Big Fish with Spencer Matthews

Dave Rodney, simply known as California Dave or Sherpa Dave - despite the fact that he's from Canmore in Canada - joins me for this bonus interview on Big Fish. He's one of Canada's most accomplished climbers - and the only Canadian to summit Everest twice - he's a politician, businessman and philanthropist, but most importantly, he was my brother Michael’s climbing partner on his Everest expedition in 1999. Dave was one of the last people to see Mike alive. Their dream was to reach the summit together, but unfortunately fate had other plans. Dave takes me back to the day they reached the top of the world - and Mike became the youngest Briton to reach the summit - and what happened when he realised my brother had not come back down.

Before Bear Grylls climbed mountains, he needed to learn how to climb the stairs again after breaking his back in three places. In this bonus episode he reveals how he built himself back up after catastrophic injury, plus why he was so inspired to produce Spencer's film Finding Michael.

At 21 years old, Tom Grennan shot to fame after appearing on the Chase and Status hit, All Gone Wrong. He's gone on to land a number one album, four UK top 10 singles and sell out a nation-wide tour. But Tom's journey to become one of the UK's most exciting musicians hasn't been a straightforward one. He first caught the eye as a talented footballer but turned down a scholarship in America when he was a teenager.

We talk about Tom's struggle with imposter syndrome and how being attacked and left with a broken jaw, provided the material that would open up his songwriting passion. For Tom, success is about loving and appreciating what you do, but his own competitive nature doesn't allow him to enjoy the successes he's had for long.

This is the first time I've ever interviewed my wife about her incredible career.

Vogue has become one of Ireland’s most sought-after media stars. Since landing her big break, she has presented documentaries and live shows, performed DJ sets for thousands of fans and collaborated with big UK brands like Little Mistress. She also runs a highly successful tanning brand, Bare By Vogue and hosts two chart-topping podcasts, My Therapist Ghosted Me and Spencer & Vogue which are listened to by millions of people every month.

We talk about the importance of being an authentic influencer, how Vogue changed my mind about anxiety and what's been the proudest moment of her career so far.

Jake Humphrey wasn’t born a high performer. In fact, he failed his A levels and was sacked from McDonalds when he was just a teenager. But Jake became determined to make something of himself. He’s gone on to become one of the UK’s best-known sports broadcasters and host of his own hugely successful podcast, High Performance. Jake’s work ethic is incredible. Now at the top of his game, he’s determined to stay there and enjoy every second of it.

He’s on a personal mission to cancel ‘cancel culture’. Piers Morgan is one of the most prominent broadcasters of his generation. After studying journalism, he went to Fleet Street and quickly rose to become one of the youngest newspaper editors in Britain at just 28 years old.

Since then, he’s presented prime time TV programmes in the UK and America and has interviewed some of the biggest names in the world.

With a Twitter following of over 8 million, Piers has made a name for himself with his straight-talking opinions. Love him or hate him, when he talks, people listen.

At 18 years-old, Harry Stebbings started the Twenty Minute VC podcast with fifty dollars and not a single contact in venture capital. He’s the first person to turn a podcast into a multi-million pound fund. Across several vehicles, he’s raised over $400 million. And he’s only 26.

Harry is seriously impressive. If you’re an entrepreneur, you’ll learn exactly what Harry looks for when he invests. But this episode isn’t just for those in business. He’s overcome bulimia and is now sober, and has tonnes of advice for those who want to take their life to the next level.

Would you replace your morning coffee with a cup of mushroom powder?

Andy and Simon Salter think you should. The brothers co-founded Dirtea 18 months in 2021, as part of a movement to make functional mushrooms accessible to the masses. Their business is now the market leader in its field and they’re working to destigmatise and educate people on the health benefits. Thousands of people all over the UK are now drinking their products, which are consumed like tea or coffee, on a daily basis. Dirtea is said to sharpen your focus, strengthen your immune system, improve your sleep and soothe stress, amongst many other benefits.

The co-founders of Dirtea say the health benefits and claims contained in this episode can be supported by research papers found on PubMed and mushroomreference.com, which is a curated list of references relevant to scientists who are curious about the effects of mushrooms.

If you have any further questions, we recommend you speak to your nutritionist or GP.

Please see some links:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18844328/

http://mushroomreferences.com/2019/10/18/the-neuroprotective-effect-of-hericium-erinaceus-extracts-in-mouse-hippocampus-after-pilocarpine-induced-status-epilepticus/

http://mushroomreferences.com/2021/12/20/hericium-erinaceus-mycelium-ameliorate-anxiety-induced-by-continuous-sleep-disturbance-in-vivo/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23510212/

This is the most open, honest and serious conversation I’ve ever had with Jamie.

You might know him as a reality star. But Jamie is a hugely successful entrepreneur. He co-founded Candy Kittens in 2012, the fastest growing confectionary brand in Europe which turns over more than ten million pounds a year.

He’s also the founder of JamPot productions, which produces chart-topping podcasts like Nearly Weds.

We talk about how reality TV fuelled Jamie’s crippling anxiety, whether being on Made in Chelsea helped or hindered the success of Candy Kittens and why achieving success isn’t just about making bucket loads of cash.

Jo Malone’s name is synonymous with luxury, but Jo didn’t grow up with wealth. She was raised on a council estate in South East London and left school without any qualifications. Jo built the luxury fragrance brand Jo Malone London with her husband, Gary, and sold the company in 1999 to Estee Lauder. She left the business a few years later, after she was diagnosed with an aggressive form of breast cancer and was given only 9 months to live. As part of the Lauder deal, she wasn’t allowed to enter the industry for 5 years. Jo felt utterly lost, so she started a new brand, Jo Loves. Jo is so honest in this episode and tells me about the mistakes she made building her second company, after the huge success of the first.