Ready to Talk with Emma Barnett

Comedian John Robins talks about how he stopped drinking booze and why he’s happiest alone. He had his last drink in 2022 but only accepted he was an alcoholic after he had quit.
John is known for his Edinburgh award-winning stand up shows and podcasts like How Do You Cope? and partnership with Elis James. He’s just written a book, Thirst: Twelve Drinks That Changed My Life, which chronicles his lifelong relationship with alcohol.
In Ready to Talk with Emma Barnett, the award-winning interviewer speaks to people you will know and people you should know about the experiences that are shaping their lives. If you want to join the conversation you can email the team at [email protected], or you can send a WhatsApp message or voice note to 08000 556 101.

We're doing a new thing on Ready to Talk: News - a short series of three episodes where we find the news stories that really pique your interest and get us all talking.
On this episode - why are some in middle class Britain swiping things from supermarkets and then bragging about their five-fingered discounts? While the former New York Police Chief tells us crime is crime and should be tackled, the man who used to advise Jeremy Corbyn argues this is the consequence of rich corporations making spectacular profits while we all tighten our belts.
And is Britney Spears worse off now she's free of the conservatorship that controlled her life? Does the #FreeBritney movement bear responsibility for her very public problems? We'll hear a defence of the fandom.
Ready to Talk News is a Long Form Audio production for BBC Sounds.

Emma has some exciting news about a special spin-off series, Ready to Talk News, publishing over the next three weeks on Thursdays.
Subscribe so you never miss an episode.

Author Sally Gardner’s addiction to shopping has cost her £700k. She has only just discovered this compulsive behaviour is side effect of drugs she’s been prescribed for 20 years.
Sally is a Carnegie Medal and Costa Children’s Book Award-winning writer who suffers from a debilitating condition called Restless Legs Syndrome. To combat it she has taken drugs called dopamine agonists for two decades. When her children heard a BBC radio investigation revealing the extent of compulsive behaviour the drugs can induce, they realised her extreme behaviour was linked to these drugs. Sally is talking publicly about her ordeal for the first time.
In Ready to Talk with Emma Barnett, the award-winning interviewer speaks to people you will know and people you should know about the experiences that are shaping their lives. If you want to join the conversation you can email the team at [email protected], or you can send a WhatsApp message or voice note to 08000 556 101.
If you are affected by the issues raised in this programme, a list of organisations that can help is available at bbc.co.uk/actionline.

Lindsey Burrow’s husband Rob was her childhood sweetheart before he became an England rugby league star. After he got motor neurone disease she became his carer for the final years of his life.
Lindsey continued her work as a physiotherapist in the NHS, and looked after their three children, as Rob's condition deteriorated. She has now written a book, Take Care, chronicling her time caring for the husband she describes as "a hero".
In Ready to Talk with Emma Barnett, the award-winning interviewer speaks to people you will know and people you should know about the experiences that are shaping their lives. If you want to join the conversation you can email the team at [email protected], or you can send a WhatsApp message or voice note to 08000 556 101.