About Me
Personal Profile
I am a hardworking and creative graduate with a 2:1 degree in Journalism. Having interviewed over 40 celebrities and published over 300 articles professionally, I have a keen passion for researching and reporting. I always make sure to carry out tasks with a smile on my face. I'm always open to new opportunities so feel free to get in touch.
Key Skills
• Writing articles
• Interviewing celebrities
• Live radio presenting/producing
• Audio/video editing
• Organising live acoustic sessions
• Graphic design (Adobe Photoshop)
• Creating social media campaigns
• Website creation
Employment
February 2016 - Ongoing (Freelance Journalist)
I currently interview celebrities and write entertainment articles for CelebMix on a freelance basis. Just two months after joining the team, I was named the ‘Writer of the Month’ in April 2016. As well as writing about the latest news, I also design images on Adobe Photoshop and I've covered events live on CelebMix’s official Snapchat account.
Celebrities I've interviewed for the website include: As It Is, Ben Haenow, Charlotte OC, Chris Bourne, Faulkner, Hands Like Houses, Jake Quickenden, Sam Lavery, Stealth, The Rubens, Robbi McFaulds, Room 94 and Vukovi.
My CelebMix portfolio is available online here: http://celebmix.com/author/markwillis.
November 2013 - March 2014 (Work Experience)
Since June 2014, I have been a voluntary radio presenter at Gaydio. I present The Exchange on a monthly basis and I’ve also produced editions of the show. The Exchange is a debate programme which discusses news stories chosen and written by the producer. For the show, I have previously secured an exclusive UK radio premiere and I’ve interviewed various celebrities.
Prior to this, I was asked to recruit Salford LGBT residents to join me in a series of radio workshops which ran from January until March 2014. The workshops helped raised awareness of HIV and AIDs. My work experience tasks included: promoting the workshops, presenting, carrying out interviews and editing audio.
June 2013 - May 2014 (Work Experience/Internship)
After completing many weeks of work experience and a paid Unite with Business internship, I was employed by Pixel Kicks as a freelance journalist in May 2014. I produced original content for their websites: OnePopz, OneDirection.net and SuprTickets. Achievements included:
• Over 250 articles published – several of which have been shared by celebrities.
• Viral featured images created – many of the unique pictures that I designed on Photoshop have been used by official chart companies and major organisations such as the Daily Mail.
• Acoustic sessions organised – I liaised with 80 Hertz (a recording studio) and several PR companies to secure exclusive music sessions with various singers and bands.
• Celebrities interviewed: A Great Big World, Amelia Lily, Blitz Kids, Eliza Doolittle, Elyar Fox, Frankmusik, In Hindsight, Ivy Levan, Jack Walton, Kai Owen, Magalie, Mary Desmond, Prides, Reachback, The Dirty Heads, The Shires and Tich.
My previous work experience with Pixel Kicks also involved: designing posters, monitoring social media accounts, completing research pieces for the company and creating poll questions for phone applications.
Note: OnePopz has closed so it now redirects to SuprTickets. All of my OnePopz articles are available on this website.
February 2016 - Ongoing (Customer Care Advisor)
June 2014 - February 2016 (Orderline Operator)
I began working at Cotton Traders as an Orderline Operator in June 2014. My role was to: take orders from global customers, upsell products and process exchanges. In February 2016, I was promoted and became part of the Customer Care Team. Extra responsibilities include: amending orders, tracking missing parcels, processing refunds and dealing with complaints.
Professional Experience
I volunteered as a helper at the Manchester Film & Comic Con. Over the weekend, I performed a variety of tasks to ensure that the event ran as smoothly as possible. More than 20 celebrity guests were in attendance to meet thousands of fans.
I spent a week at Newsquest working for their newspapers: the Sale & Altrincham Messenger and the Stretford & Urmston Messenger. Two lead stories with my byline were published alongside several filler articles I wrote. Tasks included: interviewing, organising a photocall, turning press releases into news stories, proof-reading, answering and transferring phone calls, transcribing letters, reacting to on-the-day news and contacting companies for names needed in captions.
Other Relevant Experience
At just 14 years old, I created a Doctor Who website titled Tardis and Torchwood Treasures. For three years, I updated it daily with the latest news and created animated banners using Adobe Image Ready. Whilst running the site, the BBC contacted me asking me to post fortnightly press releases and the website received over 750,000 views before closing. I also created Doctor Who videos using Windows Movie Maker and uploaded them onto Youtube under the username MarkWillis2007.
During secondary school, I also presented on the school’s radio station Sale High Sounds and completed background acting work with the BBC. I was an extra in Waterloo Road and a one-off period drama titled Clay.
In 2009, I used social media to create a successful gig campaign. My aim was to persuade the nightclub Pure Manchester to organise a second under 18’s concert for Lloyd Daniels. After my Facebook page hit 600 ‘likes’, the club agreed to host another show. This demonstrates my ability to identify target markets and create social media campaigns.
Education & Qualifications
Salford University (2011 – 2014)
BA (Hons) Journalism - 2:1
Trafford College (2009 – 2011)
3 A Levels - Business Studies (B), English (B) and Media Studies (A)
1 AS Level - Psychology (C)
Sale High School (2004 – 2009)
9 GCSEs - Design Technology (C), English (A*), English Literature (A), French (B), Maths (C), Religious Studies (A), Geography (B), Science (B) and Additional Science (A)
BTEC Performing Arts - Distinction (Equivalent to 4 grade A GCSEs)
