High Anxiety Pod

Broadcaster Richard Bacon catches up with us from his home in LA as he relaxes in what seems to be a rather nice situation for isolation.

He talks us through his stella street of famous neighbours and recounts how only 18 months ago he was in a medically induced coma for double pneumonia. Throughout this conversation his son hacks at his newly baked loaf of sourdough.

A typically surreal and genuinely fun podcast with someone that we, at @highanxietypod, are big fans of.

Actress Leslie Ash (Quadrophenia, Men Behaving Badly, Holby City) joins Chris & Leon to talk about how she is dealing with isolation. Having had her fair share of trauma (she was hospitalised and bedridden for 3 months with the superbug MSSA) she is not as anxious as some about her time in lock down.

She gives us a little peek into her life with footballer Lee Chapman as she tells us that she misses the pub the most, has resorted to cutting Lee's hair and enjoys the weekends with a couple of bottles of Merlot.

She is also setting up a business that helps new authors get their worked aired as well as making charitable donations to out of work actors and the NHS. 

An all round British Icon and good egg.

Stand up comic, author and screen writer, the brilliant Shappi Khorsandi joins Chris & Leon for a lovely blather in what is approaching the end of the second month of lockdown.

We talk about the trials of looking after kids as a single mum, how the tiniest of things can cause emotional breakdowns and how the sense of community has grown stronger as the lockdown progresses.

Shappi reveals what it was like to be photographed by David Bailey as well as opening up about her creative choices, her frustrations with stand up and the draw she feels to writing.

Made In Chelsea star, Candy Kittens business owner, TV presenter and all round top bloke, Jamie joins Chris & Leon on a phone call from his mum's house in the Cotswolds.

Holed up with is Mum and his girlfriend, Jamie shares what life in isolation is like for him. There is some revealing insight into the pressures of fame and how this time can sometimes be pause for rest and recuperation as well as to reconsider life's priorities.. There is also some less revealing insight when Jamie tells us how he shat his pants on the way back from the supermarket.

Jamie's Isolation Accents definitely aren't the worst on record but they're certainly the funniest.

We only went and got top class actor Stephen Graham (Snatch, Boardwalk Empire, The Irishman, Gangs Of New York, The Virtues).

Isolating at home with his wife and kids, he admits that after a gruelling few years of success and being away form home, he is valuing the time with his family.

From letting his son cut his hair to meditation and his love for Liverpool FC, Stephen talks about his home life as well as touching upon some of his work.

His Mind Yer Coronas is first class and his Isolation accents are... well.. just listen.

Chris lets slip that he is learning the theremin... look it up.

For this episode of the Corona Special High Anxiety Pods we welcome photographer, magazine owner and cultural icon Rankin.

Holed up in his home in the Suffolk, Rankin tells us what it's like for a creative that NEEDS to take photos of people and not being able to do that. He explains the guilt of feeling helpless in the current climate as well as his worries about how his business will survive the pandemic.

There are also some top drawer laughs on the way as he falls at the first fence when it comes to Isolation Accents... If you don't believe how bad someone can be at accents just take a listen.

Chris & Leon chat to writer, actor and comedian Isy Suttie about how she is dealing with her isolation madness, re-drafting her new novel, reading in the bath, boiling eggs, childcare and some truly exception accents... as well as some proper crap ones.

We cover collective acts of communal kindness and comedy Corona Virus songs as well as some book recommendations.

Leon tells Chris off for taking too long in the loo.

Leon & Chris chat to singer songwriter David Ford. With seven albums penned in the last 15 years he is man that values craft over commercial and music over business. Having been voted 'Album Of the Year' twice in the Sunday Times and Word Magazine, the Guardian called him 'one of  Britain's best.'

We catch up with him as in isolation at home with his wife and young daughter. He freely admits that his life in isolation is not unusual. He spends most of his time writing music alone and has shunned conventional ways of making and releasing his work.

We talk about how he views modern music, writing for one of the world's biggest artists, over coming his demons and some good old fashioned Mind Yer Coronas.

With a mixture of chat as well as some of his most loved tracks this is the point where Chris and Leon think they are DJs.

Chris & Leon call on the legendary Rich Hall to see how he is dealing with isolation, and you guessed it... he's not over the moon or overly concerned (even though his wife has the virus.) We find out that he is home schooling the kids with lessons in basketball and US legal history and he is absolutely horrific at regional accents. Truly awful. He also has a solution for how to prevent further pandemics. 

In other news, Leon has cut his own hair and Chris karate kicks pedestrian crossing buttons.

If High Anxiety had a home it would be during a world pandemic. Welcome to our home, take your shoes off, don't touch us and have a listen.

Jumping on the isolation bandwagon, Chris & Leon spark up some transatlantic chats and phone some of our previous guests, seeing as everyone has a bit of time on their hands.

This episode we phone in to the Ranganathan household as Romesh tells us about his cancelled tour, the pressure of isolation on his marriage as some career ending efforts at regional accents.

WARNING: the sound is dodgy at best (in places) because 1. We don't know what we're doing. 2. We're completely under prepared.