My guest this week has just helped save the world! Dr Catherine Green OBE is one of the team in Oxford who developed and began manufacturing the AstraZeneca vaccine. Together with her colleague Professor Sarah Gilbert (now a Dame) she has just written a book 'Vaxxers' which explains in a rather thrilling and readable way, just how they did this, in the hope of communicating the science behind it and reassuring those who are vaccine hesitant at the moment. I was due to speak to Dr Green in person but two of my children got covid that very week, so instead we spoke down a line. Very frustrating not to actually meet her but with scientist Catherine Green - or Cath as she is more often known - even a glitchy line can't dampen her energy, enthusiasm and humour.We talked about how she's never felt particularly 'mumsy'; how her friends looked out for her at the height of her work on the vaccine, leaving flowers or food on her doorstep for her; and how her 10 year old daughter Ellie has insisted they install a disco ball in the kitchen of their new house. Ellie sounds fabulous - clearly a girl after my own heart! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Laura Brand is a mother of two little girls and author of the book The Joy Journal. We spoke about where you find joy after motherhood and how expectation and reality can sometimes (always?) be very different beasts but you have to be able to roll with it - especially when you have a young family. She now runs online tutorials to show people ideas for craft and fun with the children in their life and this month has been doing them inspired by Peter Rabbit. She struggled with Hyperemesis Gravidarum with both her pregnancies which caused her to end up in hospital and has made her very sympathetic to anyone going through the same thing. We also spoke about what happens when you get back together with someone you used to date, as happened with her now husband Russell Brand, and how it can work out for the best.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Natalie Imbruglia is an Australian born singer songwriter who’s got 5 albums to her name with a sixth, Firebird, coming out in September. In 2019, at the age of 44, she announced on Instagram that she I’ve given birth to a boy who had been conceived using IVF, and a sperm donor. We talked about the joy and peace that her little boy has brought her, and the new period of creativity that he has also enabled her to have. We also talked about some of the annoying aspects of pregnancy including, as two people who love their food, not being able to eat as much as you’d like because of acid reflux.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sylvia Mac is a campaigner, a survivor and an award winner. Sylvia was two when she suffered horrific burns, in a scalding accident, and was given the last rites. Against the odds, she survived but it wasn't till her 40s that she learned to accept her scars and not to feel ashamed of them. Her three children have been on a difficult journey with her but there is love everywhere in her life and she says it's never too late to start believing you're beautiful. She won the Wellness Warrior award in 2020 and founded Love Disfigure to offer support to those living with burns and scarring.Trigger warning: this podcast mentions a burning accident and suicidal thoughts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Deborah James is a podcast presenter, campaigner, writer... and mum to 11 year old Eloise and 13 year old Hugo. It's nearly five years since she was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer. Since then she has found a loyal band of followers on instagram as @bowelbabe, where she talks about living with the diagnosis, her ongoing treatment and is just all-round inspiring. She’s often dancing around - even when she has a chemo pump attached - and generally makes the most of every day. We talked about turning up for sports days, making memories, how much we both love Halloween.. plus the joy of throwing parties in general and what a great life skill it is. She is honest, brave and beautiful and I felt very lucky that she came to talk to me and now I can share it with you. Thank you, Deborah. Xx Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Business woman and former Dragon's Den dragon Sarah Willingham surprised everyone some years back, by taking her 4 children out of school and setting off for a round the world adventure. She and her husband rented their house out, put all their possessions into storage and were only allowed 23 kilos of luggage each, which she found hugely liberating. Now back in the UK with the children back in school, she is a fan of talking to her children about everything, including money, as she wants them to grow up earning and knowing the value of money, just as she has done since her childhood in Stoke-on-Trent. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Journalist Emma Barnett is a regular presenter of Newsnight andhas recently become the main presenter of Woman's Hour on BBC Radio 4.She's good at asking questions and bringing people to account but saysshe's had to learn patience because as a mum, 'losing your shit' getsyou nowhere! Emma struggled to get pregnant, which after two and halfyears she realised was because of endometriosis. She had her babythrough IVF but she says she will always have one foot in the camp ofthose who would like to be mothers but have not managed it. We talkedabout childcare, we talked about periods a lot, and if you stay listening tillthe end you will hear us sharing our most embarrassing stories with each other. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week’s episode is very close to my heart as it’s a friend. Meet Kath Gillespie-Sells MBE. She talks with kindness, honesty and humour about making bravedecisions and following her path as a mother who was also a lesbian, back when that was acheivement in itself. But she didn’t stop there - she was awarded an MBE for her work founding REGARD, campaigning for LGBTQ+ disabled rights. She has 3 sons, one of which, Dan, is in a band (The Feeling) with my husband Richard which is how I’m lucky enough to know her. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Helle Thorning-Schmidt was the Prime Minister of Denmark from 2011 to2015. She was the first female leader of the Danish Social Democratsand the first female PM. I think she should wear that as a slogan ona T-shirt! She lives in London with her husband, MP Stephen Kinnock,while their two daughters, now in their early 20s, live in Copenhagen.We talked about how Helle managed to juggle work and home-life, firstas a busy MEP with small children, and then as the mum of teenagerswhen she was Prime Minister. Over the course of our conversation weuncovered her obsessions with jigsaws and transport. We talked abouthow she has been a feminist since the age of 12. And she shared herpositive mantra, which saw her through her time as chief executive ofSave the Children, that things are generally getting better, and thatwe should always listen to young people. Her energy and positivity isinspiring and infectious. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Woo! It’s a new episode of my podcast Spinning Plates. I’m so excited to be back with new episodes for you. Kicking off series 4 is the wonderful, warm and wise Melanie C. She tells me about the challenges and joy of being a solo artist and about facing the worst nerves she's ever had before going on stage for Blood Brothers on the West End. We also talk about her lovely relationship with her 12 year old daughter and how much fun they had together on the Spice Girls tour in 2019. Big thanks to Melanie for speaking so openly with me and thank you to you for lending me your ears when you listen! Enjoy 😘❤️ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It’s the final episode in this series of Spinning Plates! Wow what a lovely group of guests and my 30th is no exception. Meet Tina Crawford, who is an artist who I got to know through her embroidery. She used the Kitchen Disco as a subject for part of a huge piece she started working on as lockdown began. Its an incredible piece and talks about how we are all connected - hasn’t so much about this last year been about the importance of connection? The work is about to start life in its new home at the Science Museum. Tina has a 13-year-old son and she claims to have the besthusband in the world. We talked about having a child through IVF,being a disabled parent and how people lie about being happy inpostnatal classes. Turns out we met once when I was a teenager and Tina found me aloof, but hopefully my superb tea making skills have changed her mind now. 😊We also had the additional excitement of my cat Titus that kept jumping on thetable where we were talking! He’s a bit annoying that way, but I love him none the less. 🐈Xxxxxxx Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Anna Whitehouse is a journalist, author and radio presenter and thefounder of Mother Pukka, 'a platform for people who happen to beparents'. She is a long-term campaigner in the fight for flexibleworking for everyone.We talked about the concept of family and how you can get trapped intobelieving that 2.4 children and a white picket fence equals happiness;we discussed flexible working hours and how other countries do itbetter (yes I'm talking about the Netherlands and Sweden again!) andwe agreed that it is time to end the 1950s hapless dad trope - or asshe put it, "men don't want to just spunk and leave, they want toparent!" Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I have been following tattoo artist Rebecca Vincent on instagram since I saw a beautiful tattoo which she did for one of my earlier SP interviewees, Sali Hughes. Rebecca's style is usually botanical-inspired pure black ink. She reinvented herself as a tattoo artist when she felt her previous job as a pub landlady didn't fit well with becoming a mum. Her child is now ten and has recently started identifying as non-binary - a decision which Rebecca and husband Lee have welcomed and embraced. She's a lovely woman with a particularly gentle and kind aura for someone who can inflict so much pain - and I'm seriously considering having a second tattoo now! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Giovanna Fletcher is a writer, presenter and blogger who has a hugelysuccessful podcast Happy Mum Happy Baby. When we chatted I asked aboutthe course which took her to marrying her childhood sweetheart, TomFletcher, she also told me how her three boys loved watching her onI'm a Celebrity and we compared notes on how many people ask her, asthe mum of sons, whether she really wanted a girl! Aaaaghhh! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I talk to stand up and soon-to be-published writer EllieTaylor. She went from being completely disinterested in children to,now that she has a little girl herself, finding new mums 'like catnip'and striking up conversations with them whenever she can. We talkedabout having a baby when you're not really maternal, performing onstage when heavily pregnant, and writing in a pandemic. Her first book'My Child and other Mistakes' is out in July. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I first met Australian DJ twin sisters Mim and Liv (aka @nervomusic) over 10 years ago when we wrote a song called Not Giving Up On Love together. It was the most fun writing week. I immediately adored them both. Such smart, talented and gorgeous women - and so much positive energy! When they both became pregnant around the same time it seemed the fates were smiling on them. They both have gorgeous baby daughters now but for Liv, she has had to face a very different beginning to motherhood than the one she had envisaged - one as a single mum and the road to that has been traumatic for her. This podcast episode features lots of tears.. but also life lessons and laughs. Some of the themes might be upsetting to listen to but there is still lots of optimism in there, too.. and tons of sisterly love.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm talking to Cariad Lloyd, actor, comedian, writer, podcaster and mum of two. I hope you'll agree that this is a really positive and uplifting chat, even though we are talking about death. Cariad lost her Dad when she was 16 and we talk about how that has affected her through her life, including when she became a mum. In the last 4 years she has spoken to over a hundred people about their own experiences of losing loved ones, in her popular podcast, Griefcast, which she launched just as she became a mum herself. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I meet Rosa Bloom, designer of the sequinned capes and cat suits that have brightened so many festivals. They've been described by one of her customers as 'wearable happiness' and I love the superhero feeling I get when I wear her clothes on stage.  In our chat I hear about growing up in a household shared by three families, and about how she and her husband chose a new family name when they had their little boy. She also tells me about how her husband offered to take over as primary carer of their little boy Otto when he was a few months old, helping her continue with her company but resulting in him being diagnosed with post natal depression. We talk about adapting to life in a pandemic and how we can't wait for festivals to be back on! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

I really wanted to meet Jess Phillips. We are just about the same age and I have followed her career with interest and affection. I was very glad to say that I liked her just as much in real life as I have done from afar. Jess is the Labour MP for Yardley in Birmingham, serving the same area she grew up in. It's also where she has brought up her 2 sons with her husband Tom, who has always done the lion's share of the childcare and cooking. Jess jokes that she sometimes feels like a 1950s househusband asking Tom why dinner isn't on the table, when she's finshed work. She is pleasingly happy in her own skin and has a turn of phrase that really tickles me. She talked to me proudly about her mum and dad's political activism, and happy memories of watching Prime Minister's Questions after school with her nan every week. She talked about how every woman should be able to choose to have or not have a baby. And she described how she sometimes deals with aggression by fighting back with humour. She revealed that having two children made her feel she could do anything. And she also has one of the best stories I have ever heard invoving paving slabs. Though I realise the bar for that may not be very high. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jack Monroe is a cook, a writer, a campaigner and also a mum to 10 year old Johnny. We talked about Jack's dream job in the fire service, experiences of not having enough to eat as a new mum, what it means to identify as non-binary, and how you should never panic when your child only wants to eat chicken nuggets.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Musician Róisín Murphy can be a creative ‘bag of baldoons’ - a phrase her mum uses to conjure up what she’s like when she’s working on multiple projects. She is also mum to 10 year old Clodagh and 8 year old Tadhg. We talked about savouring every moment while your children are little. And I learned a lot about elaborate bedtime tucking-in routines, which I’ve been practising on my boys ever since!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Let me introduce you to Carrie Reichardt. She's an artist who lives round the corner from me in little old suburban Chiswick. And she has completely covered her home with mosaic so that it's now an eye-popping work of art. When I met her, she did not disappoint. She's refreshingly honest, she's brave and she's a bit bonkers. And she says that as a post-menopausal woman, she now feels more like a teenager than she ever has before.We talked death row, her mum's ferocious knitting, and being honest with your children about your failings.Oh yes, and by the way, this one's got a happy ever after ending! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I meet Sali Hughes beauty writer and co-founder of the Beauty Bank which distributes toiletries, self care products and make up to people who can't afford them. She's also been vocal on the subject of trolling which she experienced herself recently. She's a mum of two teenage boys, who she is proud of and loves spending time with. We started by talking about how people get really hung up on the subject of having all sons - something we've both experienced... Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I meet 'Hurricane Holly'. Real name Holly Tucker, she is the small businesses guru who founded Not on the High Street . She has helped many creative people start to sell from their homes and reach a wider audience. Holly has one son and many 'business babies'. And if you want to hear her recipe for following your dream, she shares it near the end of our chat!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm talking to Jessie Cave, writer, performer, cartoonist and soon-to-be author. She's an ex-national tennis player, she's played Lavender Brown in Harry Potter, and she refuses to be pigeon-holed. She shares with me the terrible, recent impact of losing her brother. She also shares the amazing story of getting pregnant after a one-night stand with comedian Alfie Brown. At the time of recording she was just about to have her third child with him - they now have baby Abraham (Bam for short), 4 year old Margot and 6 year old Donnie. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I'm talking to Sophie Robinson, a woman who I've admired for a long time, for her passion for putting colour into houses who now runs courses online showing how other people how to be bold with colour and have fun with their interiors. We spoke between lockdowns at her house tucked away inthe East Sussex countryside...in fact so tucked away that even the sat nav got lost! Hers is a happy home is filled with her trademark mix of vibrant colours and wallpapers and I loved her infectious laugh which bubbled up even when we talked about her most difficult time struggling with infertility.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I think I met a real superhero. Remember Gina Miller who stood on the steps of the supreme court, seemingly alone, as she sued the government for being unconstitutional? Some misunderstood the case as being anti-Brexit but it was about standing up for failrness, something she's done ever since having a special needs daughter at the age of 25. This was something that affected her profoundly and that she has used in a positive way. We talked about some of the tough times she has gone through and her drive to fight for justice. See?... A real life superhero! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

‘Yay! Someone with more children than me! I spoke to brilliant mother of 9 Amanda Owen aka the Yorkshire Shepherdess who appears on TV sharing her life as a hill farmer whilst raising her glorious family. We met up when she was in London to talk to her publisher about her 4th book. We spoke about how she tends to book the tooth fairy for a job lot, how she prefers dry stone walling with her children to doing jigsaws with them, and she also described her perfect birth - number 8 - on her own, in front of a coal fire at midnight. Inspiring and brave. I loved talking to Amanda and am excited to share our conversation with you. Enjoy! Xx Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week I talk to Louise Redknapp who pressed pause on her performing career when she became a mum. Now her two boys are older, Louise has thrown herself into writing and performing - something that she’s loved since she was young. We spoke about self-confidence, the concept of having it all and the urge to perform 'even' when you're a mum. we also compare notes as members of the ‘people who’ve done strictly ’ club! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to Spinning Plates! Series two starts here. Full candour - for some strange reason I wrote this blurb bit in the third person when I started uploading the first series but now, full disclosure - it’s me, Sophie! First person comes a lot more naturally to me. Anyhoo, for the first episode of the series I talk to chef and presenter Nadiya Hussain. Nadiya and I talked about family expectations versus career ambitions, anxiety about falling in love with your newborn baby and how she actually wanted to pretend she'd died so she wouldn't have to do Bake Off!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the final episode of the series, Sophie chats to author and journalist Hadley Freeman. Hadley has twin four year old boys and a baby girl (and also a dog called Arthur who interrupted the chat when he thought sophie had had enough time!). Hadley has written many books and her latest, House of Glass, was released in March this year. During their conversation, Sophie and Hadley discuss catastrophic imaginings, covering the oscars with a 6 month old baby and the need for earplugs when working from home. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to the 9th episode of the series where Sophie chats to chef and founder of Wahaca Thomasina Miers. Tommi has built her life around her love of food and cooking and she is keen to make a healthy, sustainable diet achievable for all. Her three little girls are aged 4, 7 and 9 and they eat a broad range of homemade food where kids meals aren’t infantilised and everyone eats better as a result. Here Sophie and Tommi talk food as a political issue, bad moods in lockdown and the eternal joy of tequila. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Spinning Plates this week sees Sophie talking to the founder of the Cambridge Satchel Company Julie Deane. Julie started her company in 2008 when she didn’t have enough money for school fees so she sat down with a spreadsheet and a load of ideas and worked out the most profitable. The company was started with just £600 and is now worth over £10,000,000. Julie is mother to two children: her daughter Emily is 20 and her son Max is 18.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For Spinning Plates this week Sophie is joined by the gentle yet radical businesswoman Jacqueline Gold. Jacqueline is CEO of Anne Summers and she revolutionised the company after introducing the Anne Summers Party concept in the 1980's. She is mother to twins Scarlett and Alfie. Scarlett is now 10 and Alfie sadly died when he was just eight months old. Here she talks proving grey-suited men wrong, quietly changing culture to empower women in the bedroom while all the time striving to be an awesome mum. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sophie’s podcast guest this week is Yvonne Telford who is mother to two girls aged 10 and 12 whilst running her gorgeous clothing company Kemi Telford. Her the tale of how she discovered exactly who she was after having a baby which will resonate with so many as it’s so easy to become a parent and forget who ‘you’ are. Hoping this episode will reassure and inspire folk!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The most personal episode of spinning plates yet sees Sophie talk to her mum, Janet Ellis. Janet has 3 grown up children.. Sophie (her eldest) and Sophie’s two younger siblings Jackson and Martha. she also has a dog called Angela. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Sophie is joined by the gorgeous and multi-talented Myleene Klass who is mother to her girls Ava (nearly thirteen), Hero (nine) and baby son Apollo (one in august) as well as step mother to her partner Simon's two children. In this episode we find out how dating as a mum is terrifying, why learning to mend a tap is so important, and how 20 pasta shapes can save the world. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome to week 3 and Sophie's guest is the brilliant writer and blogger, Candice Brathwaite. Candice has two young children with her husband Bode and has just published her first book, I am Not Your baby Mother, all about being a black mother in the UK. Sophie and Candice talk social politics, the legacy you leave your ancestors and the importance of putting Chanel on your cosmic wishlist. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.