Trustees

Rachel joined the Lowry in November 2011 as Head of Quaytickets before being promoted to Head of Ticketing later that same year and was subsequently appointed as Director of Marketing and Communications in June 2014. In early 2021 Rachel’s department transitioned into Audiences, Sales and Marketing with a renewed focus on CRM and Digital. Rachel is now not only responsible for providing the strategic marketing vision for all aspects of the Lowry, but also tracking and evaluation the customer journey at every touchpoint with the organisation. Rachel has retained responsibility for the Ticketing department throughout ensuring the delivery of the highest standards of customer service whilst maximising revenue opportunities through the ticketing operation and the Lowry’s ticketing agency, Quaytickets.

Prior to The Lowry Rachel was Divisional Manager at the Ambassador Theatre Group with overall responsibility for twelve venues and as a member of the Senior Operations team, also delivered a number of companywide strategies and initiatives. Before this position Rachel was Sales and Marketing Director (UK Venues) for Live Nation creating a central marketing resource, including a profitable design agency, and ensuring standard marketing practices across the Live Nations estate – 16 theatres and 5 music venues. Rachel enjoys engaging with external producers, clients and partner organisations and this is as important to her today as it has been throughout her working career. Rachel is also passionate about delivering the very best customer experience end to end in the customer journey, with data lead decision making driving progress and change.

Originally from Leicester, Rachel studied her degree in Drama and English at Roehampton Institute, Surrey University. She has worked at theatres in Torquay, Bristol, Oxford, and Middlesex. In 1995 Rachel managed the major refurbishment and building project at the Liverpool Empire. As well as securing the lottery funding of £11 million she then site managed a five month building project which involved a stage extension, complete backstage rebuild, and front of house refurbishment with extensive reconfiguration of all public areas. Rachel then hosted the Queen for the official reopening of the Empire before moving to Manchester in 2000 to open the first region tour of Miss Saigon at the Palace Theatre. 

Rachel lives in Stockport with her husband and daughter and loves walking, spending time with family and friends, watching shows and holidays.

Born in London, Denis started his working life in 1979 as a food scientist with early roles in Unilever, Arla Foods and In-Bev. Denis joined United Biscuits in 1988 as Microbiologist and progressed through various roles to Group Technical Controller. When United Biscuits was bought by Turkish conglomerate Yildiz Holdings in 2014, Denis was appointed Global President of Safety, Quality, Security & Environment for the holding company & was based in Camlica, Istanbul for the next 5 years, where he learned to speak basic Turkish.

In 2019 Denis retired and set up his consultancy, Culture Compass.

Denis nownworks with the UK Food Standards Agency, Food Standards Scotland, is a Food Supply Chain adviser to the UK government, where he enjoyed daily video calls all through the Covid pandemic to keep the food supply chain flowing and food on the shelves. Denis speaks at international conferences and as a Fellow of the Institute of Food Science & Technology has published standards & papers for BSI, IFST, CIEH. Denis is also a guest lecturer in Leadership at Nottingham University and in Food Safety & Quality at Coventry University.

Denis volunteers for Manchester Growth Company as a mentor for SMEs where he first met Will & Jo. After a few strategy sessions, Denis was appointed trustee and brings his corporate, Leadership and Project Management skills, together with his love of washing up as a volunteer on show nights.

Julie joined HMT’s board in 2022. She has worked in arts and social change in the UK and internationally for 25 years and is currently strategic lead for Creative Health and Greater Manchester Integrated Care.

Emma is Hope Mill Theatre’s Fundraising Lead Trustee, bringing over seven years of fundraising expertise from Manchester’s vibrant cultural scene. Now working freelance, Emma blends her passion for fundraising with her emerging career as an author, supporting Hope Mill Theatre to leverage its success through philanthropy.

I’ve been in the broadcast and media world for many years, working on all forms of Television, Digital Audio and innovative content across multiple genres.  I’ve worked with many of the UK’s top broadcasters and most recently as a commissioner for BBC Children content.

I have a passion for creating great content for audiences, working with creative and inspiring colleagues and collaborators; working to develop great IP and to support the career development of teams I work with. I’ve loved mentoring and growing the skills and approaches of teams too and was a diversity champion for the BBC, supporting and developing new diversity and disability approaches.

I’ve been fortunate enough to have been able to continually re-invent myself over the past decades to contribute to all the roles which I’ve undertaken.

I have lived in Manchester for over 35 years and loved the city and the people.

My family live in Hale. My passions include theatre arts and culture, music and sport. I love meeting people and exploring new experiencing, and learning more about the world we live in.

if you were to ask me to describe myself in a few words, they would be:

Passionate, curious, collaborative, connected and creative and focussed. I want to make a difference and add value to whatever I do whilst really enjoying the journey.

I’m a qualified accountant with over 20 years’ experience across a number of different sectors.  I currently work as a Financial Controller at a brewery and hospitality business – a position I have held since 2021.  Other sector experience includes property development, care homes and as an auditor with Deloitte.  I spent some of my time at Deloitte specialising in charity audits.  Before I was an accountant, I was a scientist with a degree in Biochemistry and a PhD in Immunology.

I live in South Manchester with my husband and son and in the past have lived in Newcastle, Edinburgh, Birmingham and London.  When not working, I can often be found by the side of football pitches supporting my son or trying to keep active in the gym or doing pilates.

Nikki Brown brings a wealth of experience and passion to her role as a trustee at Hope Mill Theatre. With a career in education spanning nearly three decades, Nikki has dedicated herself to empowering individuals from all walks of life. Starting as an Art and Textiles teacher in Tameside, she spent 10 years inspiring creativity in young minds before embarking on a freelance journey that combined her love for teaching with her flair for cooking. Through her work with numerous charities across Greater Manchester, Nikki has shared her skills to support vulnerable groups, fostering confidence and self-expression through hands-on learning.

In recent years, Nikki has focused her efforts on promoting inclusivity and accessibility in the workplace, particularly for individuals with disabilities, through her work with the Seashell Trust. Her commitment to social responsibility and her advocacy for equal opportunities reflect her deep belief in the power of community and collaboration. 

Beyond her professional pursuits, Nikki is a devoted theatre enthusiast who regularly attends performances across the UK. Her love for the arts fuels her drive to support the mission of Hope Mill Theatre as a vibrant hub for creativity, storytelling, and inclusivity. As a trustee, Nikki is eager to contribute her expertise and passion to help the theatre continue to thrive as an essential cultural landmark in Manchester and beyond.

By joining Hope Mill Theatre, Nikki hopes to play a pivotal role in fostering an environment where the transformative power of the arts can be celebrated and shared by all.

Tiffany has approaching a decade’s experience in marketing, the majority of which was within the property and regeneration industry. Most recently she has moved into operations, assessing business functions and devising strategies to improve efficiency and effectiveness through people, systems and processes.

Prior to entering the property industry, Tiffany’s background is on the stage, having been part of a youth theatre company and holding a Theatre Studies degree. Her passion for the theatre is long-held, with her career beginning in the arts and entertainment world.

When not enjoying a great show, Tiffany can often be found running across the Peak District hills or scuba diving in the Mediterranean Sea (though not often enough!). Having joined the HMT board in 2025, Tiffany is excited to help the Hope Mill achieve its future ambitions.

Following a degree in modern languages and time working as a translator and interpreter, Paul Rowlett’s career has been in higher education. He came to Manchester in 1990 aged 24 to take up a junior academic position at the University of Salford. By the time he left Salford in 2017 he was professor and pro vice chancellor. Since then, he has continued to live in Manchester while providing consultancy and interim executive leadership to a wide range of higher education providers across the UK. He was the founding head of the school of creative arts, performance and visual cultures at the University of Warwick, executive dean of the drama school at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (LAMDA) and deputy vice chancellor at Goldsmiths University, London. He has been a supporter and regular audience member of Hope Mill Theatre since 2016.

From 1979 Ian worked in professional theatre across the UK, in roles from stagehand to executive director, gaining experience in both the subsidised and commercial sectors. Starting in 1997 with the North West Arts Board Ian was a senior manager of Arts Council England until January 2018 when he became the Interim Chief Executive of the Shakespeare North Playhouse. He oversaw the £38 million capital development project and transformed governance to create an effective strategic board. Based on this planning the theatre was awarded NPO funding by the Arts Council. Since 2022, Ian has pursued a broad based freelance career working with clients including; Dance Base, Edinburgh, Man Met University, Manchester International Festival, the Royal Exchange Theatre and Cheshire Dance. Although semi-retired in 2025, Ian is currently advising Oldham Coliseum Theatre on its capital programme and is a Trustee of the Bolton Octagon and Hope Mill Theatres.

Darrell currently runs the Manchester office of Studio Lambert – a tv production company with a roster of shows including welll-known favourites Gogglebox, Race Across the World and Squid Game – the Challenge.  As an Executive Producer at the company has been particularly involved in producing The Traitors, Four in a Bed, The Inheritance and even Naked Attraction! He started his tv career back in the 1990s at Granada TV in Manchester where he cut his teeth on entertainment stalwarts such as Stars in their Eyes; subsequently working on a raft of entertainment, factual entertainment and reality shows and also spent a number of years as the Executive Producer of Dragons’ Den.

He’s also on the steering committee for Screenskills (the industry-led skills body for the screen industry) helping to develop the best training courses to future proof the television industry.

Despite television being the main career focus he’s always been a huge fan of theatre and tries to see as many shows as possible be that in Manchester or London or elsewhere!  He actually attended Hopemill’s very first production and even then spotted that there was something very special about the place and the people and has been determined ever since to be involved in the place in some way.

He’s very excited to be a newly appointed member of the Board of Trustees (2025) and is hoping that although his experience is very much in tv producing rather than theatre that there’s a lot of useful crossover – essentially bringing stories to light in a new and creative way, recruiting great teams and cast and working to limited budgets and resources and, of course, an element of risk!  Ultimately he wants to help take HMT to the next level and realise its full promise and potential.