The Mid•Point with Gabby Logan

To round out our series of summer specials, we’ve combed the archive for some of the most insightful chats we’ve had about the menopause. There are a myriad of symptoms associated with menopause and it manifests differently for everyone, so it’s important we continue to talk about it and to share helpful tips that make this stage of life a little easier to navigate. In this episode, you’ll hear from writer Lorraine Candy, model Penny Lancaster, MP Carolyn Harris who campaigned to make HRT more affordable for women in England, TV presenters Davina McCall and Lorraine Kelly, plus functional nutritionist Pippa Campbell, who explains why our body shape may change as we go through the menopause. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the second of our special compilation episodes this summer; perfect for you to dip in and out of on your holidays, or to accompany you on any long journeys. This week we’re focusing on a topic that comes up a lot on The Mid.Point: relationships. Be they romantic, familial, or purely platonic, they can often take on a new importance when navigating midlife. Like everything, relationships change and evolve over time and sometimes they no longer serve us by the midpoint, hence why many people find themselves navigating the end of a significant partnership or friendship at this time of life. However, scientific research suggests that there are anti-ageing properties bound up in social interactions and a sense of community, so it’s vitally important that we keep making friendships throughout our lives. But it can be hard to put yourself out there, especially when it comes to dating. These are all aspects that our wonderful guests - Elizabeth Day, Phil Neville, Rob Rinder, Jane Fallon, Kelly Cates, Kirsty Gallacher, Kenny Logan, sobriety advocate Matt Pink, and Professor Rose Anne Kenny – all touch on in this week’s episode.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

School’s out, and so is the rule book! This summer we’re bringing you a special mini-series which takes you on a trip through the archive, showcasing the best snippets from our vast and varied line up of guests. Each week we’ll be focusing on a topic that’s particularly pertinent to those of us at the midpoint, and this week we’re celebrating the joys of getting older. There’s still a pervading sense of pessimism when it comes to the mainstream narrative on ageing, but the chats on this podcast over the last three years have proved that most midlifers are anything but! Celebrities and experts all agree that there are so many good things that come with midlife. In this episode, you’ll hear the likes of Sharleen Spiteri, Colin Murray, Edith Bowman, Trevor Nelson, Zoe Lyons, Nihal Arthanayake, Phil Neville, Olivia Williams, and fitness expert, James Smith, being positively old! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Author of It’s Not A Diet and founder of supplement brand Will Powder,  Davinia Taylor, is here to explain the principles behind her new book Hack Your Hormones. You may well remember Davinia from her days as an actress on Hollyoaks and being a renowned party girl in the 90’s - painting London red with The Primrose Set! But gone are those hedonistic days, and in the last 14 years, Davinia has learned lots from her own journey from alcoholic to wellness advocate. She talks to Gabby all about biohacking, and ways you can support and stimulate certain hormones such as dopamine, to get the best out of your mind and body. They also discuss ways to optimise and track your sleep, and the things to avoid in the ingredient lists of many household foods. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

By its very nature, this expert episode on grief is raw and emotional, and some tears were shed in the making of it. But Psychotherapist, best-selling author, and podcaster, Julia Samuel, is here to guide us through the many shades of grief; something which impacts all our lives in one way or another and particularly in midlife. Julia very generously answers your questions on everything from practical ways to support loved ones who are grieving, dealing with living losses such as divorce, and visualisation techniques which can help to stop you from ruminating on the “what if’s” that come with a loss which is open-ended or without conclusion. Alongside her practical advice, Julia also speaks about some of the fundamentals when it comes to bereavement; why grieving always takes longer than anyone wants, the power of walking and talking, the compounding effect of multiple losses, and how grieving together helps us to build strong familial bonds.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Comedian, radio presenter, and brand-new host of The Late Late Show, Patrick Kielty, is reaching new heights at the midpoint! Not only does he bring the laughs this week but he also brings the wisdom, including the importance of creating opportunities for yourself, how not to prepare for the London Marathon, and why you must make sure the material at your wake is good! Patrick also explains how one drunk phone call from a pub car park in rural Ireland turned into a life in LA, getting married to Cat Deeley, and the birth of their two children. Gabby also reunites Patrick with physical activity expert and celebrity trainer, Professor Greg Whyte OBE, who speaks about the importance of movement and strength training as we get older - Guinness less so, sorry Paddy.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Full disclosure: this episode is highly likely to make you hungry! Gabby is joined by one of the most revered chefs in the country, MasterChef: The Professionals judge and Mere Restaurant chef owner, Monica Galetti. Monica grew up in Samoa imbibing the food centric culture there, before travelling to New Zealand to train as a chef and landing in the UK in Chef Michel Roux Jr’s Michelin kitchen! After juggling competing priorities for many years, pressures on her business and her family meant Monica had to step back from MasterChef last year. Monica explains what she learned in that time, and how she’s now finding the joy in what she does again. Monica also talks about finding her "fit crew" and feeling more confident than ever in the gym, the importance of a happy kitchen, as well as her beloved “boys” – her three dogs! Sporting Director, Calvin Mudd, also joins to explain what Canicross is and why it might be you and your canine companion’s new favourite form of exercise.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’ve got another expert episode for you, and this time we’re tackling a subject that’s been making the headlines of late… AI! We’ve all heard about it, but what do most of us really know about artificial intelligence beyond the scary stories? How is it going to change our everyday lives, and how prevalent is it already? Gabby is putting all your questions to tech journalist and AI commentator, Lara Lewington. Lara has presented and reported for the BBC’s flagship technology programme, Click, since 2011, and she recently made A Documentary: By ChatGPT for BBC Radio 4. Lara explains some of the pitfalls of AI, as well as some of the ways we might be able to use it to our advantage when it comes to things like healthcare, drug discovery, and policing social media. She also explains what data is harvested from us already (often unknowingly), and how personal data trackers are being used to help prevent illnesses and increase longevity – things which are all made possible by AI.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s been an interesting career trajectory for TV presenter, Alex Jones; from having Davina McCall invigilate her university exams whilst competing on a reality TV show, to broadcasting to millions every night hosting BBC’s The One Show. But there is always more to a story like this than meets the eye… And there is a reason Alex has remained at the helm of the weeknight show for the last 12 years. Now at 46 years old, we find out what she’s learned en route to the midpoint and how she balances work with being mother to three children under six years old! Alex’s youthful outlook on life shines through her wealth of hilarious anecdotes, from bartering for directions with paparazzi to bargaining with Chris Evans over chips and champagne. They are also joined by Uju Asika, writer of Raising Boys To Do Better, to talk about how we can support boys navigating the modern world and offer practical tips on how to bring up kind children in an oftentimes prejudiced world.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From the U.N.’s International Court of Justice to the bejeweled Strictly ballroom at Blackpool, this week’s guest’s journey to the midpoint has been quite an extraordinary one. Gabby chats with barrister and broadcaster Rob Rinder MBE, ahead of the release of his debut novel The Trial. They talk about everything from why it’s important that we keep in mind the myriad of human reasons why people behave in the way they do, how forgiveness is sacred but is not the same as forgetting and how Rob lives in forgiveness even though his family were victims of the Holocaust, to why he can’t bear the “farting smugness” of some yoga classes and why he will forever be a match-maker and a romantic! Psychotherapist and best-selling author, Julia Samuel, also joins to offer an expert view on inherited trauma and behaviours, and practical ways to help you deal with that – which is the focus of her latest book Every Family Has A Story. Julia mentions the work of Charles Duhigg around habit forming and you can find out more about his work here. The latest of Rob’s factual series, The Holyland and Us - Our Untold Stories, is also still available to watch on BBC iPlayer.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.