The largest newsroom in Europe (outside of London), the post and Mail produces; The Birmingham…read morePost, The Birmingham Mail, The Sunday Mercury and it also prints the City's edition of The Metro. Located on Colmore row, it's a 10 minute walk from Newstreet Station, past Rackhams and down Weaman street. If you are thinking of becoming a journalist it is THE place to head. There are numerous well experienced hacks and photographers who you can steal tips from. Competition is tough and they apparently receive nearly 100 applications for work experience a week, so try and get in early. All teams will be re-locating to the Fort Dunlop building in the summer.

You know how 'what's on' and local guides are kind of cheap, tacky looking things filled with…read morerubbish you have no interest in? Fair enough, they're free right? You can't expect high quality design, print and content from a free guide, right? Area Magazine begs to differ. From the same people who produce the wonderful art/music/culture guide 'Fused', Area is a monthly pocket sized guide which contains all of the coming attractions in Brum. Gigs, shows, theatre, art, special events, and it's all present beautifully with original art, top notch layout and design and illustrated covers by various up and coming artists. The magazines are in all of the local hotspots, if you want to know what's what in Brum you should go pick one up. The only problem is that they are so nice you won't want to throw them away when you're done and you can end up with quite a hefty collection!

Get a Grip offer a waterbased ink, screenprinting service and its all ran by Sam and Kay. Whilst I…read morehaven't as yet had anything printed by these guys I've seen them in action working with young people to produce screen prints and the fruits of their labour is on display and to buy in their studio at the Custard Factory. The quality of the print work is outstanding and they are super helpful if you have any questions. The list of their print services and options is really comprehensive both on the website or if you pop into the studio. In the studio they have badges made from printing offcuts, sweatshirts and tees with awesome graphics as well as bags and cards. Sadly the prints on the wall for bands you probably love that they've printed up aren't for sale, but they show off the quality of service.

Lovely printed goods - I'm a sucker for a pretty screenprint!…read more They printed some promotional totes for a friend of mine, and the quality was lovely. I popped into the shop last week to see what else they have on sale, and was excited to see they've been collaborating with other local artists - eg. Yellow Door Bindery - to create limited edition runs. Not only do these guys know their stuff (as clearly evidenced all over their website and blog, including how-tos which I LOVE as sometimes artists can be so precious about sharing tips!) but they're also environmentally responsible donating a percentage of their sale to charity. All round good guys - we need more like you!

My brother was murdered rundown for six minutes down the canal and two blokes sat on his back and…read morehis head and suffocated him for 3 1/2 minutes there was witnesses and I have got off with it and walked away because I said it was a citizens arrest so now the police are telling us it's okay to bring someone down and kill them for six months 3 1/2 minutes

I started my journalistic career at Redbrick! It was 2002 and I was a cocky and precocious young…read morewriter, working alongside plenty more cocky and precocious young writers. It was like Press Gang only with less double denim and more Home Counties accents. I didn't appreciate quite how good a student newspaper it was until I encountered lesser student publications. The editorial standards were, and still are, high. The free paper is distributed around the campus and contains a range of news and features, some specific to the uni and others of a more general interest. The crossword makes an ideal way to pass time between lectures.

As a previous student of the University of Birmingham I often found myself picking up a copy of…read moreRedbrick, the student newspaper. It is run entirely by students, which I think is really impressive. It is also free and is dropped around the campus every few weeks, which is a bonus as obviously students are supposed to be skint! They cover a range of areas and issues in the paper, including news features, arts, music, culture, sports and travel. It seems there is something for everyone and they do have regular features, one of which is a 'what's in and what's out' type of column which I think is highly entertaining. I think it is really useful especially for those who are new to Birmingham as it informs you of what is going on in Birmingham and of course around the campus. It is particularly aimed at students but I have also seen academics reading it too. It is definitely worth a read if you are a student at UOB!

Fused Magazine is a well-established independent culture magazine in Birmingham…read more A beautifully put together review of fashion, music, art, featuring interviews, competitions and much more. Expect to see gorgeous design layouts, amazing photography and great journalism. For any designer, band, DJ, artist or independent business in Brum being featured in Fused is definitely very high on the want list. Highly recommend any fan of arts or culture of any kind to get themselves a copy if they haven't already! Just ordered the new issue so I'll update this when I receive it.

Fused is somewhat of a Birmingham institution now, having been around for over a decade. It is an…read moreart/music/culture/fashion magazine that has beautiful layout and design, interviews and reviews. It's an innovative publication that prides itself on high quality content and artwork and boasts illustrated front covers for every edition. For years Fused was a free publication that also contained local listings and events but they have recently moved all that side of the mag over to Area Magazine (still free) and now Fused has more room for the other stuff. They have also shifted up a gear in terms of page count and paper stock making it well worth the cost.

Showtime Studios provided excellent work for our online business requirements. They are quick to…read morerespond while offering approachable, personal service. They went beyond our original requirements by thinking about our needs further. For example, they suggested a tracking mechanism for our online quote application, thus offering a more valuable solution. As a design and marketing agency, they have positively impacted our website by automating our online lead generation and sales processes. I enjoyed working with them and would do so in the future.