10 of our Favourite Episodes from Fearne Cotton's Happy Place

 

Some of you may be new to podcasts, others may be podcast superfans, but there’s one thing you will all have in common - overwhelm when it comes to where to start. With so many podcasts out there, it can be a real challenge finding something that ticks all the right boxes. And even when you find a podcast series that’s just right, choosing the best episodes is the next hurdle. 

Let us help to remove some of the overwhelm by introducing - or reuniting you with - Fearne Cotton’s Happy Place. It’s the ideal podcast to turn to in the world of wellbeing if you’re looking for an inspiring and relatable listen. Fearne talks about ‘life, love, loss and everything in-between’ encouraging us all to find our own happy place. The guest list is impressive with something for everyone.

Here are some of our faves.

 

 

“I learn something every time I do a podcast. There’s usually a sweet spot, about 20 minutes in, when the guest has forgotten they’re doing a podcast. I love doing it.” - Fearne Cotton

 

1.  Sonia Choquette: Trust Your Intuition

When we start out in life we depend on intuition to guide us, but as time goes by we tend to ignore our gut feelings and shut down our inner voice. In this chat, spiritual teacher and intuitive guide Sonia Choquette shares how to tune back in and trust your intuition. She explains the power of your sixth sense and how it can open you up to a more fun, loving, and spontaneous life. Fearne and Sonia both share their own personal experiences of feeling a physical urge to trust their gut, even though they weren’t entirely sure why. Turns out their intuition was pulling them in a certain direction for very good reason. Their experiences will make you take a fresh look at how you make life decisions, both big and small.

 

2.  Rhonda Byrne: Revisit 'The Secret'

If you tend to believe the negative thoughts in your head, this is the one for  you. The key message in this podcast with Rhonda Byrne, author of The Secret, is ‘don’t believe one single negative thought because none of them are true.’ In this chat with Fearne, she encourages you to clearly visualise what you want out of life in order to attract it, and explains why embracing your inner child can bring true happiness. She makes it all sound so simple and straightforward that you can’t help but give it a try. 

 

3.  Steven Bartlett: Unexpected Truths About Success

Steven Bartlett dropped out of university after one day, recognising that the path stretching out before him would not make him happy. He chose to live life on his terms and became a multimillionaire in his twenties through the social media marketing agency he founded. But the 'Happy, Sexy Millionaire' speaks candidly to Fearne about chasing the wrong things in his search for happiness. He shares his experience of chasing the wrong goals, and about the experiences and connections that bring true fulfillment and success. This episode was recorded live at Fearne's live Happy Place event in front of an audience.

 

4.  Roman Kemp: The Importance of Talking About Grief & Wellbeing

Are you ok? It’s a question that’s often worth repeating with the people we love. Capital Breakfast Show host Roman Kemp lost his best friend and radio producer to suicide in 2020, and is now more adamant than ever that we must keep asking our friends and family if they’re really ok. In this chat with Fearne, Roman explains why he feels it’s important to share both his ongoing grief, and stories of his own mental health with the nation each day. They also talk about why it’s important to be bold about using the word suicide; in naming it, we’re more able to do something about it. He also talks about the importance of talking about mental wellbeing with children, something that strongly resonates with Fearne in the moment.

 

5.  Bonnie Wright: Ditching The Eco-Guilt

Most of us will recognise Bonnie Wright from her years playing Ginny Weasely in the Harry Potter film franchise, but these days she chooses directing over acting and she is a passionate environmental activist. Her views on sustainability are refreshing because she celebrates the imperfect action we are taking rather than burdening us with the guilt that we are not doing enough. She encourages everyone to improve their positive impact on the planet by concentrating on things that interest them and starting there. For Fearne, it’s cleaning and she shares some of the eco-changes she has incorporated into her everyday.

 

6.  Freya North: Prioritise Your Emotional Health

It’s important to take time to figure out how to trust your own opinions of yourself rather than believing other peoples’ opinions of you - that’s the key takeaway from this episode with bestselling author Freya North. She talks with Fearne about recent events in her life in how counselling helped her to break through the fear of truly accessing her feelings and taking care of her emotional health rather than solely focusing on the physical. They talk about how many of us are used to functioning at an extremely high level of stress without realising we’re pushing ourselves to breaking point and how a research trip to the island of Harris in the Scottish hebrides had a profound spiritual effect on her wellbeing.

 

7.  Meik Wiking: Embrace Hygge

Meik Wiking, CEO of the Happiness Research Institute in Denmark talks about the tendency that we all have to look towards the future for happiness. We think that our future self will be living a happier life than today, and whilst that optimism is good, he reminds us not to overlook the happiness that can be found in the everyday. This is a reminder, if you need one, that there are many elements of happiness that we have control over, regardless of the circumstances. It's also a nudge to focus more on the smaller choices we can control. The Danish art of hygge is woven all the way through this chat.

 

8.  Tara Brach: Awaken Your Spirituality

You shouldn’t always believe your thoughts. They’re real, but they’re not necessarily true. That's one of the key messages to absorb from Fearne's chat with psychotherapist and meditation teacher, Tara Brach. Tara is a practising Western Buddhist who teaches meditation, emotional healing and spiritual awakening, and she explains how to challenge what you think your mind is telling you, especially about yourself. 

 

9.  Brené Brown: Shame, Perfectionism and Vulnerability.

It’s much more productive and will ultimately make you happier to strive for excellence rather than perfection. The one and only Brené Brown has spent 20 years studying courage, vulnerability, shame, and empathy. She’s clear that perfectionism is actually a defence mechanism to shield us from failure and shame. In this chat with Fearne, Brené explains the difference between guilt and shame, as the former can be helpful in some situations, whereas the latter can be debilitating and define entire lifetimes. Plus, they explore why humility and self-compassion are needed for us to admit when we’re wrong.

 

10.  Emma Gannon: Dissecting Cancel Culture & Disconnection

Do you feel like the internet can sometimes make you feel more disconnected rather than connected? You might feel aware that the internet makes you feel strangely disconnected from others, but writer and podcaster Emma Gannon feels it makes us disconnect from ourselves too. In this chat, Emma and Fearne dissect cancel culture and why we’ve got to allow each other the space to learn and grow, as well as why our offline activity should take precedence because actions speak louder than token words on a screen. They also talk about how the biggest crime now seems to be not having an opinion. Fearne and Emma believe it’s ok not to know, or have an opinion on, absolutely everything. In fact, that’s probably better both for the world and your own mental health.

 

You can subscribe to Fearne's podcast in all the usual places - or follow her on Youtube to watch the interviews too.