The Just Checking In Podcast

In episode 259 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked back in with Patricia Faulks. Patricia Faulks first came on the podcast in JCIP #92 to talk about her blog Just Me & Lilley, where she writes about being involuntarily childlessness, her life, her wonderful dog Lilley and issues affecting predominantly women but also men who are involuntarily childless. She came on again in JCIP #167 to...

In episode 258 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Gabriella Pearson. Gabriella is Co-Founder of an organisation called Menstrual Health Project (MHP).Gabriella co-founded MHP with her friend Anna, whom she met through Instagram. Gabriella was based in Brighton, Anna was in North Wales and they came together with the idea to start a community project. They created a toolkit to help...

In episode 257 of The Just Checking In Podcast our Founder Freddie Cocker speaks about getting officially diagnosed with autism. Freddie was first diagnosed by his GP in December 2023 but given the role he holds through Vent in the men's mental health space, he wanted to be 100% certain before declaring it online. He was fortunate enough to be in a position where he could pay for a private as...

In episode 256 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Scott Johnson. Scott Johnson is the Founder and CEO of the Proper Blokes Club (PBC) C.I.C, a community organisation which provides walk and talk groups for men across London and hopefully, the country very soon! Scott founded PBC in September 2020 when he was going through the family court system on two occasions from two ex-partner...

In episode 255 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Gary Quinn. Gary Quinn is a professional painter and decorator by trade and the business owner of ‘Quality Brushstrokes’. Gary was sexually abused by his stepfather from the ages of 10-12 years old. Then, when he was 17, his mother entered another relationship with a man who domestically abused her and one night, he murdered her whi...

In episode 254 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Tom Bradley. Tom is a photojournalist, artist and the Founder of the project ‘Leprosy Eliminated?’. In this project, he has taken pictures of people living with leprosy across the globe for the last 15 years. It includes people in 12 countries including Togo, Nigeria, Brazil, Bangladesh andIndia. Until 2022, a country was declared e...

In episode 253 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Dr Ashley Frawley. Ashley is currently Visiting Researcher in the Centre for Parenting Culture Studies at the University of Kent, as well as Visiting Research Fellow at the MCC Brussels in Belgium. She was also previously Associate Professor of Sociology and Social Policy at Swansea University until 2023.She is the author of Semioti...

In episode 252 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Jide Ehizele. Jide was born and raised in Lewisham in south-east London and acts a leader and mentor at his church, St Peter's Church in his local community of Brockley, where he still resides today. He also has a Substack where he writes about issues related to class, race, countering identity politics and faith. In this episo...

In episode 251 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Lauren Seager-Smith. Lauren is the is the CEO of the For Baby’s Sake Trust (FBS), a charity which empower parents to break cycles of abuse, transform the life-chances of whole families and move forward in positive change, starting with the baby. The baby is at the heart of everything they do. The Trust was set up philanthropically b...

In episode 250 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked back in with Connor Smart. Connor currently works in emergency planning and lives in a rural part of the Midlands with his fiancé and now, young son. Connor and our Founder Freddie used to work together as interns at a think-tank in 2016 and Connor's first piece of Vent content was an article he wrote in November 2017. He then came on...

In episode 249 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Charlie Bethel. Charlie is currently the CEO of the UK Men's Sheds Association (UKMSA).The concept of the Men’s Shed started in Australia in around 1999. It then spread to New Zealand, Ireland, the UK, Canada and, more recently, Europe and the USA. At time of recording, there are a total of 1180 Sheds across the UK.Men’s Sheds...

In this episode of Reel Stories, we checked in with Laoise Toye. Laoise works in television and media and is the host of her own podcast 'Laoise Online'.In this episode we discuss: Laoise’s journey into television, from working with a Belfast production company called Stellify to where she is now, her love of theatre and musical theatre and how watching Eurovision for the first time as a...

In episode 248 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Nick Gazzard. Nick is the CEO of the Hollie Gazzard Trust (HGT).The Trust was set up by him after the murder of his daughter Hollie, by an ex-boyfriend when she was just 20 years old. After that moment, Nick set up the Trust to try and stop what happened to Hollie from happening to anyone else ever again. The Trust helps reduce dome...

In episode 247 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with a man called Sean. Sean works for the PSSD Network, which is an organisation based in Australia, made up of people who suffer from a condition called Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction (PSSD). PSSD describes a debilitating condition which a subset of people live with and follows the use of SSRI and SNRI medication. A condition like this i...

This is Part 2 of our check in with Koggno Founder Kirsty Martin. In this episode we discuss some elements of exclusionary behaviour she experienced whilst at boarding school and some other traumatic events which we discuss in-depth in the podcast. Kirsty then went to university in Edinburgh where, perhaps as a statement of the university system around class, was surrounded with other people from...

In episode 246 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Kirsty Martin. Kirsty is the Founder of Koggno, a platform which shares, navigates and explore psychology, mental health & well-being from different perspectives and approaches. Through Koggno, Kirsty has also gone back to university and has recently completed a Masters in Psychology and Neuroscience of Mental Health. In Part 1...

In this episode of Behind The Mic we checked in with drummer Michael Bivona. Biv currently is a session drummer for solo artist stayMellow and previously played drums for UK pop-punk band, Goldbloom. In this episode we discuss: his music journey, how he got into drumming, joining Goldbloom in 2019, his decision to leave the band in 2024, the band eventually splitting up and the stress of social me...

In episode 245 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with David Cooper. David is an artist who specialises in producing art from the world’s longest running TV show, The Simpsons, with prints taken from iconic scenes and his favourite characters. In this episode we discuss: his love of the show and how he got into drawing, painting and creating, which members of the Simpsons cast he most e...

In episode 244 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Luke Loughlin. Luke is the Co-Founder of Men United, a platform which seeks to empower men to reclaim control of their wellbeing by nurturing their mind, body, and soul. The platform was set up by its Founder Troy Colmer, who then befriended Luke and asked him to come on board. Troy set up the platform when a friend of his disclosed...

In this episode of Mind On The Game, we checked back in with World Rally Championship co-driver Alex Kihurani. We first checked back in with Alex in April 2023 and a lot has happened in Alex’s life since then. Alex’s daughter was born three months premature and has had health complications throughout 2023, which has been challenging for Alex. his wife and their wider family. Then, on 19th August 2...

In episode 243 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Melanie Bradley. Mel is the Founder of ‘Men Against Mountains’ (MAM), a platform and men’s mental health hub which aims to build connections, share men’s stories and allow them to be listened to, heard and feel understood. Every Sunday, Mel hosts a ‘Sunday Summit Session’ with a different man to share their story. In this episode we...

In episode 242 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Christopher Waller. Chris is the Founder of ‘We Power On’, which aims to improve men's lives through the power of walking, talking and connection. Every Sunday, Chris runs a walk and talk group in Epsom in Surrey for men from all walks of life to join and get whatever they are struggling with off their chest. Chris started the...

In this episode of Behind The Decks, we checked back in with Australian producer and DJ, Harry Hayes. In Part 1 we discussed comparison culture, imposter syndrome and how he felt he was in a state of 'music purgatory' in the industry. In the 10 months since we checked in, Harry has gone from strength to strength, musically and personally. He has put out four singles, including one with f...

In episode 241 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Russell Payne. Russ is a qualified painter and decorator and the Founder of 'The Talking Tradesman' (TTT) podcast. TTT aims to entertain, connect and raise mental health awareness for tradespeople throughout the UK.Russ set up the podcast in November 2023 where he interviews tradesman from across the sector about their men...

In episode 240 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Amelia Wrighton. Amelia is the co-founder of mental health charity, Suicide & Co, a charity which supports those bereaved by suicide. Amelia started Suicide & Co with her friend Emma Morrisoe, who she met whilst working in her media and marketing career and she discovered they had both lost parents to suicide. Amelia lost he...