How To Own The Room

How do you regain your confidence? Viv talks to the author, TV presenter, social media influencer and founder of fashion line Joanie, Dawn O'Porter, on finding your voice again. Dawn, who lives in LA with her husband the actor Chris O'Dowd and their two children, tells Viv with frank honesty about a dark time in her life when her TV career nosedived, how she lost her confidence and eventually wrote her way out of it. She shares her tips about holding onto self-worth when things aren't going the way you want them to. She urges listeners to give themselves credit for the things that are going right – a relationship, friendships, children, work - rather than obsessing over what is going wrong. Her advice for owning the room is cut yourself some slack and allow yourself to draw strength from what is good. And be prepared to take a different direction if the one you planned has taken you out of the room entirely. As she tells Viv, the path doesn't go in one direction and you may own and lose and own the room again.

Find out more about Dawn O'Porter's latest novel, Cat Lady.

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

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How can we thrive wearing many hats? Viv talks to the author and co-founder and President of the Women's Equality Party, Catherine Mayer, about shifting emphasis to achieve greatest effect. Catherine shares how having an awareness of your audience and the room you're in can make it a good experience for you and boost your voice within it. Catherine reveals that while she makes calculations about where to pitch her arguments, they all stay true to her beliefs. Catherine lost her husband, the musician, Andy Gill - a founding member of Gang of Four - in 2020 to suspected Covid-19 and she tells Viv how she's navigated grief over the last two years. Their interview is recorded at the Primadonna Festival, which was founded by Catherine in 2019.

Find out more about Catherine Mayer in her latest book, Good Grief: Embracing Life at a Time of Death

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

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How do you bring together a winning team so that all voices can contribute to the room? Viv Groskop talks to the Chief Executive of the Southbank Centre, Elaine Bedell, on energy, stress and successfully leading teams of talented creative and commercial people. Elaine became the first woman in the top job at the Southbank Centre in 2017. She joined after a 30-year career in TV in which she developed shows such as The X Factor, Britain's Got Talent, Saturday Night Takeaway, Love Island and I'm a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! and Strictly Come Dancing. She tells Viv about the adrenaline highs of live broadcasting to primetime audiences and managing big teams with big budgets. And she shares the wise words of her Great Aunt Maggie on owning the room before it was even a twinkle in Viv's eye.

Find out more about Elaine Bedell.

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

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What helps to build resilience? Viv Groskop talks to the broadcaster, Gabby Logan, who has pioneered sports presenting for women in the UK. Just this year she co-led the BBC's coverage of the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games and Women's Euro 2022. She tells Viv what it was like to start at Sky in her 20s when the channel was just four years old; presenting two live shows a day in a team formed of new voices and old hacks. Gabby shares some of the personal tragedies that have shaped her, such as the death of her younger brother, Daniel, when he was just 15 years old. And she reflects on how having children gave her a new found sense of perspective. The art of public speaking, Gabby believes, is just like sport – it's all in the preparation. And know your audience.

Find out more about Gabby Logan in her memoir, The First Half

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

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How do you put on your game face every day? Viv Groskop talks to the co-founder of AllBright, Debbie Wosskow, on purpose, energy and drive. She launched the startup Love Home Swap, inspired by the film The Holiday, and sold it for $53 million in 2017. Debbie hails from an entrepreneurial family and tells Viv how she's never been shy to talk about work, business and money. She reflects on how her family background helped to de-risk the idea of business. Together with her business partner, Anna Jones, Debbie reveals how they rehearse every aspect of what they do, gaming 'everything - from dresses to delivery'.

Find out more in Debbie's co-authored book Believe. Build. Become. How to Supercharge Your Career

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

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How can you overcome stage fright? Viv Groskop talks to award-winning writer and nominee for this year's Booker Prize, Elizabeth Strout, ahead of the ceremony. She reveals an intervention that enabled her to handle public events that would previously have sent her spinning into panic. Elizabeth tells Viv how the spaces that allow her to write are the ones in which she's not needed by anyone. Riding the subway is good, but even better is her studio in Maine. Despite Elizabeth's success now seeming to come easily, she tells Viv that it has been hard won and how the intuition that penetrates her work has sometimes been painful to live with. She also shares some top tips on handling criticism or ungenerous remarks.

Find out more about Elizabeth Strout's Booker Prize-shortlisted novel, Oh William!

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

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Can you easily switch between private and public modes? Viv Groskop talks to the award-winning writer, Kamila Shamsie, about the different kinds of energy she needs in her life as a successful author. She tells Viv about the peace and solitude required for writing fiction and how audiences' curiosity fuels her public persona. Kamila shares with Viv her thoughts on the long history of patriarchy and the way it cuts across every facet of life. She reveals her thoughts on the power of her platform as a writer and how it compares with the reach of social media trolls. Kamila refuses to disengage and shares with Viv how she constantly challenges herself to ask – what needs to be done?

Find out more about Kamila Shamsie's new novel: Best of Friends

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

@vivgroskop

How do you find your authentic voice? Viv Groskop talks to the writer, Kit de Waal, who found success later in life with her book My Name is Leon. Kit tells Viv how she reconciled the different parts of her Birmingham childhood, born to an Irish mother and African-Caribbean father, in her recent memoir - Without Warning and Only Sometimes: Scenes from an Unpredictable Childhood. Not expecting to even make it into adulthood, Kit says that every day has been a bonus. Although she was brought up in the 'oppressive and joyless' Jehovah Witness religion, she tells Viv how it prepared her for one thing – and that was public speaking. Talking to a literary crowd was, however, another matter. Overcoming self-doubt and nerves, she shares her secret with Viv: know your subject, and the rest will flow.

Find out more about Kit de Waal's memoir: Without Warning and Only Sometimes: Scenes from an Unpredictable Childhood.

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

@vivgroskop

Do you believe in yourself? Viv Groskop talks to the musical theatre performer, Marisha Wallace, best-known for roles in Something Rotten, Dreamgirls, Waitress and Hairspray. Marisha tells Viv that she was drawn to London six years ago for work and has never left, enjoying the freedom it's given her to try different roles. She explains to Viv why she resists the 'strong Black woman' stereotype and that it's ok not to be a superhero. Marisha nurtures her confidence by drawing on her spirituality, while leaving the more constraining aspects of the religion she was brought up with behind. Viv and Marisha reflect that bravery is feeling your insecurity and fear of judgment and putting yourself out there anyway.

Find out more about Marisha Wallace on her website.

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

@vivgroskop

Are you reluctant to be in the limelight? Viv Groskop talks to the writer, Sadie Jones, who made her name with The Outcast, winning Best First Novel in the Costa Book Awards. Sadie is a self-confessed introvert who would much rather not leave her room, and certainly not own public ones. But sometimes her job as a successful author requires her to do so. She shares with Viv the tricks and techniques that she's taught herself over the years to overcome her shyness and give back to readers who have come to hear her talk. Interestingly, she reveals how she even surprised herself during the pandemic by actually missing the nerves of going into a crowded room.

Discover Sadie Jones' latest novel Amy and Lan.

A new updated edition of Viv's book, How to Own the Room is out now.

@vivgroskop