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Reframing Creativity as a Necessity: How the Arts Heal, Connect, and Sustain Us with Daisy Fancourt

Windowsill Chats

Release Date: 01/14/2026

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Margo is joined by Daisy Fancourt—Professor of Psychobiology & Epidemiology at UCL and a globally recognized leader in understanding how creativity and social connection influence our health. From her early days designing arts programs inside hospitals to directing major WHO initiatives and publishing over 250 papers, Daisy has spent her career documenting the profound, measurable impact of creative engagement on stress, aging, recovery, cognition, and community wellbeing. In a world that often treats the arts as extra or a luxury, Daisy reframes them as essential—showing how even the simplest creative rituals can foster joy, resilience, health and a deeper sense of belonging in our everyday lives.

Margo and Daisy discuss:

  • How Daisy’s early work in hospitals revealed the power of creativity as a health tool

  • What research shows about the arts reducing stress and supporting cognitive resilience

  • Why we’re conditioned to see creativity as a luxury—and how to reframe it as necessity

  • The role of music, movement, and environment in emotional and physical healing

  • Innovative approaches like dance for Parkinson’s and creative play for children with disabilities

  • How small, accessible creative habits can improve daily wellbeing

  • Why talent doesn’t matter—process is what delivers the benefits

Mentioned in this episode:
https://sbbresearch.org/

Connect with Daisy:
https://profiles.ucl.ac.uk/44526-daisy-fancourt
Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health

Connect with Margo: