First Time Dads

Rich and Steve spend the first episode of their second series finding out if Rich is ready for his second child, who is due to arrive any day now. The short answer: he really, really isn't. The slightly longer answer: there is no real way any dad can EVER be ready for the madness of dealing with two… and accepting that fact is half the battle For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

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It's been a while, but our dad duo are coming back for more episodes, and better sound and a brand new jingle! We know it's not always been great, but during our break we have only gone and got ourselves an actual studio!


Where have we been? In this quick update episode, we will fill you in on our parenting news, chat shared parental leave and have a slight panic attack when we thought we'd forgot to press record.


And Steve's son Jackson makes his debut on the podcast in the jingle!


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Steve and Rich celebrate reaching episode number 50 by looking back at the best bits of First Time Dads so far. The guys also explain why, with Steve heading off on shared parental leave, this will be the last episode for a while.
But fear not, devoted listeners - First Time Dads will be back soon... For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

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Anyone who thinks it's just the parents who raise a child these days is kidding themselves. For the vast majority of new parents, having a collection of willing grandmas and grandads on hand for advice/babysitting is not just helpful - it's essential.
However, that poses its own challenges. Where and how should grandparents get involved in the actual parenting of a child?
Sir Michael Morpurgo - the 75 year-old grandfather and renowned children's author who wrote War Horse - joins Steve and Rich to see if they can figure out the answer to that notoriously tricky question.
They also discuss just how dramatically the idea of fatherhood has changed since Sir Michael raised his own children and the remarkable lessons Sir Michael has learned from his autistic grandson, the inspiration behind his new book Flamingo Boy. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

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Like many people, Alex Gregory has three kids. Unlike most of them, he also has two Olympic gold medals.
Alex was a rower for 17 years and won his golds at London 2012 and Rio 2016. Now aged 34, he has put down his oar and picked up a pen, to write 'Dadventures' - a book explaining why he thinks being outdoors with your kids is the best thing a dad can do.
Alex joins Steve and Rich to explain how becoming a dad made him a better sportsman - and tell them how you don't need to spend loads of money or time making great memories with your children when you're outdoors. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

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Did previous generations of dads question their parenting skills quite as much as we do? Did fathers in years gone by wonder about the lessons they're teaching their children in the way we do?
In short, do we make our lives WAY more difficult than they need to be?
Author Owen Booth - writer of the brilliant new book What We're Teaching Our Sons - joins Steve and Rich to talk about the unique challenges of being a dad in the 21st century. The guys chat about how you find the balance between trying to be a better man and being, well, just a bloke. They even end up asking if the lack of a world war in our lifetime might have something to do with our generation's different approach to parenting… For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

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Steve and Rich are joined by John Bond, children's book author and illustrator, for a chat about the sacrifices we make as fathers… and why we're happy to make them.
John - whose first book Mini Rabbit: Not Lost is out now - talks about how starting a family saw him go from half of a young hip couple living in a city, to a family man out in the sticks.
And Steve and Rich can definitely relate… For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

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If you haven't already watched There She Goes, the BBC's new comedy-drama, then you REALLY need to get yourself on iPlayer asap.
The show tells the story of a couple doing their best to raise their disabled 12 year-old daughter, who has a chromosomal disorder which leaves her unable to talk and with severe learning difficulties. It is a brilliant, hilarious and frighteningly recognisable portrayal of family life - which is largely thanks to the show being the real-life story of the man who wrote it, Shaun Pye.
In this episode of the podcast, Shaun joins Rich and Steve to talk about the shortage of realistic on-screen dads, explains how he and his wife have learned to cope with their child's disability and offers some fantastic advice to all fathers and fathers-to-be. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

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For any expectant parent, stillbirth is as devastating as it gets. Losing a child more than 24 weeks into a pregnancy means the mother often has to go through the heartbreaking experience of giving birth to their child knowing that they have already died.
And yet… how much do you ACTUALLY know about stillbirth and the horrors these unfortunate parents have to go through? Like Rich and Steve, probably not a lot.
That is why Bruce Wagstaff and Niall Cassidy - two men who have been through the experience - agreed with their partners to appear in new Channel 4 documentary 'Child Of Mine', a harrowing look at the realities of stillbirth (Thursday 18th October at 10pm).
In this episode of the podcast, Bruce and Niall sit down with Rich and Steve to tell their stories, reveal how they coped with their loss and explain why dads need to talk about this taboo tragedy. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

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Parenting is a stressful business - but does it need to be as stressful as we often make it?
The short answer is no, it REALLY doesn't.
In this episode, Steve and Rich talk to James Breakwell, the man behind the phenomenally successful Twitter account @XplodingUnicorn. James now has more then ONE MILLION followers keeping tabs on his posts about being a dad to four young girls in Indianapolis, USA.
And it's James' extremely 'laid back' approach to parenting which has made him so popular that his new book, Bare Minimum Parenting: The Ultimate Guide to Not Quite Ruining Your Child, is set to be a huge hit.
Take a listen to the Skype chat the guys had with James and you will soon see that a) you don't need to worry so much about your parenting b) all dads are essentially narcissists and c) lazy parents rock. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy

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