Business Without BS

EP 416 - What if your biggest business risk isn’t the market .. but your own assumptions? Former RAF Wing Commander Marcus Dimbleby reveals how leaders can use red teaming, applied critical thinking and pre-mortems to dramatically increase strategy success rates. We cover: Why most business plans fail The hidden danger of unchecked assumptions How to run a red team session (even in a small company...

EP 415 with guest co-host Andrew Craig. Fundraising isn’t a numbers game, it’s a targeting problem. In this episode, Shipshape VC founder Daniel Sawko explains why startups waste hundreds of hours pitching the wrong investors, how “zombie funds” distort the market, and why blasting your deck to 10,000 investors destroys focus. We unpack information asymmetry, interest rate impacts, UK vs US capita...

EP 414 - Dodge Woodall reveals how he mortgaged his family home during the 2008 financial crisis to launch what became the 30,000-person Bournemouth 7s Festival. From growing up above a pub to building and scaling multiple businesses, this is a raw masterclass in risk-taking, resilience, and real entrepreneurship. We cover: • Why entrepreneurship is an extreme sport • Risk addiction and betting ev...

EP 413 - The UK’s new Employment Rights Act is being framed as a major step forward for workers. But what happens when stronger protections collide with the realities of hiring, risk, and running a business? In this episode, we sit down with leading employment lawyers to unpack the biggest changes: from the reduction in unfair dismissal thresholds to new restrictions on “fire and rehire,” and long...

EP 412 - How far should UK employers go when it comes to looking after staff? In this episode we break down the real cost of being a “nice” employer - from UK statutory sick pay (SSP) and full sick pay policies to employee benefits, pensions, flexible working, and permanent health insurance (PHI). With major UK employment law changes coming, SMEs face difficult trade-offs: Is full sick pay worth t...

EP 411 - Most families don’t just feel grief when someone dies - they feel anger. Anger about the mess, the debt, the confusion, and the things nobody sorted out. In this episode of Business Without BS, we have the conversation most people avoid - but absolutely shouldn’t. We talk about what actually happens if you die without a plan, why love isn’t flowers and chocolates, and how a few uncomforta...

EP 410 - Tax Without BS returns with a fiery but surprisingly hopeful breakdown of the November 2025 UK Budget. Andy, Jemma and Emma from Oury Clark sift the good, the bad, and the “are-you-kidding-me?” of Britain’s latest fiscal plan From scale-up salvation and EIS boosts, to SME heartbreak, Mansion Tax grumbles, pension puzzles, and the four-year foreign-income free-for-all. It’s the only budget...

 EP 409 - What happens when you strip away phones, comfort and pretence? Therapist Jerry Hyde - often called “the most dangerous therapist in the world” - and filmmaker Mai Hua explore the raw truths of mental health, vulnerability and masculinity. Released for World Mental Health Day, the conversation dives into why modern life keeps us disconnected, how radical retreats (no phones, no showers,...

EP 408 - What happens when British charm collides with German order in the workplace? In part 4 of our Business Without Baggage series, we speak to professor and senior partner at GTK Germany - Manfred Klein - who breaks down the surprising differences - and hidden similarities - between the UK and Germany’s business cultures. From awkward handshakes and endless small talk to rigid agendas and dir...

EP 407 - What does it really take to build a food empire from scratch? We're giving our chat with John B Stapleton - serial entrepreneur, investor, and co-founder of the New Covent Garden Soup Company and Little Dish a re-run to remind us about the hard-won lessons behind his multi-million-pound successes. From inventing the UK’s fresh soup category to mentoring today’s challenger brands, John sha...

EP 406 - Economist and tax strategist Oriana Morrison pulls doesn't hold back in our chat about the UK economy, HMRC, tax avoidance, and inequality. Founder and CEO of ECNMX and trusted advisor to world champion athletes and entertainers, Oriana Morrison explains why HMRC is “shameful,” how tax is used as social engineering, and why Britain risks losing its top talent to fairer systems abroad. Fro...

EP 405 - Is Italy an entrepreneur’s dream or a business nightmare compared to the UK? In part 3 of our Business Without Baggage series, Andy speaks with corporate lawyer Marco Pistis about the cultural and legal contrasts between doing business in Italy and the UK. From relationship-driven deals to bureaucracy that stifles scale, Marco explains why British companies often struggle in Italy - and w...

EP 404 - Can improv and humour make you a better leader - and even grow your bottom line? Neil Mullarkey (Comedy Store Players co-founder with Mike Myers, seen on Whose Line Is It Anyway and Austin Powers) shows how improv’s “Yes, And” mindset, listening with intent, and affiliative humour boost leadership, sales, creativity, and team culture. We unpack practical tools Neil teaches at London Busin...

EP 403 - AI is being sold as a miracle productivity tool​, but is it actually killing our ability to think? We revisit our conversation with AI expert, author​ and speaker​ David Birss who explores the hidden dangers of generative AI - from outsourcing imagination to the slow erosion of human originality. We explore the myth of AI productivity​, unpacking why most companies are implementing AI the...

EP 402 - Is the UK stock market dying or is it the biggest bargain in global investing? This week we welcome back investor and author Andrew Craig who argues that British equities are deeply undervalued and overlooked by international investors. From political uncertainty to structural challenges, Craig explains why the UK is seen as “on sale” - and why that could be a once-in-a-generation opportu...

EP 401 - Recent UK government changes to trust law could have major implications for wealth protection, estate planning, and business ownership. In Tax Without Bullshit pt. 2, Andy sits down with Oury Clark tax experts Jeremy Coker and Emma FlorentinLee to break down what the new rules mean, who they affect, and how to decide if a trust is still worth it. From common myths to practical strategies,...

EP 400 - Is confidence the real reason men succeed more in business - or are women holding themselves back? Entrepreneur and Dragons’ Den success story Rachel Watkyn OBE joins us to share her unfiltered take on gender, ego, and the hidden dynamics behind success. From male “peacocking” and the confidence gap to the barriers facing female founders, she challenges what we think we know about busines...

EP 399 - July's guests - Lucy Parker, Mark Field, Victoria Dunford, and Luis Gosalbez - discuss and debate the legitimacy our BOB quiz cards - drinking at lunch, corporate away days, in-office fitness classes, and universal basic income to equal paternity leave and corporate gifting all make the shortlist! Chapters: 00:00 Business or Bullshit QUIZ 00:55 Debate: Drinking at Lunch 04:49 Corporate Aw...

EP 398 - Spain looks like a dream for startups: sunny, affordable, and full of talent. But beneath the surface, founders face a slow, fragmented system that often blocks growth instead of enabling it. In this episode, lawyer, founder and managing partner of Metricson Luis Gosálbez explains why Spain’s business environment frustrates entrepreneurs, from endless bureaucracy to region-by-region polit...

EP 397 - In Moldova, thousands of disabled children and adults remain unseen - hidden away by a system that offers them little support. In this episode, Andy speaks to humanitarian and social entrepreneur Victoria Dunford, founder of MAD-Aid, who is fighting to bring dignity, inclusion, and opportunity to those left behind. From transforming hospitals to changing laws, discover how one woman is ch...

EP 396 - Are supermarkets controlling more than just prices? global food expert Mark Field reveals the hidden secrets of the food industry, exposing how Big Food shapes what we eat, drives up costs, and impacts sustainability. Learn how corporate power influences your choices - and what it means for the future of food. *For Apple Podcast chapters, access them from the menu in the bottom right corn...

EP 395 - Can big business actually change the world or is it all just PR? Andy speaks to Lucy Parker, Senior Advisor at Brunswick and co-author of The Activist Leader, on why CEOs need to stop playing it safe and start thinking like activists. From Gordon Brown’s task force to boardrooms at Maersk and Walmart, Lucy shares how companies can bridge the gap between profit and purpose, and why the fut...

EP 394 - This week Andy meets Bernard Savage who leads professional services business development consultancy - size ten and half boots. We have a wide running chat about how AI means that now, more than ever, professional services firms need to embrace sales. Luckily it’s also going to free up their time to do it. I’m not sure he persuaded Andy that sales wasn’t a dirty word. But we definitely bu...

EP 393 - June's BOB quiz lineup sees Elizabeth Varley from the Department of Business and Trade, Silent Disco Company founder and CEO Toby Burns, and ex-Special Forces author and speaker Sarah Furness tackle topics including climate change, office nap pods, AI-created content, team-building exercises, and mandatory lunch breaks. Strap in! Chapters: 00:00 Introduction to the Business or Bullsh...

EP 392 - This week we meet Sarah Furness, whose self described superpower is being “just enough of a bitch”. If you want to know what she means by that, stop reading and start listening. Sarah was the first female helicopter pilot to lead special forces missions in Iraq. These days she is bringing battlefield hardened insights to business problems, helping leaders to create healthy behaviours and...