for his students.

Angharad

Age: 34

Location: Bridgend

Job: Communication support worker

Angharad used to work in the wig and makeup department in London's West End and around the UK before moving back home to Wales in 2018. She now works as a communication support worker, currently assisting her mum who is the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager for a cancer charity.

Angharad first got her hands on clay during a school trip to a museum but came back to it properly seven years ago when she took a hand-building course.

She enjoys making illustrative pieces with lots of colour.

Bill

Age: 33

Location: Herefordshire

Job: Volunteer teaching assistant

Bill has dyslexia, dyspraxia and autism and enjoys living in a quiet, relaxed area. He was introduced to clay when he was young by his grandmother who loved sculpting animals.

Elham

Age: 31

Location: Sheffield

Job: Midwife

Elham's pottery journey began during 'nap time' - a dining table, one bag of clay, a basic tool set, and snippets of time squeezed between family life.

Emily

Age: 39

Location: Inverness

Job: Habitat restoration ecologist

Emily has always loved art subjects but veered towards more academic studies for her A-levels. She never lost touch completely with the art crowd and returned to pottery a few years ago after attending a class with a friend.

Fynn

Age: 37

Location: Cornwall

Job: Tattooist

Fynn was surrounded by creativity growing up, whether it was painting with his grandmother or doing textiles and printmaking with his mother.

He first tried pottery as a six week addition to an illustration degree, but it was only two years ago that he began to take his hobby seriously.

Kayleigh

Age: 38

Location: Oxfordshire

Job: Art teacher

Kayleigh is head of art at a prep school and enjoys passing on her creative skills to her students.

She was disappointed that her art degree didn’t include ceramics and enrolled on an introductory course, and still attends evening classes now, with her pieces often inspired by folklore stories and nature.

Kaz

Age: 62

Location: Swansea

Job: Former psychiatric nurse

Kaz is currently studying ceramics at Carmarthen School of Art, where she has found a passion for sculpture and is proving to be a quick learner.

Mark

Age: 63

Location: Merseyside

Job: University facilities and estate manager

Mark has a number of hobbies, including sewing, bee-keeping, woodwork, kite flying and canoeing. It was Mark's bonsai tree hobby that led him to clay, as the square pots were expensive and hard to find so he set out to make his own.

He started classes and has now built his own pottery shed at home, acquiring a second-hand wheel that he refurbished himself.

Naveed

Age: 42

Location: Folkestone

Job: Actor and toy shop owner

Naveed was gifted pottery lessons three years ago and went on to do more courses as he loved it so much. It has become a welcome creative outlet and he now has a pottery space set up in his basement.

Olympia

Age: 28

Location: West midlands

Job: Between jobs

Olympia was inspired by pottery videos she spotted online before she started having a go herself. She has since progressed through a mixture of courses and online self-teaching and enjoys being part of her local community pottery studio.

Whitney

Age: 36

Location: Glasgow

Job: Chemistry teacher

Looking to try something new a few years ago, Whitney took pottery lessons and was hooked. He enjoys bringing his scientific background to his potting, being very detailed and precise when making.

The Great Pottery Throw Down returns on Sunday 4th January at 7:30pm on Channel 4.

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