Kirsty Young asks fascinating people what advice they would give their younger self. Authors, artists, actors and film-makers are among those revisiting the mom...
Kirsty Young asks the writer and podcaster Malcolm Gladwell what advice he would give his younger self.Gladwell's writing, in books such as The Tipping Point and Outliers, successfully distil complex ideas for a mass audience, and he has worked as a staff writer for The New Yorker. His podcasts include Revisionist History, which reconsiders things both overlooked and misunderstood. Gladwell recalls his childhood in a largely Mennonite community in rural Canada, reflects on the shared culture of his English father and Jamaican mother, and shares his joy at becoming a parent later in life.A BBC Studios Audio production.
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42:51
17. Irvine Welsh
Kirsty Young asks the author Irvine Welsh what advice he would give his younger self.Welsh became a literary sensation when his first novel, Trainspotting, was published in 1993. The film adaptation that followed made him a star. But before that he'd gone from being a punk in London to a turn into administrative work for his local council, via a brush with heroin addiction. He looks back at his childhood in Edinburgh, his parents' romance and a first arrest at just eight years old.A BBC Studios Audio production.
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47:29
16. Gloria Steinem
Kirsty Young asks the activist and writer Gloria Steinem what advice she would give her younger self.Through the last seven decades, Steinem has been a singular voice and influential thinker for the causes of feminism and equality in the USA. She discusses her breakthrough as a young journalist going undercover as a Playboy Bunny, founding the hugely successful feminist magazine Ms., and her personal stake in the fight for the legalisation of abortion. She also reflects on her unconventional childhood with a father who never wore a hat or had a job and a mother whom she became a carer of at a young age.A BBC Studios Audio production.
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36:27
15. Miranda Hart
Kirsty Young asks comedian and actor Miranda Hart what advice she would give her younger self.A decade ago Hart was starring in her own hit BBC sitcom, Miranda, and selling out stadium tours. But then she suffered a collapse and was forced into a career break. She discusses how years of low level illness built up to a major health crisis, and how an overdue diagnosis and writing her new book helped on her journey back towards fitness. She also reveals the perils of fame, the joy of playing the same venue as Beyoncé, and why her book had an unexpected happy ending.A BBC Studios Audio production.
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44:27
14. Gabor Maté
Kirsty Young asks physician Gabor Maté what advice he would give his younger self.Maté was born to Jewish parents in terrible circumstances in Hungary in 1943. His grandparents were killed in the Auschwitz concentration camp, his father was in forced labour and his mother was suffering from jaundice. He reveals how his own understanding of the long-term affects of childhood trauma connects to this personal history. He also discusses his work with drug addicts and his relationship with his wife and children.A BBC Studios Audio production.
Kirsty Young asks fascinating people what advice they would give their younger self. Authors, artists, actors and film-makers are among those revisiting the moments that made them.
South Africa