My guest this week is the stand-up comedian and actor Chris McCausland. He is the first blind professional comedian in the world, and is firmly established at the very top of the UK's comedy circuit. He made his stand-up debut on Live At The Apollo, and he has since appeared on Have I Got News For You? and Would I Lie To You? However he says the highlight of his career - and indeed, his life - was getting the conundrum right on 8 Out Of 10 Cats Does Countdown. 
Chris is blind due to retinitis pigmentosa. He talks about the fear of losing control and the challenges he faces around doing day to day things. I wanted to know how he prepares for something like Have I got News for You and why he wants to "kill Facebook." I love this conversation, Chris is very honest about the fears around being a father and how it changed his outlook on life. He hates flying, he hates swimming and he makes me laugh A LOT.
** This episode was recorded remotely via Zoom due to Covid-19 ** Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Not Being In Control - Chris McCausland

Welcome to Fear Itself, where actress Cressida Bonas invites guests to share their personal stories around fear. How does fear show up, how do people try to hide it, how can we harness it and what can we learn from it? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Personal Journals

Society & Culture

History

Philosophy

Places & Travel

Health & Fitness

Mental Health

About The Episode
Our exciting guest for this week’s episode of Fear Itself is extreme athlete and world record holder Josh Llewellyn-Jones. Born with cystic fibrosis, Josh has gotten used to being told what he's not capable of - what he can't do - and so he's dedicated his life to proving people wrong. In this episode, Josh reveals to Cressida the incredible story of how he earned the nickname 'Million Kilo Man', Josh explains what it means to 'defy the odds daily', and we hear some inspirational advice for parents of children with cyststic fibrosis.
About The Guest 
Born with cystic fibrosis, Josh was given a 10% chance of surviving his first night. Growing up, he was told he wouldn’t make 30 but, at 32, he was a World Record Holder, Ultra Athlete and International Motivational Speaker. At 29, Josh completed the ‘Worlds Fittest Man Challenge’ - one of only 5 in the world to do so. The following year in 2018, he became the first and only man to lift 1,000,000kg’s in under 24 hours to raise awareness for cystic fibrosis, beating the old record by over 500,000kg’s. 
About The Host 
Cressida Bonas is an actress, podcaster and writer. Cressida has had leading acting roles in a number of well known television and film productions - such as her role as Sheila Bamber in the critically acclaimed Netflix series White House Farm. Some of Cressida's other work include roles in the ITV series Dr Thorne, the film The Bye Bye Man, and in theatre productions Mrs Orwell and An Evening with Lucien Freud. Cressida writes a monthly column for the arts and culture section in The Spectator and her written work has been featured in The Telegraph, and The Mail on Sunday

 Top Quotes
"That experience, of nearly dying, was a pivot in my life. A real eye opener. It made me realise life is precious." - Josh Llewellyn Jones
"If you can survive something you have an extreme fear of you can become mentally invisible to it." - Josh Llewellyn Jones

 Resources
Follow Cressida Bonas on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/cressida_bonas_/?hl=en
Follow Josh on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/joshlj24/?hl=en
This podcast episode is produced by OneFinePlay Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Not Fulfilling Your Potential - Josh Llewellyn-Jones

About The Episode
Today’s incredible guest on Fear Itself is the best-selling children's author Scott Stuart. In this episode, Scott explains how tough it's been to tackle the toxic masculinity culture and to address his own insecurities, Cressida and Scott explore the importance of placing trust and control in your children, and Cressida asks Scott about the courage he draws from creativity.

 About The Guest 
Scott Stuart is a best-selling children’s book author. His books have appeared on numerous best-seller lists, as well as receiving nominations for Children’s Book of the Year & Picture Book of the Year. His empowering messages have been seen over 100 million times on Social Media, and he is a leading voice on fully accepting & empowering our children, exactly as they are.

 About The Host
Cressida Bonas is an actress, podcaster and writer. Cressida has had leading acting roles in a number of well known television and film productions - such as her role as Sheila Bamber in the critically acclaimed Netflix series White House Farm. Some of Cressida's other work include roles in the ITV series Dr Thorne, the film The Bye Bye Man, and in theatre productions Mrs Orwell and An Evening with Lucien Freud. Cressida writes a monthly column for the arts and culture section in The Spectator and her written work has been featured in The Telegraph, and The Mail on Sunday

 Top Quotes
"That's all we really want. To be fully seen and fully accepted. Yet so few of us are." - Scott Stuart
"Empowerment can look, in the moment, a lot like failure. As parents, you try to prepare your children for the world. And part of that preparation is letting your child try and fail." - Scott Stuart

 Resources
Follow Cressida Bonas on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/cressida_bonas_/?hl=en
Learn more about Scott and his amazing work here: https://scottstuart.co/
This podcast episode is produced by OneFinePlay Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ski Lifts - Scott Stuart

About The Episode
Today’s wonderful guest on the Fear Itself podcast is art historian and philosopher John Armstrong. In this episode John tells us about the battles he's had with shyness, Cressida and John discuss how all humans are pretty idiotic - and why that's ok! - and John shares a surprisingly emotional story about a garden centre.

 About The Guest
John Armstrong is an art historian and philosopher and has worked closely with educational company, and youtube channel, The School of Life (TSOL) since 2013. The School of Life is a global organisation devoted to teaching people how to lead a more fulfilled life. They offer insights in the key ingredients of emotional well-being: how to form good relationships, identify a satisfying career, minimise anxiety, acquire confidence and connect properly with friends. The channel has been a huge success - accruing over 6 million subscribers. John is also a distinguished author. With his books covering a range of themes including art, beauty, and civilisation. 

 About The Host
Cressida Bonas is an actress, podcaster and writer. Cressida has had leading acting roles in a number of well known television and film productions - such as her role as Sheila Bamber in the critically acclaimed Netflix series White House Farm. Some of Cressida's other work include roles in the ITV series Dr Thorne, the film The Bye Bye Man, and in theatre productions Mrs Orwell and An Evening with Lucien Freud. Cressida writes a monthly column for the arts and culture section in The Spectator and her written work has been featured in The Telegraph, and The Mail on Sunday

 Top Quotes
"Few people are confident all the way down. And if we realise that, it can change our perspective both on envy and intimidation." - John Armstrong
"I sense a tension in civilization. Often shy people are the people who have got the nicest, most helpful, most interesting things to say but who have also taught themselves to be too cautious about being assertive." - John Armstrong

 Resources
Follow Cressida Bonas on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/cressida_bonas_/?hl=en
To learn more about the School of Life click here: https://www.theschooloflife.com/
This podcast episode is produced by OneFinePlay Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What Others Think - John Armstrong

About The Episode
In this episode Brita tells us about her new book Fears to Fierce, Brita pinpoints why we need to lean into our fears, and highlights why we need to pay attention to little things - like goosebumps!

 About The Guest
Brita Fernandez Schmidt is an advocate and promoter of women’s empowerment, women’s rights and equality. She serves as the Executive Director of Women for Women International – UK and is the Senior Vice President for Global Partnerships. She frequently writes about the challenges women face all over the world in the context of poverty and conflict. She has lived and/or worked in over 16 countries spanning three continents and released her book, Fears to Fierce: A Woman's Guide to Owning Her Power, in January 2021. The book is a rallying call that will inspire readers to realise your purpose and potential and ignite their fierce.

 About The Host
Cressida Bonas is an actress, podcaster and writer. Cressida has had leading acting roles in a number of well known television and film productions - such as her role as Sheila Bamber in the critically acclaimed Netflix series White House Farm. Some of Cressida's other work include roles in the ITV series Dr Thorne, the film The Bye Bye Man, and in theatre productions Mrs Orwell and An Evening with Lucien Freud. Cressida writes a monthly column for the arts and culture section in The Spectator and her written work has been featured in The Telegraph, and The Mail on Sunday

 Top Quotes
"I had this fire in me and I realised this fire was not acceptable. And this is where, particularly for young women and girls, you wake up and you realise you're not meant to be powerful and I'm not talking about power over others but the power within you." - Brita Fernandez-Schmidt
"The measure by which you face your fear, is the measure by which you allow your power to shine." - Brita Fernandez-Schmidt

 Resources
Follow Cressida Bonas on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/cressida_bonas_/?hl=en
To learn more about Brita and her new book ‘Fear to Fierce’ by visiting her website here: https://www.britafs.com/
This podcast episode is produced by OneFinePlay Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

To Not Matter - Brita Fernandez Schmidt

About The Episode
This week’s guest on the show is former professional rugby union player and author of Lucky, Ed Jackson. Ed's career was cut short due to a life-changing spinal injury, but despite being told he may never walk again, Ed has gone on to achieve extraordinary things. In this episode Ed tells us how his biggest growth has come on the other side of fear, he shares a beautifully emotional story about a friend who's inspired him through life and death, and he explains why he feels lucky every single day.

 About The Guest
Ed Jackson is an English former professional rugby union player who played for Bath and London Wasps. He represented England and captained both U16 and U18 teams before his career was cut short through a life-changing spinal injury. After his recovery, Ed set up a charity focused events company, Millimetres to Mountains, which raises money for various causes. Ed also works as a reporter for Channel 4’s rugby coverage. Ed’s book, Lucky, is the story of how he overcame adversity following his accident and coped with massive change – and how you can too.

 About The Host
Cressida Bonas is an actress, podcaster and writer. Cressida has had leading acting roles in a number of well known television and film productions - such as her role as Sheila Bamber in the critically acclaimed Netflix series White House Farm. Some of Cressida's other work include roles in the ITV series Dr Thorne, the film The Bye Bye Man, and in theatre productions Mrs Orwell and An Evening with Lucien Freud. Cressida writes a monthly column for the arts and culture section in The Spectator and her written work has been featured in The Telegraph, and The Mail on Sunday

 Top Quotes
"It's not what happens to us, we can't affect that, but it's how we react to it that counts. It's how we see our life that makes a difference." - Ed Jackson
"It doesn't matter if life is going to be much harder from physical limitations because life is lived through the mind." - Ed Jackson 

 Resources
Follow Cressida Bonas on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/cressida_bonas_/?hl=en
Follow Ed on instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/edjackson8/?hl=en
Learn more about Ed Jackson’s book, Lucky, here
This podcast episode is produced by OneFinePlay Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Not Being In Control - Chris McCausland

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