Bog Witch: Storytelling as Climate Action - Bryony Kimmings and Will Duke with Morag Gamble

Sep 29, 2025

Bryony Kimmings, an award-winning theatre-maker known for her raw autobiographical work, and Will Duke, a projection designer and permaculture student, discuss their powerful new solo show, Bogwitch. They explore how storytelling can act as a form of climate action, using humor and vulnerability to re-engage audiences with nature. The conversation delves into personal narratives, the significance of grief in relation to environmental loss, and practical approaches to making permaculture accessible and relatable for all.

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ANECDOTE

From Skeptic To Country Life

Bryony describes being pulled into ecological life after meeting Will and following his deep belief in nature's healing power.
She admits she initially tagged along skeptically but nature and Will's readings gradually changed her life.

INSIGHT

Gentle Paths Through Climate Grief

Bryony says climate grief overwhelms at first but is only one step toward transformation.
Will adds that storytelling must avoid overwhelming people or they'll be turned off by passion alone.

ADVICE

Design Stories To Shift Perception

Bryony crafts shows to change how audiences leave, starting small and ending with a willingness to act.
She aims for a perception shift rather than immediate massive behaviour change.

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In this episode of Sense-Making in a Changing World, I speak with acclaimed artist Bryony Kimmings and award-winning projection designer Will Duke about their powerful new theatre work, Bog Witch.

Commissioned for the launch season at Soho Theatre Walthamstow, Bog Witch is Bryony’s first solo work in over five years. Known for her fearless, hilarious, and deeply moving autobiographical creations, Bryony has been called “an artist of exceptional integrity, imagination, compassion and guts” by The Guardian. Her work spans theatre, film, and television, including projects with the BBC, Channel 4, and the National Theatre.

Will is a leading projection designer whose practice spans opera, theatre, and dance. His acclaimed visual designs have appeared on international stages from the Royal Opera House to the National Theatre. Will is also a student of the Permaculture Education Institute, weaving ecological design principles into both his creative work and daily life.

Together, they open up about how storytelling itself can be a form of climate action — using humour, vulnerability, and imagination to re-enchant culture and invite us back into the web of life.

I was living hand to mouth, searching for happiness in alcohol and consumer culture — but it didn’t fill the hole in my soul. Nature did.”
~ Bryony Kimmings

Storytelling is climate action. It opens hearts where facts alone can’t.”
~ Will Duke

We are living in a time when climate narratives risk becoming tired or overwhelming. What Bryony and Will remind us is that culture shifts through stories — stories that make us laugh, cry, grieve, and imagine differently.

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This podcast is hosted by Morag Gamble, founder of the Permaculture Education Institute - the leading-edge international online school for integrated permaculture design, education, leadership and [pr]activism.⁠

Explore Morag Gamble's Permaculture Educators Program

Morag also shares conversations through Our Permaculture Life YouTube, Permaculture Festival of Wild Ideas & monthly film screenings.

This podcast is broadcast from a solar powered studio in the midst of a permaculture ecovillage on Jinibara & Gubbi Gubbi country.