Maggie Smith is a poet & writer who found overnight fame when her poem, ‘Good Bones’, went viral on social media in 2016. Later on, her life was to take a further change when her husband of 19 years, and the father of her children, announced he

Alice Vincent: A Garden of One's Own

Jan 2nd, 2024 43m 54s

There are certain rites of passage that take place after a major break-up. For some, it’s a hair-cut or a big solo trip, or a regrettable rebound with someone the polar opposite of your ex. My guest this week, Alice Vincent, departed from the c

Leslie Stephens: The Joy of Living Alone, Plus How To Design a Home for One

Dec 26th, 2023 49m 30s

Leslie Stephens is the writer behind Morning Person, a top 10 Substack newsletter that chronicles her life in Portland, Oregon. In August last year, shortly after her 30th birthday, Leslie announced to her readers that she was separating from h

Max Dickins: On Male Friendship & Overcoming Weekend Loneliness

Dec 19th, 2023 42m 17s

Getting engaged to your partner is typically a time for celebration. But for today’s guest Max Dickins, it was …. more complicated. As he prepared to propose to his girlfriend, Naomi, he had an uncomfortable revelation: he couldn’t think of any

Anita Bhagwandas: Finding a Social Balance When You Live Alone

Dec 12th, 2023 49m 39s

My guest this week is Anita Bhagwandas, an award winning beauty director, and more recently the author of Ugly: Giving Us Back Our Beauty Standards, a book that examines the damaging impact of narrow beauty ideals and serves as a brilliant mani

Jessica Pan: The Introvert's Guide to Socialising

Dec 5th, 2023 50m 54s

In this episode, Jessica Pan discusses her book 'Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come' and her journey of embracing extroversion. As we discuss on the show, Jessica is almost the opposite to me – she’s an introvert who learnt to be more extrav

Poppy Jay: From Arranged Marriage to Falling in Love with Singlehood

Nov 28th, 2023 42m 9s

My guest on this week’s episode is Poppy Jay, best known as the co-host of Brown Girls Do It Too, which won Podcast of the Year at the British Podcast Awards 2020. She’s also a BAFTA-nominated documentary maker, devoted to chronicling difficult

Thomas Curran: The Dark Side of Perfectionism

Nov 21st, 2023 43m 39s

'That's the root of perfectionism: that chronic deficit thinking, the belief that we're not good enough. That we're not attractive enough, smart enough, fit enough, whatever it might be. In order to compensate for those feelings, we project on

Vex King: How To Practise Self-Love Through Your Actions

Aug 17th, 2023 49m 48s

You can’t really love anyone until you love yourself. While we see this a lot on Instagram, it’s something that actually requires a lot of exploration – and it’s my guest this week, the bestselling author and mind coach Vex King, that many of u

Ruby Warrington: My Marriage Wouldn't Work With Children

Aug 10th, 2023 49m 15s

My guest this week is Women Without Kids author, Ruby Warrington. We're are at a fascinating time in history – where, both in the UK, US, and across almost every developed nation like Switzerland, Italy, Japan and South Korea, adults are having

Donna Lancaster: Alone Is Where I Meet Myself

Aug 3rd, 2023 49m 56s

Donna Lancaster is a coach and therapist, best known as the co-creator of The Bridge, a retreat designed to help attendees navigate grief and loss, and the author of a book of the same name. More recently, Donna has published a pocket book call

Naoise Dolan: Autism, (Un)happy Couples & The Joy Of Being A Foreigner

Jul 27th, 2023 42m 10s

This week’s guest is author Naoise Dolan. I am absolutely thrilled to have Naoise on this season – she’s widely consider of the millennial generation’s most talented writers, ever since her Sunday Times bestseller debut novel Exciting Times was

Caggie Dunlop: Overcoming Anxious Attachment In A Relationship

Jul 20th, 2023 48m 52s

My guest for this week’s episode is podcaster and author Caggie Dunlop, whom you might also recognise as a former cast member on the rather well known reality show called Made in Chelsea. Caggie has since reached a whole different audience. Her

Adam Gopnik: Solitude And The City, Edward Hopper & The Joy Of Being Alone In A Crowd

Jul 13th, 2023 40m 39s

This week's guest is Adam Gopnik, a long-standing staff writer at the New Yorker, and the award-winning author of a frankly intimidating number of books, most recently The Real Work: On the Mystery of Mastery, which explores the process of lear

Dr Nicole Lepera: How A Fear of Being Alone Feels In Your Body

Jul 6th, 2023 46m

This week’s guest is Dr Nicole LePera, whom you might be more familiar with as the Holistic Psychologist – the handle of her somewhat insanely popular Instagram account. She’s also the author of multiple books, including her New York bestseller

Amy Key: Single For 22 Years – A Life Story Told Through Joni Mitchell Songs

Jun 30th, 2023 49m 5s

This week's guest on the podcast is the poet Amy Key. We're here to discuss her first work of prose, Arrangements in Blue: Notes on Love and Making a Life, which is a memoir inspired by the work of Amy's beloved musical icon, Joni Mitchell. Age

Susan Cain: The 'Quiet' Author On Free Falling Through Her Early 30s, Plus Why She Married An Extrovert

Jun 22nd, 2023 49m 44s

The Alonement podcast is back! And for the first episode of this season, I’m speaking to one of the most-requested guests since the show began: Susan Cain. Susan is the author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking

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Introducing... The Shoulds

Nov 4th, 2022 46s

Hello Alonement listeners! So, a quick announcement to share that I've just launched a new project called The Shoulds. The Shoulds is an online Substack publication and community space that explores the hidden rules and stories that shape our l

Me Time | Konnie Huq: Why Everyone Needs Anchors

Oct 24th, 2022 9m 43s

This clip is taken from my guest interview with former Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq, first released in August 2020. Konnie speaks about the sustaining power of having 'anchors' – close friends and family whom you know are at the end of the p

Dr Marisa G. Franco: Why ‘Secure’ Attachment & Alone Time Go Hand In Hand

Oct 20th, 2022 46m 47s

Season 7 finale! How did that happen?! We are, however, going out with a bang... This week, I have the pleasure of chatting to friendship expert & psychologist Dr Marisa G. Franco, whose new book Platonic: How Understanding Your Attachment Styl

Me Time | Dr Emma Hepburn: Finding 'Flow'

Oct 17th, 2022 8m 5s

In this clip, we hear from psychologist and Instagram sensation Dr Emma Hepburn – with one of my favourite pieces of wisdom from our original recording, released in April 2021.Emma Hepburn’s book, A Toolkit For Modern Life, discussed in this ep

Nihal Arthanayake: We Need To Talk About Male Loneliness

Oct 13th, 2022 51m 32s

This week my interviewee is radio and TV presenter Nihal Arthanayake. While I’ll be asking the questions today, Nihal is most used to playing the other role, having interviewed countless household names, including Minnie Driver, Ricky Gervais &

Me Time | Daisy Buchanan: Life Advice From A Former Agony Aunt

Oct 10th, 2022 10m 35s

Another week, another bitesize mini-episode from Alonement archives. This conversation with journalist and author Daisy Buchanan comes from the first season of Alonement, recorded in person at my flat in November 2019. Before pivoting towards w

Holly Bourne: The Alternative Version of 'Happily Ever After'

Oct 6th, 2022 47m 52s

This week I have the absolute pleasure of speaking to one of my favourite authors, Holly Bourne. After beginning her novel-writing career in the young adult genre, Holly has released three brilliant titles for adults over the past few years, wh

Me Time | Erling Kagge: London Is Lonelier Than Antarctica

Oct 3rd, 2022 10m 28s

Erling Kagge, one of the greatest living polar explorers – and the first in history to reach the 'three poles' – is the guest that we hear from in this week’s mini episode, taken from our longer conversation released in February 2022. Speaking