Stolen Goodbyes

In this special 5th anniversary episode of Stolen Goodbyes, Karen speaks with five incredible guests—Emma, Jane, Kristie, Sioux, and Brielle—about their ongoing journeys with COVID-19 grief. Each guest shares the heartbreaking details of losing their loved ones to the pandemic, including the pain of not being able to say goodbye, the trauma of key dates, and the overwhelming challenges of grief. T...

Five years after launching Stolen Goodbyes, host Karen Rice reflects on the podcast’s journey in a special anniversary interview with her cousin Samantha. She shares the inspiration behind the series, the impact of giving a voice to the bereaved, and what she’s learned along the way. Plus, a look ahead to the next episode, where six past guests reveal what COVID grief is really like now—how it’s b...

In this final episode of Love After Covid Loss , part of the Stolen Goodbyes podcast series, Emma Charlesworth returns to the show. Emma first opened the podcast in 2020, sharing her journey as a widow at just 39 after losing her husband, Charlie, to Covid-19. Charlie was only 45 when he passed. In this poignant and articulate interview, Emma reflects on her journey, from those first anguished, sh...

In this emotional yet uplifting episode of Stolen Goodbyes , host Karen Rice speaks with Rebecca Reilly from New Jersey, who shares her remarkable journey of love, loss, and finding hope again after unimaginable tragedy. Rebecca lost her “rough tough cream puff” husband Michael, a devoted father of two, to COVID-19, in December 2020. Just 47 years old, Michael fell ill and tragically passed away w...

In this tender and bittersweet episode of Stolen Goodbyes , Karen Rice speaks with Victoria Daniels, 25, from Hertfordshire, about her cherished memories of her late father, David, a jack the lad and an animal-loving man, who tragically died from COVID-19 on January 2, 2021, at the age of just 69. Although her father suffered two strokes and dementia before the pandemic, Victoria’s words reveal th...

In this moving episode, Amanda Pape shares how her life was once "Technicolor" with laughter, love, and adventure, alongside her larger-than-life husband Bob. But after his sudden death from Covid, age 53, life became like a "12-inch black-and-white TV"—a stark, difficult existence. Through fostering two children, Amanda has brought color back into her world, rebuilding a new, joyful family. Amand...

In this heartfelt episode, we hear from Kristie Cervantes, a 45-year-old teacher from Illinois, USA, as she recounts her journey through unimaginable loss and the discovery of love again. Kristie lost her beloved husband, Rey, in December 2020 to COVID-19. Just 42 years old, Rey was a devoted father of two, a special education teacher, and a man with a heart as big as his infectious laugh. He brou...

The second part of Lynda Wardley’s story on Stolen Goodbyes is an inspiring narrative of love and resilience. After the profound loss of her father, Robin, Lynda found an unexpected connection with Charles Persinger, a fellow campaigner she met through their shared work with COVID-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK. Their relationship blossomed from a shared space of grief and activism, turning i...

In this touching two-parter, we meet Lynda Wardley, a compassionate woman with a powerful story of love, loss, and resilience. Lynda, 59, opens up about her vibrant father, Robin, whom she lost to Covid in January 2021. In this first episode, she paints a vivid portrait of Robin, a meticulous maker and car enthusiast whose life was full of colour, intelligence, and energy. Lynda’s childhood memori...

In this moving episode, we sit down with Charles Persinger, 59, from Swindon, who shares his powerful journey through loss, resilience, and rediscovery of love. Charles opens up about the unimaginable heartbreak of losing his mother, Susan (74), and his wife, Katie (51), both to Covid, within just six weeks of each other. He describes the depths of grief he faced, losing the two most important wom...

In the opening episode of this new series of Stolen Goodbyes, entitled Love After Covid Loss, we sit down with grief coach and nervous system practitioner Kayleigh O’Connor (@goodgrief_uk) for a profound conversation on navigating life and new beginnings after a Covid-related loss. Episode highlights include: Grief’s Impact on Safety and Identity: Kayleigh explains how grief shakes a person’s sens...

In this powerful interview, Danielle Barnett charts the life of her wonderfully resilient dad Chris Riley, who despite the most challenging and heartbreaking circumstances, worked six days a week to give his daughters a loving home and a happy, memorable childhood.   Widowed without warning and with four daughters to raise under the age of eight, Chris kept the family together despite th...

If Boris Johnson had locked down earlier, Peter Owen would still be alive today, this is the firm belief of his daughter Becky. Instead, this beloved father and grandfather caught Covid 19 shopping in Sainsbury’s on March 19, three days before Johnson belatedly put the country into lockdown.  Becky vividly describes the void left behind by the death of her father, a proud Welshman from Aberys...

In a beautiful and wide-ranging interview, Sam Levy brilliantly articulates how distorted grief is impacting her world three years after the love of her life Pete died in the blink of an eye. “His life ended and nothing happened,” Sam says. “I can say I’m a widow, but I don’t believe what I’m saying, it’s just a word. Knowing and understanding that he’s gone are two different things.” Sam walks us...

As a couple, Anne and David Morrison, 71, did everything together, living life their way, never letting obstacles stand in the way. But their plans to retire to Australia were never realised after David was hospitalised with Covid 19 in early 2020. Worried sick about her husband, Anne, who had received the all-clear from cancer a year earlier, died at home from sudden death on April 7. On hearing...

Treasured by her family, Anna Gibson may have been 94 but she was still a feisty, independent, and private personality who loved nothing more than being outdoors.  But after a fall, Anna was admitted to a care home where her daughter Ruth believes she was denied basic care when the Covid 19 pandemic broke out.  In a heartbreaking interview, Ruth explains how she has been left traumatised...

It may be just over two years since Rab Sherwood lost her beloved parents father Sucha Singh Hothi, 85, and mother Gurdev Kaur Hothi, 75, to Covid 19, but this double loss combined with the manner of the loss and the family’s brutal treatment in hospital still haunts Rab.  Emigrants from Punjab in India to the British midlands in 1965, Sucha was forced to work in a factory despite being a qua...

With a career as an RAF engineer, and a vast vinyl collection comprising Vera Lynn to the Sex Pistols, John Leigh may have been an unconventional father but he left behind some unforgettable memories for his daughters.  In this episode, Sioux Hill brings her dad’s memory to life through music, a passion they shared from her childhood days through to adulthood. Sioux walks us through their spe...

It is a testament to Alastair MacVicar's strength of character, that he is alive and well in the world today, improving the lives of others. In the space of just 14 days, he lost his mother Jean, father Keith, and eldest sister Jayne to Covid 19. Alastair also lost his mother-in-law soon after. Then it was his turn. Covid 19 left him unable to string a sentence together. Alastair feared death. The...

A singing prison officer, Rachael Lidgett finds solace in song following the loss of her role model dad Chris who she lost to Covid in December 2020. Growing up, her dad was her biggest singing champion, and she treats listeners to a soulful rendition of the songs that mean the most to her now, and how they help her to express her emotions. From his legendary Sunday roast dinners with loads of gra...

This is an interview with Nikki Williams, a woman who lost her amazing mum Valerie and dad Hefin to Covid 19 within 11 days of each other in early 2020. Nikki was then diagnosed with incurable, secondary breast cancer.  With great resilience, Nikki recounts the lovely whirlwind romance her parents enjoyed, how they loved to dance, her Welsh dad’s love of singing, their love of life and family...

In this inspirational interview, Stella Hill describes how she has gone from the depths of despair and shock after losing her beloved mother Sharon to Covid 19 on Christmas Day in 2020 to a more positive place where she is now focused on continuing things her mother was interested in such as tracing her ancestry.  Stella has gone from being consumed by errors made, examining doctor’s notes, a...

In this special and wide-ranging interview with four grief/trauma experts, we explore how the Covid 19 bereaved community is only beginning to deal with their loss now, three years after the event. This is because many bereaved people felt secure in a lockdown bubble where they didn't have to deal with reality, a reality that saw the catastrophic loss of a loved one without a goodbye, funeral, mem...

This episode is dedicated to the memory of the loveliest of men - my father Tom Rice. With the help of my cousin Samantha Hamshere, we take listeners on a journey through the extraordinary life of a man with humble beginnings in County Kerry (Ireland) who went on to realise his dreams in London where he transmitted love and laughter, leaving behind an enormous legacy. This latest season of the Sto...

On this special episode of the Stolen Goodbyes podcast, people who lost their loved ones to Covid 19 in the first wave of the pandemic recount how they have been left traumatised by the exceptional circumstances of their loss. They feel they were not only robbed of a loved one but of everything that goes with a death. Loss to Covid 19 has been described as a grief like no other. That grief, affect...