The Rogue Monkey Podcast

Here it is... 100 episodes and what better way to mark it than with the incredible Lucy and Reece Charles Barclay. They both joined us back in 2020 in our second season of the show and at that stage were embarking on a quest, for Lucy to win the World Championships in Kona. Having reached the summit of their dream in the autumn of 2023, the husband and wife duo join us a few months later, having taken time to absorb, enjoy and reflect on what has been an amazing journey. Lucy is now full immersed in the T100 series and we explore both the journey to now, but also what is coming next for Team Charles Barclay.

Today we speak to Lottie Unwin, founder at Up World and Brand Hackers. We met Lottie at a conference last year on the west coast of Wales and the community she has built, Up World, is somewhere we have no doubt, creative marketers from around the world will be drawn. It’s a place for curious and ambitious minds!

Whether you’ve got a side hustle you’re looking to market yourself and grow or you are an established business and you are looking for some fresh insights, our conversation today will hopefully have something you can take away and utilise. Lottie is hugely passionate about what she does so be sure to connect with her straight after the interview so keep up with all the amazing things she brings to the marketing space. 

Our guest for this episode is former Royal Engineer, Rugby Player and business founder Matt Trussell.

Matt has been on a long journey from the frontline in Afghanistan through to finding happiness in both his working and personal life, using lessons learned along the way to inform how he leads a company, leads a family and performs on the rugby pitch.

We explore mental health, leading a team, taking your health seriously, transferable lessons and reflecting since we last spoke to Matt almost three years ago in episode 39.

You can find out more about Go Big Digital here:

Our guest for this episode is international open water swimmer, Amber Keegan. 

Having qualified for a GB Junior team at the age of just 16, Amber has since been on a decade long journey of ups and downs since, and in this discussion we explore and have some frank discussions about how she got through those challenging years… who she had around her… and the lessons that she’s taken from the rocky road of elite sport. 

Across her journey, Amber has become an inspiring ambassador for athletes speaking out about their experiences and the need for more support when it comes to athlete mental health.

In today’s conversation, we speak to the founder of an innovative studio that helps brands tell their story better.... AND someone who helped us before we even launched our podcast, by creating our first logo!

Why do people pursue creative careers?

Who inspires people to take a leap of faith?

What is the journey like of founding your own business?

All this and more is explored in this fascinating conversation with a truly GREAT human being!

You can connect with Adam here...

In today’s conversation, we’re diving into cold water this week. Jacqui Hargrave is a super inspiring open water swimmer who has gradually delved into the world of cold water swimming, which has seen an explosion in the UK in recent years. 

She blogged her experience, and that blog has exploded just as much as open water has, attracting over a quarter of a million readers in recent years. Since taking the dive she has completed a channel swim, a brutal two way swim of Windermere, which is a 21 mile swim and has qualified for the International Ice Swimming Championships…

This is the story of someone who has stumbled on a new hobby and turned it into a complete passion, so I really hope if you need some inspiration today, that this conversation is the boost you need to go and try something new.

In the second part of a 2-part special, we speak to Hugh Viney, the founder of Minerva Virtual Academy. Hugh’s reflections on his experiences are captivating from the off and we know you’ll take lots of great insights from our discussion today. Through the highs, the lows, the wins and the failures, Hugh really does open the box of a founders journey for everyone to learn from.

We are kicking off season 12 with a bang and a conversation that started in sport but has ended up in the world of education. Fabian Spiess, our guest today is the Elite Athlete Education Officer at Minerva Virtual Academy, a unique online school that supports young athletes balancing academics and their sport.

Over the next two weeks we explore the journey of firstly Fabian, from a former footballer to where he is now, and then next week we speak to Hugh, the founder of Minerva, both of which are unique and fascinating insights.  

For our 90th episode we have got two fantastic guests joining us. Lowri and Cyrilyn are a mother and daughter duo who take us on an incredible journey that started when Lowri was just nine.

She wrote a letter to the CEO of Disney about why their princesses did not where glasses. This small but incredibly powerful act had long last effects. In the years that followed, Lowri has been a trailblazer for her cause and has met a Royal Princess, been to the Baftas, wrote her own book, met Disney writers and directors, and started a charity to support those who cannot access eye tests or glasses.

For someone so young, Lowri is incredibly accomplished, and her mum shares the parents’ perspective on this adventure and the astonishing twists and turns along the way.

Lowri has wrote her own book, which you can find out about here:

Howard Burton is our 89th guest to the show. He is a documentary filmmaker, author of 6 books and co-founder of the award-winning multimedia initiative Ideas Roadshow. He is the creator/director of a brand-new 4-part series, Through the Mirror of Chess: A Cultural Exploration, which examines the remarkable impact of chess on culture, art, science, and sport. An accompanying book of "Chessays" was recently published which is a collection of thought-provoking essays on a wide range of chess-related issues which Howard encountered while being a “tourist” in the chess world. Howard holds a PhD in theoretical physics and an MA in philosophy and was the Founding Director of Canada’s Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics.

This week we are heading stateside to LA as we speak to the incredible ball of energy that is filmmaker Barret Bowman.

From finding his way into the world of film making, to working as part of the incredible team at Goodr sunglasses, Barret shares his journey with us.

The insights from someone who is an open book about his story are fascinating, as we explore the challenges, taking risks the lessons learned, teamwork, feedback and even some advice from his future self.

You can follow Barret on Instagram

In this conversation we explore a story, of how a coaching dream sown in Sheffield blossomed into a sports club that delivered incredible community impact alongside Olympic success.

From being gifted a few old trampolines, coach Paul Greaves and a wonderful team around him grew a programme from a few youngsters exploring the sport of trampolining through a thriving club that many years on delivered not one, but two Olympic medals and inspired a whole generation of young athletes.

Our conversation meanders across a range of subjects including teaching and coaching, professionalisation, person centred coaching, CPD and much more. This episode is a sporting journey and a human journey as Paul is still exploring his purpose and place in the world of sport.

You can follow Paul on Instagram and Twitter.

In our 86th episode, we had the absolute pleasure of speaking to actor Ethan Lawrence, star of Bad Education, Afterlife, Horrible Histories, and most recently Magic Mike 3 The Last Dance.

From breaking into the industry, through the ups and downs and some of the reflective lessons learned, our conversation explores it all. Ethan is a fantastically humble, insightful, and very funny guest, so we hope you enjoy our interview.

You can follow Ethan on Instagram, Twitter and Tiktok:

This week we’re joined by Jonty Warneken.

Jonty’s story is incredibly moving. His career ambitions, which we explore in our interview, took a significant change of direction, following a horrendous car accident at the age of 22. A leg amputation and rebuilt skull followed, alongside an 8-month stay in hospital.

Jonty takes us on the journey of what happened next, how he had to find a new path. This quest took him to several world firsts for a disabled person, and we explore what that was like when doctors or experts in the field didn’t have the answer.

How do you ski in minus 30 with a metal components forming your leg, how do you swim in icy water with titanium plates holding your skull together? Jonty’s black and white view on what he is capable of is fascinating and we really hope you enjoy this interview.

Connect with Jonty here:

This week, we’ve got a double act, with actor, DJ and fashion designer Oli Jackson, and videographer, editor and former coach, Graeme Bell. Their stories are fascinating, and we explore a range of topics whilst our guests share the ups and downs of their journey.

For Oli you can connect with him through the following:

Alexei Fedorushchenko is an U20 footballer for the Columbian national team as well a mainstay in Arsenal Football Club through the scholarship programme.

Our guest for our 80th episode is Colin Hill. Founder of the Great North Swim, London 2012 Olympics marathon swim organiser and all-round open water swimming legend.

We explore everything open water, from mental health to the massive growth in people taking up cold water swimming over the last few years.

It’s a fitting finale to our 10th season as our first episode was with a passionate swimming coach and now for our 80th show we’re at it again.

You can find Colin on Twitter, Instagram and Youtube:

This week we speak to Charlotte Pirie, mum of two and freelance marketing consultant. Charlotte takes us on her journey from where it all began, being one of the founders of social media for Microsoft’s Hotmail and MSN Messenger platforms through to how she reshaped her career to have a better balance for both her and her family.

We dive into how Charlotte as grown an extensive portfolio of marketing and e-commerce experience and turned that into her own business that helps other businesses flourish in the online space. We also explore the personal hurdles she has overcome along the way and how she has navigated life to where she is now.

You can connect with Charlotte on Linked-in and follow her company on Instagram:

This week we are speaking to broadcaster Simon Mundie, host of the incredible podcast Life Lessons, from Sport and Beyond! We explore the many different roles that Simon does and his journey to get there is nothing short of staggering. So many twists and turns but all in all, one that doesn’t follow a nice straight line – something we are sure many of our listeners can relate to.

We really enjoyed Simon’s honesty throughout our conversation, calling a spade and spade and really just telling us all how it is, from moving in and out of radio, to writing a book and finding that purpose on his journey professionally and personally – it was a really fun interview to record and we hope you enjoy it.

This week we’re hearing from an actor and getting a brutally honest insight into what the realities of what that journey looks like. Lauren Osborn, Actress turned new mum talks about the realities of the performing industry, the key ingredients of how to keep your head above water (and your bank balance above zero) and how to enjoy the journey.

We explore everything from the challenges with the school system for young creatives all the way through to some of the key turning points that are interesting for people from all careers to hear. For all industries, the journey is full of potential opportunities, but constantly putting yourself out there, volunteering, exploring different avenues, you genuinely do create your own luck and our conversation with Lauren is a great example of that.

You can follow Lauren on Instagram:

This week, similar to our episode 75 guest, is a story about someone who operates at altitudes, but our guest this week does so at very high speeds. We are speaking to Ben Murphy, Ben being our second husband and wife guest we’ve had on the show. Back in Season two we spoke to triathletes Reece and Lucy Charles-Barclay and in season three we spoke to Ben’s wife Kirsty about her journey through aviation.

In this conversation, Ben takes us on his journey through the challenges of even getting started on his journey into the military, and how that path ended up taking him to the front line, into The Red Arrows, leading the team and then his transition into The Blades display team and his most recent adventure into what is now The Air Race. It’s a fantastic insight into the mind of someone who has overcome lots of hurdles to get where he is, and Ben shares lots of useful tips for those looking to challenge themselves.

You can follow Ben on Twitter and Instagram:

In this week’s interview we are going behind the scenes with another inspiring guest, but for the first time in a few seasons, we’re heading into the world of the military and sharing a story from a man who was part of one of the most well-known teams on the planet, The SAS. Our guest is Krish Thapa, a world class mountaineer and one of the most spiritually aware guests we’ve ever had.

From growing up in the Himalayas, we explore his journey through the Gurkhas and eventually through selection to the SAS, becoming the head of the mountain troops. He has scaled Mount Everest himself and is currently leading an expedition to train, prepare and guide two double amputee veterans to the top of Everest in 2023.

His passion for integrating ancient lessons into his modern leadership makes him a truly inspirational person to speak to and we’d highly recommend following Krish on the various socials to keep up to date on his incredible activities.

In this weeks interview we have another inspiring story, that started with a young man getting talked into covering a linesman role when watching a football match that his dad was refereeing. Decades on and our guest Dan Robathan has just this weekend gone been part of the refereeing team for the FA cup final at Wembley.  

Today Dan takes us on that journey from childhood through to Wembley. We explore what it’s like walking out in front of 90000 fans….and how he prepares his body and mind for that experience. We explore how the landscape of officiating has evolved and find out more about the Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) group, who’s remit is to officiate all Premier League, EFL and FA matches   

You can connect with the PGMOL on Twitter here: https://twitter.com/FA_PGMOL?s=20&t=LcfAKLbFs77nkB-L_0Vb3Q 

You can connect with Dan on LinkedIn here: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dan-robathan-93a28929/ 

You can connect with the Rogue Monkey Podcast across twelve different channels:

We start season 10 with an amazing story from entrepreneur and businesswoman, Natalie Bamford. Natalie founded Colleague Box with her husband during the pandemic and today we explore what that journey was like, getting thrown in at the deep end in the world of business and learning how to swim quickly!

“Established during lockdown one in May 2020, Colleague Box has created and dispatched more than 160,000 gift boxes, packed with goodies including Tony's Chocolonely chocolate, Brew Dog ales and lagers, bath bombs.  All can be colour matched and branded with logos and personalised messages.

They've created affordable, high quality, exciting, personalised, customisable gift boxes for companies to send to colleagues to help drive their employee engagement, retention, relocations, support employee wellbeing, stay connected during too many lockdowns to name, and to ultimately spread joy and put smiles on people’s faces.

And the orders keep coming. Not just for colleagues either. Other uses include recruitment drives, marketing campaigns, conferences, events, rebranding reveals, awards nights and much more.”

Their tagline of ‘delivering happiness’ is something really simple but equally powerful and their story is one that we’ve no doubt so many people will find fascinating after such a turbulent few years.

Today we speak to an entrepreneur, disruptor and co-founder of The AP Race brand. In 2019 Olympic Champion Adam Peaty and his training partner Ed Baxter launched an innovative form of athlete experience, and we explored that in our first season as they had ambitions to inspires 100s of young swimmers across the country.

When the pandemic hit, Ed and Adam decided they were going to supercharge their ambitions and went into hyperdrive making the most of the world coming to a halt for weeks on end. Within six months they’d designed, built, and launched an online platform for athletes around the globe that supports swimming, psychology, strength and conditioning, nutrition and parents.

Fast forward to Spring ’21 and the goal posts moved again….. “lets make the sport of swimming better for everyone involved”. A bold and ambitious goal, but one captivated peoples minds, our founder included, so last year he quit his job and began consulting full time with one of the most exciting entrepreneurs we’ve ever had the pleasure of interviewing. We explore with Ed his journey to this point, how his vision has evolved and specifically how he puts the end user at the centre of everything that he and the team do, be that athletes, parents or coaches.

You can connect with Ed on Instagram, Twitter and Linked-In:

Our guest this week is Joe Taylor, founder of The Wave Project. It is our 6th Podcast where we delve into the world of surfing, and Joe’s vision along with a team of equally incredible people has created something truly special.

The Wave Project is a Surf Therapy Charity that harnesses the power of the ocean to improve the mental health of children and young people. Growing across more than a decade It is now a collection of more than 6,000 volunteers who deliver surf therapy sessions across 32 locations in the UK. Today Joe takes us on what that journey has been like, his experiences and lessons learned and where the project is heading in the future.

Find out more about The Wave Project here:

We try and make a habit of seeking out and sharing inspiring stories and this week we are joined by a wonderful guest. Karen Putz is an author, professional speaker, entrepreneur and passion mentor. She is a big water-skiing fan, specifically barefoot water-skiing. We should probably mention now Karen also has a degenerative hearing condition and has been completely deaf for many years. She also had three children who have lost their hearing and has gone on this incredible journey following her passion. She now writes books about her experiences and how to live a life full of passion!

For those of you watching on Youtube we have got the transcriptions for this interview available so please check that out. To allow for the live transcription in the interview, there is a slight delay in responses so Karen can see what we have said, but it is an incredible use of technology to overcome the sensory challenge Karen experiences. It a fascinating conversation exploring Karen’s journey and one we were extremely grateful to be able to record.

Connect with Karen on her website below, where you can find links to all her socials, her books and more!

We often encourage our listeners to shoot for the stars…. Well today’s interview is something akin to that. Today’s we are joined joined by Rob Brougham, the co-founder of Braided Communications – a tool that has been developed to support the wellbeing of Astronauts on future Mars missions and beyond to overcome the significant time delays in communications in deep space.

How we stumbled across this story and how the project came to be is absolutely incredible. It’s a mind-bending conversation, but to give you a glimmer of what is to come, Rob is an Astrophysicist who with his co-founder conceptualised and then created a solution to long distance communication. Braided Communications is now working on experiments to study the potential benefit of their invention funded by The UK Space Agency, The European Space Agency and NASA.

Dannie and Helen join us today from SeaChange Retreats, which provide surf and wellbeing retreats for adults affected by cancer. This could be patients themselves or their family and support network. We heard about the project over a year ago and was immediately captivated. A number of our team have since attended some of their events as a member of the in-water support team and can proudly say these have been some of the most moving and inspirational days we have ever been involved in.  

Our conversation today explores the journey from concept to fundraising through to delivery. They are always looking for support and we cannot bang the drum enough of how amazing a project this is. With so many of us sadly likely to be impacted by cancer at some point in our lives, this is truly something to follow up with today and look into. Our conversation is pretty emotional with some tears and even the guest appearance of the SeaChange dog at the end of the recording for those of you watching the interview on Youtube. We did have a few audio challenges in the first 10 minutes but hopefully with some editing we’ve styled it out. Stick with this conversation to the end and be sure to check out the links below afterwards.    

SeaChange: https://seachangeretreats.org/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/seachangeretreats/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/seachangeretreats  

We mention the Wave Project in our conversation, which you can find out about here: https://www.waveproject.co.uk/

Joe, their founder will be joining us in episode 71.  

You can connect with the Rogue Monkey Podcast across twelve different channels:

For our 67th episode we are heading to Africa for a powerful story. We are exploring how a hand written letter nearly 20 years ago has led to a charity project in Malawi that has changed the lives of 1000s of people. Our guest is Chris Knott, insurance broker and the founder of Starfish Malawi, a charity that has the simple but powerful vision - a just world where every child is educated, healthy and cared for. A noble vision and one we are really proud to support. How you get from that to creating a company called car insurance for cyclists is an equally interesting story and one that has allowed the charity in Malawi to grow and develop so much!

After you’ve listened to the show, if you would like to find out if you can save money, below is a link for you to check out!

For episode 66 we are speaking to someone I’ve known a long time and followed their inspiring journey with fascination. Kathryn Cook is an incredible entrepreneur who has forged a business in the virtual space off the back of a meandering career that included some time in the Royal Navy. In this discussion we explore the challenges of founding a business, having the confidence to change paths and how Kathryn navigated all of that whilst being a parent.

Be sure to check out Kathryn’s business on Instagram and Facebook.

For our 65th episode, we are speaking to Charley Boorman. Motorbike enthusiast, actor, presenter and charity supporter. Now you often hear the phrase, I’d love to see more of the world. Well Charley and his friend Ewan McGregor took that quite literally and drove round from London to New York…the long way. Then a few years later from John O Groats to Cape Town and then most recently from the southern tip of South America to LA.

For our 64th episode we’re really pleased to be joined by an entrepreneur, endurance runner, author and international athlete.  

Mike Stocks, author of the captivating book ONE TRACK MIND joins us for a fascinating conversation about his journey through both business and sport and some of the lessons learned. Mike is a super humble guy and really shares some wonderful insights with us.  

For our 63rd episode we’re really pleased to be joined by one of our previous guests. Andy Hailey from episode 55 today shares with us the learnings he’s had from completing his research in learning, supporting and working with young people. So, today’s conversation is very much exploring what he’s learned about how to plan, communicate and reflect upon sessions. We draw examples out from sport, business and many other walks of life, so whatever your role is, we’ve no doubt there will be something to glean from this episode.

For our 62nd episode we’re speaking to an actual podcast agency! Our guest today, Sheila Knowles is the founding director of BBE Podcast Agency in London. The agency supports podcasts from ideas through to postproduction, with the agency becoming the 360-degree support service for podcasters everywhere. From monthly blogs through to online support on their website – the agency really does offer something for podcasters of all levels

.

You can check out BBE Podcast Agency on all the usual platforms:

For our 61st episode we’re speaking to an author, coach and performance psychologist from the world of Cricket. Today we explore the world of cricket with Rich Hudson, Managing Director at Bucks County Cricket. Our conversation delves into Rich’s journey from his early years across different sports, through to his playing years in Australia, drawing upon his years as a coach and psychologist and sharing some fascinating insights from his two books that he’s authored. We go on a journey covering a range of subjects including cultural differences, egos and identity, success and failure and how to develop a feeling of being comfortable being uncomfortable. Follow Rich on Instagram and Twitter below:

For today’s conversation we’re exploring an area that has been talked about for a few years now but isn’t a topic we’ve delved into.

We’re seeing in the news more and more about crypto currencies, blockchain and the latest phenomena NFT’s. Our guest today is Chris Bruno, CEO and founder of social ink, a marketing agency that specialises in the world of blockchain.

Now this may already have you thinking today’s conversation is going to be way over your head, but the way in which Chris articulates his views today, he takes us on a journey that really does give us an understandable insight into the newest wave of technology that will change the world.

In this episode we explore the journey of triple Olympic diver Tonia Couch. From the early years through to her transition out of the sport into the fitness space. Sharing plenty of transferable lessons from the world of sport into life, it is a really interesting insight from someone who performed in a sometimes extremely dangerous sport for more than a decade.

Be sure to give Tonia a follow on Instagram:

In the second of our two-part special with Brad Borkan, we explore another one of his incredible books, when your life depends on it, extreme decision-making lessons from the Antarctic. Some of the areas we talk about in this conversation are unfathomable even in the current day, let alone over 100 years ago when some of the stories shared were set in.

Whilst many of us will come nowhere near many of the challenges these explorers faced, their philosophies, morals and lessons learned and things we can draw upon in the modern day.

Season eight is kicking off in big style as we speak to an author and extreme decision making expert. Our guest Brad Borkan has spent years research decision making, firstly in the business world and more recently in the world of extreme adventure. In today’s episode we explore his book Audacious Goals, Remarkable Results and what can be gleaned from the lives and accomplishments of an explorer, an engineer and a US president.

Our guest athlete has four Olympic medals to his name, including a gold won during an infamous win over Michael Phelps at London 2012. Our guest parent sitting alongside him is globally know as one of the most passionate and honest sporting parents in the world.  

Across our conversation today we cover a wide range of topics including where it all started, how to manage expectations, the wider impact of sport in society and unravel the journey to becoming Olympic Champion from both an athletes and parents perspective.  

Be sure to give both Chad and Bert follows on instagram! 

This week we speak to Andy Hailey, Director of Aquatics from the Tanglin Trust School in Singapore. Andy’s passion is in transferring world leading research into practice so his student athletes have the best possible experience in their journey. You can connect with Andy on Linked-in and Instagram: 

https://www.instagram.com/andihayley/ 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/andy-hailey-766b30212/

You can connect with the Rogue Monkey Podcast across twelve different channels:

This week we’re joined by international athlete turned mentor, Lauren Quigley. As someone with more than 18 years’ experience performing in sport, Lauren channelled her learnings into helping others on their sports journey. Through Quigley Sport, Lauren now mentors the next generation of sportsmen and women to draw upon both the positive and negative experiences that she had on her journey, and support others in having the best experience possible. Ultimately is about forming a positive relationship with sport to ensure you continue to love what you do and enjoy the process.

You can find out more about Quigley Sport here:

This week we share some wisdom from one of the most experienced and knowledgeable coaches in the world of sport. Dave Champion has been a club coach across three decades, is a four-time Olympic coach, his most famous charger being Karen Pickering MBE. Dave really opens up to us about his journey, his failures, his successes and shares some brilliant insights and equally amusing stories along the way.

Find Dave at the following links:

This week we’ve got a wonderful story to share with you as we speak to Annemarie Munk. A former athlete, and coach Annemarie’s life has revolved around sport. Growing up in Hong Kong and heading to the Olympics as a 14-year-old catapulted her into a life of sport.  

We explore everything from her athlete experiences to her lessons drawn from the different cultures she has been immersed in over the years. We touch on some of the lifestyle challenges of coaching and how the sector seems to be undergoing a shift to a more professionalised nature.  

You can connect with Annemarie at the following links: 

Keri-anne Payne is a swimmer. From her earliest memories she swam, growing up in South Africa and appreciating the importance of being safe in the water. Today we explore her journey, from her memories of life in Johannesburg through to her three Olympic Games experiences. We delve into having a process focussed mindset and what lessons she's taken from sport into being a mum. You can follow Keri-anne across the various social medias as follows: