Gary Lineker | Live Q&A: Politics, World Cups and the Changing Game

From a childhood in Islington to more than three decades on one of Britain’s biggest television shows, Natalie Cassidy’s life has unfolded in public for almost as long as she can remember.In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with the actor to trace a journey that began in a close-knit working-class family, took shape at the Anna Scher Theatre, and changed forever when she was cast in EastEnders at just ten years old.Natalie reflects on growing up surrounded by adults, losing the privacy her parents had valued, and navigating fame before she was old enough to understand what it meant. She speaks movingly about family, grief and guilt, the loss of her mother at nineteen, and the grounding influence of the women who helped shape her, from Wendy Richard and Barbara Windsor to the incomparable June Brown.They discuss the strange psychology of child stardom, the realities of soap acting, and the courage it took to step away from a role that had defined her for so long. Along the way, Natalie talks with warmth and honesty about money, motherhood, class, friendship, ambition and the need, now, to be brave enough to try something new.Funny, candid and deeply perceptive, this is a conversation about identity, resilience and what it means to build a life when the whole country thinks it already knows who you are.EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal -> https://nordvpn.com/fulldisclosure Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee

For 25 years, Fast Food Nation has shaped the way we think about what we eat, how it is made, and who pays the price. Its author, Eric Schlosser, did more than expose the hidden realities behind the fast food industry. He revealed a much bigger story about corporate power, political influence and the human cost of profit.In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with the acclaimed investigative writer to mark the anniversary of the book that changed the conversation around food. Schlosser reflects on a childhood shaped by privilege, culture and intellectual curiosity, before explaining how early ambitions as a playwright and screenwriter eventually gave way to a career in long-form journalism.They discuss the reporting behind Fast Food Nation, from slaughterhouses and meatpacking plants to boardrooms and lobbying operations, and why Schlosser came to see the industry as a lens through which to understand modern America. He explains how the story of fast food became a story about labour, inequality, deregulation and the alliance between government and big business.The conversation also ranges across his wider body of work, including prisons, nuclear weapons and the enduring appeal of investigative writing that challenges power rather than flatters it. Thoughtful, unsparing and deeply timely, this is a conversation about journalism, capitalism and why the systems shaping our lives deserve much closer scrutiny.Find out more about the 25th anniversary edition of Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser hereEXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal -> https://nordvpn.com/fulldisclosure Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee

From Le Caprice and The Ivy to The Wolseley and Brasserie Zédel, Jeremy King has helped define the way London eats, drinks and sees itself. His restaurants became institutions, attracting everyone from Princess Diana and Lucian Freud to generations of actors, artists, politicians and power players.In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with the legendary restaurateur to trace an extraordinary life behind some of the capital’s most iconic dining rooms. Jeremy reflects on a childhood shaped by shyness, social awkwardness and a lasting sense of being an outsider, before explaining how an early fascination with risk led him to make major life decisions according to the throw of a dice, including the choice that pulled him away from Cambridge University and into hospitality.They discuss his first jobs in the restaurant world, the formative partnership with Chris Corbin, and the instincts that helped create some of London’s most celebrated establishments. Jeremy reveals why great restaurants are about far more than food, how atmosphere and service can transform a room, and why making people feel they belong matters just as much as what is on the plate.From celebrity diners and royal visits to business setbacks, reinvention and the long-awaited reopening of Simpson’s, the conversation moves through the highs, the risks and the resilience behind a singular career. Warm, candid and full of hard won insight, this is a conversation about ambition, instinct and the subtle art of creating places people never forget.Simpson's in The Strand EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal -> https://nordvpn.com/fulldisclosure Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee

From suburban England to the front lines of the punk revolution and the stadium stages of MTV era rock, Billy Idol has spent a lifetime reinventing what rebellion looks like.In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with the singer to trace an extraordinary life that began in a childhood split between England and the United States, moving between places and possibilities before music gave him a sense of direction. Idol reflects on growing up in a close knit family, the influence of his parents, and the early restlessness that would eventually pull him towards London at the moment punk was beginning to erupt.They discuss the raw energy of the mid seventies scene and the formation of Generation X, when a group of young musicians with little formal training suddenly found themselves at the centre of a cultural explosion. Idol recalls the excitement of those early days, when punk felt less like a genre and more like a declaration that a new generation had something to say.From there the conversation moves to New York, reinvention and the birth of the unmistakable Billy Idol persona that would come to dominate the early years of MTV. He reflects on fame, excess and survival, the uneasy balance between punk credibility and global success, and how rock and roll changed as the movement he came from entered the mainstream.Frank, reflective and full of energy, this is a conversation about rebellion, reinvention and the enduring power of rock and roll.Billy Idol Should Be Dead documentary, coming to Sky Arts on 26th MarchEXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal -> https://nordvpn.com/fulldisclosure Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee

This episode includes discussion of sensitive topics, including sexual assault and violence, that some listeners may find distressing. Please take care while listening, and feel free to pause or step away if you need to.At fifteen, Naz Shah was forced into a marriage thousands of miles from home. Years earlier, she had been sent from Bradford to rural Pakistan, pulled out of school and dropped into a life that felt a world away from the one she had known.But the road that would eventually lead her to Westminster begins much earlier. It starts in a Bradford childhood shaped by poverty, upheaval and a mother trying desperately to hold her family together after being abandoned and left dangerously vulnerable.In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with Shah to explore the experiences that shaped her life. She recalls growing up amid instability, belongings packed into black bin liners, and the powerful expectations around honour and reputation that governed the choices available to women and girls.As the conversation unfolds, Naz reflects on the moment her childhood ended and the shock that followed her return to Britain. A family crisis would eventually lead to her mother being imprisoned for killing the man who had controlled and abused her for years, a truth that emerged only gradually and changed the course of Naz’s life.This is a conversation about survival, silence and the weight of honour. How does a girl who left school at twelve find her way to Parliament? And what happens when the story behind a family tragedy finally comes into the light?Find out more about Honoured by Naz Shah here Additional support:If you've been affected by anything you've heard in this episode, please take a moment to read the resources listed: Rape Crisis, Women's Aid, Victim SupportEXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal -> https://nordvpn.com/fulldisclosure Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee

Gary Lineker took questions from the live Full Disclosure audience and nothing was off the table. He discusses the scrutiny that follows every World Cup, including the tournament in the United States, and considers whether sports broadcasters should speak out more in politically volatile times.He also reflects on his own social media controversies, football’s growing tribalism, and whether today’s game might have suited him better than the heavy pitches and harder tackles of his playing days.Candid, thoughtful and often wry, this is the unfiltered extra from a memorable live show.

Gary Lineker has scored in World Cups, fronted the nation’s biggest football programme, and weathered a political firestorm that nearly ended it all. But at the height of his success, turning to a teammate after scoring four for England, his reaction was disbelief: “Why am I so f**ing lucky?”In this live edition of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien charts the full arc of Lineker’s extraordinary career. From a market trader’s son in Leicester to Golden Boot winner and the face of Match of the Day, Gary reflects on self doubt, ambition, and the surreal reality of becoming a national institution.He opens up about the brutal culture of tabloid scrutiny, the shock of discovering he had been followed by investigators, and the emotional weekend when the BBC stood him down- only for colleagues to walk out in solidarity. He explains why he refused to apologise when he believed he was right, the mistake that ultimately cost him his role, and why speaking out became unavoidable.Funny, disarmingly honest, and unexpectedly vulnerable, this is Gary Lineker as you have never quite heard him before- on luck, loyalty, outrage, and starting again.This episode was recorded at The Royal Geographical Society to raise money for charity Make Some Noise. You can find more information about the charity hereEXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal -> https://nordvpn.com/fulldisclosure Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee

From the bomb sites of post war South London to the stages of the Comedy Store and the studios of Radio 4, Arthur Smith’s life has been driven less by ambition than by curiosity. The son of a Second World War prisoner of war turned police officer, and a grammar school girl who filled the house with books and poetry, Arthur grew up in a home where humour and humanity went hand in hand.In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with the comedian to trace a journey that begins in Bermondsey and winds its way through the birth of alternative comedy, and the strange alchemy that turned a literature graduate into one of Britain’s most distinctive comic voices. Arthur reflects on discovering the thrill of laughter as a child playing Captain Hook, on being elected head boy, and on why poetry and stand up share more in common than most people realise.They revisit the early days of the Comedy Store, the emergence of a new kind of comedy in the 1980s, and the moment television fame arrived via Grumpy Old Men. Arthur speaks candidly about the seductions of drink, the shock of acute pancreatitis, and how a brush with mortality reshaped his relationship with success. For Arthur, comedy has never been about domination or design, but about delight: finding the precise word, the perfect pause, the unexpected turn.Find out more about Arthur Smith’s upcoming gigs hereEXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal -> https://nordvpn.com/fulldisclosure Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee

James O'Brien listeners, we've got a new podcast we think you'll love.Step inside sport’s greatest soap opera, Formula One, with a brand-new podcast Up To Speed. Hosted by Drive to Survive star Will Buxton, racing driver-turned-broadcaster Naomi Schiff, 13-time Grand Prix winner David Coulthard, and F1 content creator Jolie Sharpe.Expect razor-sharp reaction, behind-the-scenes insight, blockbuster interviews and answers to the questions you’ve always wanted to ask! With their deep knowledge, expert analysis and infectious love for racing, Will, Naomi, DC & Jolie dive into the stories that matter - on and off the track.It’s fast-paced, unfiltered and full of the gossip that keeps the paddock buzzing.They’ll react to the weekend's race drama every Monday. On Thursday they’ll deep dive into the biggest stories of the week.Watch and listen to episode 1 now on Global Player, YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts.

From the son of a bus driver on a South London council estate to the first Muslim mayor of a major Western capital, Sadiq Khan’s story is inseparable from the story of modern London. But with that journey has come a decade at the sharpest end of British politics.In this episode of Full Disclosure, James O’Brien sits down with the Mayor of London to trace the path from a crowded flat in Tooting to City Hall. Khan reflects on his parents’ migration from Pakistan, the racism he experienced growing up, and the teachers who helped him see that the rooms of power were not off limits. He describes the leap from human rights lawyer to MP, the gamble of running for mayor, and the reality of governing a city through terror attacks, Brexit, a pandemic and deep political division.They discuss the resurgence of overt racism, the personal cost of public life, and why Khan refuses to let abuse dictate his politics. He speaks candidly about the backlash he faced over equal marriage, the solidarity he believes minorities must show one another, and the responsibility he feels to prove that London remains a city where progress is possible.Attention also turns to the future of the Labour Party. As calls emerge for Keir Starmer to stand down, Khan addresses the speculation directly. He reflects on party unity, leadership under pressure and the dangers of allowing internal divisions to overshadow the broader task facing Labour. For Khan, the question is not about personalities but about purpose: what Labour is for, who it represents, and how it responds at moments when confidence wavers.At its heart, this is a conversation about resilience, representation and the fragile idea of social progress. Can a city that once displayed signs reading “No Blacks, No Irish, No Dogs” continue to move forward.EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal -> https://nordvpn.com/fulldisclosure Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee