News & Events
News and Blog
This page will endeavour to keep you up to date with Oliver’s adventures, events and activities. Please also follow Oliver’s face-book page which provides daily posts and latest images. www.facebook.com/OliverHellowellPhotographer
Oliver's mum Wendy provides 'excerpts' from Oliver's life and Ollie too will use this page to pass on some messages to his supporters and followers.
Life with Oliver is certainly never dull, and we hope that as you scroll through and read the entries here you may just manage to get a flavour of just how enjoyable Oliver's life is - both to him, and to those around him!
Oliver's Film 2023
WOW what a few months Oliver has had! We started filming here in the Blackdown Hills on the Somerset Devon border in March, then we did more up in Scotland at the Loch Lomond Bird of Prey Centre with Oliver's friends Stewart and Kevin Robertson, and then in October Oliver spent a few days filming with his Hero Iolo Williams in Wales. Filming and directing has not been without its challenges for Oliver, but he has coped brilliantly and is very proud of everything he has filmed so far. We still have a few small bits of filming to do and there will now be months of work to be done with post production and the massive task of whittling down months of filming into a short half hour piece!! We are hugely grateful to everyone who has so kindly donated and enabled Oliver's project to become a reality so far. We have actually run out of funds and are currently self funding in the hope that we can still manage to create a finished piece which everyone can enjoy and which Oliver will be proud of. Everyone who donates gets their name mentioned in the credits at the end of the film, and also receives regular newletters with lots of inside information, pictures and updates. If you or anyone you know, might like to be part of Oliver's huge project then please please let us know!!
EXCITING NEWS for 2023!
Oliver the Film Director!!
Exciting News!
Plans are afoot, for Oliver to be directing his first film in summer 2023! The short documentary film produced with his friend Simon Weitzman, will look at Oliver's life and work in nature and wildlife photography. Simon Weitzman is a filmmaker, director and producer, artist and author, and has worked together with Oliver on various adventures including the films produced for BBC's 'The One Show', and during Oliver's great adventure to the Smoky Mountains in Tennessee, but this will be Oliver's first foray into playing a real part in directing a film.
We will release more details soon, and we fervently hope the film will help further inspire and raise awareness not only of Oliver's talent, but be yet another shining example of the creative talents of young people with Down Syndrome.
We hope that this landmark venture will show what Oliver can do from behind the scenes in a film, rather than only being the subject of one.
In the meantime, if you know of anyone, or of any organisation, who would like to help support and promote this endeavour, then please do let us know!!
January 2023
Happy New Year everyone!!
Oliver just wanted you all to see this beautiful picture of a wren he took on New Year's Day in our back garden. Wrens are very tricky to catch and this is only the second good image he has ever managed of a wren so he is well pleased!
Annual Exhibition December 2022
Every year Oliver holds his Annual Exhibition and Sale and always looks forward to having all his work on display, and to meeting friends, fans and followers who come along to support the event. The event was a little quieter than usual this year as on the Saturday morning there was a bit of snowfall and it frightened a lot of people who decided it would be much safer to stay at home. Despitethe lower numbers it was still very enjoyable for Oliver and he was so pleased to see several of people who are very special to him and who made the effort to come along and spend some time catching up and chatting with him. Would you like to have a little walk around? Click here and it should take you to the post on Oliver's facebook page which contains the little video his big sister Anna made: Oliver's Exhibition December 2022
Scotland 2022
Sorry! We realised we haven't been keeping up with Oliver's news at all on here!
Every year Oliver likes to spend a week in Wales and a week in Scotland and 2022 was no different.
Having enjoyed a week in Wales earlier in the year Oliver was very much looking forward to spending a week in the glorious area of Glencoe in Scotland. We have often experienced wet holidays, but never one as wet as this one! WOW! We had torrential rain at some point EVERY day, and almost constantly on some days!!
However this did mean that the vegetation was lush and vibrant, and the waterfalls and rivers were rushing and full! So actually Oliver got some amazing and quite stunning images. He thoroughly enjoyed being spoiled rotten by the wonderful Stewart Robertson at the Loch Lomond Bird of Prey Centre on the way up to Glencoe and getting to hold some of the birds, and he was very pleased to be recognised (so famous he is!) in a car park in Glencoe by a lady who lives locally and runs the Red Squirrel Campsite.
If you look in the Landscape Gallery you will be able to see a selection of the images Oliver captured during his stay.
Lockdown 2020
In March 2020, along with the rest of the UK and then many other countries across the world, Oliver and his family went into lockdown. Oliver coped amazingly well with the new and sometimes daunting restrictions placed on his life, but as we are so very fortunate to live where we do, we most certainly couldn't complain! Here is a little film about some of what Oliver got up to during lockdown in his back garden. Do pop across and subscribe to his you-tube channel and keep up to date with what Oliver is getting up to :) Oliver at Home during lockdown
Happy New Year 2020!
2019 was a wonderful year for Oliver, enjoying the publication of 'Oliver's Birds' in January, two appearances on the BBC, and a top tourism media award. Oliver has enjoyed a very happy family Christmas and along with MANY MANY gifts was particularly thrilled with a canvas of multiple images of his beloved cat. He was also very pleased to receive a Frank Sinatra CD with which he can torture Mike... (Oliver loves Mr Sinatra but Mike sure doesn't!) Oliver's Annual Exhibition in December was a great success and means he can now use his profit to book a week away in a cottage in March. He has chosen Scotland and after many hours has narrowed his choice of cottage down to three! We want to thank all Oliver's wonderful followers and fans for their continued support and hope that 2020 proves to be another wonderful and busy year for our amazing young man. He SO enjoys watching out for orders received through his website and seeing all the addresses so he knows where you live and where his prints and books etc are off to. We are currently working on 'Oliver's Britain', (a follow up to 'Oliver's Birds) and hope that this will be published later this year. How exciting!! Lots of Love and a Happy Healthy New Year to you all :) Wendy, Mike and Ollie the famous one! :)
Oliver's 2019 Exhibition
Oliver is very excited as his Annual Exhibition draws near and this time we will have more large canvasses and more various and new items than ever before so we are desperately hoping lots of people will come along!!! This year it will be on Saturday November 30th and Sunday December 1st from 10am - 4 pm both days and is in the usual venue: The Old School, School Road, Westonzoyland Somerset TA7 0LN :) There will be a prize for the person who has travelled the furthest to attend so DO tell us if you've come a long way! An opportunity to get your book signed, to enjoy Oliver's wonderful images AND meet the young man himself - we look forward to seeing you!!
Holiday to Wales October 2019
Oliver loves nothing better than getting away from it all for a week in a cottage in the middle of nowhere, it is his absolute favourite thing. In October we went to the west coast of Wales and enjoyed a week of pouring rain and gale-force winds! Did this stop us having fun and taking lots of pictures? Of course not!! There were occasional dry periods and we even saw the sun once or twice albeit briefly, and Oliver got his best ever seal pup pictures when we literally almost stumbled across the most beautiful velevteen seal pup. At first Oliver was a little nervous but then settled in and was very careful not to disturb or frighten the pup and took some really beautiful pictures. We also saw our FIRST EVER BADGER outside our holiday cottage. It came right up to the patio doors in the dark - wow what an experience! A fabulous week away, and Oliver was as usual, so very pleased to get home afterwards to his little cat, who he loves very dearly.