Ije McDougall
“Unashamedly Occupy Space” My name is Ije McDougall, I am a mum, a sister, a friend, a human resources professional, a family court magistrate, a motivational speaker and charity worker. Most importantly however, I unashamedly occupy space as a black woman living in the UK. I grew up in Nigeria as the eldest of three […]
Adya Misra
‘I like seeing people’s faces light up when they are doing something they didn’t think they could do because I was the same.’ My name is Adya, I’m originally from Newcastle and I live in The Wirral. I’ve lived in many places over the years. My parents were first-generation immigrants from South Asia. I’m talking […]
Pammy Johal
“Life is too short to wear tight shoes” My name is Pammy Johal. I’m the founder and operations director of ‘Backbone’, an organisation seeking to ignite a relationship between people from minority backgrounds and the outdoors. I grew up in Coventry, with a wonderful family around me. My parents moved to the UK, from India, […]
Krish Patel
Today is our 50th episode. That is 50 episodes to Inspire you and what a journey it has been. We have shared stories from people around the globe and our tales have been listened to in 34 different countries. This special episode shares snippets of inspiration from Jamie Rudd, Lucy Shepherd, Luke Tyburski, Saeed Atcha […]
Simon Osamoh
“All I ever wanted was to feel validated and accepted”. I am Simon Osamoh, I now live in America, but my life is very different from what it used to be as a Thames Valley Police Officer. It was an amazing job where I did a range of different roles, from detective investigations to burglaries. […]
Lee Chambers
Finding My Path I grew up in Bolton from a mixed-race background in a working class setting. Initially at primary school I was curious but disruptive, however it quickly became clear that with a little focus I could achieve excellent grades. I went on to become the first member of my family to attend university, […]
Krish Patel
Krish grew up in Bolton, and when asked by his primary school teacher “what do you want to be when you grow up?” His answer was a no brainer: a professional footballer. A self confused chubby kid, Krish was disheartened when his teacher suggested this may not be a realistic dream, and he should have […]
Demetrius Frazier
The Foundation of Resilience A single parent home and very humble beginnings is where I started. We didn’t have money and yes it was a real struggle. My dad was a rolling stone, he had a lot of outside kids. It was my mom, my sister and myself, the three of us. My mom […]
Joshua Thomas
A Childhood Shaped by Racism As a Black child growing up in Galesburg, Illinois I realized that my identity separated me from the rest of my community. At 11 years old, some of my friend’s parents would not allow them to hang out with me, as I was perceived as a threat just because of […]
Fazial Page
Early Dreams and Challenges My name is Faz I was born in Jamaica in 1959 and I came over to England with my family as part of the Windrush generation when I was 10 years old. We settled in Old Trafford, in Manchester, times were hard, especially being the eldest of 6 siblings. I played […]