The Retirement Café Podcast

It's a common misconception that you make your will and that's the end of the matter. Sadly, for some families, they find out after they have lost a loved one, that that's not the case and the will can be challenged. Research(1) suggests that almost a quarter of Brits would be prepared to contest a loved one's will if they were unhappy with it. This is where this week's guest comes in to help reso...

The episodes of regular people telling us about their life in retirement have proven to be very popular. One of our very first episodes – number 4 in fact – of my conversation with clients and friends Nick and Debbie Taylor telling us what makes for a successful retirement for them, continues to be one of our most downloaded episodes. So today we're going to hear the story - so far - of another cl...

I am delighted to welcome Professor Keith Brown back to the podcast. Keith is a government adviser on mental capacity as well as adult care and safeguarding. To that end Professor Brown sits on the Department of Health Adult Safeguarding Advisory Board and appeared in episode 89 just a few weeks ago to explain more about mental capacity. Keith also leads the national research into financial fraud...

This week's episode is a little different. I'd like to share with you a conversation I had during lockdown with a friend of mine, Jeremy Nicholas. By profession, Jeremy is a writer and broadcaster with nearly three decades of experience on TV and radio, mainly with the BBC. But Jeremy has funny bones. So he has built a business as the man who puts serious laughs in serious talks. In essence, he he...

From my experience helping people retire successfully, I would say there is still a tendency for the man in a relationship to lead discussions about money.    Now, that's not always the case, and I'm sure the situation is changing among the younger generations. But that was certainly the case for my wife's parents, and in fact my mother-in-law, Anne, talks about the challenge she faced getting to...

The title of today's episode – The Menopausal Mermaids – is possibly quite intriguing. To explain further I'd like to share with you a conversation I had with sea swimmer Nicole Morelli towards the end of April. Nicole joined me from Portrush, which is a small seaside town built along a mile long peninsula on the north coast of County Antrim, Northern Ireland. She is the founder of a sea swimming...

Professor Keith Brown has spent a lifetime in the medical profession. Starting his career in paediatrics, Keith headed up the paediatrics intensive care unit at St. George's Hospital in London. After a number of years he moved into academia and for the past 20 years he has led the National Centre for Post-Qualifying Social Work and Professional Practice (NCPQSW). Keith specialises in in mental hea...

I always love to hear your personal stories of transitioning into retirement, so I was delighted when listener Mary Dixon suggested her brother, John Bonney as a podcast guest. In late May I spoke with John and asked him about his long career in the fire brigade, which culminated in him being chief of Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service for 11 years. During this time, he also served as President of...

Sir Steve Webb is a renowned pensions commentator who served for 18 years as a Member of Parliament between 1997 and 2015, during which time he was Pensions Minister in the coalition government of David Cameron for 5 years. During his time at DWP he oversaw the successful implementation of automatic enrolment, helped design and legislate for the new State Pension and played a key role in the 'pens...

The Open University is 51 years old and continues to pursue its mission of being open to people, to places to methods and to idea s. It's openness comes from enabling people to access study very flexibly, without any entry requirements. For many people, learning a new skill or studying something that's always been of interest is a really important part of what makes for a successful retirement. So...

Simonne Gnessen helps people navigate the journey of their personal financial life .   As a money coach and a financial life planner with a company called Wise Monkey Financial Coaching, Simonne helps people build better relationships with money to feel more confident and in control of their finances. She is also co-author of Sheconomics. Simonne joined me to chat about the work she does, the ways...

I am really pleased to share with you t his week  my  conversation  with emotional intelligence coach and author, Anne Beaulieu.   Emotional intelligence is term you may be very familiar with, but for many of us, it's a term that's often misunderstood.     Anne explains how she discovered the importance of emotional intelligence in  her life and how she now helps others to appreciate how high EQ c...

Passing on our wealth and our assets to our loved ones is an important part of retirement planning, and one we've discussed on the podcast before.   In  episode 59  I spoke with Lisa Snyder from the  Institute for Preparing Heirs  about how to avoid the old adage of shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in 3 generations and why this phenomenon comes about.   This week I am delighted to share with you a con...

Heather Waring is on a mission to get 'One million women walking'.  She says that ' Walking makes  her  soul sing ' and that she wants to help others experience the positive impact that walking has had upon her life.   In 2009 Heather founded the 'One million women walking' Facebook group and wants to get people connecting over a shared love of walking and ultimately talking about what walking giv...

With a great deal of uncertainty during the coronavirus pandemic, many people have unanswered questions concerning their finances, their retirement and life in general. So we ran a series of virtual  Retirement Café coffee mornings  and invited special guests to share their expertise to help people feel more informed at this challenging time. On 1st May I welcomed New York Times' columnist and aut...

Have you ever considered travelling solo? Maybe you're a dab hand at it and have been travelling alone for many years. Or maybe you're just considering taking your first trip. It can feel daunting to take that first trip alone. Well help is on hand from Janice Waugh. Janice lives in Toronto and she is the go-to authority on the topic of solo travel. In 2009 she founded  Solo Traveler  a website sh...

We all have behavioural biases that drive our values and guiding principles. These ultimately impact how we show up in the world and the decisions that we make. Neil  Bage is a specialist on the sub-conscious behaviours that drive our decisions and how to bridge complex theory with real world understanding. He helps people understand what's going on inside their heads when they make decisions  and...

I know that many of our clients enjoy their holidays, and in particular cruising, so I am delighted to welcome Gary Bembridge, author and founder of  Tips for Travellers .   Gary has travelled every month of every year for the past 25 years. Since 2012 he has been exclusively focusing on creating travel content including videos, audio podcasts, books and articles – specialising in cruising.   Gary...

I have chatted with a number of guests over the past 18 months about ageing well as it's a topic that I know many of our listeners are interested in.   This week's interview is with someone who has a profound interest  in ways via which we can improve  the  health and quality of life outcomes in older adults .   Dr  Jitka   Vseteckova  is a  Senior Lecturer in the School of Health, Wellbeing and S...

If you are a regular listener to the podcast – firstly, thank you for joining me again this week – and secondly, you will probably be aware that the podcast is sponsored by Timeline App.    Each week, I give a brief explanation of the  TimelineApp  software and how it helps financial planners like me bring your retirement journey to life and answer your big retirement income questions.      But  T...

A recent survey revealed that one of the biggest regrets for millions of people in Britain was not asking more about their parents' and grandparents' lives. Bryher Scudamore found herself amongst these millions when her beloved mother, Peggy, died suddenly and unexpectedly from a heart attack. Reeling with the shock of realising her mother wasn't invincible, Bryher realised as she was going throug...

We've discussed the importance of finding purpose in retirement on a number of podcast episodes and today's guest seems to have done just that. Since retiring three years ago, Mark Anness has become heavily involved in a charity dear to his heart. In our interview Mark shares the story behind his involvement in Myra's Wells and the inspirational work the charity does building wells for villages in...

With a degree in Classics from  Cambridge University,  Rory Sutherland joined Ogilvy  – one of the biggest global advertising agencies –  as a graduate trainee in 1988. He worked as a copywriter and creative director for over 20 years, then became  UK  Vice Chairman in  2005 .   He is one of the most influential advertising professionals in the world today.   As an expert in Behavioural Economics,...

Our wonderful next door neighbour, Peggy, is 91 years young. She joins me to share the experiences of her long life that have influenced how she lives today, in the second episode of our series about Longevity and Retirement. Peggy grew up on a farm, started work before turning 15 and married young. As a fitness fan, Peggy shares how keeping moving has helped her stay fit and well. She still does...

As life expectancies have increased, conceptions of retirement have evolved.  With many people likely to live for twenty to thirty years beyond State Pension age (SPa), retirement is no longer simply a period of winding down at the end of your life. This shift has led more people to question what retirement is all about, whether they want to or can afford to retire, and if they do, how they want t...