Tom Speight is making up for lost time. Laid low by illness, beset by problems both personal and professional, the songwriter returned to what he does best: writing songs.

Using his convalescence as a musical break, Tom found that music simply tumbled forth, a torrent of ideas, a flood of melody. “I wanted to do it,” he says. “I came out of a big relationship – four or five years – and then I was pretty low. I’d just come out of two major operations, so it was a good, cathartic way of getting on with things.”

“You have to live life, don’t you? Get your heart broken, meet someone and start something new. Experience things.”

Armed with some of his finest songs to date, when Tom Speight finally decided to push the button he did so in remarkable style. Four Eps were released across 12 months, racking up more than 12 million Spotify plays, earning support from Radio 2 and a high profile session on Jo Whiley’s show. Desperate to play live, he chalked up more than 80 shows in less than 12 months, from London to Poland, from the Scottish Highlands to the continent.

Tom Speight is able to relax a little, to breathe a little easier. “I think there’s been months where I haven’t written a song,” he shrugs. “I don’t think that’s a bad thing, though. I don’t think you should force them out.”

Wholly natural and completely organic, Tom Speight is able to find success at his own pace. Time to get caught up.