The Codpast

Dyslexics are some of the most creative thinkers in our society. Apple, Virgin and IKEA are just some of the examples of what a dyslexic state of mind can conceive. Listen to our guests and share their stories of how right brained thinking helped them excel in a left brained world.

35 - GCHQ's Dyslexic Code Breakers Reveal All 04/07/2018

35 - GCHQ's Dyslexic Code Breakers Reveal All In this episode of The Codpast, Sean is invited to GCHQ (Government Communication Headquarters) to learn how dyslexic code breakers have helped keep the British isles safe for over a 100 years. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/6454693

34 - Confessions of a Poldarling 05/04/2017

34 - Confessions of a Poldarling Rowen Colman is an Award Winning New York and Sunday Times best-selling author; she’s been writing professionally for over 15 years and has published over 30 books. However, she still finds it difficult to fill in online forms and sometimes gets lost on buses. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/5326312

33 - The Dragon Slayer 04/04/2017

33 - The Dragon Slayer Born entrepreneur Rob Manly, used school more as a business incubator than a place for gaining grades. Although he was persistent, full of drive and bursting with innovative ideas. By the age of 17, a string of failed ventures forced him into every entrepreneur’s nightmare…working for the man! /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/5207225

32 - On the Write Track 03/14/2017

32 - On the Write Track It’s said that 50% of the prison population are dyslexic or struggle with reading and literacy. Jason Cook, a veteran member of the 50% club, for the second time found himself on the wrong side of prison bars. Although he’d become hardened to the crime, drugs and violence that came with the territory, there was one thing that still filled him with dread…facing his fear of education. That was until a prison teacher helped him unlock a part of him that he never knew existed. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/5167969

31 – Rage Against the Machine 02/07/2017

31 – Rage Against the Machine In this episode of The Codpast, we speak to Tina Crawford about how an incident that could have brought her life to a halt, instead became the starting point of her new career as one of the UK’s most unique artists. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/5062028

30 – The Best of The Codpast 2016 01/10/2017

30 – The Best of The Codpast 2016 It’s the start of 2017 and as usual we like to take a look back at some of the great conversations we’ve featured throughout the last year. We’ve interviewed some great guests who’ve shared some truly entertaining and inspirational stories. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4978818

29 - A Dyslexic Love Affair 12/05/2016

29 - A Dyslexic Love Affair Like many Dyslexic entrepreneurs, Aggeliki Pappa was blessed with a set of skills and a head full of ideas that didn’t quite fit into an established job role. So like many entrepreneurs that had come before her, Aggeliki was forced to build a business, to create the perfect role, to allow her to hire herself. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4888034

28 - Creative Currency 11/02/2016

28 - Creative Currency Creativity is often seen as the preserve of artists, musicians and writers, but Chris Arnold, founder of ad agency The Garage, sees creativity as an essential aptitude needed to make it in the world of business. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4798276

27 - Dyspraxia and the Politician 10/11/2016

27 - Dyspraxia and the Politician As a kid, while her friends were watching TV dreaming of being the next 80’s pop star or Sunderland United pinup, Emma was watching the news, dreaming of being a Westminster Politician. The problem is, the children of shipyard workers from northern industrial towns don’t become politicians. But as we all know, building the coping strategies to deal with dyspraxia or dyslexia gives us the tenacity to know, that a problem that seems impossible to some may just need some one to look at it from a slightly different point of view. In this episode of The Codpast, Emma Lewell-Buck, Labour MP for South Shields, shares how with a little dyspraxic thinking, she bucked all the trends. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4735558

26 - Peculiar People 09/06/2016

26 - Peculiar People For Lauren, acting had always been the perfect outlet for her to explore her talent for turning words on a 2D page, into the 3D characters that inhabited her drama classes. When, ‘just for experience,’ she decided to audition for a top Hollywood casting director, she never imagined she’d land a role in the latest summer release buy Hollywood legend Tim Burrton. Hear how Lauren went, from stressing out about her A –Level revision to spending her gap year acting opposite Samuel L. Jackson and Dame Jud /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4645118

25 - A Different Perspective Feat. Luke Wright 08/02/2016

25 - A Different Perspective Feat. Luke Wright Author, performance poet, theater maker and broadcaster Luke Wright joins us in the studio. This was an interesting one for me, as I often hear people that were diagnosed with dyslexia as a child; say in later life dyslexia is no longer a problem. One of the myths we at The Codpast want to bust, is that dyslexia has to be a problem that gets in the way of our ambition and stops us achieving our dreams. Initially Luke thought dyslexia was something that no longer influenced his life, but it soon became clear that Luke might be a little more dyslexic than he first thought. Rather than being a barrier, dyslexia seemed like more of a rudder that guided Luke through his journey to a successful career. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4559592

24 - The Dyslexicon 07/05/2016

24 - The Dyslexicon In this episode of The Codpast, stand up comic Michael Fabbri explains how his struggles in education and frustration in the workplace were the best grounding for a career in comedy. Michael's comedy career has seen him perform on some of comedy’s most famous stages, write for Channel 4 ‘Stand Up for the Week’, perform five solo comedy shows at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and get his two part radio series commissioned for BBC Radio 4. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4492517

23 - The Dyslexic ROI 04/07/2016

23 - The Dyslexic ROI There are still employers that see dyslexic employees as resource hungry disruptors, rather than individuals that can bring a fresh approach to their business. Graham’s story clearly illustrates the benefits that are brought to a business when it makes a decision to support diversity. If you are an employer, manager or HR professional. By the end of this episode, you’ll be in no doubt about why investing in a diverse work force makes good business sense. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4277869

22 - The Confidence Question 03/01/2016

22 - The Confidence Question It’s been said that focusing on reading writing or spelling is not the best way to help dyslexics thrive. For many, confidence is the biggest barrier that dyslexic individuals have to climb. In this months episode of The Codpast, we here the story of business development manager, Hannah Lord and her experience from both sides of the confidence divide. Hannah and her brother are both dyslexic and had almost identical journeys through work and education. The only difference was a small change in how they were taught before they started school. This one variable set up a series of events that shaped the way dyslexia and confidence combined, resulting in a drastic effect on their perceived intelligence throughout the rest of there lives. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4186208

21 - The Professor of Poetry 02/02/2016

21 - The Professor of Poetry Dub Poet Benjamin Zephaniah has some impressive strings to his bow; writer, author, musician and professor of Humanities and Arts at Brunel University, to name a few. What’s even more impressive is that he managed this all without ever going to university, college or even finishing high school. However far from being an ambassador for the university of life, Benjamin maintains that a formal education is the only path to a brighter future. This episode takes us on a journey through some of the most influential times recent, politics, music and art, from the point of view of someone at the center of the action. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4119998

20 - Best of 2015 01/05/2016

20 - Best of 2015 A look back on a great year of podcasting /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/4055981

19 - Marry Popins on Speed 12/01/2015

19 - Marry Popins on Speed It’s a well known fact that around 50% of the prison population are dyslexic or have issues with literacy. What’s lesser known, is the effect tackling this problem could have on violence in prisons and the rate of reoffending. If there’s anyone that knows how tackling this problem could revolutionise prison rehabilitation, it’s self-styled, ‘Prison Mary Poppins, ’Jackie Hewitt-Main. Through story telling, nurturing and a right brained approach to education, Jackie has achieved some mind blowing results. In some cases her methods have yielded a reoffending rate of 5.9%; the current average is 26% (ministry of justice). In this episode Jackie tells of how she went from being a mum and business woman. To working with and changing the lives of some of the UK’s most notorious prisoners. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3987483

18 - The Knowledge is Power 11/03/2015

18 - The Knowledge is Power They say that knowledge is power and for Gavin Malcolm, this saying has some real significance. We’ve all heard the stories of tough kids from inner city neighborhoods finding a way out through football, boxing or making it big in the world of entertainment. However for Gavin, his way out came from behind the wheel of one of London’s iconic Black Cabs. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3918538

17 - Memory Mechanics 10/06/2015

17 - Memory Mechanics This month master of the mind Jake O’Gorman pops into the studio to dazzle us with his superior memory skills. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3842197

16 - Creative, Successful, Dyslexic 09/01/2015

16 - Creative, Successful, Dyslexic Mother and author, Margaret Rooke, once had the assumption that Dyslexia was something that happened to other families. Within a family that had always done well academically and had no history of Dyslexia, Margaret was shocked to find the tell tale signs of Dyslexia in her daughters homework. This revelation was the catalyst for Margaret's latest book. ‘Creative, Successful, Dyslexic’ features interviews from the likes of Richard Branson, Eddie Izzard, Sir Jackie Stewart OBE and 20 more of the worlds most prominent Dyslexics . Margaret pops into The Codpast studio to tell us how she got many of the worlds most famous people to contribute to her book. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3769613

15 - Motorbike Madness 08/04/2015

15 - Motorbike Madness In this episode we record on location with TV motorbike adventurer and dyslexic Charley Boorman. Learn how a crazy idea he and his mate Ewan McGregor had, to ride 20,000 miles around the world on motorbikes, changed the course of Charleys life. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3714702

14 - Kick Like a Girl 07/06/2015

14 - Kick Like a Girl When Rachel left school she had no qualifications and seemingly no hope of a bright future. The only thing she knew how to do was play football. At that time, a girl playing football was an oddity and a girl making a career out of playing football…well that was just unheard off. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3659217

13 - A Turning Point: Part 2 06/01/2015

13 - A Turning Point: Part 2 Listen to the second instalment of how Dean Stalham's cycle of crime, drugs and prision was broken when he found a love of art. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3590274

Bonus - Bookblog March 2015 05/14/2015

Bonus - Bookblog March 2015 Anna Parker-Naples shares her pick of Dyslexic friendly audiobooks for May. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3555729

12 - A Turning Point: Part 1 05/05/2015

12 - A Turning Point: Part 1 This month Dean Stalham shares the story of how his cycle of crime, drugs and prision was broken when he found a love of art. A positive story of how harnessing the creative aspects of Dyslexia can make a positive change. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3534156

Bonus - Bookblog April 2015 04/17/2015

Bonus - Bookblog April 2015 Mandy Ward shares her pick of audiobooks for April /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3498464

11 - You're Fired 04/05/2015

11 - You're Fired This month Pamela Uddin from reality show The Aprentice pops into our studio. We get the lowdown on her new business venture, living life with a stammer and learn just what it's like to be fired by Lord Sugar. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3473124

Bonus - Bookblog March 2015 03/13/2015

Bonus - Bookblog March 2015 Sarah Fearn shares her pick of audiobooks for March /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3422653

10 - Corrected Comedy 03/03/2015

10 - Corrected Comedy This month U.S. comedian Liz Miele infects our studio with her highly contagious and uber funny presence. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3400133

Bonus - Bookblog Feb 2015 02/08/2015

Bonus - Bookblog Feb 2015 Anna Parker-Naples shares her pick of February audiobooks just in time for Valentines Day. /episode/index/show/thecodpast/id/3351006

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