AarBalls

Ffion Morgan is an incredibly talented artist, creating miniature replicas of houses and other amazing projects. Before listening to this week’s episode make sure you first check out her creations on her Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/ffimini/ Ffion very kindly talked to us about abandoning the bus driver plan, making rocks for Dr Who, Shackleton’s boat, big plans, and worrying about model railways.https://open.spotify.com/show/7tUlryttCVAetrw6uB15qohttps://www.instagram.com/aarballs/https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/aarballs/id1742336735https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yk2ih-2ec871/AarBalls-Podcasthttp://www.youtube.com/@AarballsAny comments, questions or recommendations for guests for future episodes please email us at aarballs2023@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As always, our overly reductive episode titles do not do our guest justice - for Claudia Hammond is not ONLY an award-winning broadcaster who presents All in the Mind on BBC Radio 4 covering psychology, neuroscience & mental health AND the weekly global health show Health Check on BBC World Service,.but she is also the author of numerous fascinating books (see links below) in which she shares the ways that psychological and medical research can help us in our everyday lives AND Visiting Professor of the Public Understanding of Psychology at the University of Sussex. Claudia also gives talks on psychology around the world and often chairs public events on psychology, medicine and science.She talks to us here about the importance of boring factory jobs, changing perceptions of mental health, noticing kindness, and governments and happiness. An absolutely fantastic chat!Some of Claudia's books: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mind-Over-Money-Psychology-Better/dp/1782112057https://www.amazon.co.uk/Art-Rest-Find-Respite-Modern/dp/1786892804https://www.amazon.co.uk/Keys-Kindness-Kinder-Yourself-Others/dp/1838854444/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/https://open.spotify.com/show/7tUlryttCVAetrw6uB15qohttps://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/aarballs/id1742336735https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yk2ih-2ec871/AarBalls-Podcasthttp://www.youtube.com/@AarballsAny comments, questions or recommendations for guests for future episodes please email us at aarballs2023@gmail.comThank you! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In addition to having gone to the same school as Aarballs Podcast's very own Aar and Bailles, Richard Fuller's main achievement is to have become the MP for North Bedfordshire and the current Chairman of the Conservative Party. He was very kind in giving up his time to talk to us about how and why he moved into politics, bringing US-style campaigning strategies to Bedford, his cross-bench work with the enquiry into the BHS scandal and businessman Philip Green, why he still thinks Brexit is a good idea, and life in his second home in Texas.Please help us grow by following on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/or give us five stars on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7tUlryttCVAetrw6uB15qoor Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/aarballs/id1742336735or Podbean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yk2ih-2ec871/AarBalls-Podcastalso, find extra stuff on our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/@AarballsAny comments, questions or recommendations for guests for future episodes please email us at aarballs2023@gmail.comThank you! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nyaradzo Hoto is an original member of Akashinga, an all-women anti-poaching team in ZimbabweShe explains to us the fantastic positive impact the team has had, not only on massively reducing poaching but also in the broader context of empowering women in a traditionally male-dominated society. She also tells of her two favourite species and the best ways to survive if you encounter elephants, lions, and water buffalo in the wild! (spoiler: running is not going to help) If you enjoyed listening to Nyaradzo’s wonderful story please consider making a donation to Akashinga to continue the fantastic work they do: https://www.akashinga.org/donatePlease help us grow by following on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/or Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7tUlryttCVAetrw6uB15qoor Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/aarballs/id1742336735or Podbean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yk2ih-2ec871/AarBalls-Podcastalso, find extra stuff on our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/@AarballsAny comments, questions or recommendations for guests for future episodes please email us at aarballs2023@gmail.comThank you! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From the Appalachian Mountains, Madelaine moved from starting off in science and agriculture to setting up her own wedding floristry company in Durham, North Carolina. She talks to us about some of the most memorable displays she's designed, the escalating scale of American weddings, and why she now yearns for dark snug English rooms. You can check out Madelaine's incredible work at https://www.moodfleuriste.com and also at https://www.instagram.com/moodfleuriste/?hl=enPlease help us grow by following on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/or Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7tUlryttCVAetrw6uB15qoor Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/aarballs/id1742336735or Podbean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yk2ih-2ec871/AarBalls-Podcastalso, find extra stuff on our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/@AarballsAny comments, questions or recommendations for guests for future episodes please email us at aarballs2023@gmail.comThank you! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After becoming a nun in (the then shabby) Notting Hill, Anne became a teacher, working mostly in challenging schools in London’s East End. Joining the St Hilda Community, a group pursuing the ordination of women as priests, Ann was present at the eventual success of the movement when the first women were ordained at Bristol Cathedral in 1994. Three years later, Ann became a priest herself, has since then been made a Canon, and now has the role of Preacher at the Charterhouse, an almshouse in the heart of London established in the 17th Century.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Aarballs Award for Best Job Title 2024 goes to Chantel who works as a Stoat Detection Dog Handler on the Orkney Islands. Chantel tells us how she broke into conservation working with newts at Froglife, before taking on the dream job of combatting invasive species in the far northern island of Orkney. We hear about life on this remote archipelago and of Skye her fabulous working dog. Please help us grow by following on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/or Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7tUlryttCVAetrw6uB15qoor Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/aarballs/id1742336735or Podbean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yk2ih-2ec871/AarBalls-Podcastalso, find extra stuff on our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/@AarballsAny comments, questions or recommendations for guests for future episodes please email us at aarballs2023@gmail.comThank you! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ex-soldier and expedition leader Rory talks to us of the perils of RAF trousers, joining the army at 18 and rising from the ranks to become an officer, cuddling toffs on the moors, running expeditions for young people in Asia, Africa and South America, his experiences of living in Borneo, the camaraderie born of leeches and ticks, and dodging roos at dawn.Please help us grow by following on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/or Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7tUlryttCVAetrw6uB15qoor Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/aarballs/id1742336735or Podbean: https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/yk2ih-2ec871/AarBalls-Podcastalso, find extra stuff on our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/@AarballsAny comments, questions or recommendations for guests for future episodes please email us at aarballs2023@gmail.comThank you! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Top good egg Lizzie Simmonds talks to us about her incredible achievements in fund raising, through marathon and ultra-marathon running and epic walks often while dressed as a rhino! We also hear of Lizzie’s other work for charity and worthy causes and about an extraordinarily altruistic decision she made. To support Liz on her latest epic feat of fundraising please visit https://www.justgiving.com/page/lizziedoesthewall?utm_term=Q5PV76qvdThank you very much to all the support, especially from our new listeners from Luke's English Podcast from around the world. Please help us by following us at https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/ and subscribing at https://www.youtube.com/@AarballsIf you have questions, comments, or suggestions for future episodes please get in touch at aarballs2023@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Diogo talks to us about getting started in Dave Stewart’s kitchen, the correct music for penis-shaped pasta, prising royalties out of Italy, being urban (but not that urban), forays into gangsta rap with Spoonface, recording orchestras in Budapest and Prague, the pecking order of composing, marrying into rock royalty, and hanging out with some Beatles, doing backing vocals for U2, and failing at washing up.Please help us by following us on https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/or subscribing to https://www.youtube.com/@AarballsEmail us at aarballs2023@gmail.com with your questions, comments and suggestions! Do you know anyone with an interesting job/life who'd be a good guest? Let us know! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sacha Harding talks about breaking into professional rugby, the highs and lows of his career and the skills gained from sport that have been useful in establishing his physical training company. We also talk about how the sport of rugby has or hasn’t changed, both in terms of its surrounding culture and in the way the game is played. We also hear his thoughts on who should captain the British Lions and on Owen Farrell.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jane Lloyd talks about rising from runner to be a top award-winning TV producer. She chats about working with documentary-maker Asif Kapadia, trying to hide Roger Moore, being pestered by U2 and The Coors, supermodel seaweed, Noemi Campbell being lovely, accidents in remote Portugal,  working with Taylor Swift, chasing Madonna down a beach in a golf buggy, and the Bulgarian New York.Please also visit our other pages and Like/Subscribe/Follow etc. Thank you!https://www.youtube.com/@Aarballshttps://www.instagram.com/aarballs/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For 15 years Luke's English Podcast has been helping people from around the globe learn English, and currently has over 1,000 episodes. The talent Luke has for teaching English in a funny and engaging manner is reflected in the huge number of devoted followers he has around the world; at the time of recording this in early May 2024, his YouTube channel has 1.13 million subscribers.Luke talks to us about the phenomena of his podcast, about not setting up his own sports centre, about why he still teaches English classes in Paris, and about his stand up-comedy career (and the wonderful joke that nobody gets). Even if you're from the south of England and can speak English perfectly, Luke's podcast is still very entertaining, https://teacherluke.co.uk/ so do check it out and help him reach 2 million subscribers! https://www.youtube.com/@LukesEnglishPodcast. You can see some clips of our chat with Luke at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UzvMQuNk8nE and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xr_O9ZWXUl8. The whole episode minus intro and jingles is here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mp0hWif8yPELanguage learners can also click on this free worksheet https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Z8lwhTQ6NpJCitk8ZEApGkp1zNNK9gix/view?usp=drive_link which looks at some of the vocabulary Luke uses in the interview.Please also click on the links below and like/subscribe/follow and help us get to 100 subscribers!https://www.youtube.com/@Aarballs   https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/https://www.facebook.com/groups/316324227914376 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lucy Allen has worked as a stunt artiste for 34 years appearing in over a hundred films and TV shows, including Titanic, The World Is Not Enough, Skyfall, the Harry Potter series, Game of Thrones, Dr Who, The Batman, The Crown, Robin Hood, Hot Fuzz, and Braveheart. She talks to us about early days of striptease in Istanbul and becoming a circus performer, before getting her first stunt role on Casualty. She talks to us of her greatest stunts, the stars she’s worked with, working on her favourite TV shows, and the day a high fall went wrong. If you'd like to find out more about Lucy's public speaking and hear more action-packed stories of her incredible career please visit https://talks4groups.uk/Also please help us out by subscribing/liking athttps://www.youtube.com/@Aarballs/videos https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/https://www.facebook.com/groups/316324227914376https://open.spotify.com/show/7tUlryttCVAetrw6uB15qo?si=53d94455b43943fahttps://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/aarballs/id1742336735Thank you! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mike Smith, A&R man extraordinaire, was head of A&R for EMI music publishing before becoming Managing Director of Columbia Records, then Warner Chappell. Over this extraordinary career he signed an incredible roster of acts including Blur, Smashing Pumpkins, PJ Harvey, Supergrass, Arcade Fire, Manic Street Preachers, The White Stripes, Arctic Monkeys, Mark Ronson, Calvin Harris, Chemical Brothers and dozens more massive acts.Mike talks of his rise from post boy at MCA, giving fascinating insights into the acts he signed (and some he didn't!) - talking at length about Damon Albarn and Blur, Arcade Fire, Arctic Monkeys, Elastica, Julian Cope - and still keeping a record under your arm in later age.This is a much abridged version of a longer chat (2hrs 20 mins!), the full version will be appearing on our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/@Aarballs/videos very soon. Please also check out and follow Mike's fabulous project on Instagram - an album a day - at https://www.instagram.com/65mikesmithhttps://www.instagram.com/aarballs/https://www.facebook.com/groups/316324227914376https://open.spotify.com/show/7tUlryttCVAetrw6uB15qo?si=53d94455b43943faMany thanks to Mike for being so generous with his time - for music fans this is a real treat. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ayrshire sheep farmer and YouTube superstar Cammy Wilson talks to us about joining the Police in Glasgow before moving home to start farming sheep, and the subsequent huge popularity of his two YouTube channels – The Sheep Game and The Shearing Season, and his podcast Fed By Farmers. Please help Aarballs Podcast grow by subscribing/following on the links below:https://www.instagram.com/aarballs/https://www.youtube.com/@Aarballs                                                                       https://www.facebook.com/groups/316324227914376https://twitter.com/AarBallsPodcasthttps://www.youtube.com/@TheSheepGamehttps://www.youtube.com/@shearingseason4965https://www.youtube.com/@FedByFarmersPodcast Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lorraine Galvin has served as an RNLI volunteer for 25 years at Wexford, Ireland, and she gives a fascinating account of her incredible service. She tells us of how a near-death experience at sea inspired her to help set up the lifeboat service at Wexford, of the scariest rescue and the confusion of too many Kellys, of dolphin rescue, of an invitation to Westminster Abbey, of her grandfather’s bravery medals, and of dropping everything and running out the door whenever the alarm goes off, If you enjoy this episode please consider making a donation to support these fantastic people and the amazing work they do:Make a donation to the RNLI - https://shorturl.at/tBCP9https://www.facebook.com/groups/316324227914376https://www.youtube.com/@Aarballs                                                                      https://twitter.com/AarBallsPodcasthttps://www.instagram.com/aarballs/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Bev talks to us about his native Sicily, being Italian and staying calm, the 1980s – were they really so bad? –, the sexual specifications of a certain client, Japan, and delicious pasta recipes.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sofia Hoas works as a Project Manager and Culture Heritage Advisor at Gotlands Museum, at Visby on the Swedish island of Gotland. She talks to us about the museum and its most popular exhibits, including Viking picture stones and hoards of buried silver, and the best ways to get kids interested in history. She also talks us through the incredible and unique mass graves of the Battle of Visby where a ragtag army of farmers and peasants were slaughtered outside the city walls by an invading force of highly trained Danish and German mercenaries. These 1,800 skeletons, uniquely (and mysteriously) buried in their armour, provide a plethora of fascinating insights into life in the 14th Century and the individuals who lost their lives on that bloody day. Sofia also tells us the fascinating story of Gammalsvenskby, a Swedish village established in the late C18th deep in the heart of what is now Ukraine, and which has suffered terribly during the recent Russian invasion.A link to the organisation for whom Sofia also works providing humanitarian aid to the Swedish village in Ukraine: https://www.facebook.com/groups/112974547294https://www.facebook.com/groups/316324227914376https://www.youtube.com/@Aarballs                                                                      https://twitter.com/AarBallsPodcasthttps://www.instagram.com/aarballs/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Local legend and pillar of the community Libby Lionetti talks to us about growing up as an Italian in Bedford, working the door at legendary Sweetings nightclub, establishing his iconic café La Piazza, and serving as a Special Constable. We hear about national service in the Italian Air Force, chasing goats, and running the police cadets. And one day, we’ll get to the bottom of the Bruno Brookes business… Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.