Ben Hurst
Ben Hurst is a lifestyle and food journalist at WalesOnline, where he is Head of Lifestyle and Money and shapes coverage of practical, trending stories for everyday readers. His food pieces lean on familiar TV personalities and supermarket behaviour, turning them into clear tips and consumer explainers rather than recipes or restaurant criticism. Across his work he joins food, entertainment and cost-of-living angles, using simple formats that are easy to scan and share.
Food coverage built around TV chefs and supermarket behaviour
Ben’s food stories focus on how people cook and shop, with a particular interest in the advice of well-known TV chefs and how it translates to home kitchens. In his piece on James Martin’s crucial tip to avoid soggy roast potatoes, he frames the chef’s guidance as a practical fix for a common problem, centring on technique rather than lifestyle aspiration. He also explores the way food products change over time, co-authoring coverage on supermarket products that have “gone down in size but not in price”, highlighting shrinkflation and what it means for household budgets. Taken together, his food reporting treats cooking and groceries as everyday decisions, combining the authority of professional cooks with the reality of supermarket shelves.
Cost-of-living and consumer angles on food and everyday spending
Beyond individual dishes, Ben reports on the wider consumer context in which people buy and use food. His work on products getting smaller while prices stay the same sits firmly in a cost-of-living frame, naming specific supermarket items and spelling out how these quiet changes impact value for money. He links food with broader spending, using straightforward headlines and clear examples that make it easy for readers to see themselves in the stories. This consumer lens is part of his wider lifestyle and money remit, where he is responsible for coverage that explains how economic trends and business decisions show up in the weekly shop.
Celebrity and TV-led lifestyle reporting
Ben writes extensively about TV and celebrity figures, often focusing on health, family and personal challenges rather than gossip. He covers reality star Louise Thompson’s repeated hospital admissions, reporting on her fiancé Ryan Libbey’s updates about her condition in a direct, newsy style. In another piece, he reports on a Celebrity Big Brother star speaking openly about a miscarriage and the grief that follows, keeping attention on the experience and its emotional weight rather than sensational detail. His reporting on broadcaster Jonnie Irwin’s cancer treatment similarly highlights Irwin’s own explanation of how complementary treatments have “bought himself weeks and months”, blending showbiz familiarity with serious health information. This strand of his work shows how he uses recognisable TV names to carry stories about wellbeing, resilience and the pressures of public life.
Nostalgia, visual explainers and trending lifestyle stories
Alongside food and celebrity pieces, Ben produces visual and nostalgia-driven lifestyle content that taps into shared memory and viral interest. In his gallery of “33 pictures that will take you straight back to Wales in 1999”, he curates images that evoke pop culture, sport and everyday scenes, using short captions and a strong hook to invite readers to revisit a particular moment in time. He also reports on phenomena such as the northern lights over the UK, packaging service information and striking photography into a concise explainer that fits the trending news cycle. These stories illustrate his ability to turn wide-interest topics into accessible, image-led pieces that sit comfortably alongside his food and consumer coverage.
Senior newsroom background and editorial perspective
Ben brings a senior editorial background to his lifestyle and food reporting. He is Head of Lifestyle and Money and has previously held roles including executive editor for central content, head of video for regional titles, news editor at Birmingham Mail and head of news at Birmingham Post. He has also worked as a senior duty editor in the network newsroom, overseeing content across multiple outlets. This newsroom experience informs the way he structures stories: his pieces are tightly written, headline-driven and designed to travel across the wider network, whether they focus on cooking tips, supermarket changes or celebrity health updates. His mix of food, consumer and entertainment stories reflects a brief that is both thematic and format-led, prioritising clarity, shareability and quick understanding.
4 more food journalists.
Adam Maidment
Adam Maidment is a senior What's On and LGBTQ+ reporter whose food and leisure coverage is built around immersive, first-person reporting and concrete detail. He works at the Manchester Evening News, focusing on new restaurant and bar openings, regular food reviews, gig and event coverage, and issues affecting LGBTQ+ people. He treats restaurants, pubs, bars and experiences as stories about place, people and community, explaining what makes a venue different and how it fits into the local dining scene. His pieces cover pricing, service, atmosphere, crowds and concept, and he is willing to be critical when gimmicks undermine the experience. He writes character-led pub profiles, works shifts, joins treasure hunts and attends major cultural events, inviting readers to follow what he does and use his straightforward assessments to decide where to eat, drink and spend time.
Alice Lorenzato-Lloyd
Alice Lorenzato-Lloyd is editor at Secret Manchester, where she treats food as part of how people live in the city, not as an isolated subject. She covers restaurants, bars, street food and casual dining, linking new openings and food trends to neighbourhood change, local businesses and everyday routines. Her pieces focus on accessible spots, comfort dishes like pizza and tacos, and clear details of menus, presentation, atmosphere and practical information such as opening hours and booking. She often combines food, drink and live events, producing guides to venues for major sports tournaments and themed pop-ups as part of wider things to do. Alice also reports on hospitality business pressures, city-centre public spaces, charity initiatives, transport and infrastructure, always showing how food and drink fit into community and lifestyle stories. She previously wrote for other regional “Secret” sites as a staff writer and describes herself as a writer and food fanatic.
Aly Walansky
Aly Walansky specializes in service-driven food coverage that treats cocktails and dining as tools for celebration, focusing on how logistics, ordering options, and menu choices turn everyday meals and major holidays into shared experiences. She is a longtime food and travel journalist now writing for Forbes, where her beat centers on cocktails and occasion-driven dining. Her work includes practical, expert-driven roundups such as guides to many variations on the classic martini, shipped-meals gift lists for Mother’s Day, and accessible formats for Thanksgiving and other holidays. She reports through structured lists, restaurant features, and menu-focused profiles that highlight signature dishes and dining trends. Across outlets, she extends this approach to home cooking, grocery shopping, and recipes, and runs a newsletter that shares her current assignments and industry commentary.
Bill Poindexter
Bill Poindexter stands out for hyperlocal food journalism that treats regional culinary traditions as community identity rather than simple dining coverage. He is managing editor of Gold Mountain California News Media and shapes the Auburn Journal’s editorial direction. His reporting presents food establishments as cultural anchors that reflect Gold Country’s evolving social fabric. He documents community food events and competitions as shared milestones, highlighting family involvement and local pride. Through his Substack newsletter Dispatches from the Road, he writes first-person narratives about everyday food experiences and local businesses. He connects food to the local economy and regional planning, showing how restaurants, bakeries, and food-related infrastructure support employment, agricultural sustainability, and quality of life.