WELLY INTERVIEW - All things Welly

By Flo 7/5/25

One thing you must know about me is that I love Welly. I consider myself the No. 1 Welly fan, and this is my sixth time seeing them (that being the 4th this year.) Big In The Suburbs is the best album ever written. So when the opportunity arises for me to ask them some questions, of course I jump for it (jump for it being harassing one of the poor band members via insta dms).

Welly, if you are unaware, are a Brighton based indie pop band, Elliot Hall (vocals and charismatic front man energy), Joe Holden Brown (Guitar), Matt Gleeson (Guitar), Jacob Whitear (Bass) and the lovely Hanna Witkamp on ‘all the bells and whistles’ (synths and percussion). Welly (as he will be named in this interview, I’ve called him Welly for a year now so it’s too weird to change how I speak) Joe and Jacob grew up together in the delightful suburbs of Southampton while Matt is from Bristol and Hanna from the Netherlands. Roll call complete.

My time with the band started with us descending to the green room, Hanna played about with Matt’s guitar and delivered a gorgeous rendition of Me and Your Mates while Matt went looking for everyone else. We later migrated to the car park, forming a little circle outside the venue and it was time to get started.

‘They’re really silly questions’ I warn them straight away. Hanna tells the rest of them off for chatting ten seconds into the recording, stating that they are being recorded and that ‘everything you say can be used against you in court.’ Welly pipes up, asking Hanna what she’s planning on saying, to which we have an ominous answer of ‘just you wait’.

‘Has this been done by the group chat rising? The phoenix from the ashes?’ I reassure him that I wrote all the questions and we move on. If you could describe Big In The Suburbs as a meal deal, what would that meal deal be? Welly criticises my question straight away, listing off other more professional things I could’ve asked. Lovely. I tell him to be patient while they ponder on my magnificent question. ‘i think probably a shit chicken ceaser salad. You know, what the ‘yummy mummy’ would get. Or probably just what the average Joe would get. So Joe-‘ He gestures to the guitarist. ‘What would you get?’ Joe, we find out, would get a breakfast triple sandwich and Sensations sweet chili. Welly would get tomato and feta pasta, typically with an innocent smoothie.

’Whatever colour I’m feeling that day.’ He adds. ‘Black. That’s how you’re normally feeling.’ Matt quips, earning a giggle from us all. Welly sometimes gets milk, and both me and Hanna grimace. My next question is related to ice cream. What flavour of ice cream do you think each of you would be, in relation to your role in Welly? Matt’s immediate answer is bubblegum, which I think is perfectly fitting. Welly does not think so, complaining how ‘that makes out like you add some kind of playful zest to our performance.’ Hanna is rocky road, because ‘it has everything. The chocolate, the marshmallows, the nuts. Just like how I play all the bells and whistles.’ Welly has ‘got to be a Mr Whippy.’ No explaining on why, thank you very much.

Joe makes a comment on Jacob being ‘vanilla’, to which Hanna adds that he’s more like popping candy. Jacob doesn’t like popping candy apparently. We redivide on Matt being a Solero, Jacob being something ‘hard and determinable’ (Welly, you aren’t beating the Wacob allegations with this one brother. Don’t think we didn’t catch you pretending to kiss Jacob on stage.) Jacob is a feast, and we find out that of Welly having a feast 2 days ago. Beauty in the small things.

Joe makes a cheeky remark that he is the flake. I tell him that is not an ice cream flavour while he barges on about how he is everyone’s favourite. Welly: ‘you know the doggy ice cream? the woke nonsense doggy ice cream.’ Joe is woke nonsense doggy ice cream. Everyone is laughing by this point, Welly exclaiming that this is ‘a cracking answer!’ Tell yourself that.

Next I ask of their fish and chips orders. I am notified that Welly visited the fish and chips restaurant ‘everyone told me to go to’ and I tell him that everyone is just me. Like a cartoon supervillain, on all my alt accounts with nighteen monitors, Welly got scampi, Hanna got mushy peas, Jacob got a plain sausage and chips while Joe got battered (clearly the better option.) Matt and Joe bicker for a bit on the fact that Joe did not get a jumbo sausage, causing a domino effect of stupid jokes about a jumbo sausage. This is paused by a quick interlude, Welly struggling to light his cigarette and running off to source a lighter. We have a catch up with someone I don’t know, so i just stand and laugh as they talk about the secret show Welly were playing in Presuming Eds the night after.

’It’ll be packed, you’re big in Brighton.’ Welly jokes on how he’ll be packed, because he’s going straight home. We resume on the questions, and I move to a more serious music related topic. Which artists inspired you to start writing music? Welly was more inspired by performers and comics, which comes off strongly in their music style. He mentions Harry Hill, bringing me back to an old conversation on how his favourite episode of the Off menu podcast was Harry Hill’s and I told him that’d listen. I haven’t yet, but if any of you want further insight into the world of Welly then there you have it.

‘I wanted it to sound like the Human League on guitars.’ That sounds about right. He listened to a lot of Katy J Pearson, moving on to the topic of what they listened to in the house while recording. apparently ‘Coconuts’ causing the band to break into a moving choir (put the lime in the coconut…)

That is all I had for Welly, but they were not done yet. I have about 3 minutes of straight chatter from them, going from topics like the worlds largest Wetherspoons to Saudi Arabia. And then B&Q. And then the Man United score (personally I care more about Sittingbourne losing the playoffs but whatever…)

Welly are incredible, and I apologise if this interview is not at all funny to anyone but me and the band because this is all but my first rodeo. Would’ve gone better if I didnt have extensive Welly history, to be fair. Thank you guys so so so so much for letting me natter to you, it’s always a pleasure.

Welly are WORLDWDEWELLY on all platforms, buy tickets to their biggest tour yet in October now. Stream Big In The Suburbs folks xxx