What does it take to perform under extraordinary pressure while protecting your reputation and mental health? How do you remain authentic when the world is watching, and what can business leaders learn from the discipline, resilience and teamwork of elite athletes?

In this episode of Just Curious..., Nicky Regazzoni and George Blizzard welcome three-time Olympian and European sprint champion Adam Gemili to explore the realities of professional sport, the pressures of public scrutiny and the importance of finding your own voice.

Adam reflects on his remarkable journey, including the devastating experience of missing a medal at the Rio Olympics by just three thousandths of a second. He shares how he learnt to handle media attention, social media criticism and the emotional demands of competing at the highest level.

Adam talks about his determination to challenge sporting authorities over athletes' commercial rights, his commitment to authentic brand partnerships and the lessons businesses can learn from elite sporting environments. And he explains why he wants to help the next generation of athletes succeed both on and off the track.

What does it take to turn childhood adversity into strength, purpose and lasting social impact? How can sport, mentoring and the intervention of just one trusted adult change the trajectory of a young person’s life? And what responsibility do individuals, businesses and communities have to ensure children leaving the care system are given the opportunity not simply to survive, but to thrive?

In the second part of our deeply personal conversation with Olympic legend Fatima Whitbread MBE, she tells Nicky Regazzoni and George Blizzard about how sport became her escape from the care system, gave her confidence and discipline, and ultimately led her to the family that transformed her life. She recalls discovering javelin, meeting her future adoptive mother Margaret Whitbread and the extraordinary moment when Auntie Ray gave her “permission” to leave the care system behind.

Fatima explains how those experiences shaped the resilience and determination that later took her to the pinnacle of international athletics, and how she now channels those qualities into supporting others. Through the Fatima’s UK Campaign, she is working to create practical pathways for young people in care through sport, arts and technology, collaboration with businesses and public bodies, mentoring and employment opportunities.

What happens when a childhood defined by abandonment, institutional care and trauma becomes the foundation for extraordinary resilience? How can one caring adult change the direction of a child’s life? And what needs to change to ensure that young people leaving care are given the support, stability and opportunities they need to thrive?

In this very special episode of Just Curious, Nicky Regazzoni and George Blizzard talk to sporting icon Fatima Whitbread MBE about the experiences that shaped her long before she became a world champion and Olympic medallist. Fatima describes being abandoned as a baby, spending her first 14 years in the care system and growing up without the emotional security most children take for granted.

She explains how the kindness of one care worker, Auntie Ray, gave her a sense of belonging and purpose, encouraging her to look after younger children and helping shape the empathy and determination that remain central to her life today. Fatima also discusses how sport became an escape: a place where she could experience freedom, build confidence and begin to imagine a future beyond the label of being a child in care.

The conversation also explores Fatima’s work with Fatima’s UK Campaign and her message is clear: improving outcomes for children in care requires collaboration, action and accountability across society.

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Corporate communications has moved from a service function to a place at the leadership table. But what does it take to become a trusted adviser to the C-suite? How should communications leaders prepare for crises they cannot predict, prove their value when prevention is invisible, and use AI for more than producing content?

In this episode of Just Curious, hosts Nicky Regazzoni and George Blizzard speak to global communications leader and author Tabita Andersson about her book, Chief Communications Officers at Work, which draws on conversations with practitioners from different organisations across sectors and countries.

Tabita explains why critical thinking, commercial understanding and comfort with ambiguity have become essential CCO capabilities. She explores the importance of challenging constructively, presenting reputational risks clearly and building trusted relationships long before a crisis strikes. Preparation matters, she argues, but so do agility, decision-making and a ‘follow the sun’ approach to monitoring global issues.

Tabita shares practical career advice for aspiring CCOs, from gaining broad experience to developing emotional intelligence, stakeholder mapping and the ability to influence without control. She also considers AI as a strategic partner for identifying gaps, testing scenarios and tailoring messages, and asks whether conventional metrics capture the full value of communications.

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How can brands tell complex stories in ways that genuinely move people? What does creative drama offer that conventional articles and social posts cannot? And, as artificial intelligence reshapes media, how can storytellers embrace new technology without losing empathy, judgement and human connection?

In this episode of Just Curious, hosts Nicky Regazzoni and George Blizzard speak to Juliet Riddell, Head of New Formats at the Financial Times and the creative force behind its Standpoint series. Juliet explains how journalism can draw upon drama, animation, music, poetry and live performance to reach audiences in unexpected and emotionally resonant ways.

Juliet discusses projects including Capture, starring Jodie Whittaker, and Recall Me Maybe, featuring Stephen Fry, explaining how fictional storytelling can illuminate issues such as online safety, dementia, identity and AI. She also reveals what commercial brands can learn from foundations and not-for-profit organisations that grant storytellers genuine editorial freedom. Rather than controlling every detail, courageous partners can create space for surprising, distinctive work that stimulates meaningful debate and builds trust.

Juliet makes the case for combining factual integrity with responsible emotion, using empathy and compassion to help audiences understand complex truths and see familiar issues differently.

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How do leaders build trust when technology, work and consumer behaviour are changing at speed? What does AI really mean for knowledge workers, and how can brands remain human when more of their customer experience is mediated by machines?

In a world of high-frequency change, the challenge is not simply to predict the future, but to understand what is changing, what is not, and where communications leaders should place their energy.

In this episode of Just Curious…, hosts Nicky Regazzoni and George Blizzard speak to applied futurist and author Tom Cheesewright about the practical future of work, reputation, AI and human connection. Tom explains why organisations should focus less on fixed predictions and more on agility, adaptability and the intersections between big external trends and internal business pressures.

The discussion also addresses hybrid work, productivity, de-urbanisation, the changing meaning of status and the growth of the experience economy. Throughout, Tom makes a clear case for optimism, arguing that while the next 20 years will be challenging, businesses should not lose sight of human ingenuity, progress and possibility.

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How do you maintain trust when the media landscape is changing around you? What can leaders learn from artists, journalists and people whose perspectives are too often overlooked? And how can authenticity, curiosity and professionalism help someone build a reputation that survives setbacks, reinvention and public scrutiny?

In this episode of Just Curious, hosts Nicky Regazzoni and George Blizzard speak to broadcaster, journalist and cultural leader Brenda Emmanus OBE about her distinguished career across British television, arts and culture.

Brenda reflects on joining the BBC at a time when few people on screen or behind the scenes looked like her. She shares how prejudice and self-doubt strengthened her determination to remain professional and authentic. From interviewing figures including Robert Redford, Sinead O’Connor and George Michael to becoming the BBC’s arts, culture and entertainment correspondent, she explains why the best interviews begin by recognising the human being behind the public image.

The conversation explores what businesses can learn from the arts, including collaboration, experimentation and storytelling, and the challenge of building an identity and learning to value the experience you bring rather than pretending to know everything. Above all, this is a conversation about courage, consistency and continuing to take steps, even when the destination is uncertain.

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Digital identity is becoming one of the defining trust issues of modern life. Who should own our personal data? How can children be protected online without creating new privacy risks? And what does it really take for a technology brand to earn public trust when it handles some of the most sensitive information we possess?

In this episode of Just Curious, hosts Nicky Regazzoni and George Blizzard speak to Robin Tombs, co-founder and CEO of Yoti, the global digital identity platform. Robin explains how Yoti grew from a frustration with broken online identity systems into a company focused on helping people prove who they are safely, privately and simply.

The conversation explores the challenge of communicating complex technology in language that ordinary people can understand, and why warmth, clarity and transparency are central to building trust. Robin discusses Yoti’s B Corp status, its founding principles and the role of its independent Guardian Council in holding the company accountable.

He also explains how Yoti’s age estimation technology is being used across sectors including social media, gaming, vaping and adult content to protect children while preserving privacy. The discussion looks ahead to a future in which millions of UK adults may use reusable digital ID, reducing fraud and making online interactions safer. Above all, Robin argues that trust is not created by messaging alone, but by consistent action, ethical decision-making and designing every part of a business with the user’s interests in mind.

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