Why now?

We want instant answers. We have a question; we pick up our phone. We’re starting a new project; we ask AI how to do it.

But what if we could have a better, more creative idea, if only we gave ourselves a few minutes to tap into our own imagination?

Analogue Lunch will remind you of the brilliance of your human brain.

Join me and let’s explore where your mind takes you when you let it run free.

How does it work?

Gather together a group of 8-12 colleagues who want to give their brain a chance to breathe, and we meet in your offices. You choose the 90 minute time slot, which could be 12 to 1.30pm or 1pm to 2.30pm, for example.

It happens over lunch, but people can bring whatever they’d like – their usual sandwich / salad / Peking duck, some fruit or just a drink. The session works the same either way.

I’ll lead everyone through some creative writing exercises. If people want to share what they’ve written, we’d love it to hear it. If they don’t, that’s fine too.

People leave having written something they didn’t expect, noticed something new and taken a break from the digital noise.

What do you need to provide?

A quiet room with a table large enough for your group, 90 minutes in the diary, and people who are willing to put their phones away. If you supply pens and paper to write on, I’ll bring everything else.

Where does it take place?

Analogue Lunch sessions currently take place in London. If you’re outside this area, get in touch anyway, and let’s find a way to make it work.

Who’s leading the session?

I’m Fiona Thompson, the inventor of Analogue Lunch, and I’ll lead the session for you.

My writing career spans writing features for national newspapers and magazines, copywriting for everyone from the BBC and Nike to Nokia, and writing for charities. I’ve designed and delivered writing workshops for ITV and Coca-Cola, among others.

This session will draw on all of these experiences, with a dash of inspiration from Natalie Goldberg, the author of Writing Down the Bones and one of the world’s best-known teachers of the free-write method. I travelled to New Mexico to study with her and have been sharing her free write technique ever since.

Why hold an Analogue Lunch for your team?

Creativity doesn’t thrive under pressure; it needs space to breathe. Analogue Lunch gives your team a dedicated time to slow down, think differently and reconnect with their own ideas, without a screen in sight.

For your people. It’s a genuine break from digital overwhelm: a chance to think, write and remember that the human brain is a remarkable thing. People leave with a renewed confidence in their own thinking, rather than automatically reaching out to a bot. And in a world of back-to back meetings and constant notifications, it’s a real boost for wellbeing.

For your organisation. The most innovative companies actively build creative thinking time into their culture. Analogue Lunch makes this easy, enjoyable and surprisingly affordable. And if your organisation has a wellbeing or L&D budget, it sits squarely within it. People often find they return to their desks
with a more playful, considered approach to the questions they face, which tends to result in better ideas.