Beauty Full Lives

Ayda Williams didn't stick to her plan in life. She wanted the reliable, to have a job that was dependable. She was fixed on that course, studying to become a tax attorney, and was, in her words, 'super square - I was a super student.' The death of her beloved grandmother changed that: 'I always wanted to be an actor, but I was too afraid. Everyone [in LA] was an actor slash model slash singer and...

Katie's first big beauty memory is unsurprisingly related to her mum. But rather than it being simply a memory of her mum's face or beauty rituals, Katie rememberers her singer mum's microphone, coated in lipstick. That symbol of glamour remained with her, and after a stint working as a manicurist, both in salons and latterly on shoots, Katie pivoted her career to work as a make-up artist. Today,...

Beauty industry insider, facialist, and brand expert  Caroline Hirons  commands a huge audience across her various platforms thanks to her reputation as a forthright, honest, and reliable skincare expert. To give you an idea of scale, at the time of the episode going live, Caroline has 270 thousand instagram followers, 180 thousand youtube subscribers, and 76 thousand twitter followers....

Jillian Lavender's work came to my attention around five years ago after a few friends learned Vedic meditation at the London branch of the Meditation Centre she co-founded. After the course, they were more focussed, calmer, happier - and all from twenty minutes of meditation morning and noon. Keen to learn more, I went to interview Jillian a few years ago for a feature and found her approach to b...

Award-winning journalist and author Poorna Bell's family features heavily in her new book,  In Search of Silence , in which she muses on and explores the new landscape of her life following her husband Rob's death by suicide.  They are also a big part of her beauty identity, with Poorna talking in this episode about her grandma who always looked pristine despite her messy bedroom, a...

After being in a car crash, Katie Brindle went from expert to expert trying to find relief from pain to no avail. Finally, Chinese Medicine provided it, and so convinced was she that its principles were founded in good sense, that she went on to train as a practitioner.  That was in 2002, and Katie's since become something of a go-to for those in the know for both treatments and advice. Katie...

Blogger Natalie Lee was incentivised to discuss things that really mattered to her after she returned to blogging following a break to raise her children. Since then, Natalie's efforts - particularly on instagram and through her Warrior Women campaign - have propelled her into the limelight, and her account is now a hub of her own thoughts and experiences as well as a place for others to share the...

As the erstwhile Beauty Director of Glamour turned freelance beauty journalist and influencer,  Alessandra Steinherr's  knowledge of beauty products is encyclopaedic. Her  Alex Steinherr x Primark  skincare collaboration was unsurprisingly therefore hugely successful, with the affordable products selling out repeatedly nationwide, while over on her instagram, her #SundayFacial...

As a cosmetic dentist and Clinical Director of  London Smiling ,  Dr Uchenna Okoye  has overhauled hundreds of smiles -  mine included .  What struck me as remarkable about Uchenna's work is not only that she's conservative, only making changes where necessary, but also that she's got an excellent eye for what looks 'right,' making her taste as important a part of her reno...

Journalist and author Bryony Gordon has made it her mission to help remove the stigma surrounding talking about mental illness, and to promote having a positive body image.  Both are the result of Bryony's struggles, and in this episode she explains how she has challenged mental illness, addiction, and self-loathing, and which tools and habits have been helpful to her, as well as talking abou...

Lifestyle and beauty blogger Estee Lalonde is something of an internet sensation, with over 3.5 million followers across her platforms, as well as a bestselling book  Bloom: Navigating Life and Style , and podcast  On The Line  under her belt. Despite her huge success and some of the pitfalls that come with sharing stories online, Estee is disarmingly honest and easy-going...

Daniel Sandler's  appreciation of the transformative power of beauty began early in his life through watching his hairdresser dad and his interior designer mum at work.  But rather than following in either of their footsteps, he instead alighted on make-up. Success quickly found Daniel, and over his 30+ years in the industry he's made up everyone from A-list actresses to pop stars to mod...

After  the acne episode  with  Clinical Aesthetician Pam Marshall  went live, skincare questions flew my way, so I thought the best recourse would be to invite Pam back as a guest on the show to offer her wisdom. We cover a huge range of topics, including dryness, pigmentation, scarring, ageing, and skin-friendly make-up. As those of you who listened to Pam's thoughts on treati...

Fans of  Daisy Buchanan's  writing will know that her work walks the delicate line between frank and funny, insightful and warm. She brings that trademark heart-wrenching and hilarious touch to her musings in this episode on the relationship between her internal and external self, throwing in some excellent anecdotes including the time she met Tim Westwood surrounded by Ferrero Rochers a...

Erstwhile model turned nutritional therapist, and Tuesday's main episode guest, Rosemary Ferguson returns for an expert episode. In it, she explores the interplay between anxiety and food, as well as suggesting some foods to steer clear of, and those to eat to help reduce anxiety. Beauty Full Lives is hosted by  Madeleine Spencer , produced by  Charlie Jones , and with artwork by  S...

Rosemary Ferguson's  career started in the rather inauspicious setting of McDonald's on Oxford Street, where she was spotted by Corinne Day (yep, the very same Corinne Day who took those famous early photos of Kate Moss, so clearly she had a very good eye). She went on to become part of the famous wave of British models living in New York who carved out a new, more pared back look following t...

Singer-songwriter  Freya Ridings  has has a huge year. Her haunting single  Lost Without You  went platinum, and she recently performed it on the Late Late Show with James Corden, as well as on the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards, and on The Greatest Dancer. In this episode, Freya offers an insight into how she has thrived in a famously competitive industry, and is fr...

Eve Kalinik is a Nutritional Therapist and the author of Be Good To Your Gut. In this expert slot episode, Eve talks about how a relationship with food can be improved through simple measures - and explains how the gut and mind communicate. Beauty Full Lives is hosted by  Madeleine Spencer , produced by  Charlie Jones , and with artwork by  Sung Lee .  Hosted on Acast. See acas...

Zanna Roberts Rassi  is nothing if not a renaissance woman. In her capacity as beauty and fashion journalist, she contributes to  Marie Claire , the  Today  show, and E! News. For the latter, she often finds herself in front of the camera, interviewing attendees of the Met Gala, the Golden Globes, and the Oscars. Her other job: co-founder of  Milk Makeup , the hugely ...

When  Meg Mathews  found herself unable to leave her house due to anxiety, she had no idea that the root cause might be the menopause. Once she realised that the anxiety-related agoraphobia she was suffering from was one of the many menopause symptoms that she'd never heard about, she decided to take action. Today, she's one of the more outspoken voices on the impact of the menopaus...

I started seeing physiotherapist  Ben Lombard  towards the end of last year. After enjoying what I now realise was the extremely good fortune of having a comfortable back throughout my life, I pulled a muscle in my neck over the summer and then progressively found my back becoming more and more riddled with knots, culminating in my standing in the park mid-Monty walk, unable to lift my f...

Make-up artist Mary Greenwell is a beauty industry legend who's made up some quite extraordinary people, including Cate Blanchett, Diana, Princess of Wales, Jessica Chastain, Cindy Crawford, Meghan Markle, Amanda Seyfried, Christy Turlington, and Margaret Thatcher. But the thing that really distinguishes Mary's work from that of other make-up artists is not  who  she's made up, but rathe...

When I decided to add an extra slot to the podcast to offer up wisdom from some of the experts I am fortunate enough to work with in my capacity as beauty journalist, I immediately thought of Clinical Aesthetician  Pam Marshall . Pam is renowned for her ability to calm ruffled skin, with her clients, of which I am one, eulogising her multi-faceted approach - and straight-talking advice....

The word legendary is bandied around a lot, but I think it's safe to say that  Kylie Minogue  absolutely warrants legendary status. And Glastonbury clearly agrees: at this year's festival, she'll be headlining the 'legends' slot. It comes after a particularly successful year in the pop star's career: her fourteenth studio album, Golden, received critical acclaim, and Kylie's ever-ardent...

MANY of you asked for more Rebecca Reid and Esther Coren , so this week I invited them on the show for a natter about Christmases past and their more intriguing Christmas memories and traditions.  Crucial topics covered include our top Christmas films, what constitutes a good Christmas (no turkey and a curated crowd in Esther's case, much booze and being surrounded by family in Rebecca's, and...