Sliding Doors

Ep60: Sliding Doors with Amanda Wakeley OBE

Amanda Wakeley is a Fashion Designer, Creative Director and Broadcaster and is one of Britain’s most celebrated and influential talents - being awarded an OBE in 2010. After a short stint as a fashion model in the 80s, she set up her signature line ‘Amanda Wakeley’ and for over 30 years she built her award-winning international brand - becoming a firm favourite with some of the world’s most stylish women including Catherine Princess of Wales, Beyonce and Jennifer Lopez. Now she is in the second stage of her career focusing on consulting, broadcasting and presenting, and last year she launched her podcast ‘Amanda Wakeley Style DNA.’

In this episode Amanda takes us through her amazing life's journey and the Sliding Doors moments that made it. She chats about her decision to quit Art School and move to America at a young age - which is where she really honed her craft and built her own foundations for her brand. We discuss the incredible, career defining moment when Princess Diana decided to wear her design to resign from public life, and how this one decision catapulted Wakeley to become the iconic brand it is today. We also delve into how throwing yourself out of your comfort zone, can be the best sliding doors decision you can make!

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guest: @amandawakeley

Ep59: Sliding Doors with Jack Guinness

Jack Guinness is a Model, Journalist, Author, and Creative Director and one of the most influential voices in British fashion and the LGBTQ+ community. He is the founder of The Queer Bible: the online community that celebrates the works and lives of trailblazing members of the global queer community. He has starred in global campaigns for the likes of L'Oreal and Dolce and Gabbana as well as contributing to publications such as The Sunday Times Style and Tatler as a fashion commentator.

In this episode Jack takes us through his journey and how he now centres his community rather than himself, giving greater meaning to his life. We delve into his party days and how living in East London in the early 00's helped him find his tribe and himself. His discusses his Sliding Doors decision of going to Cambridge and how looking back this might not have been best for his mental health. And of course we chat about his love of the film and all things fashion and style!

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guest: @jackguinness

Ep58: Sliding Doors with Cheryl Baker

Cheryl Baker is a singer and TV presenter best known as part of the pop sensation ‘Bucks Fizz’ winning the Eurovision Song Contest and selling millions of records worldwide. A real-life east ender, Cheryl was born in Bethnal Green and in 1981 that dream came true when Bucks Fizz won Eurovision with ‘Making Your Mind Up’. She also became a household name on our TV screens presenting Record Breakers for 11 series. 40 years on ‘The Fizz’ are still going strong and Cheryl continues to perform with Mike and Jay.

 

In this episode Cheryl spills all her amazing Eurovision memories, including THAT moment during 'Making Your Mind Up' and how just being in Eurovision was a childhood dream and vision come true. She has an amazing outlook and positivity on life, and delves into the sliding doors moment that started her whole career in showbiz, and the moment of timing that got her into Bucks Fizz. As well as the life changing moment she decided to call up a guy (her now husband) and tell him she wanted to be more than friends!

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guest: @thecherylbaker

Ep57: Sliding Doors with Scott Thomas

Scott Thomas is an entrepreneur, TV presenter and podcaster. He is the founder of The Social PR and the wellness coaching brand Food4Thoughts, and has his own podcast 'Learning as I go.' A Mancunian through and through, Scott grew up in Manchester on the events scene hosting club nights and in 2016, Scott shot to fame as part of the second series of Love Island where he reached the final. However, these days he is best known for sharing his self development journey and his passion for progression and transforming people’s lives. 

In this episode Scott discusses his inspirational and empowering self development journey - which he is still very much navigating his way through. We chat about the Sliding Doors moment he got escorted out of a work event, and how this was the catalyst for him building a healthier lifestyle and healthier relationship with alcohol.... which has subsequently gone on to help so many people. Scott opens up on his beliefs that moments and decisions in your life, either good or bad, lead you to where you are meant to be. And one of his biggest moments of all, deciding to go on Love Island!

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guest: @scott.thomas

Ep56: Sliding Doors with Candice Brathwaite

Candice Brathwaite is a critically acclaimed best-selling author, journalist, podcaster and TV presenter. Her first book 'I am not your Baby Mother' made it to the Sunday Times Bestseller list as an inspirational guide to life as a black British mum- and has since gone on to write two more. She is a self-confessed fashion and beauty addict often seen on our TV screens as well as being a contributing editor to Grazia. 

In this episode Candice opens up about her incredible life and her 3 Sliding Doors moments that made the biggest impact on where she is today. As someone who is a believer that everything happens for a reason- Candice shares her beliefs on her father's death and how she wouldn't be where she is today without that life changing moment. We delve into the night when she decided not to go over to a guy's house and how she believes this saved her life. Candice has the most amazing outlook on life and speaks with such reason and conviction- it will really open up your mind!

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guest: @candicebrathwaite

Ep55: Sliding Doors Live with Anna Mathur

Anna Mathur is a Psychotherapist, Best- Selling Author, Podcaster and Public Speaker. Her first two books; ‘Mind over Mother’ and ‘Know your Worth’ both went straight into the Sunday Times Best Sellers list and her podcast ‘The Therapy Edit’ has more than 1.5 million downloads. Anna has been a psychotherapist for over 13 years and is celebrated for her accessible mental health advice, light bulb moments and discussions around anxiety and encouraging self-worth. She lives in Surrey with her husband and 3 children.

In this episode Anna chats about her life as a therapist, her childhood after losing her sister at such a young age and her thoughts around the Sliding Doors theory. We discuss her 'what if' moments and decisions, including her choice of university after following a boy there she had been dating- leading to meeting the actual love of her life! Anna also opens up about a car crash she had that led to years of driving anxiety, but ultimately built her own inner strength and helped other people.

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guest: @annamathur

Ep54: Sliding Doors Live with Hermione Underwood

Hermione Underwood is the UK & EU CEO of JS Health Vitamins- Australia’s leading health and wellness brand, fast growing in the UK and Europe. Previously a successful entrepreneur owning a PR agency, jewellery and rose business- in 2020 she took on a new challenge to drive the JS Health Vitamins brand into the UK & EU markets. Hermione is really passionate about Female Leadership and empowerment.

In this episode Hermione discusses her three Sliding Doors 'decisions' and she opens up about her own personal journey to where she is now. We chat about her decision to leave Australia and move to London, leaving her business behind and starting from scratch- and how this decision shaped the path she is on today. We delve into how having a coffee with a friend led Hermione to change her gut decision to move to New York.....and if she had moved, she never would have met her husband or become CEO!

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guest: @hermioneolivia

Ep53: Sliding Doors with Simon Alexander Ong

Simon Alexander Ong is a personal development entrepreneur, award-winning life coach and public speaker. His work has seen him featured on Sky News, Forbes and The FT as well as talks and keynotes for organisations and events. Simon helps people to achieve big goals with a particular focus on the power and science of energy management. In his book, Energize, he coaches his readers to work with their natural energy resources, to recognise your most energized state and it has been endorsed by the likes of bestselling author Simon Sinek and Dr Marshall Goldsmith.

In this episode Simon discusses his thoughts on the importance luck plays in our Sliding Doors moments. He chats about the time he failed his first year at university and how this turned out to be a life changing moment for him (including meeting his wife!) And we find out about the moment he said yes to a birthday event of someone he didn't know!

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guest: @simonalexandero

 

Ep52: Sliding Doors with Sophie Gallagher

Sophie Gallagher is an award winning journalist, author and the Deputy Features Editor at I newspaper- previously a freelance feature writer for BBC, Financial Times, Stylist and the Deputy lifestyle editor at the independent. Throughout her career Sophie has written extensively on the subject of violence against women and has been a crucial part of the campaign to criminalise cyber-flashing. In July this year, she released her first book- How Men Can help- a much-needed, long-awaited exploration of the role men can- and should - play in tackling violence against women and girls.

In this episode Sophie chats about how kindness from a random stranger, kick started her professional career in journalism. We also have an open and insightful discussion about her experience with cyber-flashing, and how this awful moment led her to start the campaign and take action to stop this happening to other people. As well as the sliding doors decision to take the plunge and leave a job that didn't feel right for her, that opened up the path to her becoming an author.

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guest: @sophiecfgallagher

Ep51: Sliding Doors with Kelvin & Liz Fletcher

Kelvin & Liz Fletcher are the dynamic duo who both star in the hit BBC1 show, Kelvin's Big Farming Adventure. Kelvin is an actor best known for playing Andy Sugden in Emmerdale for 20 years and also as the winner of Strictly Come Dancing in 2019. Liz is an actor and voiceover artist who has appeared in a number of roles both on stage and screen. Together they live on their farm in the Peak District with their four children, and have just released their first book 'Fletcher's on the Farm.'

In this episode Kelvin & Liz delve into the moments that have shaped their lives and how through their aspirations to find a new way of life and taking risks, they manage to live their lives to the fullest. We discuss how a few moments of fate are how they eventually got together in their mid-twenties, and how getting the call to be a replacement contestant on Strictly- was a twist of fate that led Kelvin to win the show! Liz discusses how her life path took her to where she was meant to be by pushing herself to go to an audition, and Kelvin chats about his decision to leave Emmerdale after 20 years. And of course we find out how their dream of moving to LA turned into buying a farm on the Peak District!

@slidingdoorspod

Hosted by: @jenbecks28

Guests: @kelvin_fletcher @liz_fletcher83 @fletchersonthefarm