Desperately Seeking Wisdom

Lyse Doucet is one of the best and most recognised journalists in the world. Her story of how she came to report on some of the poorest and most war-torn parts of the world is remarkable – but what is truly impressive about her is the empathy she brings to everything she does.We discuss how she stays grounded, her choice not to have a family and how one simple teaching is the bedrock of her approach to her life.

Anthony Scaramucci achieved worldwide fame when he was fired as Donald Trump’s Director of Communications after just eleven days.When I first met him, I thought he would be just another loud-mouthed politico – but I discovered a man who had thought deeply about his life and the train-wreck of his career in politics. He couldn’t be further from his caricature and that’s why I wanted to talk to him on this podcast.

The Reverend Richard Coles has had the most extraordinary life, from being an unlikely pop-star at the forefront of the gay rights movement in the 1980s, to being a Church of England vicar and much-loved broadcaster and writer.He talks about the harsh realities of being gay in the Church – and grieving for David, the love of his life, who died after years of being a chronic alcoholic.

John Simpson is a journalistic legend. At 78 he is still at the top of his game, reporting from the world’s hotspots, including the war in Ukraine.He talks openly about the seminal moment in his life when as a six-year-old boy he chose to live with his father over his mother. We also talk about why he keeps going and the impact of that on his sixteen-year-old son, Rafe.

Tanya and Nadim Ednan-Laperouse faced one of the most horrifying experiences anyone could suffer – being unable to save their beloved daughter, Natasha, when she had a severe allergic reaction to a Pret-a-Manger sandwich that wasn’t properly labelled.It’s tough to hear what they went through – but they are utterly inspirational in revealing the hard-won wisdom they gained, and how they remain so close and supportive of each other.

Amber Rudd and I got to know each other by experiencing the bubbling cauldron of UK politics at the same time.As we became firm friends, I realised one of her amazing qualities was the ability to stay calm in a crisis and to keep everything in perspective.We talk about what she learned from her father going blind; how she ended up being “Aristocracy Coordinator” on Four Weddings and a Funeral; being married to the brilliant but complex AA Gill; and her tumultuous experience at the very top of politics.

As a reporter, producer and anchor of some of the most watched television news programmes, Dr Sian Williams has been an eyewitness to some horrific events. Like many of us, she often used to wonder how to deal with such trauma. But Sian took things one step further. She re-trained as a psychologist, so she could help people emerge from their worst moments to grow in wisdom and happiness.

When he was 16, Lord Michael Hastings decided he would dedicate his life to helping the poor. He went on to have a distinguished career in the public, corporate and non-profit sectors, as well as becoming an independent peer in the House of Lords. He believes that so many of our issues with life could be solved if we simply found ways to help others.

Mo Gawdat is the former Chief Business Officer for Google X and the author of the international bestselling book “Solve For Happy: Engineer Your Path to Joy.” For years, he studied happiness as if it was a mathematical problem to be solved, and believed he had cracked the secret of being content.But when his 21 year old son, Ali, died suddenly during a routine operation, nothing made sense anymore. How could he even be alive, let alone happy, in a world where such a terrible thing could happen?Mo speaks about how he made peace with his son’s death and made his life worth living again.

In 2016, aged 57, Lucy Kellaway quit her prestigious, full-time job as a journalist at The Financial Times to become a trainee teacher.Around the same time, she also left her husband of 25 years, with whom she’d had four children, moved house and stopped dyeing her hair. Lucy wrote about her experiences in her book, “Re-educated: How I changed my job, my home, my husband and my hair,” and co-founded the charity Now Teach to encourage older professionals to step into the classroom and change their lives in the same way hers was transformed.