18. Malcolm Gladwell

Kirsty Young asks podcaster Adam Buxton what advice he would give his younger self. Buxton rose to prominence in partnership with Joe Cornish, first on TV with The Adam and Joe Show then as co-hosts of radio shows on XFM and BBC 6 Music. He has since struck out alone with his live show, Bug, and a hit interview podcast. He reflects on his time at art school, the split with Cornish, and the loss of both of his parents.A BBC Studios Audio production.

Kirsty Young asks Paralympic legend Tanni Grey-Thompson what advice she would give her younger self.With 11 Paralympic gold medals and six London Marathon victories, Grey-Thompson reflects on a childhood in Wales, her extraordinary athletics career and her transition to becoming a campaigner and crossbench peer. She discusses the mindset of a champion, the importance of forward-looking goals, and her advocacy for disability rights.A BBC Studios Audio production.

Kirsty Young asks BAFTA-winning actor Chiwetel Ejiofor what advice he would give his younger self.Known for his iconic performances in 12 Years a Slave and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Ejiofor reflects on a tragedy that shaped his childhood, being cast by Steven Spielberg when he was just 19, and making the move into directing. He also discusses the inspiration he found in the works of Shakespeare and learning to stop being a perfectionist.A BBC Studios Audio production.

Kirsty Young asks the comedian Sara Pascoe what advice she would give her younger self.Pascoe found fame soon after moving from acting to stand up comedy in 2007. She has since packed out national tours, starred panel shows and sitcoms, and written three books including her acclaimed recent novel, Weirdo. She discusses drinking on stage, declaring bankruptcy, her first gig in front of just 12 people, becoming a mum in her forties and her continuing passion for performing stand up.A BBC Studios Audio production.

Kirsty Young asks the rock star Pete Doherty what advice he would give his younger self.Doherty became famous in the 2000s with The Libertines, the band he formed and fronted alongside fellow singer and guitarist Carl Barât. He became notorious as his own drug addictions led to break ups with the band and numerous arrests. He reflects on a childhood spent moving around the world following his father's postings in the British Army, the beginnings of The Libertines, the lows of addiction, and the family life he now lives in France. A BBC Studios Audio production.

Kirsty Young asks food writer Nigel Slater what advice he would give his younger self.Nigel Slater began his career working in kitchens across the UK before becoming a food writer, initially for Marie Claire magazine. He has written a regular food column for The Observer newspaper for over three decades in which time he has also written numerous cookbooks. His 2003 autobiography, Toast: The Story of a Boy's Hunger, detailed a difficult childhood in the West Midlands during the 1960s and was later adapted into a film. He shares memories of Christmases past and last minute tips for making the perfect Christmas dinner in a special festive edition of Young Again.A BBC Studios Audio production.

Kirsty Young is back with more fascinating guests.

Kirsty Young asks the writer and podcaster Malcolm Gladwell what advice he would give his younger self.Gladwell's writing, in books such as The Tipping Point and Outliers, successfully distil complex ideas for a mass audience, and he has worked as a staff writer for The New Yorker. His podcasts include Revisionist History, which reconsiders things both overlooked and misunderstood. Gladwell recalls his childhood in a largely Mennonite community in rural Canada, reflects on the shared culture of his English father and Jamaican mother, and shares his joy at becoming a parent later in life.A BBC Studios Audio production.

Kirsty Young asks the author Irvine Welsh what advice he would give his younger self.Welsh became a literary sensation when his first novel, Trainspotting, was published in 1993. The film adaptation that followed made him a star. But before that he'd gone from being a punk in London to a turn into administrative work for his local council, via a brush with heroin addiction. He looks back at his childhood in Edinburgh, his parents' romance and a first arrest at just eight years old.A BBC Studios Audio production.

Kirsty Young asks the activist and writer Gloria Steinem what advice she would give her younger self.Through the last seven decades, Steinem has been a singular voice and influential thinker for the causes of feminism and equality in the USA. She discusses her breakthrough as a young journalist going undercover as a Playboy Bunny, founding the hugely successful feminist magazine Ms., and her personal stake in the fight for the legalisation of abortion. She also reflects on her unconventional childhood with a father who never wore a hat or had a job and a mother whom she became a carer of at a young age.A BBC Studios Audio production.