Made in Dubai with Spencer Lodge

This week's guest is Dr. Matteo Vigo, a leading plastic surgeon based in the UAE. With a wealth of experience, Dr. Vigo has performed over 1,500 procedures, including more than 1,000 breast augmentations making him a true expert in the field of cosmetic surgery. In this episode, we explore the history and evolution of cosmetic surgery, from its early beginnings to its rise in popularity. We unpack...

In this episode, we sit down with Naoum Barakat, a transformative leader in HR strategy and talent development across the UAE and beyond. With decades of experience shaping people and culture in some of the region's most influential organisations, Naoum brings deep insight into what truly makes a great leader. From the boardroom to the locker room, we unpack leadership through surprising lenses wh...

This week's guest is a trailblazer in the legal world and a content creator who's rewriting the rulebook on how lawyers show up online. Arash Zad is a UAE based lawyer who took a bold step into unfamiliar territory, TikTok - Somewhere most only knew from the funny dancing. While most of his peers stuck to traditional methods, Arash turned the camera on, shared his legal insights with clarity and c...

How far would you go to break through fear? For Benoit Demeulemeester, it starts with breathwork, ice baths, and walking barefoot across burning coals.   A former high-stakes banker turned transformational coach, Benoit has spent the last 14 years pushing people past their mental limits. Through Endorphins Management, he's taken everyone from CEOs to entire teams into fire rituals and freezing wat...

What does it take to survive chaos, lead under fire, and rebuild your life from rock bottom? Ollie Ollerton doesn't just teach it – he's lived every brutal moment.   A former Royal Marine Commando and Special Forces operative, Ollie rose to public attention on 'SAS: Who Dares Wins'. But long before the cameras, he was battling trauma, addiction, and identity loss after leaving the military.   Toda...

Jas Mathur made his first million before he turned 20. But his biggest success? Reinventing himself. From tech prodigy and media mogul to health entrepreneur and investor, Jas's story is one of relentless drive, reinvention, and personal transformation. He's built businesses worth hundreds of millions and lost over 100kg in a complete health reset. This episode goes far deeper than money and metri...

Most people struggle to run even one marathon. Paris Norriss ran seven marathons on seven continents in just seven days.   Adventurer and endurance athlete, Paris Norriss, shares what it takes to push the body and mind to the absolute limit.   Alongside his friend James Elliott-Square, Paris completed the World Marathon Challenge, running a full marathon every 24 hours across Antarctica, Africa, A...

What does it take to go from survival mode to a $370 million exit – all without breaking?   Maaz Sheikh, co-founder and CEO of Starz Play, has lived the answer.    In this episode, Maaz opens up about the high-stakes journey of building one of the Middle East's leading streaming platforms, from battling burnout and chasing investment, to navigating a buyout and preparing for what's next.   This is...

Social media algorithms control your audience. Email lets you take back that control.   Tyler Denk, founder of Beehiiv, an email newsletter platform that has scaled to a US$225 million valuation in just four years, shares his journey from building Morning Brew (sold for US$75 million) to launching Beehiiv.   He unpacks why email newsletters remain one of the most powerful and underutilised tools f...

Think a second passport is about avoiding tax?    For millions of people, it's about something far more basic: freedom of movement.   In this episode, Armand Arton, founder and CEO of Arton Capital and one of the world's most influential voices in global citizenship and investment migration, shares his journey. From growing up in communist Bulgaria with a passport that limited his every move, to b...

Your employees are already using AI, and you probably don't even know it. But the problem is, they could be unknowingly leaking confidential company information.   If you're a business owner, this should concern you, or at the very least, pique your interest.   In this episode, AI expert and founder of Tyde. AI, Isabella Williamson, unpacks what business owners need to know about adopting AI the r...

We're in the middle of a social connection crisis. Call it what you like, loneliness, isolation, disconnection, it's becoming one of the most urgent issues of our time. In the U.S. alone, the cost of loneliness to businesses is estimated at $154 billion. And that figure is only going to grow unless we start addressing it. Our guest on the show today is Simone Heng, a global keynote speaker and exp...

AI is already changing the way we sell, scale, and show up in business. But most people are still playing catch-up.   In this episode, entrepreneur and AI strategist John Lee breaks down the mindset shift every business owner, sales leader, and entrepreneur needs to make right now. Because the real power of AI isn't in the tech, it's in how you use it to multiply what you already do well.   Whethe...

Most people think gold just sits in a vault, safe, static, and gathering dust…   But Mark Pey, Head of Strategic Relationships at Monetary Metals, is on a mission to redefine how we think about gold. In today's world of volatile markets, vanishing trust in fiat currency, and overhyped digital assets, gold is the most powerful, underused tool for wealth generation.   Whether you've overlooked gold...

Kris Fade is the voice behind the region's #1 radio show, a star of Netflix's Dubai Bling, and the founder of the health and wellness brand Fade Fit. But he didn't just wake up famous. Kris's success is the result of relentless hustle, smart decisions, and an unshakable belief in himself. From launching a brand-new radio show in Dubai to building a multimillion-dollar business, and leveraging the...

Dubai's real estate market is booming, but are you asking the right questions before investing?   In this week's episode, I sit down with Sonia Waters, Head of Sales at AYS Developers, to talk all things real estate – escrow accounts, how the market is evolving, and what makes Dubai such a hotspot for investors.   I'm also proud to officially welcome AYS Developers as the new title sponsor of the...

What does it take to turn a childhood dream into a global career AND make Adele disappear along the way? Rob Lake, one of the world's most celebrated illusionists and finalist of  America's Got Talent , has done just that. But beyond the magic, Rob is also an entrepreneur who's built a successful empire around his craft. From discovering his calling at 10 to winning the prestigious Merlin Award, p...

What's the real cost of a bad hire, and how do you build a future-proof team in a fast-changing world? Jonathan Holmes, Managing Director for the Middle East, Turkey and Africa (META) at Korn Ferry , one of the largest executive search and human capital consulting firms in the world, has spent decades helping businesses make the right hiring decisions and build stronger teams. His perspective on b...

The scariest thing isn't change, it's never changing at all. So why do we resist it?   Najwa Zebian – poet, author, and advocate – has built a global following by confronting life's hardest truths:   Why we stay in toxic relationships,  Why walking away feels impossible, and Why we struggle to truly own our worth.   In this episode, she opens up about loss, identity, and rebuilding life on her own...

Who do you trust when the media is constantly under fire?   Hala Gorani has spent decades reporting from the frontlines – covering wars, breaking global news, and shaping how the world understands current events. Now, the legendary journalist and war correspondent is pulling back the curtain on what really happens behind the headlines.    From the mental toll of conflict reporting to the hard trut...

Why do we never feel good enough, no matter how much we achieve? Dr Jessamy Hibberd, a clinical psychologist, author, and expert in mental resilience, breaks down the hard truths about success, trauma, and self-doubt, and why even the most accomplished people feel like imposters. She reveals why our brains are wired to focus on the negatives, how social media is warping our perception of reality,...

Is your memory a reliable record of the past? Or a story your brain keeps rewriting?   Leading neuroscientist Dr Charan Ranganath, aka The Memory Doc, joins us on Unscripted With Spencer Lodge , to reveal how our brains store, distort, and reshape our memories.   From false memories to the way trauma, depression, and even psychedelics impact what we recall, Dr Ranganath breaks it all down in a way...

Most people see the luxury, the glamour, the success. But what they don't see is the grit, the grind, and the relentless drive it took to get there. Before she became a Dubai Bling star and one of Dubai's top real estate figures, Zeina Khoury arrived in the UAE with just $300 to her name. In this episode of 'Unscripted With Spencer Lodge,' Zeina gets real about the sacrifices behind success, the i...

Every billion-dollar business starts with an idea.  But turning that idea into a game-changing business? That's the real challenge. As the co-founder of Stake, a fractional real estate investment platform, Rami Tabbara is on that journey right now. In just four years, 500,000+ downloads and 35,000+ investors later, he's disrupting traditional real estate models in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. This we...

From Jaipur, India, to building a multi-million dollar empire, Ajit Nawalkha's journey is a testament to vision, strategy, and impact. Coaching over 15,000 professionals along the way, Ajit is a force to be reckoned with. On this episode of 'Unscripted With Spencer Lodge', Ajit breaks down the psychology of change, the power of pain and desire, and how to unlock your full potential. As the co-foun...