5 Live breakfast show

I’m a Guest on BBC Radio 5 Live Breakfast!

No sooner had I recovered from my guest slot on BBC4 Woman’s Hour than I was invited to be a guest on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Breakfast Show hosted by Eleanor Oldroyd and Gordon Smart. Eek! Another live radio show?

I was told I would receive a phone call at 8.15am on Friday 22nd December, and to make sure I have plenty of battery life and reception. Easier said than done in rural Sevenoaks where I struggle to speak to anyone on my phone, even with my new full fibre broadband!

I must have looked ridiculous sitting in the corner of my kitchen squinting at the signal on my phone, with my laptop and iPad close at hand in case of emergency. Having waited so many years to get my voice heard on this topic, I was absolutely sure as hell not going to let my dodgy connectivity let me down. I was ready to run out of the house and down the street until I got a better reception if I had to!

The phone rang. The producer asked if I could hear the show in the background through the phone line and checked the sound for clarity. It felt surreal to hear the presenters chatting away, knowing that they were about to introduce me.

As they began their intro and explained the reason for me being on the show, which was to debate the content of, and reactions to, my Daily Mail articleI took a deep breath and got ready to present my case. I was incredibly nervous, buzzing from a heady combination of gallons of black coffee on an empty stomach and pure adrenaline, and as I spoke I stumbled over my words. I tried to calm myself down with a few deep breaths and continued. After around 6 or 7 minutes it was over, and I kicked myself at all the things I still had to say but hadn’t had time to express.

I needn’t have worried, because the producers were so happy with how it had gone that they invited me to rejoin the later show with Chris Warburton, whereby they would discuss the issues in more detail and have me on the entire hour-long debate and phone-in. Yikes!

So I cooked myself some breakfast to settle my nerves and steeled myself for the next interview. An hour of live radio! 5 million listeners! Interacting with callers on the phone-in, not knowing if they were going to be for or against my side of the debate. 

Have you ever tried to eat whilst experiencing anxiety? It’s not easy! Nevertheless I forced down my eggs and waited for the phone to ring again…

You can listen to Sam on Radio 5 Live Breakfast here. (Listen from around 2hr20mins in.)

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5 Live breakfast show