In this Father’s Day episode special I am speaking to theatre legend, Thelma Holt.

At 89 years old, Thelma is an encyclopaedia of stories and anecdotes, and, coupled with a fascinating life and career, she really is the dream guest for any podcast - so, I was delighted to hear we both lost our father’s at the same ripe old age of 7, and I could get her onto mine.

Thelma, a graduate of RADA and co-founder of the Open Space Theatre, became director of the Roundhouse in 1976 before joining Peter Hall at the National Theatre as commercial producer. In 1987 she received the Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement for her international work at the National. She received a second Olivier Special Recognition Award in 2020.  

After leaving the NT, for Peter Hall she produced Orpheus Descending with Vanessa Redgrave and The Merchant of Venice with Dustin Hoffman in London and New York. Her inaugural production as an independent producer was Three Sisters with Vanessa Redgrave, Lynn Redgrave and Jemma Redgrave. Subsequent productions include Tango at the End of Winter (directed by Yukio Ninagawa) and Hamlet both with Alan Rickman in the leading role, A Doll's House with Janet McTeer, which won four Tony Awards, The Clandestine Marriage with Nigel Hawthorne and Kean with Antony Sher.

 

She represented the Cameron Mackintosh Drama Fund at Oxford University for 20 years, is an Emeritus Fellow of St Catherine's College and became a Distinguished Friend of Oxford in 2006. She was delighted that Cameron Mackintosh named a bar at the Noel Coward Theatre as a tribute to her in 2019. 

As Associate Producer for the RSC she has, with HoriPro Inc, toured Japan with the RSC's productions of Othello and A Midsummer Night's Dream. She co-produced in the West End the RSC's five Jacobean plays, The Taming of the Shrew and Tamer Tamed, All's Well That Ends Well, The Crucible, The Canterbury Tales, Imperium, Don Quixote and most recently Kunene and the King. In Japan she co-produced with Horipro Inc. The Merchant of Venice and Anjin – The English Samurai, both directed by Gregory Doran.

Thelma was producer for all of Yukio Ninagawa’s productions that were performed in the UK for a period of 30 years, including his final memorial production of Macbeth at the Barbican in 2017. In recognition of her promotion of Japanese theatre, she was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun by the Emperor of Japan.

This bio merely scrapes the surface of Thelma’s life and achievements - as does this episode - due to the fact that, as Thelma puts so brilliantly towards the end of the episode, ‘life is a hell of a lot of fun’. And fun she has had.

I feel very lucky to have Thelma Holt on Daddy Issues Podcast.

I hope you have a fabulous listen.

*

To get your hands on our INCREDIBLE sponsors ChicP hummus, use this link: https://www.chicp.co.uk/, and don’t forget to use the code ‘daddyissues’ at the check out to receive your 15% off.

Find them on instagram at @chicpfood

*

If you like what you hear, it would be so appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe as we love hearing your thoughts and feedback, and it helps get the podcast to reach more ears.

*

Created | Hosted | Produced by Angharad George-Carey

Mastered and Compressed | by Worgie Productions @worgiebeats

Music | by Julietta @julietta.lunarose

*

Social Media:

Angharad George-Carey @angharadgeorgecarey

Daddy Issues Podcast @thedaddyissuespodcast

*

If you'd like to seek guidance and support for any issues raised in the episodes there are three websites we would recommend depending on your individual needs:

www.juliasamuel.co.uk JULIA SAMUEL

www.blackmindsmatteruk.com BLACK MINDS MATTER

www.griefuntangled.com GREIF UNTANGLED

www.thecalmzone.net CALM

*

We love hearing from you! To contact us, email [email protected]

In this Father’s Day episode special I am speaking to theatre legend, Thelma Holt.

At 89 years old, Thelma is an encyclopaedia of stories and anecdotes, and, coupled with a fascinating life and career, she really is the dream guest for any podcast - so, I was delighted to hear we both lost our father’s at the same ripe old age of 7, and I could get her onto mine.

Thelma, a graduate of RADA and co-founder of the Open Space Theatre, became director of the Roundhouse in 1976 before joining Peter Hall at the National Theatre as commercial producer. In 1987 she received the Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement for her international work at the National. She received a second Olivier Special Recognition Award in 2020.  

After leaving the NT, for Peter Hall she produced Orpheus Descending with Vanessa Redgrave and The Merchant of Venice with Dustin Hoffman in London and New York. Her inaugural production as an independent producer was Three Sisters with Vanessa Redgrave, Lynn Redgrave and Jemma Redgrave. Subsequent productions include Tango at the End of Winter (directed by Yukio Ninagawa) and Hamlet both with Alan Rickman in the leading role, A Doll's House with Janet McTeer, which won four Tony Awards, The Clandestine Marriage with Nigel Hawthorne and Kean with Antony Sher.

 

She represented the Cameron Mackintosh Drama Fund at Oxford University for 20 years, is an Emeritus Fellow of St Catherine's College and became a Distinguished Friend of Oxford in 2006. She was delighted that Cameron Mackintosh named a bar at the Noel Coward Theatre as a tribute to her in 2019. 

As Associate Producer for the RSC she has, with HoriPro Inc, toured Japan with the RSC's productions of Othello and A Midsummer Night's Dream. She co-produced in the West End the RSC's five Jacobean plays, The Taming of the Shrew and Tamer Tamed, All's Well That Ends Well, The Crucible, The Canterbury Tales, Imperium, Don Quixote and most recently Kunene and the King. In Japan she co-produced with Horipro Inc. The Merchant of Venice and Anjin – The English Samurai, both directed by Gregory Doran.

Thelma was producer for all of Yukio Ninagawa’s productions that were performed in the UK for a period of 30 years, including his final memorial production of Macbeth at the Barbican in 2017. In recognition of her promotion of Japanese theatre, she was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun by the Emperor of Japan.

This bio merely scrapes the surface of Thelma’s life and achievements - as does this episode - due to the fact that, as Thelma puts so brilliantly towards the end of the episode, ‘life is a hell of a lot of fun’. And fun she has had.

I feel very lucky to have Thelma Holt on Daddy Issues Podcast.

I hope you have a fabulous listen.

*

To get your hands on our INCREDIBLE sponsors ChicP hummus, use this link: https://www.chicp.co.uk/, and don’t forget to use the code ‘daddyissues’ at the check out to receive your 15% off.

Find them on instagram at @chicpfood

*

If you like what you hear, it would be so appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe as we love hearing your thoughts and feedback, and it helps get the podcast to reach more ears.

*

Created | Hosted | Produced by Angharad George-Carey

Mastered and Compressed | by Worgie Productions @worgiebeats

Music | by Julietta @julietta.lunarose

*

Social Media:

Angharad George-Carey @angharadgeorgecarey

Daddy Issues Podcast @thedaddyissuespodcast

*

If you'd like to seek guidance and support for any issues raised in the episodes there are three websites we would recommend depending on your individual needs:

www.juliasamuel.co.uk JULIA SAMUEL

www.blackmindsmatteruk.com BLACK MINDS MATTER

www.griefuntangled.com GREIF UNTANGLED

www.thecalmzone.net CALM

*

We love hearing from you! To contact us, email [email protected]

❤ ❤ Hello one and all ❤ ❤

Firstly - Merry Christmas! I hope it’s been as cosy and indulgent as possible during this year of the apocalypse.

So, the time seems to have come where I tell my own story of fatherlessness. I must admit, it’s little nerve-wracking, but I’m sticking to Theme 2020 of just going with it and hoping for the best. Yikes.

Thank you to my amazing friend, Harry Bell, who not only gave me the gentle prod to do it, but also navigated and steered the interview like the true pro he, or I, had no idea he was. (Contact me for bookings).

Harry also didn’t know that my father had died at 4am on the 27th of December, 1998, so the whole thing was quite oddly serendipitous.

I hope you enjoy this episode. Or, at least, get something out of it. Without getting too cheesy on you, we really are all in this mad world together, and although it will rarely show itself immediately, there is always light at the end of the tunnel. Promise.

Thank you everyone who has tuned into Season 2. We are, dare I say it, wrapped for the year. ‘Ummm, what year....?’

But we got there…I think. Thank goodness.

See you in 2021.

Lots of love,

Angharad xxx

*

If you like what you hear, it would be so appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe as we love hearing your thoughts and feedback, and it helps get the podcast to reach more ears.

*

Created | Hosted | Produced by Angharad George-Carey

Mastered and Compressed | by Worgie Productions @worgiebeats

Music | by Julietta @julietta.lunarose

*

Social Media:

Angharad George-Carey @angharadgeorgecarey

Daddy Issues Podcast @thedaddyissuespodcast

Harry Bell @harry_bell1

(he’s got a private account, but try him anyway, he’ll love it).

*

If you'd like to seek guidance and support for any issues raised in the episodes there are three websites we would recommend depending on your individual needs:

www.juliasamuel.co.uk JULIA SAMUEL

www.blackmindsmatteruk.com BLACK MINDS MATTER

www.griefuntangled.com GREIF UNTANGLED

www.thecalmzone.net CALM

*

We love hearing from you! To contact us, email [email protected]

In today’s episode I am speaking to Candy Warhol.

Born and raised in Cork, Candy has been one of Ireland's leading drag acts for a decade and is a descendant of Irish drag royalty Danny La Rue. Making her mark in the UK, Candy is currently the host of Dragony Aunts - The Series and Dragony Aunts - The Podcast, both on Comedy Central UK.

She is also the host and producer of Friends Of Dorothy podcast which is currently climbing the charts worldwide and boasts a glittering lineup that includes Rose McGowan, Sandra Bernhard, The Veronicas and the an array of Drag Race winners. 

In 2019 Candy was selected by the Irish embassy in Poland to lead a parade of 50,000 at Warsaw Pride and later appeared in Vogue Poland.

Candy and I had the most wonderful, moving and insightful conversation about what it was like for her growing up in Ireland struggling with her sexuality, school and family expectations, who had rarely been exposed to the struggles Candy was having to try and overcome and navigate.

An incredible story of overcoming adversity and coming out the other side stronger, and full of love and understanding for those who were part of that very struggle.

We love you, Candy. Happy listening!

And MERRY CHRISTMAS!

*

If you liked to claim for first free box of organic tampons and pads from our episodes collaborators, Ohne, as well as some other Ohne goods, here is the link: https://ohne.com/?rfsn=4866435.6a8fd7

*

If you like what you hear, it would be so appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe as we love hearing your thoughts and feedback, and it helps get the podcast to reach more ears.

*

Created | Hosted | Produced by Angharad George-Carey

Mastered and Compressed | by Worgie Productions

Music | by Julietta

*

Social Media:

Angharad George-Carey @angharadgeorgecarey

Daddy Issues Podcast @thedaddyissuespodcast

Candy Warhol @candywarholqueen

*

If you'd like to seek guidance and support for any issues raised in the episodes there are three websites we would recommend depending on your individual needs:

www.juliasamuel.co.uk JULIA SAMUEL

www.blackmindsmatteruk.com BLACK MINDS MATTER

www.griefuntangled.com GREIF UNTANGLED

www.thecalmzone.net CALM

*

We love hearing from you! To contact us, email [email protected]

In today’s episode I am speaking to Caroline Calloway.

Caroline is an American instagram personality and blogger. Having been savvy enough to see the opportunity instagram presented much before the rest of us, she began building an audience all the way in 2012, finding that if she presented herself with a certain type of lifestyle of travel, adventure, fashion and art, her following would only continue to grow.

Upon gaining a place at Cambridge University to study History of Art in 2013, her insta-fame rose vastly, as she blogged devotedly about her student-hood in one of the world's most notorious universities, her captions containing depictions of the Cambridge campus and confessional accounts about her romantic life.

Her posts turned - as she’d hoped they would - into fulfilling her dream of being a writer, and she gained an extremely impressive book deal with American publishers, Flatiron Books, where she was to write a memoir entitled ‘And We Were Like’. The book was supposed to be similar to her Instagram posts: A memoir about her life at Cambridge and the relationships she had with different men. However, the memoir was never to be completed, as not only was Caroline battling with a drug addiction to Adderall, but she had also fallen out of love with her memoirs protagonist, telling Man Repeller in 2018, ‘"I promised a memoir where the only thing that happened to me were boyfriends and where the climax of my entire life experience to date was boy-related. It wasn't long before I realised the boy-obsessed version of myself I planned to depict as my memoir's protagonist was not one I could stand behind."

I first came to know Caroline upon reading her once-upon-a-time best friend, Natalie Beach’s’ ‘tell-it-all’ article entitled, ‘I Was Caroline Calloway: Seven years after I met the infamous Instagram star, I’m ready to tell my side of the story’. Upon reading this, I felt drawn to better understand who Caroline was. Within seconds I found an article which had been published just 17 days later on September 27th, 2019, by The Atlantic, where Caitlin Flanagan writes about Caroline’s difficult and strained relationship she’d had with her father growing up, who’d been found, tragically, dead in his home, just two days after the publication of Beach’s article. Caroline wrote a heart wrenching post which read ‘Today I found out that my Dad died by suicide. It was a probable suicide before, but now we’re sure.’

We cover a LOT. From daddy issues (obvs), to suicide, to social media, to ex-best friends, to that article in The Cut, to that article in The Atlantic, to mental health, to childhood trauma, to growing up, to other dads, to self-awareness, to podcasts that you’ve never heard of but are still being interviewed on anyway.

*

If you liked to claim for first free box of organic tampons and pads from our episodes collaborators, Ohne, as well as some other Ohne goods, here is the link: https://ohne.com/?rfsn=4866435.6a8fd7

*

If you like what you hear, it would be so appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe as we love hearing your thoughts and feedback, and it helps get the podcast to reach more ears.

*

Created | Hosted | Produced by Angharad George-Carey

Mastered and Compressed | by Worgie Productions

Music | by Julietta

*

Social Media:

Angharad George-Carey @angharadgeorgecarey

Daddy Issues Podcast @thedaddyissuespodcast

Caroline Calloway @carolinecalloway

*

Caroline’s website: www.iamcarolinecalloway.com

*

If you'd like to seek guidance and support for any issues raised in the episodes there are three websites we would recommend depending on your individual needs:

www.juliasamuel.co.uk JULIA SAMUEL MBE

www.blackmindsmatteruk.com BLACK MINDS MATTER

www.griefuntangled.com GREIF UNTANGLED

www.thecalmzone.net CALM

*

We love hearing from you! To contact us, email [email protected]

In this weeks episode I am speaking to Jamie Windust.

Jamie is an award-winning editor, writer, speaker, model, and activist (a true multi-hyphenated-multi-talented Gen Z).

Jamie is an invincible voice for change within the fashion and beauty industries, having modelled for Gucci, LOVE Magazine, and DB Berden, alongside their magazine FRUITCAKE winning Graduate Fashion Week in London, in 2018, which has now been sold in countries all over the world.

Jamie has written for national publications such as Metro UK, The Independent and Gay Times, and in December, 2019, was asked to speak at the 2nd TEDxLondon Womens' event at The Queen Elizabeth Hall. A very important talk to listen to - the link is below.

Excitingly Jamie has recently released their first debut book, In Their Shoes, which on its very first day already shot to the top of the charts.

In this episode Jamie touches on how they had to navigate an identity they weren’t given any example of - coming from a small, rural town - alongside a family who had yet to understand the fluidity of gender beyond societies conformities. Luckily, Jamie managed to start blogging their experiences online and found not only a voice, but also a community of like-minded people, and a place and reassurance of their own identity.

Jamie is a delight of a person, and this episode was a true joy to record....enjoy!

Links:

For Jamie’s TedxLondon: www.youtube.com/watch?v=s-feXLvBscc

For Jamie’s book ‘In Their Shoes’: www.waterstones.com/book/in-their-shoes/jamie-windust/9781787752429

*

If you liked to claim for first free box of organic tampons and pads from our episodes collaborators, Ohne, as well as some other Ohne goods, here is the link: https://ohne.com/?rfsn=4866435.6a8fd7

*

If you like what you hear, it would be so appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe as we love hearing your thoughts and feedback, and it helps get the podcast to reach more ears.

*

Created | Hosted | Produced by Angharad George-Carey

Mastered and Compressed | by Worgie Productions

Music | by Julietta

*

Social Media:

Angharad George-Carey @angharadgeorgecarey

Daddy Issues Podcast @thedaddyissuespodcast

Jamie Windust @jamie_windust

*

If you'd like to seek guidance and support for any issues raised in the episodes there are three websites we would recommend depending on your individual needs:

www.juliasamuel.co.uk JULIA SAMUEL MBE

www.blackmindsmatteruk.com BLACK MINDS MATTER

www.griefuntangled.com GREIF UNTANGLED

www.thecalmzone.net CALM

*

We love hearing from you! To contact us, email [email protected]

In this weeks episode I am speaking to the wonderful Billie JD Porter.

Billie is a journalist and filmmaker from London, who has traveled the world reporting and authoring documentaries for the likes of the BBC, Channel4 and Vice. As a writer, she contributes to a number of worldwide publications, covering music, politics and everything in between. Billie currently lives in Los Angeles, where she is working on her debut feature documentary.

I have been a fan of Billie’s since we were both teens, and so whilst I was working out what topics to bring up when I saw the boy I fancied to insure no awkward silences could ever be felt (which I am not saying isn’t valid for a 15 year old…)she was cracking on making epic documentaries that were bettering the world. I’d watch in awe as this fellow peer of mine would investigate all sorts of fascinating subject matters with a confidence, articulacy and directness I aspired to possess myself one day.

Just over a decade later we met in LA and our mutual friend mentioned that the podcast I run was relevant to Billie’s own experiences with her parents - and so, we got talking. Six moths and a whole COVID-19 cycle later after that, we’re recording from my room in London. and Billie's room in LA.

Billie is a child of two parents who were addicts, and as an only child, learnt to be independent - not out of expectation or example - but out of total necessity. Billie speaks about her life experiences with the same authenticity and direct honesty that she’s done throughout all her work, and it was a total privilege to hear her tell this part of her story.

******

If you liked to claim for first free box of organic tampons and pads from our episodes collaborators, Ohne, as well as some other Ohne goods, here is the link: https://ohne.com/?rfsn=4866435.6a8fd7

*

If you like what you hear, it would be so appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe as we love hearing your thoughts and feedback, and it helps get the podcast to reach more ears.

*

Created | Hosted | Produced by Angharad George-Carey

Mastered and Compressed | by Worgie Productions

Music | by Julietta

*

Social Media:

Angharad George-Carey @angharadgeorgecarey

Daddy Issues Podcast @thedaddyissuespodcast

Billie JD Porter @billiejdporter

Ohne @im_ohne

*

If you'd like to seek guidance and support for any issues raised in the episodes there are three websites we would recommend depending on your individual needs:

www.juliasamuel.co.uk JULIA SAMUEL MBE

www.blackmindsmatteruk.com BLACK MINDS MATTER

www.griefuntangled.com GREIF UNTANGLED

www.thecalmzone.net CALM

*

We love hearing from you! To contact us, email [email protected]

In this weeks episode I am speaking with Bertie Gilbert.

Bertie is a writer and director based in London. He serves as a pioneer for a new wave of young filmmakers, and was recently classified as one of the 'Five New Wes Andersons' by Dazed. In 2016 he was also part of the Dazed 100, a 'definitive list of creatives shaping youth culture'.

Bertie played my husband - and I his wife - for a web series in 2017, and so it was just lovely to see and speak to him all these years later about something we'd had no idea was a real common thread of familiarity and experience between us.

Bertie's father, journalist Chris Gilbert, died of a brain tumour when Bertie was just 7. He has since been trying to not only navigate and seek his own sense of masculinity - and thus identity - but also, somewhat, society's. Bertie brings forward fascinating insights and perspectives that I was yet to hear, having been doing this podcast for a year, on what it is to be a fatherless son, how it can feel, and how that can manifest itself.

We also speak on grief, finding role models, losing a father/parent at a young age, how a sudden death can result in a need to preserve time, and David Tennant's aftershave.

Having only recently found a language to express how he feels in regards to his father, his death and his absence, it was a true gift to be able to sit with Bertie and both hear and explore his current and reasonably new understanding of it all.

Happy listening!

*

If you like what you hear, it would be so appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe as we love hearing your thoughts and feedback, and it helps get the podcast to reach more ears.

*

Created | Hosted | Produced by Angharad George-Carey

Mastered and Compressed | by Worgie Productions

Music | by Julietta

*

Social Media:

Angharad George-Carey @angharadgeorgecarey

Daddy Issues Podcast @thedaddyissuespodcast

Bertie Gilbert @bertieegilbert

*

If you'd like to seek guidance and support for any issues raised in the episodes there are three websites we would recommend depending on your individual needs:

www.juliasamuel.co.uk JULIA SAMUEL MBE

www.blackmindsmatteruk.com BLACK MINDS MATTER

www.griefuntangled.com GREIF UNTANGLED

www.thecalmzone.net CALM

*

We love hearing from you! To contact us, email [email protected]

In this weeks episode I am speaking to Reggie Nelson.

I first heard of Reggie Nelson when a friend started harassing my phone to get me to stop whatever I was doing and turn on Radio 4. It was broadcasting an interview with Reggie where he’d been asked to appear on Four Thought to speak about his extraordinary life transformation, which led him to gain one of the most senior members of investment management company, BlackRock, as a mentor, become Whatsapp pals with Theresa May, and host his own podcast for the BBC. It didn’t take me long to completely stop all I was doing, and just listen, transfixed.

Not only was I hearing a beautiful piece of spoken word - which is how Reggie chose to deliver his story - but I also was in complete awe of this man’s story of survival, strength, resilience, determination and faith. He'd grown up with an absent father due to both alcoholism and separation, with his father’s death eventually acting as the catalyst that pushed him to make the changes that he did, and become who he is today. I needed to get him on Daddy Issues.

I found him on Twitter, emailed him, and waited. Weeks later an email popped into my inbox with the green light, and weeks after that, we recorded this wonderful episode.

I am SO in awe of this man, and can’t wait to watch him continue to flourish and change, in his own words, ‘as many other lives as possible’ whilst doing so.

Happy listening!

In this weeks episode I am speaking sisters, Emma and Tamsin Topolski.

Having been given a maximum of 5 years after his diagnosis of Leukaemia, their father, journalist and rower Daniel Topolski, proceeded to live for another 17 years. Although they knew their father was ill, having lived with this illness for most of their life, the idea of him being ‘ill’ had perhaps somewhat subsided.

Emma (musically known as Saint Clair) recognising her fathers quite sudden decline in weight and spirit, started writing her experience of grief through lyrics and song, and eventually, and after her father had passed, curated a 4-part musical series, each chapter (or, song) representing a different stage of her grief. Her sister, Tamsin, being an actor and skilled photographer was then chosen by Emma to come onboard and help her lift these songs into their visual life. The result is an absolutely beautiful tribute to their father entitled ‘in the violet hour - a portrait on grief’.

This episode was a joy to record, and much to my delight both girls shared in my dark and twisted humour, making it, at times, also wonderfully inappropriate.

It was also fascinating for me as, being from a large family, I understand the very nuanced and separate experiences siblings can have from the same experience of death within their grief, and here were two siblings not only experiencing that, but then coming together because of that, to create something about that.

To find Saint Clair’s Youtube page and watch the first chapter of their amazing collaboration, use this link: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fs49MDXGb2U

*

If you like what you hear, it would be so appreciated if you could rate, review and subscribe as we love hearing your thoughts and feedback, and it helps get the podcast to reach more ears.

*

Created | Hosted | Produced by Angharad George-Carey

Mastered and Compressed | by Worgie Productions

Music | by Julietta

*

Social Media:

Angharad George-Carey @angharadgeorgecarey

Daddy Issues Podcast @thedaddyissuespodcast

Emma Topolski @iamsaintclair

Tamsin Topolski @tam.topolski

*

If you'd like to seek guidance and support for any issues raised in the episodes there are three websites we would recommend depending on your individual needs:

www.juliasamuel.co.uk JULIA SAMUEL MBE

www.blackmindsmatteruk.com BLACK MINDS MATTER

www.griefuntangled.com GREIF UNTANGLED

www.thecalmzone.net CALM

*

We love hearing from you! To contact us, email [email protected]