As usual, our rolling roster of instructors for SHOTORAMA includes skilled and marvellous people from across different organisations, and we are delighted that they have all volunteered their time and expertise to give you a unique and never-to-be-repeated karate experience! Read on to find out more about them and a little snippet from them on karate.
We look forward to welcoming them all for SHOTORAMA 2025, and hope you will enjoy their individual interpretations, specialist topics, and unique outlooks on karate. Let’s meet the team!
Sensei Adam “The Master” Purkiss
6th Dan, KUGB
Stock SKC, Benfleet
“Karate has been a massive part of my life for over 30 years and the joy I get out of it now more than ever, is the face of my students when they achieve their goals, being from winning trophies or gaining the next grade. More so from the students who are not naturally gifted the ones who have to work that bit harder to make their dreams a reality. That’s the real joy of karate to me, that’s what keeps me inspired to be able to pass on the knowledge that I have learnt to them and watch them grow; oh, and getting to hit people – that’s also good fun.”
Sensei Amelia “The Deliverer” Senft
3rd Dan, HDKI
Fudoshin Karate, New Eltham
“I started karate at age 5 as a freckle-faced kid dreaming of landing a 360 backflip kick into a handstand (still working on that!). Since then, karate has taught me so much—not just about martial arts, but about confidence, discipline, and growth. I’ve been very lucky to have had some amazing karate adventures and continue to look forward to the next. Now, running my own dojo, I love sharing what I’ve learned with the next generation and having fun while we grow together.”
Sensei Natalie “The Unparalleled” Böttcher
3th Dan, HDKI
Soncho Karate Club, Cheltenham
“Sensei Natalie ..”When I first tied my white belt in 1996, I had no idea karate would become the defining rhythm of my life. Back then, I was a keen athlete searching for something new, something without a finish line to cross or a time to beat. So I joined a local sport karate club.
My journey has been shaped by countless moments: early-morning and late-night training sessions, intense squad trainings, the thrill of competition, sore muscles, and those small, hard-earned breakthroughs.
Nearly three decades later, I still like to travel the country, sometimes hundreds of miles for a single match or seminar, fuelled not by medals but by something deeper: passion.
I train with everyone and anyone, because that’s how I grow. I’ve learned that every instructor, every partner, every spar, and every encounter on the mat brings something valuable. For me karate is a way of moving through the world. With precision. With perseverance. And, occasionally, with a perfectly placed sneaky kick.”
Sensei Anni “The Indomitable” Christensen
2nd Dan, WTKO
NTNUi Karate, Trondheim
“When I first started karate I never would have imagined that it would become such a big part of my life. As a small kid in a too-big gi, karate was just another hobby to try out.
In the later years I realised that karate is not just a hobby, it’s a lifelong adventure with numerous side quests, levels to clear, opponents to defeat, and friends to make.
But most of all it’s an adventure to enjoy”
Sensei Chris “The Artist” Mulville
4th Dan, Shotokan Connect
Shiseikan, Maidstone
Sensei Chris Mulville started training under Sensei Georges Dussart (5th Dan) at Canterbury Christ Church College SKC in 1994, achieving shodan in 2002 after a break in training. He has taken the opportunity to train with many highly regarded senseis, including Sensei Enoeda, Ohta, and Naylor, more recently Senseis Brennan, Poynton, Rhodes, Higgins, and O’Neill. He is a founder member of Shotokan Connect, currently particularly enjoying training with Senseis Birch, Parnell, and Willis amongst others. Sensei Chris has competed at local and national level.
Sensei Neil “The Whippet” Jerome
6th Dan, HDKI
Kenmei Shotokan, Trondheim (Norway)
“Do your best to be open to new ideas and interpretations, and search internally for the feelings of movements, play around and explore variations. There’s no short cut to good technique, because the process of repeating techniques is where you get to explore, and discover. And there’s no wrong direction when you’re exploring! Your karate will be different to mine, and anyone else’s. Martial arts, and self-defence, are ultimately about understanding and negotiating the interplay between people; it’s important to give the non-physical side of that its full weight.”
…and there’s the line-up for SHOTORAMA 2025! Go and find out what they’ve got planned at the programme page and find out what’s in store!
SHOTORAMA! 