Tales to Inspire

'Life is your work of art' Jocelyn Jones is one of Hollywood's most prized secret weapons. A legendary acting teacher, coach, and artistic advisor to the stars, she has served as a confidential Creative Consultant on some of the highest-grossing pictures of all time. Jocelyn has been an acting teacher for over thirty years. From A-list movie stars to hand-picked beginners, Ms. Jones is known for o...

'I like seeing people's faces light up when they are doing something they didn't think they could do because I was the same.' 'My name is Adya, I'm originally from Newcastle and I live in The Wirral. I've lived in many places over the years. My parents were first-generation immigrants from South Asia. Growing up I didn't partake in outdoor activities; I began when my friend forced me to try kayaki...

'Express don't suppress' Sam Moinet is the founder of Student Breakthrough. He is a speaker, teacher and student coach who helps students with their mental health and trains teachers to inspire children. Sam takes us on a journey through his life and how he had to transform his life which was full of anxiety and perceived failure to one that is now transforming and contributing towards the positiv...

Trigger warning: mention of child abuse "I feel like I'm on the edge of the cliff and I'm ready to jump and I'm excited, I don't know what's going to happen but I'm there, it's too late for me to crawl back." "I'm Siobhan Daniels, I'm 63 years of age. I worked for the BBC for thirty years, 10 years in radio and 20 years in television. I retired three years ago. I got rid of my flat and all my poss...

Today we share the incredible tale of Paul Betney. Paul shares his story of growing up in Liverpool, the difficult family circumstances he found himself in and how he learned to navigate through them. His tale takes us around the world, where he shows us the power of being uniquely himself. Paul was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and is one of the few people to sail across the Pacific Ocean. P...

"Traveling can broaden your horizons as long as you keep our eyes open" Magnus Wood is the Co-Founder of the Kindness Corporation and author of the Kindness Code. He is a kindness expert and supports people within the workplace, to help them unlock the power of kindness! Having lived through the corporate world, Magnus began to see the power that a kinder working environment can have and now helps...

Mark Drager grew up in Toronto, Canada and up until the age of 7 he had what he describes as 'the best childhood in the world.' However, things started to get difficult for him, his parents split up and his Mother got married to a new person who hid his bipolar from the rest of the family and it meant that Mark became good as 'blending into the wallpaper' being good at trying not to be seen and he...

'Go and enjoy life, connect with people and try to show more love.' Today we have a very special podcast episode. We interview the founder of El Cambio Academy Thomas Thor who has created and provided opportunities for young people. The team recruits young athletes with potential in Uganda, providing them an 8 year scholarship so that the children can access a world class education and football pr...

Trigger Warning: Domestic violence, attempted suicide and bullying 'Friendship, to me, is having that trust with somebody.' Just over six months ago Monique joined the Tales to Inspire team and has supported and leads on our Podcast platform. However, after sometime of getting to know Monique, we realised that her tale is one that would inspire you no matter your walk of life. Monique's tale of ov...

"Everyone is searching for connection" Today is our 100th Episode! The journey has been a great one, but in this very special episode Simon Osamoh touches base with Krish to understand how the journey has been, the good, the bad and the ugly. Krish goes into details of why he originally started the Tales to Inspire Podcast, how it has developed and the future of the Tales to Inspire Podcast. This...

"Life is about embracing challenges" Deirdre and Denise are sisters and part of one brilliant family unit. Their parents migrated to the UK from the Caribbean Islands and that in itself brought its own challenges. Overcoming racism and a variety of struggles, not only were the family supporting each other, they were able to support so many within their community. Their Mother and Father created a...

"You never get over somebody dying, but there is ways to make sure their memory lives on." On the 10th July 2009 Nikki's world was totally turned upside down when she had the knock at the door that every Army wife dreads, and was told that Lee had been killed. Her world fell apart. The most painful thing for me was knowing our two precious children would now have to face life without their daddy....

"Things got to overwhelming for me to carry on and that's when I made my plan and attempted to take my own life…. I remember waking up in the hospital being disappointed and telling my mom to let the Doctors let me die." From a young age Ashley Kesner always felt like something was odd. Usually a bubbly character, she would go through suddent episodes of negativity which was then heightened whilst...

Lorraine Lewis is co-founder of multi- award-winning cancer charity The Lewis Foundation, which provides free gifts and support to adult cancer patients in 14 hospitals around the Midlands. Since starting The Lewis Foundation in 2016, Lorraine has regularly delivered motivational talks to school children, universities and businesses, such as Eden Project, RCI Europe, Kindfest and Demontfort Univer...

"I am because of others" Pushpanath - 'Push' - Krishnamurthy is a British citizen, originally from Bangalore, India. Push spent three decades at the leading edge of development work across three continents, with NGOs such as Oxfam and Save the Children. At Oxfam he acquired legendary status for his pioneering work on campaigns, such as HIV/ AIDS, Make Trade Fair and Climate Change Hearings, which...

'The feeling I get from watching somebody succeed and do that thing they didn't think they could do far outweighs any cheque' Until two years ago, Jamie Rudd was 'living the dream'; he ran a successful design and brand consultancy business, and enjoyed helping people to communicate their brands to their clients. In July 2018 his life changed in a split second; Jamie's car was hit at 50 miles an ho...

"Children are nature's way of reminding you to live adventurously " Jay is the former president & CEO of Life Fitness Inc – the $1.1billion dollar commercial fitness equipment market leader. Racing up the career ladder just like everyone else, he got to the top, took up his spot in the corner office and had an epiphany. He had been climbing the wrong ladder and the view wasn't at all what he expec...

Content notes: bereavement, terrorism 'I am not prepared to hate' On 22nd May 2017, Figen Murray tragically lost her son Martyn in the Manchester Arena terrorist attack, a devastating event that changed her forever. When almost a month later at the Finsbury Park Mosque attack Figen saw images of men, including the imam of the mosque, protecting the attacker from being harmed, she was moved by thei...

Returning to civilian life, Jonathan had a life threatening motorcycle accident. This marked the beginning of Jonathan's road to recovery from brain injury, anxiety and depression. In this episode, Krish meets Jonathan Beever, ex-royal engineer, who's career in the forces provided an alternative to the life on the council estate he grew up on that he was so determined to escape. Jonathan's career...

"The one time when I believe I have been the most mentally tough, is when I talked myself off the bridge" Luke started with a foundation given to him by his incredible parents that gave him the curiosity to think "what if I can". Luke always wanted to be a professional football player and ended up traveling the world pursuing his childhood dream and despite temporary success, at the age of 28 he r...

Eve Kekeh is a young lady who has started her very own sustainable company. Growing up in a mixed-race family in London, where Eve was the only black girl in her whole school. Everyone had blonde hair and she always wished she had other people's features. Eve had those feelings of not fully fitting into her society and when she went to Togo she wondered where her place in this world was. However,...

"I was on a ventilator and my lungs filled with fluid and I flatlined… I remember that moment and it is probably the most special and most profound experience I have ever had, where all my fear and anxiety began to merge. " Aaron was the number 1 biker in the USA and then one day in 1999 his life changed forever. His motorcycle malfunctioned over a large jump and when after impacting the ground he...

"It's about compassion in our practice" Keji Moses was born in Nigeria and lived there until she was 8 years old. Keji's Mother moved to the UK and Keji lived with her Grandmother, until her Mother called her to join her in the UK. Kejii's Mother struggled with the responsibilities of being a Mother to Keji and her younger brother, she worked 3 jobs and Keji witnessed domestic violence and argumen...

"If you don't put your head above the parapet, you stay underneath it." Michelle Jones is one of those people who inspires you to be your best self. From early childhood, life was not easy, she had barriers to learning due to her lack of hearing, which meant she consistently felt unintelligent and had a low self esteem as a child, but despite this she always enjoyed helping others from an early ag...

"Our thoughts define what we are" Abhinav's life started from humble beginnings in a village in India. As a child he supported his father whilst looking after cattle and his simple dreams were to have more cows and look after them, just like his father. However, nature had something else planned for him and after doing very well at school his life took a different direction. Abhinav was a natural...