On this week’s episode, we’re joined by Rosie O’Donnell, who opens up about building a life that finally feels like her own - from leaving America for Ireland, to raising a teenager in her 60s, and redefining what really matters.

It’s never just about getting older, it’s about what you carry with you. Rosie reflects on losing her mother at a young age, how that shaped her drive, and why every birthday now feels like “extended play.” There’s honesty, humour, and a refreshing refusal to pretend that life or fame has all the answers.

Whether you’re questioning what success looks like now, juggling family in a different season of life, or quietly wondering if you’re allowed to want something simpler, this one hits home. Because no one tells you that peace can sometimes mean stepping away, not pushing harder.

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected]

Rosie brings her acclaimed show Common Knowledge to the Glasgow Comedy Festival, appearing at the King’s Theatre for her Glasgow debut on 26 March

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On this week’s Midweek Catchup, we’re coming to you from a Glasgow hospital waiting area — because life doesn’t pause neatly for podcasts, does it? Between tests, tetchy staff, smuggled snacks and rearranged furniture, we chat Mother’s Day highs, birthday surprises (including tap-dancing ambitions), and the strange domestic dilemmas that somehow follow you even into hospital — from rogue garden branches to whether a beloved scooter or baby grand piano defines your legacy.

Whether you’re juggling health worries, family chaos, or simply wondering how your life became a series of oddly specific decisions no one prepared you for, this one’s a reminder that it’s never just about the big things — it’s the absurd, funny, human bits in between that keep you going. Because no one tells you that later life can feel both deeply serious and utterly ridiculous at the same time.

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected].

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On this week’s episode, we’re joined by Sheila Nollert, who decided that turning 65 was exactly the moment to do something many people said she shouldn’t.

After retiring from her job with the Ontario government, Sheila found herself searching for purpose and wondering who she was without work. Then a chance sighting of a woman paddling alone into the Canadian wilderness sparked an idea she couldn’t shake: could she do that too?

Four years later, she pushed off in a canoe and spent four days navigating remote lakes completely alone, carrying her own gear, setting up camp in bear country and confronting both the physical challenge and the mental battle of being out there by herself.

We talk about the quiet ways ageism shows up once you reach your sixties, the doubts other people project onto you, and the bigger question beneath it all: when did we start telling ourselves it’s too late to try something new?

Because no one tells you that some of the most meaningful moments of your life might still be ahead - if you’re brave enough to go looking for them.

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected]

You can find Sheila on Instagram at @sheilanollert and read more about her book No Expiry: A Woman Fights Fear and Ageism and Takes on the Wilderness.

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On this week’s Midweek Catchup, Kaye and Karen chat about the things that creep up on you in midlife — from unstoppable snacking (hello oatcakes and popcorn) to the strange habits we develop when the afternoons get a bit too quiet.

But it’s never just about food. Kaye also talks about navigating an unexpected change with the BBC, the wave of support she’s received, and why she’s turned to journaling to make sense of it all. Because sometimes writing things down is the only way to clear your head when life throws something completely off-script.

There are also coughing husbands, mysterious nose-whistling, and a slightly chaotic hunt for logs for the fire — just another normal week.

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week’s episode, we’re joined by Daisy Goodwin, novelist, screenwriter and creator of Victoria, who joins Kaye and Karen for a candid conversation about anxiety, ambition and what life really feels like in your 60s.

Daisy has spent decades creating powerful stories about women, but in this conversation she turns the lens on herself. From a childhood shaped by her mother leaving when she was five to building a prolific creative career, she explains how what’s now called “high-functioning anxiety” became both her challenge and her driving force.

The three discuss the strange mismatch between outward success and inner self-doubt, why many women never feel quite as confident as they appear, and how getting older can bring a surprising kind of freedom. Daisy describes this stage of life as a “second adolescence”, a time when children have grown up, routines loosen and curiosity returns.

They also talk honestly about breast cancer, creative insecurity, the pressure success can place on children, and the relief of learning to be a little less hard on yourself.

Whether you’re rediscovering independence, questioning the stories you tell yourself, or simply wondering if anyone else still feels like a teenager inside, this episode is a reminder that reinvention doesn’t stop at 60.

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected].

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On this week’s Midweek Catchup, we unpick the drama that gripped absolutely no one but us… Loggate. Yes, the missing firewood, the woodyard showdown, and why sometimes it’s never just about the logs.

But alongside the axe-wielding determination (don’t ask), things take a more tender turn. A bruised neck after a thyroid biopsy. That familiar spiral when you’re waiting on results. The strange competitiveness of “who’s got the better medical story” when you’re both trying to stay upbeat.

We talk regrowth — hair, eyebrows, underarms — and the small, defiant joys of spring. A two-year-old’s birthday party with dumper trucks instead of pink plastic. Teenage daughters who quietly prop you up when life wobbles. An ageing dog who can’t hear you calling but still makes you laugh.

Whether you’re juggling health scares, family shifts, or just the price of gas, this one’s about holding it together — badly, bravely and with humour.

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected].

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On this week’s episode, we’re joined by Suzi Quatro, who at 75 is still doing exactly what she loves ... releasing new music and heading back out on tour.

Suzi talks about the determination that drove her from a big Detroit family onto the world stage, why she’s never seen age as a barrier, and how finding your own voice can shape an entire life. It’s never just about success - we also talk about family tensions, heartbreak, divorce and the difficult choices that come with staying true to yourself.

Whether you’re feeling confident about getting older or quietly wondering what comes next, Suzi’s story is a reminder that reinvention doesn’t stop at 60, and that freedom can come from finally being comfortable in your own skin.

We also hear about her brand new album Freedom, a return to her original rock roots, and her upcoming UK tour this spring, including dates across the country and a final show at the London Palladium. Find out more about both at suziquatro.com

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected]

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On this week's Midweek Catchup, we need to warn you. The first ten minutes involve Karen, a stomach bug, and a decision no woman should have to make between a toilet and a sink at speed. Stephen was downstairs on Duolingo. He did not come up.

From there it's Kaye's renovation nightmare (seven and a half grand for a gas pipe, just the pipe), the lost ring saga taking a beautifully unhinged turn thanks to a listener called Tracy and a sewing needle, and Kaye forcing Ian to turn the car around because she forgot her lucky mandarin. He didn't say a word. Keeper.

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected].

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On this week's episode, we're joined by Olympic gold medallist and all-round legend Sally Gunnell, who, just months out from her 60th birthday, is proving that the woman who once held every major athletics title simultaneously has absolutely no intention of slowing down now.

Sally opens up about what it really feels like to approach 60 when your body has been your career, your identity, and your instrument. She talks candidly about the strange grief of losing elite fitness, why pregnancy was actually a smoother transition than retirement, and how she learnt, slowly, honestly, to stop being the centre of her own universe. Spoiler: it took a few years and three boys.

We get into the messy, relatable stuff too: the menopause weight that won't budge no matter how many walks you take, the confidence that quietly disappears, and why Sally's online programme Life's Hurdle was born from exactly that frustration. Because whether you were a world record holder or just trying to get round the Great North Run, the struggle at this stage of life turns out to be remarkably similar.

Sally's outlook, control the controllables, live in the now, look forward not back, is either deeply inspiring or mildly infuriating depending on your relationship with catastrophising.

It's never just about fitness. It's about who you are when the thing that defined you has changed and how you build something new, stronger, and honestly more fun.

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected].

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On this week’s Midweek Catchup, we wander cheerfully off-piste — from the unexpected thrill of blue duck eggs and medication-induced hunger, to Valentine’s gestures that don’t quite go to plan. But it’s never just about the small stuff.

Kay opens up about losing her mum’s ring and why it’s shaken her more than she expected, sharing listener stories that prove lost things have a habit of turning up when you least expect them. Along the way, we get into inherited superstitions, magpies, lucky mandarins, and the strange rituals we lean on when life feels a bit wobbly.

Whether you’re fiercely practical or quietly superstitious, this one’s about memory, meaning, and why objects — and habits — can carry far more weight than they should. Because no one tells you how emotional the “little things” can become as you get older.

Get in touch with your thoughts at [email protected]

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