Spencer Kelly on the Edge

Baker was my Doctor, Ainley was my Master “Master, we meet at last”. As someone who’d always dreamed of starring in Doctor Who, I’d always wanted to say those words. And finally, here I was, done up like a penguin in black tie and crocodile shoes, addressing my arch-nemesis. I was already wondering if my chances of winning tonight would be hindered by that third glass of wine (the fourth one probably hadn’t hit my system yet, so the third one was going to be the problem).

“TV is in the dull drums”. The words of the agent for one particular world-famous face of technology in an email this week. I don’t know if her misspelling was deliberate or not, but it kinda fits with the idea that TV commissioners are beating out a soft, safe rhythm of shows that feature familiar faces fronting familiar formats.

After a banging album release (thank you for the listens, although it’ll be a while before I crack the Top 40) and an appearance at the Luck Reunion Music Festival in Texas, I’m now on-stage at one of the most iconic nightclubs in the world. There’s whooping, clapping and cheering, which the inner critic in me doesn’t think I deserve, but I’ll take it anyway. Thanks for reading Spencer Kelly on the Edge! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.

A special note from Spen: If you can, please enjoy this edition in audio, by pressing the Article voiceover/Listen to Post button at the top. It’s the whole story below, but set to music! Something very special and incredibly exciting has happened in my life in the last few months. Something that, as a dad, is the most priceless thing in the world. My ten-year-old daughter and I have found something that we have really connected over.

Hey everyone, hope you’re well. You may have heard by now that I had a bit of an incident last week, when my passports and other valuables were stolen in Barcelona. I’m fine, I wasn’t attacked, I wasn’t threatened - hell, I wasn’t even aware of the theft until it was over. What happened next is worth an edition of On The Edge in its own right, so I’m going to park that story for the moment, and send you what I had been planning to write this month.

Hiya, as mentioned in the most recent email, Spencer Kelly’s AI Masterclass covered so much great stuff that we ran out of time to get through all of the questions from the audience. So Dr Mike Pound was kind enough to come back later for another chat, and, as promised, here it is. Thanks for reading Spencer Kelly on the Edge! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. Topics include: What is the biggest mistake companies are making when adopting AI?

Well, what can I tell you about my A.I. Masterclass? It went brilliantly thanks. We had some really great practical demos that could be put into practice straight after the session. I learned that, when creating a song live in front of an audience, maybe lay off the heavy metal. I mean, it went down well (I think), but I’m wondering if something that loud and violent would be as appreciated during my on-stage keynotes. I wouldn’t want to blow the venue’s woofers...

May I be the very last to wish you a Happy New Year, you sensational individual, you. Are you rested and ready to go? Or did you have a Christmas that didn’t go to plan, and are hitting 2026 already running at full speed and half a tank down? Sadly, I’m in the latter camp, with one parent being ambulanced to hospital and the other needing more than a little looking-after at home. So all that downtime I’d promised myself has been shelved until 2027, and the next few weeks will be played by ear...

Hello you, just wanted to wish you a sparkly Christmas, and hope you can find time to have a well-earned rest (so far I’ve tried and failed in that respect, so I feel ya if that’s happened to you too). 2025 has been an “eventful” year, and I have no idea which way 2026 is going to go. So let’s cross everything and hope for the best. Thanks for reading Spencer Kelly on the Edge! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. In the meantime, have a picture of my lights.

What’s the furthest you’ve travelled for the shortest amount of time on the ground? Is there a word for this ratio? For the type of trip people used to do on Concorde, where they’d fly to New York for 8 hours and then fly home in time for tea. Flying Visit? Fly-In-Fly-Out? Touch-down Turnaround? Thanks for reading Spencer Kelly on the Edge! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.