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How To Fail With Elizabeth Day

Every success story you’ve ever been told is incomplete. How To Fail with Elizabeth Day is the part they leave out.

Each week, Sunday Times #1 bestselling author Elizabeth Day sits down with someone extraordinary – and asks them about the moments that didn’t go according to plan and how these failures shaped them.

Kate Winslet on body image. Malala Yousafzai on rewriting her story. Pamela Anderson on refuting shame. Phoebe Waller-Bridge on creativity. Salman Rushdie on survival. Emilia Clarke on fame. What happens when the people you most admire stop performing and start telling the truth? Five hundred episodes in, we’re still finding out.

With sold-out nights at the London Palladium and Sydney Opera House, millions of listeners worldwide, and a British Podcast Award to its name, How To Fail is one of the UK’s most successful podcasts. And yes, we’re aware of the irony.

Pick an episode. Start anywhere.

An Elizabeth Day and Sony Music Entertainment production.

All guest booking is managed from an official Sony Music email address.

Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow @sonypodcastsTo bring your brand to life in this podcast, email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com

Copyright: © Elizabeth Day and Sony Music Entertainment

Latest Episodes:

Dan Levy on overcoming rejection and harnessing grief Jan 24, 2024

Show notes

We bonded over eyebrows, amongst other things.

You’ll know Dan Levy as David Rose in the widely adored TV show Schitt’s Creek, which he co-wrote and created with his father Eugene Levy. If ever there was a story of failure leading to success, it’s this, as Dan tells me how his multi-award winning and critically acclaimed show was (initially) turned down by every single network in the USA.

We also chat about relationship failures and a particular childhood incident involving birthday cake. Plus, we explore his fantastic new film ‘Good Grief’ - a beautiful gay love story for the modern age - and his personal influences behind it.

Good Grief and Schitt’s Creek are available to stream on Netflix.

And I’d LOVE to hear about your failures, no matter how profound, minor or funny they might be. Every week, my fantastic guest and I choose a selection to read out and answer on our special subscription offering Failing with Friends. We’ll endeavour to give you advice, wisdom and much, much more.

Have something to share of your own? I'd love to hear from you! Click here to get in touch: howtofailpod.com

And stay tuned next week for more info on how to subscribe!

Production & Post Manager: Lily Hambly

Studio Engineer: Matias Torres Sole

Mix Engineer: Gulliver Tickell

Senior Producer: Selina Ream

Executive Producer: Carly Maile

Head of Marketing: Kieran Lancini

How to Fail is an Elizabeth Day and Sony Music Entertainment Production.

Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts

To bring your brand to life in this podcast, email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Who’s ready for Season 20? Jan 19, 2024

Show notes

Season 20 of How to Fail will be kicking off on the 24th January - where we will be embracing the beautiful messiness of life - yet again.

This season is a celebration of resilience, growth, and the wisdom that comes from our failures. Join me, Elizabeth Day, as I sit down with incredible guests, each sharing three pivotal moments when life didn't go as planned. From these stumbles, we uncover valuable lessons that propel us forward. From career hiccups to personal setbacks, we dive deep into the stories that shape us. Because let's face it, life isn't about avoiding failure—it's about failing better.

Get ready for inspiring, candid conversations that will make you laugh, cry, and reflect on your own journey. Follow now, and let's navigate the twists and turns of life together.

Listen on all your favourite podcast platforms and join the conversation using #HowToFailPodcast. Let's fail forward, together.

An Elizabeth Day and Sony Music Entertainment Original Production.

Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow @sonypodcasts

To bring your brand to life in this podcast, email podcastsales@sonymusic.com

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HAPPY HIGH BETTER FAIL: The Ultimate Podcast Mash-Up with Fearne Cotton, Rangan Chatterjee, Jake Humphrey & Damian Hughes Dec 15, 2023

Show notes

Surprise! Here’s a little Christmas present for you… For this very special episode, a group of my favourite podcasters and I got together to share the microphone and spread the love we feel for each other - and for our listeners. What a joy to chat with legit podcasting royalty - Fearne Cotton (Happy Place), Rangan Chatterjee (Feel Better, Live More) and Jake Humphrey and Damian Hughes (High Performance). As well as dominating the podcast charts, these creators could not be nicer people. Part of what I love about the podcasting community - which includes you, our amazing listeners - is that it is so supportive compared to other industries.
The five of us talk about what podcasting means to us. We speak about some of our most memorable interviews and most profound listener interactions. We chat about how podcasting encourages deep conversation and active listening and how we really believe it has the capacity to change the world. In this very special episode, which is being released on all our feeds simultaneously, you will hear from Holocaust survivors, Hollywood superstars and happiness experts. And if all that sounds a bit serious, fear not - there are a lot of laughs and some sweary bits too.
I hope you enjoy - and wherever you are in the world, we wish you a happy and peaceful Christmas. How To Fail will be back in the New Year and, trust me, I have some extremely exciting things up my sleeve…

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S18, Ep10 Claudia Winkleman on the joy of imperfection Nov 01, 2023

Show notes

I LOVE CLAUDIA WINKLEMAN.
There. That's it. That's your shownotes.
Well ok then... Claudia Winkleman is a broadcaster who feels like your best friend - whether she's co-hosting Strictly Come Dancing, fronting her Saturday morning BBC Radio 2 show or sending shivers down your spine as the presenter of The Traitors. And now, for our season finale, she joins me to talk about her hatred of perfect, her distaste for exercise, her introversion and her failure to live in the present. Plus: struggles with sleep, the invaluable lessons her parents' taught her and why Rembrandt (as seen with minus 15 eyesight) might be her forever style icon.
*Please note: this episode was recorded before the recent horrific events in Israel and Gaza*
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Claudia's new range of CBD beauty and wellness products with Cannaray is available to purchase here.
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You can book tickets for my March 2024 UK tour, An Audience With Elizabeth Day (lol), here.
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How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email howtofailpod@gmail.com
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Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Claudia Winkleman @claudiawinkle

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S18 BONUS EPISODE: Georgia Harrison on taking back her power Oct 26, 2023

Show notes

TW: image-based sexual abuse
Georgia Harrison is a reality TV star turned activist - a woman who has used her own pain to change the law for other survivors of sexual assault.
In 2020, her former boyfriend, Stephen Bear, shared intimate video footage of her online - filmed on his own CCTV cameras - without her consent. He posted it onto his OnlyFans page, charging viewers for access. From there it went viral. Georgia fought for two years to bring the case to court. In March, Bear was jailed for 21 months, required to sign the sex offenders register and ordered to pay Harrison over £200,000 - the highest ever sum awarded in an image abuse case. Harrison went on to campaign successfully for a change in the law to help other victims.
In this very special bonus episode, Georgia joins me to talk about all of this, as well as her journey with ADHD (which was left undiagnosed for years) and her grief over what Bear stole from her - not just her privacy, but her agency to make her own decisions. Plus...wait for it...her failure to be a puppeteer (no, really).
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Georgia Harrison's book, Taking Back My Power, is out today and available to order here.
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If you've been affected by any of the issues discussed, you can get in touch with the Revenge Porn Helpline here.
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I'm going on tour! To AUSTRALIA, mate! You can now purchase tickets to see me live at Sydney Opera House on 26th February 2024 or the Arts Centre Melbourne on 28th February 2024.
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How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email howtofailpod@gmail.com
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Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Georgia Harrison @georgialouiseharrison

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S18, Ep9 Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock: one of Britain's foremost space scientists on belonging and the meaning of life Oct 25, 2023

Show notes

CW: miscarriage
Maggie Aderin Pocock MBE is a space scientist, educator and broadcaster - and quite possibly the first How To Fail guest who has her own Barbie doll. Fascinated with space from an early age, she even built her own telescope as a teenager. Nowadays, she's the co-presenter of the long-running TV programme The Sky at Night, as well as being Chancellor of the University of Leicester and the first Black woman ever to win a gold medal in the Physics News Award.
Her achievements are all the more admirable when you consider her upbringing: the child of divorced parents who found herself at the centre of a difficult custody battle, she changed schools 13 times in 14 years and struggled with lessons because of undiagnosed dyslexia. From an early age, she found refuge in the night sky, viewed from the rooftop of her council flat.
She joins me to talk about her extraordinary life, as well as her failures in tidiness and punctuality - and what being a mother in her 40s has taught her. Plus: how difficult is it really to build a telescope?
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The Art of Stargazing by Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, is published on 2nd Novemer and is available to order here.
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I'm going on tour! To AUSTRALIA, mate! You can now purchase tickets to see me live at Sydney Opera House on 26th February 2024 or the Arts Centre Melbourne on 28th February 2024.
--
How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email howtofailpod@gmail.com
--
Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod

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S18, Ep8 Dawn French on fertility, friendship and being an anti-perfectionist Oct 20, 2023

Show notes

CW: suicide; infertility
I know, I know, we don't normally release episodes on a Friday but when you're offered DAWN FRENCH, you release an episode on whatever blimmin' day of the week you can (and preferably all seven of them).
I am so delighted to welcome the actor, comedian and bestselling author Dawn French to the podcast. She joins me to talk about being - in her words - 'a bit of a twat', anti-perfectionism, why so many comedians come from military families, how friendship doesn't mean you don't feel jealous and, of course, her lifelong professional and platonic partnership with Jennifer Sauders.
We also talk about the death of her father by suicide and what this taught Dawn about grief and survival. And she opens up movingly about years of infertility followed by the decision to adopt her daughter, Billie.
An amazing conversation with an amazing person. Thank you so much, Dawn.
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The Twat Files by Dawn French is out now and available to buy here.
Dawn French Is A Huge Twat (the live show) is touring the UK through the rest of the year. Book your tickets here.
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I'm going on tour! To AUSTRALIA, mate! You can now purchase tickets to see me live at Sydney Opera House on 26th February 2024 or the Arts Centre Melbourne on 28th February 2024.
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How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email howtofailpod@gmail.com
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Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Dawn French @dawnrfrench

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S18, Ep7 Gillian Anderson on sex, body image and rebellion Oct 18, 2023

Show notes

Continuing this season's line-up of ICONIC AND INCREDIBLE WOMEN, I am veritably trembling with delight to bring you today's guest: the extraordinary Gillian Anderson.
Her 30-plus year career has taken her from playing FBI Special Agent Scully in The X Files to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in The Crown. She’s been a dogged detective in The Fall and an unembarrassable sex therapist in the Netflix hit show Sex Education. On stage, she has been everything from Blanche duBois in A Streetcar Named Desire to Margo Channing in All About Eve. It’s almost easier to list the roles she hasn’t played than the ones she has.
Owing to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA actors strike, we don't talk about any of her acting roles. Instead, this liberates us to have a fascinating chat about life, fame, womanhood and everything in between. We talk about her failures to look after herself, her addiction to work, how she coped with global celebrity in her 20s and how this affected the way that she saw herself. Plus: why she thinks wellness culture is making us ill and why her natural instinct when someone tells her what to do is to say 'F** off.'
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Gillian's healthy soft-drink range, G-Spot, is available to buy here. (Not an ad but it tastes EXCELLENT).
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I'm going on tour! To AUSTRALIA, mate! You can now purchase tickets to see me live at Sydney Opera House on 26th February 2024 or the Arts Centre Melbourne on 28th February 2024.
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How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email howtofailpod@gmail.com
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Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Gillian Anderson @gilliana

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S18 MIDSEASON BONUS! Captain Sandy from Below Deck on surviving addiction, pirates - and reality TV Oct 13, 2023

Show notes

CW: addiction
Look, most of you know I love reality TV. And some of you might know that I love Below Deck so much I snuck in a mention of it in my latest novel. So when I was offered the chance to meet the legend that is Captain Sandra Yawn, of Below Deck Med fame, I jumped at it. (Luckily, not overboard).
Even if you've never watched a single episode of Below Deck, Capt. Sandy's story is a riveting tale of resilience and courage. As a teenager, she struggled with alcoholism and almost ended up in jail. Instead, she started working on boats - and saved her own life in the process. She rose through the ranks of the maritime industry to become one of the only female superyacht captains in a field dominated by men.
She joins me to talk about this, as well as failing to realise her early potential, growing up gay but not feeling able to live her truth, surviving both cancer and an attack by pirates, as well as what she's learned about herself from reality TV. And yes, I ask some niche Below Deck questions because WHY WOULDN'T I?
(This chat was recorded before the new season started, btw, and obviously I'm slavishly watching each episode as soon as it drops).
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The new season of Below Deck Mediterranean is available to watch on Hayu.
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I'm going on tour! To AUSTRALIA, mate! You can now purchase tickets to see me live at Sydney Opera House on 26th February 2024 or the Arts Centre Melbourne on 28th February 2024.
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How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email howtofailpod@gmail.com
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Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Capt. Sandy @captainsandrayawn
Hayu @hayusocial

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S18, Ep6 Marina Abramovic: one of the greatest living artists on performance, passion and power Oct 11, 2023

Show notes

It is impossible to put into words how much I adored this conversation. Which, in a way, is apt because Marina Abramovic is one of our greatest living artists and renowned for expressing through her work, the thoughts, feelings and emotional impulses that lie beyond words.
Born in 1946 in post-war Yugoslavia, she painted from the age of 14 and spent the next 50 years pushing herself to extremes of physical and mental endurance in search of fundamental truths. Last month, her exhibition opened at the Royal Academy in London - the first solo show by a woman in the RA’s main galleries.
But if all this sounds quite serious, fear not - in person, Abramovic is a wonderful, engaging and light-hearted presence, full of wisdom and profound thoughts but also a lot of giggles. We talk about fear and belonging, love and heartbreak (and how to get over someone), introversion and performance, and she teaches me all about what Christopher Columbus can tell us about failure.
One of my favourite ever episodes - and that's saying something.
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Marina Abramovic at the Royal Academy runs until 1 January 2024. Book your tickets here. A full schedule of performances can be found here.
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I'm going on tour! To AUSTRALIA, mate! You can now purchase tickets to see me live at Sydney Opera House on 26th February 2024 or the Arts Centre Melbourne on 28th February 2024.
--
How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email howtofailpod@gmail.com
--
Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Marina Abramovic Institute @abramovicinstitute

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