In The Room with Ronnie Barbour

This time in the Room I'm talking to Gail Porter, the brilliant TV presenter, documentary maker and mental health advocate. We'll hear about the one job she really didn't want, how she almost became homeless, and what she'd say to her younger self. Anyway, the first room I put her into was the dressing room at Top of the Pops, where she got her big TV break. To hear more about Gail's work, follow her on twitter here: twitter.com/Gailporter

This time I'm talking to Stiliyan Petrov, the Celtic and Aston Villa legend, who played football until 2013, when he was diagnosed with leukaemia. We'll hear about how his drive to succeed was bigger than his talent, how being alone in Glasgow became very lonely, and how he dealt with his cancer diagnosis. Anyway, the first room I put him in was the Celtic dressing room before his first home game. To find out more about Stilyan's work with Player 4 Player go here: https://www.player4player.com/

This time in the room we're speaking to Dame Joan Bakewell, broadcaster, journalist and Labour Party member in the House of Lords. We'll hear about her early forays into the world of love and sexuality, we'll learn about the barriers that were put in her way when it came to reading the news, and how the pandemic has changed the perception of older people in the UK. Anyway, the first room I put Joan into was her room in Newnham College at Cambridge university, when she left home in Stockport to study. To find out more about Dame Joan and all of her work go here: https://joanbakewell.com/

This week in the room I'm speaking to Kriss Akabusi, the olympic legend, gold medallist and now motivational speaker. We'll hear about his upbringing in care, how he treats every moment in life as an opportunity and we'll hear about that iconic moment when he delivered gold for the UK. Anyway, the first room I put him in was the barracks in 1975, where he started his professional life, in the Army. To find out more about Kriss, visit his website here: https://www.akabusi.com/

This week in the room, we’re talking to Iain Dale, the LBC presenter, podcaster, publisher and writer. We'll hear how Iain pursued a career in politics, how he then turned his hand to publishing, and how he thinks we all have a duty to improve the standard of debate in this country. The first room we put Iain in was as David Davis' chief of staff in 2005, as the conservative leadership battle began. To find out more about Iain or to listen to his programme on LBC go here: https://www.iaindale.com/

This week in the room I'm talking to Professor Dame Elizabeth Anionwu, the nursing pioneer, whose work on sickle cell disease has helped thousands upon thousands of people to lead better lives. We'll hear how her life began in care, and how that led to her passion for nursing, how she thinks Covid-19 has been a wake up call for equality in the NHS and we'll hear her advice to anyone thinking of pursuing a career in nursing. To find out more about Dame Elizabeth's work go here: https://www.elizabethanionwu.co.uk/about-me/

This week we've got a very special guest in the room,  who happens to be one of Ronnie's heroes. Doddie Weir is a former Scottish Rugby union player who made 61 international appearances for his country. Since retiring, Doddie has been diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease, and is taking the fight to MND just as he did in his playing career. We'll hear about how horse-riding played an unlikely part in his development as a rugby player, how he found out about his MND because of a google search, and how the launch of his charity almost went very wrong. Find out more about the brilliant work Doddie and his foundation are doing here: https://www.myname5doddie.co.uk/

This week we're talking to Alan Johnson, the former Home Secretary, who has held many positions in cabinet, under Gordon Brown, Tony Blair, and in oppostion under Ed Miliband. He left politics in 2017, but has since become a successful writer, broadcaster, and podcaster. We'll hear about Alan's troubled upbringing. We'll talk to him about the biggest decision he's ever made as a parliamentarian - voting for war in Iraq, and we'll ask him why he didn't ever become leader of the labour party. Hear Alan's podcast here: https://www.11-29media.com/ and read more of his work here: https://alanjohnsonbooks.co.uk/

It's a different kind of In the Room this time because we're not looking back, instead we're talking about a case which is very much live. Dara Conduit is from the Free Kylie Moore Gilbert Campaign. Dr Kylie Moore Gilbert is an Australian academic, imprisoned in Iran after she was convicted of espionage, on charges which the Australian government described as "baseless". Dara will tell us the full story of Kylie's arrest and what conditions are like in the jail. And we'll update you on the latest developments in Kylie's case. If you want to find out more about Kylie's story go to https://freekylie.net/

Welcome to In the Room with me Ronnie Barbour. In this series we'll be talking to politicians, youtubers, sports stars and more about the defining moments of their lives. From the classroom, to the boardroom, the briefing room, the dressing room and more, we'll find out how the rooms of our lives shape the decisions we make. This time we're talking to Baroness Natalie Bennett, former leader of the Green Party between 2012 and 2016. She took the party to their best election results in the 2015 general election, but also failed to gain more than 1 MP, something that she puts down to the first past the post system. We'll hear the story behind the scenes of that infamous LBC "brain-fade" moment, how she sees the world of politics changing, and why she definitely doesn't want to be addressed as Baroness. To find out more about Natalie's work in the Lords or more about the Green Party go here: https://vote.greenparty.org.uk/