This Is Powerful With Paul Sculfor

Today we’re joined by Gary the Pipefitter. 45-years old and now nine years sober, Gary was born and raised just outside of London in Harold Hill. Gary grew up convinced he'd never try drugs. Yet once alcohol entered the picture and lowered his inhibitions, he'd ‘try anything’. In this conversation, we talk about quieting then changing the inner narrative, becoming a person who embraces waking up e...

After five years of dipping in and out of a recovery programme, Neil the Brickie finally got sober when he found himself homeless, drunk and a nuisance to everyone around him while living in Spain 20 years ago. The youngest of three children all with different dads, Neil is now a brilliant and engaged father of two. Neil’s simple programme that he follows very regularly keeps him in a healthy, suc...

Welcome back to the show. This episode kicks off season 6, and for the next six episodes we are focusing on mental fitness in Britain’s construction industry. Historically, these working environments are not conducive to men being able to speak openly about mental health or wellbeing and as stats currently stand, construction workers are nearly four times more likely to die by suicide than the nat...

We are about to kick off the sixth season of award-nominated podcast This Is Powerful with Paul Sculfor. If you have been with us before, welcome back! If you are new here, you are very welcome and you have found us at the start of season six, so there are already eighty episodes for you to check out.  For season six, we have something very constructive in store for you. We are focusing on the men...

Over the past year and a half on This is Powerful , we’ve had some brutally honest conversations about addiction, recovery, resilience and about all that comes in between. These kinds of conversations aren’t usually had or heard, but they probably should be. This is a collection of the most powerful clips from our top ten episodes: voices you’ll recognise, stories you can’t forget, and reflections...

Behind the scenes of many addiction treatment support organisations are devoted souls who give their lives and careers in aid of helping families who are struggling with the addiction of a loved one. Today’s guest talks about overcoming shame, setting firm boundaries and the rehab myth within a family setting. Vivienne Evans is the Chief Executive of Adfam, the national organisation for children a...

He knew that what he was doing was wrong but he couldn’t stop until a life-changing incident set his life on a new course. 22-year-old Jack from Dagenham in Essex joins us today. Working in the building maintenance industry, he has over a year's recovery under his belt.  Starting with ketamine use from age 16, then moving through other drugs and alcohol, Jack’s story could have ended in tragedy. T...

Many many young people who have struggled with mental health, disordered eating or addiction have benefited from a guiding hand from our guest today. Alex Blatch initially trained as a Registered Mental Health Nurse and later as a Bereavement Counsellor working in CAMHS, Eating Disorders, Adult Acute and Addiction Services. Over the past 35 years, Alex has worked in and managed a variety of privat...

We have an extraordinary young guest today, a real highlight for our youth and addiction series. Isa got sober as a teenager and is now an inspiring example of how you can turn your life around if you really work a recovery programme. Isa can trace the beginnings of her pattern of addictive behaviour back to unhealthy eating when she was just seven years old. Unhealthy eating led to full-blown add...

Today we welcome Melanie, a young woman working through the stages of recovery after growing up a child of an alcoholic. Melanie always felt different at school and struggled to make friends.  After learning as much as she could about alcohol and having had a spiritual awakening, she is now able to speak about her experiences and share her strength and hope for other young people who are living in...

How do you manage to cut through the silence of a disengaged young man, engaging with those who seem the most disenchanted with the people around them? Today we are pleased to welcome an incredible guy who is doing life-saving work with vulnerable young people, getting them reengaged with school and with the world at large. Tom Paget is the operations lead for Reach Group Community Projects based...

What power does a ten-year-old have in the face of a disease as insidious as alcoholism? We are so privileged to welcome the extraordinary Amelie and her mother, Lucy. Amelie sadly lost her father after a devastating battle with alcoholism when she was just ten years old. After losing her father, Amelie would write letters to him at night before she went to bed. As a result of writing these letter...

We have done something a bit different this time around and we are bringing you a really impactful new set of episodes. Our new season focuses on all of the different ways that addiction can affect young people. Joining us on the show will be some admirable guests who work with young people to support them through trauma, mental health challenges and addictive behaviours. We also feature brave gue...

Today’s guest welcomes the tough times as an opportunity to grow. The tougher, in fact, the better. Ken Rideout is the fastest marathoner in the world over fifty and a former prison guard, Wall Street trader, and opioid addict. His life story has been chronicled in such publications as The New York Times, the Wall Street Journal , and Outside . Since getting sober more than a decade ago, he has wo...

If you or someone you know is struggling with addiction, there are plenty of resources on the Stride Foundation website: https://stridefoundation.com/ Watch all our episodes on YouTube @thisispowerfulwithpaulsculfor  Follow us on social media for more insights, behind-the-scenes moments, and community discussions. Share your thoughts and connect with us @this_ispowerful on Instagram and YouTube. W...

Happy New Year! Bring on 2026. This is a special episode of This Is Powerful. We haven't done a greatest hits episode in a while, and based on what you're telling us, we know a lot of you really enjoy these special episodes. So, as we look forward to another year, we thought it would be good fun to put together a bunch of our favorite nuggets of information and gems of experience that our guests h...

Brandon Block is a name synonymous with dance floors worldwide. A true pioneer of the club scene, he has been an idol of Paul’s for quite some time! Brandon became the first resident DJ on Ibiza’s legendary Space terrace and has been getting parties going worldwide ever since.  With residencies spanning Dubai, Marbella, Hong Kong, and beyond, his energy behind the decks is as infectious as ever bu...

In this holiday special, you’ll hear a practical, no-nonsense toolkit for staying alcohol-free during Christmas and beyond. From setting your intention early and handling awkward offers at the table, to bringing your own drinks, planning an exit strategy, and grounding yourself when things feel overwhelming, this episode is packed with real-world strategies that actually work. Whether you’re newly...

Today we welcome Max and Chris, hosts of the Addicted to Recovery podcast. Reaching more than 20,000 listeners each month, the Addicted to Recovery podcast blends honesty, humor, and heart, diving into real-life stories of growth, resilience, and redemption. Christopher White is a 37-year-old podcaster and proud family man who’s been clean for five years through Narcotics Anonymous. With a backgro...

A former foreign correspondent and political journalist for the news agency Reuters, she reported from the Houses of Parliament and travelled the world with prime ministers but all the while she was binge eating, binge drinking, compulsively exercising and hurting herself and others in dysfunctional relationships.  Today’s guest Katherine Baldwin is a trauma-informed love, dating and relationship...

From professional actor, through extraordinary personal growth, to ordained Buddhist priest, his service to others kept focus on his sobriety.  Tom Ratcliffe was born in London and trained at the Central School of Speech and Drama. His early life followed the familiar arc of a working actor, but then his encounter with legendary American acting teacher Sanford Meisner in the early ‘90s not only re...

‘ Hemingway was a drunk and we love that about him. He also put a shotgun in his mouth and ended his life, but somehow we leave that part out of it.’  In this frank and often funny conversation about getting sober and rediscovering your creativity, internationally known theater director, writer, and Artistic Director Sean Daniels challenges the myth that we often have to suffer in order to make gr...

Andy grew up an only child, set up a property business at 21 and became a proud and very happy dad at 30. Over time, however, things became difficult. One daughter stopped attending school and disappeared from his life for some time while he became the sole-full time parent to his younger daughter. He later discovered that his daughters’ mother (his ex) had developed severe bipolar disorder and a...

To fight an illness as powerful as addiction, he knows what’s needed: strong ammo and likeminded people who have felt the pain and have seen the dark side. Mark Dempster, published author and highly successful Harley Street practice counsellor with over 28 years of sobriety. Mark’s life started in Glasgow with an alcoholic father and a mother who worked long hours, leaving him to seek escape in al...

She is one of the UK’s foremost voices on sex and pornography addiction. A Sexual and Relationship Psychotherapist with over three decades of experience, Dr Paula Hall has spent the last twenty years at the forefront of helping individuals, partners, and couples navigate the mysterious world of compulsive sexual behaviours. Dr Hall is the Founder and Clinical Director of The Laurel Centre, the UK’...