Meet the Rising Talents

Justin Weston is one of the most hotly discussed young British artists. After a childhood in the south of England, he discovered his passion for art while at secondary school in Scotland, where the whole family had moved when he was fifteen. 'I owe my success to the art instructor who pushed me all the way to Arts College,' he says. The move from England to Scotland also brought him into direct contact with the landscape that was to become his main subject matter. Mr. Weston looks set to become one of his generation's great painters, but his style is not universally popular, as a number of negative comments from colleagues have shown. 'Such comments only give me more courage to do new and exciting things and to paint more effectively,' he says.

Tom Hall is a political correspondent. He has built up a glittering career in television journalism since graduating from London University in 1993. Even at university, he knew where he was going. While fellow history students enjoyed an active social life, Tom performed in plays and edited the student newspaper. When he graduated, he turned down job offers from the national papers for the exciting performance aspects of television reporting. He found the work much less demanding than he had thought it would be. 'I was able to turn my attention to writing as well,' he says. Days after publication, his thriller, Shadows, has won critical acclaim. The only thing Tom Hall dislikes about his job is finding an average of thirty messages on his answering machine every day. 'Mostly from newspaper editors asking my opinion,' he says.

Adam Huntley is a gardener. It is refreshing to meet a successful young person who is not happy at the thought of being seen as a leader of a generation. 'I don't like that at all,' he says. But the facts speak for themselves. At the age of 26, Adam has just become Head Gardener at Cromart, one of the most renowned gardens in England. 'My approach as Head Gardener will be different from what has gone on so far,' he says. 'The modern Head Gardener also has to be involved in attracting visitors.' Adam has been awarded a grant for a trip to the Caribbean, where he hopes to find a number of plants to enrich the Cromart garden. 'I am pleased at the prospect of travelling,' he says, 'but I'm also nervous about letting somebody else take over my job.'

Josh Rendell is a farmer. Owner and manager of a large dairy and arable crop farm, 29-year-old Josh finds he is the youngest of all farmers in the area. In 1991, he and his three brothers inherited the land from their father. Since then, he has reduced costs and increased efficiency to such an extent that his profits have doubled. Josh has a geography degree from Exeter University and a degree in business management, but most of what he has learned, he says, came from his day-to-day work on the job. His recreations include organising visits to the farm for children in local schools, but his central role is running the farm well. 'If your business is healthy,' he says, 'it can benefit the local community.'