The 49er – Staying Visible and Taking Centre Stage
There is a saying that in midlife, women start to become invisible. Not this one 😉 I’ve wanted to be on stage since I was a child but could never quite figure out how that was going to happen given that I: Couldn’t really sing Never quite knew how to act (too loud, too fidgety, […]
Social Mobility and History Repeating Itself
At times it’s felt like my whole life has been about trying to make sure that history doesn’t repeat itself. Those of you who have heard me speak on social mobility or do stand-up, will know that there’s a LOT I didn’t want to experience again: Being poor Being reliant on benefits Being harshly judged […]
Social Mobility and Scholarships
It was with great awe and a little trepidation that I entered the Leathersellers’ Hall in London last week. Having arrived sweating after my usual wrangle with Google Maps (why is it so hard? WHY?!!) and being tempted to simply offer my phone to the next person who sped by on an e-scooter rather than […]
The 49er – Six months to go…
Well, it’s official – six months to 5-0, Day Two of getting the podcast back up and running, and my body feels like I need a sit down! Whilst the episode focuses on my knackered knee and the mystery that is the ‘Phantom Finger Bruise’; the ‘Milk of Human Kindness’ is what I should have […]
The 49er – The Countdown Begins!
Turns out that tomorrow I will be exactly six months from my 50th birthday. So…what am I going to do about it? Cry? Cheer? Buy a Brazilian Butt Lift? The true answer to the question that I’m going to get creative as a means to strike up a conversation. And what better way to do that than […]
Social Mobility and Television
It’s a peculiar thing to grow up in thrall to your television and then realise you’ll probably never get to be on it. Whether it’s the programmes you enjoy or the adverts you love (go on, ask me to sing the Bird’s Eye Steakhouse ad with the workmen in the van… I dare you!) research […]
Social Mobility and Money
How do you feel about money? Confused? Scared? You’re not alone. The SmartPurse video where women share how they feel about money is a powerful illustration of how a lack of direct and practical conversations about finance leads many of us (women especially) to lack confidence around money. Happily, it also talks about how we […]
Social Mobility across the Generations
One thing that working in the social mobility space has brought into sharp focus for me is how the different generations of my family have experienced social mobility in different ways (as I always say; just like investments, social mobility can go down as well as up!). It has also prompted me to be acutely […]
What is Social Mobility?
The topic of Social Mobility is rapidly rising up the C-Suite agenda and forming a key component of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) commitments for many organisations. But what is it? What is Social Mobility? According to the OECD: “Social mobility refers to how a person’s socio-economic situation improves or declines relative to that of […]
Absolute Scenes Working Class Stories: Mental
I don’t know why, or how, it has come to be that a partially disused psychiatric hospital is hosting a rave. How an enormous sound system could be set up in a vast hall that once previously played host to wounded soldiers during both World Wars and people with mental illness during peacetime. One that, […]