Goalhanger has revealed the finalists for The Accelerator, its new creator incubator designed to back high-potential digital talent and help them build sustainable, long-term media businesses.
The programme, launched earlier this year, was created to support standout creators across entertainment, lifestyle, sport, politics, science & tech and finance, says Goalhanger. Inspired by the structure and ambition of tech incubators, The Accelerator treats creators not simply as talent, but as founders: giving them funding, strategic support, mentorship and meaningful access to the editorial, production, commercial and audience-building expertise behind Goalhanger’s network.
The 2026 cohort is:
Cody Dahler - satirist and writer
A creator with major cross-platform reach, Cody is developing The Thicky Thicky Dumb Dumb Search Engine, a new format designed to move beyond traditional explainers through interviews, location shoots and deeper comic investigation.
Tom Nicholas - politics and history video creator
Tom will use the investment to upgrade and expand his production infrastructure, supporting the growth of Slow News Days, his series focused on breaking news stories and political context.
Sophia Smith Galer - journalist and author
Sophia will use the programme to develop English: An Alternative History, a five-part short-form series exploring the story of the English language before empire, location by location.
Andrea Valls - actress and comedy writer
Andrea will expand her recognisable comedy characters into a vertical, episodic weekly show, building a recurring world of sketches, characters and set pieces.
Dr Eliza Filby - historian and author of Inheritocracy
Eliza will scale It’s All Relative, developing a guest-led format exploring generational shifts, wealth and social history, supported by improved production quality and a more scalable content system.
Tolly ‘T’ Shoneye - founder of The Receipts Podcast
Tolly will build on the success of The Receipts Podcast with a 10-part mini-documentary following the journey of turning the podcast into a broader multi-platform content network.
Each selected creator will receive up to £10,000 in production investment, alongside Goalhanger ad inventory across podcast, YouTube, newsletter and paid media channels to help drive audiences to their content, Goalhanger continued. The finalists will also receive access to Goalhanger’s senior editorial, creative and commercial leadership, as well as masterclasses, mentorship and strategic support across audience growth, production, brand partnerships and long-form IP development.
The initiative was highly competitive, receiving hundreds of applications, all of which were reviewed by humans. Judges spent just under 100 hours assessing submissions, using a four-part framework focused on vision and ambition, commercial viability, creative intent and expertise, added Goalhanger. The selection committee brought together senior Goalhanger leaders and external executives from across the global media and cultural industries, with backgrounds including Spotify, YouTube, Web Summit, WME, Netflix and Amazon.
Jack Davenport, co-founder at Goalhanger, said: “Goalhanger has always been built around strong voices, loyal audiences and ideas with real momentum and that is exactly what we saw in this group. The Accelerator is not about handing over a cheque and sending people on their way, nor is it about forcing creators into a Goalhanger template. It is about giving them access to the experience, infrastructure and commercial support we have built, while protecting the thing that made audiences respond to them in the first place. They have already done the hardest bit: earning people’s attention and trust. Our role now is to help them build on that and turn it into something more durable.”
Nicole Logan, executive producer - Development at Goalhanger, added: “What impressed us was how clearly these creators understand their own work. They know who they are speaking to, why people keep coming back, and where they want to take their ideas next. The Accelerator gives them time, structure and hands-on support to develop that properly: refining formats, building teams, testing new approaches and thinking more ambitiously about how their creative business can scale.”
Cody Dahler said: “I am so excited to be part of Goalhanger’s first Incubator. The opportunity to develop a close working relationship with a company I admire at this point in my career is an absolute game-changer. I can’t wait to see where this opportunity takes me, and a huge thank you to the team at Goalhanger for helping creators like me do what we do best: create.”
Sophia Smith Galer said: “Goalhanger is the most exciting media company we have in the UK right now, and I’m ecstatic to win a spot on its Accelerator. It’s going to give me the space and resourcing to make my biggest social media series yet. The one thing lots of creators say is that we lack infrastructure and community, and to see Goalhanger make an investment in us feels like the beginning of something really important.”
Tom Nicholas said: “After nearly a decade of making videos about politics for the internet, I’m excited to work with Goalhanger to further the sustainability of my team’s work. Amid a sea of misinformation, my experience shows there is still high demand for inquisitive, good-faith coverage of current affairs topics, even among younger audiences that legacy broadcasters struggle to engage. I look forward to scaling up our work to increase its impact both on and beyond social platforms like YouTube and TikTok.”
Dr Eliza Filby said: “I’m thrilled to have been selected. Goalhanger is one of the most innovative and influential podcasting companies in the world, so I’m incredibly excited to learn from such a talented team. I’m looking forward to bringing big conversations about generational change, work, family and society to new audiences, and learning how to create high-impact content that helps people better understand the forces shaping their lives.”
Tolly ‘T’ Shoneye said: “I am so excited to be part of the Incubator. It feels like a huge vote of confidence in what I’ve built so far with The Receipts Podcast and, more importantly, what I hope for it to become. I am passionate about creating meaningful content and building community, so having access to the mentorship, expertise and infrastructure of a company that has successfully scaled some of the UK’s biggest media brands is incredibly exciting. I’m really looking forward to learning, growing and exploring new ways to expand my creative and commercial ambitions.”
Andrea Valls said: “I’m super excited to be part of the Incubator and to learn as much as I can about the business of this fantastically creative medium. I’m delighted to have the opportunity to challenge myself to create something great from scratch on an ambitious timeline, while still creating something I’m really proud of.”
The announcement follows the launch of Goalhanger Ventures, Goalhanger’s new investment and partnerships arm, created to back high-quality, creator-led media businesses across video, social, audio, live and commercial platforms. Its first activity included an equity investment in Invisible Media, the company behind the digital media platform The Invisible Hand, alongside a new commercial partnership with Backyard Cricket, a UK emerging sports creator brand.
It also comes after Goalhanger was named Britain’s fastest-growing private company in The Sunday Times 100, following a period of rapid growth across audio, video, live, membership and commercial, says the company.
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