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Desperately Seeking Wisdom
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This is a podcast where well-known people talk about what they’ve learned from life - particularly the tough times. Guests have come from the worlds of entertainment, politics, business and journalism, including: Richard Curtis, George Alagiah, Amber Rudd, the Rev. Richard Coles, Lyse Doucet and David Baddiel. It’s a chance to hear their wisdom - and to think about how it might apply to your life…
After the Brexit vote, Craig Oliver's high-powered job and privileged position at the heart of the British government came to an abrupt end.
In the aftermath of that bruising battle, he despaired at how divided society had become, but also came to realise something fundamental was missing from his own life. Outwardly he was still achieving; but he realised he'd never felt comfortable in his own skin.
Life had always felt more of a grind than a gift – he'd always believed that if he only worked harder, he'd find fulfilment. Now he realised that wasn't the case. Like many others, he asked himself why he'd always had a constant feeling of unease and discontent?
He wondered what wise people had to say about how we can live better. Craig decided to try a different path to the one he'd travelled before, reading and listening to many people. Some had little to offer, but he found many revelatory.
Throughout this podcast series, Craig talks to some extraordinary people about the wisdom they've been able to take from the ups and downs of life - including traumas and triumphs - and finds out what they believe will help others gain peace of mind and heart.
After the Brexit vote, Craig Oliver's high-powered job and privileged position at the heart of the British government came to an abrupt end.
In the aftermath of that bruising battle, he despaired at how divided society had become, but also came to realise something fundamental was missing from his own life. Outwardly he was still achieving; but he realised he'd never felt comfortable in his own skin.
Life had always felt more of a grind than a gift – he'd always believed that if he only worked harder, he'd find fulfilment. Now he realised that wasn't the case. Like many others, he asked himself why he'd always had a constant feeling of unease and discontent?
He wondered what wise people had to say about how we can live better. Craig decided to try a different path to the one he'd travelled before, reading and listening to many people. Some had little to offer, but he found many revelatory.
Throughout this podcast series, Craig talks to some extraordinary people about the wisdom they've been able to take from the ups and downs of life - including traumas and triumphs - and finds out what they believe will help others gain peace of mind and heart.
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Baroness Tanni-Grey Thompson is one of Britain’s most successful athletes, having won 16 Paralympic medals, including 11 golds. In part two of our conversation, we talk about what Tanni has learnt from moving from being a elite athlete to working in the House of Lords...as well as the wisdom her father gave her, when he told her to think of herself as a 'Venn Diagram'. This is the last episode of our current season. All of our episodes, from every season, are available now and we have a fantastic variety of guests for you to explore if you haven’t heard them already including George Alagiah, Richard Curtis, Amber Rudd, The Reverend Richard Coles and Ruth Davidson.This epsiode was produced by Red Bicycle.
Baroness Tanni-Grey Thompson is one of Britain’s most successful athletes, having won 16 Paralympic medals, including 11 golds. Since retiring, she’s transferred her drive to a different arena, the House of Lords. In part one of our conversation, we discuss where her positive attitude comes from and explore how she’s achieved such remarkable success throughout her life. We discuss how she has learnt not to react to the steady stream of prejudice she faces and she also refers to the action movie Under Siege, a first for the podcast...Part two of our conversation is out on Thursday 4th April. This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
Sir Trevor McDonald is one of our country’s most celebrated journalists and news presenters. In part two of our conversation, Sir Trevor talks in more detail about some of the defining moments of his career, including his reaction to hearing Nelson Mandela’s wisdom when he was released after nearly three full decades in prison.This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
Sir Trevor McDonald is one of our country’s most celebrated journalists and news presenters. He rose from a poor childhood in Trinidad, to cover the biggest stories of our times - and became one of the most famous people in Britain while he was at it. It’s a unique story and in part one of our conversation we talk to Sir Trevor about what his childhood taught him and how an aspirational family environment prepared him for an extraordinary career.Part two of our conversation is out on Thursday 28th March. This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
As part of season three, this is a special compilation episode featuring guests from season one and two. In the last couple of years we have had many inspiring conversations with people including Richard Curtis, the late George Alagiah, Amber Rudd, Sian Williams, David Baddiel and many more. You can listen to all of these episodes on our website - www.desperatelyseekingwisdom.com - or whereever you get your podcasts. But to give you a taste of these conversations, we’ve compiled a collection of some of the most memorable insights from our guests. First-up, wisdom. What rules do each of these guests live by?This compilation features the following people:Matt Forde, George Alagiah, Isobel Hardman, Ruth Davidson, Reverend Richard Coles, John Simpson, Richard Curtis, Tanya and Nadim Ednan-Laperous, Sian Williams and Kenny Imafidon.
Robi Damelin is a peace activist based in Israel. She's a leading voice in The Parents Circle - a grassroots Israeli-Palestinian organisation, made up of over 600 families who’ve all lost family members in the conflict and campaign for a non-violent response.Robi’s life was changed forever when her beloved son David was killed by a Palestinian sniper, twenty years ago. Her response was to reject violence and the idea of revenge and work for peace, something she's done ever since. In this conversation, we discuss how her work is needed more than ever after the attacks of 7th October 2023 and find out what she's learnt from 20 years of travelling the world meeting people who've lost family members in conflicts and attacks. Robi also shares her secrets for coping with her emotionally demanding work....which include music, whisky, laughter and cats. This episode was produced by Red Bicycle.
On Desperately Seeking Wisdom this week, we’re doing something we haven’t done before – speaking to a guest who has already been on the podcast, the comedian Matt Forde.We recorded Matt's first chat on the series less than a year ago and when we did Matt was about to get married. But soon after the happy day, he was diagnosed with cancer - a spine tumour that required major surgery towards the end of 2023.A few months on, Matt wanted to share how he coped with his cancer and the agonising pain. This is part two of our chat and we discuss why Matt thinks he's always had an optimistic mindset and how that helped him during his illness. We also look ahead to a year of politcal turmoil in the UK and US. This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
On Desperately Seeking Wisdom this week, we’re doing something we haven’t done before; speaking to a guest who has already been on the podcast, the comedian Matt Forde.We recorded Matt's first chat on the series less than a year ago and when we did Matt was about to get married. But soon after the happy day, he was diagnosed with cancer - a spine tumour that required major surgery towards the end of 2023.That's why this week we're talking to Matt to see how he's getting on. As you’ll hear, the recovery process has been intense and there’s still a long way to go. But Matt wanted to share how he coped with the agonising pain - and what he’s learned. This is part one of our conversation, part two is out on Thursday 14th March.This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
James Cracknell is a double Olympic Gold medallist, adventurer, and now Parliamentary candidate.In part two of our conversation, we discuss the horrific cycling accident that James suffered which changed his life forever - how he coped with it and what he's learnt from it. We also discuss his constant desire to tackle new challenges and what that says about who he is.This episode was produced by Red Bicycle.
James Cracknell is a double Olympic Gold medallist, adventurer, and now Parliamentary candidate. He’s faced some extraordinary highs and devastating lows – including being left brain-damaged after being hit by a truck travelling at 65mph.In part one of our conversation, we discuss how how he bounced back from the agony of having to miss his first Olympics due to illness and was able to use that pain to propel him to win gold four years later. We also talk about his extraordinary determination and ability to “empty the tanks” when you're faced with big challenges.Part two of our conversation will be out on Thursday 7th March. This episode was produced by Red Bicycle.
This is part two of our conversation with Clive Myrie, one of the most recognisable and versatile broadcasters in the UK. He’s equally at home reporting from a warzone as he is in the studio, grilling contestants on Mastermind or presenting BBC News at Ten.In this part, Clive talks about what he's learnt through his life as a journalist, reporting on some of the most extreme global stories of recent times. Clive also reflects on how he views death as he gets older and answering that all important question, what would his specialist subject be on Mastermind?This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
Clive Myrie is one of the most recognisable and versatile broadcasters in the UK. He’s equally at home reporting from a warzone as he is in the studio, grilling contestants on Mastermind or presenting BBC News at Ten.In part one of this wide-ranging conversation, he talks about the wisdom behind the title of his bestselling book, 'Everything is Everything'. It means things are more likely to be well if you have a more positive attitude. He also talks about his experiences of racism and why it still needs to be confronted as much as ever.The second part of our conversation will be released on Thursday 29th February.This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
Rory Bremner is one of the country's leading comedians and impressionists. He's been making the nation laugh since the 1980s, often by taking a satirical look at the people in power. Rory’s career has seen him write and star in iconic shows like Spitting Image, Whose Line Is It Anyway and Mock the Week, as well as his long-running series Bremner, Bird and Fortune.This is part two of our conversation during which we talk about what Rory has learned about himself through relationships, being a parent, therapy and having friends who can make you laugh when you need it most.This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
Rory Bremner is one of the country's leading comedians and impressionists. He's been making the nation laugh since the 1980s, often by taking a sideways look at the people in power. Rory’s career has seen him write and star in iconic shows like Spitting Image, Whose Line Is It Anyway and Mock the Week, as well as his long-running series Bremner, Bird and Fortune.This is part one of our conversation, during which we talk about many things including his childhood and the impact of losing his father when he was still young - part two of our conversation will be released on Thursday 22nd February. This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
James Graham is an exceptionally talented playwright and screenwriter.His critically acclaimed plays and scripts – including Ink, Sherwood, Brexit: the Uncivil War, and Dear England, have captured the imagination of critics and audiences. He often takes pivotal moments in our history to show how and why we’ve ended up where we are now.In an open and frank conversation, James talks about how therapy helped him with workaholism and avoidance issues as well as the nation's state of mind. This is part two of our conversation and is produced by Red Bicycle.
1James Graham is an exceptionally talented playwright and screenwriter.His critically acclaimed plays and scripts – including Ink, Sherwood, Brexit: the Uncivil War, and Dear England, have captured the imagination of critics and audiences. He often takes pivotal moments in our history to show how and why we’ve ended up where we are now.In this part, James talks about how he believes story-telling is important for individuals and society as a whole and why he thinks telling both sides of a story is crucial. This is part one of our conversation, part two will be released on Thursday 15th February.This episode is produced by Red Bicycle.
Emily Maitlis is one of the most well-known and successful broadcast journalists in Britain. She’s covered the biggest stories of our times – and interviewed some of the most famous and powerful people, including Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, Russell Brand and Prince Andrew.More recently she’s become one of the lead presenters of the highly rated podcast, The News Agents.In this part we find out how challenging people sometimes requires bravery and empathy – and what she learned from the sickening experience of being stalked.This episode was produced by Red Bicycle.
Emily Maitlis is one of the most well-known and successful broadcast journalists in Britain. She’s covered the biggest stories of our times – and interviewed some of the most famous and powerful people, including Bill Clinton, Donald Trump, Russell Brand and Prince Andrew.More recently she’s become one of the lead presenters of the highly rated podcast, The News Agents.During our conversation in this part, we discuss Emily's choldhood, how she became a journalist and how it feels to have witnessed first hand some of the biggest moments of recnt history. This is part one of our conversation, part two will be released on Thursday 8th February.This episode was produced by Red Bicycle.
Rory Stewart is a man of many talents. He’s been a politician, diplomat, professor, explorer and now a highly-successful podcaster.In this conversation we talk about his highs and lows, and the shame he felt at his mistakes – one so bad he considered suicide.He also gives his verdicts on the many Prime Ministers he’s worked with, explains why he’s so disillusioned with modern politics, and what we might do to make it better.This episode was produced by Red Bicycle.
Rory Stewart is a man of many talents. He’s been a politician, diplomat, professor, explorer and now a highly-successful podcaster.In this conversation we talk about his highs and lows, and the shame he felt at his mistakes – one so bad he considered suicide. He also gives his verdicts on the many Prime Ministers he’s worked with, explains why he’s so disillusioned with modern politics, and what we might do to make it better.This is part one of our conversation first released on 29th January 2024; part two will be released on February 1st.This episode was produced by Red Bicycle.
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