The Art of Dying Well

Send us Fan Mail We're tackling a very difficult subject on this 'Art of Dying Well' podcast. What happens when you get the news that nobody wants? How do you cope with a diagnosis that changes everything? We're looking at how we can listen to, accompany and support a loved one who has received a terminal diagnosis. It’s a traumatic time for everyone but it can be a time for ta...

Send us Fan Mail As we emerge into whatever version of 'normal' we end up with after the acute phase of the pandemic, some of us are seeing light at the end of the tunnel. Others, facing death or accompanying a dying loved one, may feel that light's a little further away. That's why we’re here, really, to cover the subjects that matter on this human journey. That painful lack o...

Send us Fan Mail In recent years we've seen signs that more and more people are able to talk about death and dying. However, many more list death - and particularly dying alone - as their number one anxiety. This podcast juxtaposes two end-of-life realities - one commonplace, the other far less so. And it's the 'far less so' we're starting with. Lone deaths. Nobody chooses...

Send us Fan Mail Covid-19 has hit the UK hard. 100,000 deaths is a statistic. 1 is a tragedy. Each death leaves a family bereaved, each hospital admission results in a person facing a fight - loved-ones anxiously hoping for the best from a distance. Covid-19 presents journalists with the biggest news story on sickness, death and dying for a generation. It's very timely, then, that we’re talki...

Send us Fan Mail The 'Art of Dying Well' is exactly four years old and it's fitting we're in the month of November, or, as we call it, 'the month to remember'.Bereavement, grief, memories and remembrance make up the subject matter for this, our last Art of Dying Well podcast of 2020. The P word - pandemic - of course provides a different backdrop this year as we talk...

Send us Fan Mail We've long said it, but how you live has a bearing on how you die. Dying well starts with living well. Being ready, being prepared, being reconciled, being happy and at peace with the way you treat yourself and others - they're all factors. Everyone has their own version of 'living well'.In these pandemic times, health, fitness and well-being have come to the f...

Send us Fan Mail This 'Art of Dying Well' podcast picks up where Episode 18 left off - counting the cost of COVID19 and how it has touched our lives and communities. Lockdown may be easing but the virus is certainly not a thing of the past. Politicians turn their thoughts to re-firing the economy, restrictions are being removed and the public at large is being encouraged to use its &apos...

Send us Fan Mail This 'Art of Dying Well' podcast comes from a state of COVID-19 lock-down but covers an incredible amount of ground by way of an exclusive interview with friend of the show, Dr Kathryn Mannix. Kathryn is a Palliative Care physician, author of ‘With the End in Mind: Dying, Death and Wisdom in an Age of Denial’ and a woman who's on a mission to get us all better acqua...

Send us Fan Mail OK so the title of today's podcast sounds like a line from a dodgy science fiction film but actually there's a serious point to be made. We've all heard the one about the certainties in life - death and taxes - and today we're talking about the former. This podcast focuses on confronting the realities of death and remembering that life is temporary and, at some...

Send us Fan Mail The last 'Art of Dying Well' podcast of 2019 sees us focus on the painful subjects of loss and grief at a time of year that can be particularly hard for those of us spending Christmas without a loved one. Simply getting from one day to the next can be a major challenge while all around you are seemingly in party mode. Today we hear from former Sky Sports and Blue Peter p...

Send us Fan Mail In a packed and powerful 'Art of Dying Well' podcast we're bringing you the insight and experiences of three really interesting people. First up is the talented actor and writer Harriet Madeley - the main creative force behind a unique play about death and dying called 'The Colours'. It's based on interviews Harriet conducted with palliative care doct...

Send us Fan Mail Today’s podcast focuses on the launch of a new 'Deathbed Etiquette' resource - a guide to help friends and relatives prepare to be at the deathbed of a dying loved one. Dr Amy Gadoud - a palliative care professional and lecturer in palliative medicine - helps us explore deathbed etiquette. As well as being an expert in the field, she has her own personal experience to sh...

Send us Fan Mail Caring and accompanying people along the very human journey of dying lies at the heart of our podcasts - not to mention how we honour and remember our friends and family. Today, however, we're looking at animals and bereavement. We start by discussing the difficult task of talking to children about the death of a much-loved pet. Daniella Dos Santos - a veterinary surgeon who...

Send us Fan Mail I can’t believe it has almost been a year since the last Art of Dying Well podcast but we’re back talking death and dying and all the issues surrounding this difficult but very human journey. Our main interview this month is a really interesting conversation with an actor – the very charming and engaging Greg Wise. If you’ve been watching The Crown on Netflix you’ve probably seen...

Send us Fan Mail Something's not right. You've not heard from your father-in-law for a few weeks. You're close. That's not usual. The milk's on the doorstep, yesterday's papers are poking out of the letterbox. You know what's happened but you don't want to think it let alone say it. This is how Erica Buist felt when she encouraged husband Dion to cross Londo...

Send us Fan Mail February's Art of Dying Well podcast features an extended interview with BBC financial journalist Sally Bundock - co-presenter of the BBC’s flagship business programme 'Business Live'.Sally's story is moving and inspiring. Sadly last Summer, after an eight-year battle with cancer, her husband Paul died. Devastating – especially when you leave a wife and three y...

Send us Fan Mail Here's our packed 'Art of Dying Well' podcast focusing on how music is vital for our well-being. Whether it acts as the soundtrack to our lives or as consolation at a time of grief, music is at the heart of the human experience. First up we speak to Eric Clarke, Professor of Music at Oxford University about how music can actually be an empathiser - almost a person -...

Send us Fan Mail November's Art of Dying Well podcast, fittingly, looks at remembrance. It is right that we remember the fallen of our wars and conflicts this month listening to a reflection from Fr Michael Fava from the Bishopric of the Forces. We also wanted to shine a light on how other cultures, traditions and faiths commemorate and pray for their dead. We listen to four interesting persp...

Send us Fan Mail We're fast approaching the traditional month of remembrance. Catholic Churches have 'November Lists' so the community can pray for the souls of the departed. But the nation also pauses to pay its collective respects to those who died in the two World Wars and later conflicts. Our guest today is the former Bishop of the Forces the Rt Revd Richard Moth. We discuss how...

Send us Fan Mail Today's Art of Dying Well podcast looks at the world of the funeral director - looking after families and final wishes in the immediate aftermath of the death of a loved one. Not an easy job. Paul Allcock is our main studio guest. Paul's family-run independent business offers funeral services for the people of Norwich and the surrounding areas. We talk about the advantag...

Send us Fan Mail An ageing population has a significant impact on care services, so for this month's 'Art of Dying Well' podcast, we're looking at how we care for elderly people nearing the end of life. To do this, we've brought in our guest reporter Nina Mattiello Azadeh. Nina visited The Charterhouse - a former Carthusian monastery in the heart of London, founded in 1611...

Send us Fan Mail Carolyne Barber's a very interesting lady. She has over 30 years of nursing experience caring for sick and dying people in many countries around the world. She's also a talented award-winning photographer who sees and captures all sorts of miracles of nature and uses her images to inspire those she cares for. In this podcast we also talk about sudden loss - particularly...

Send us Fan Mail There's a good reason we've called this initiative the 'Art of Dying Well'. There really is an art to living well and an art to dying well - and it's clear the two are intrinsically linked. This month we're delighted to have Louise Winter in the studio. Louise is a funeral professional and founder of Poetic Endings - a creative funeral provider. She&a...

Send us Fan Mail Thanks for checking out our second Art of Dying Well podcast. As ever, the aim's to make dying something we don't have to walk through alone. This month we're talking about palliative care with the wonderful and hugely experienced Dr Kathryn Mannix who has worked in palliative and end of life care for over 30 years. April's 'Death Chatter' looks at a...

Send us Fan Mail This is the first ever ‘Art of Dying Well’ podcast. What is it? Simply put it’s a monthly programme that aims to make death and dying something we can talk about openly without discomfort or fear. Dying well means different things to different people. Death is an individual experience, but a community of accompaniment on the journey can help us to prepare by bringing consolation a...