Podcasts by Eye of the Storm with Emma Barnett

Kerry Irving from 2020-03-03T16:40

Kerry Irving and Max the Miracle Dog.

Matthew Hahn from 2020-02-11T13:47

Matthew Hahn talks to Emma Barnett about the moment he stole a safe and how that theft changed his life

'I was wrongly accused of being "fixer" for paedophile gang' from 2020-02-11T13:42

Wajed Iqbal talks to Emma Barnett about repairing his life after a newspaper wrongly accused him of helping a paedophile ring.

Ella Dove from 2020-01-15T16:04

Ella tripped while jogging and ended up having to have her leg amputated. She talks to Emma Barnett how coming through the ordeal has changed her life.

Matthew Hedges and his wife Daniela Tejade from 2019-11-26T16:50

Last year Matthew spent six months in prison in the United Arab Emirates after being accused of spying.

Matthew was initially arrested at Dubai Airport in May 2018 as he tried to leave th...

Marie McCourt from 2019-11-19T15:03

Marie McCourt speaks to Emma Barnett about the night her daughter Helen went missing in 1988. Helen's body has never been found, and her mother wants there to be no parole for murderers who refu...

Michaella McCollum: Why I smuggled cocaine into Peru from 2019-11-14T17:02

Michaella McCollum (pictured, left) was just 20, when she was caught with 11 kilos of cocaine at the airport in Peru in 2013. Along with her Scottish accomplice, Melissa Reid, she spent almost t...

Megan Phelps Roper from 2019-11-14T16:12

Megan Phelps Roper talks to Emma Barnett about growing up in the notorious Westboro Baptist Church, which preached hatred towards LGBT people and picketed the funerals of dead soldiers.

Beverley Bass from 2019-11-05T16:45

Trailblazing pilot who was grounded by 9/11.

Elber Twomey from 2019-10-22T12:41

I lost my family in a crash with a suicidal driver.

Diane Modahl: Life after being banned from 2019-10-08T13:50

In 1994 the former Olympic athlete tested positive in a drugs test and was banned for four years. She won the appeal - but she and her husband lost everything in the process.

Rachel Dolezal: How the world reacted to race row from 2019-09-10T11:31

Rachel Dolezal remembers the controversy she faced for identifying as 'transracial'.

She tells 5 Live's Adrian Chiles what it was like to lose friends and hit headlines around the world a...

“My donor had obviously been very good to them” from 2019-08-20T13:53

Corinne Hutton on having a double hand transplant after losing her own hands to sepsis.

Tragic school sports day from 2019-08-13T15:41

Lis Cashin's life changed forever in 1983. She was 13, and she'd been chosen to throw the javelin for her school sports day. But her throw hit her classmate Sammy, who was measuring the distan...

“I was scammed by my con artist friend” from 2019-07-30T16:16

Rachel Deloache Williams tells Emma Barnett how she lost tens of thousands of dollars to a “friend”, Anna, who turned out to be a con artist on a grand scale.

Diver who cheated death from 2019-06-04T15:17

North Sea diver Chris Lemons was 100 metres below the surface when his oxygen hose snapped. He wasn't rescued for half an hour.

'Death Row is the only place I didn’t experience racism' from 2019-04-29T13:33

Anthony Ray Hinton spent 28 years on death row in Alabama for two murders he didn’t do.

He was freed in 2015 when the US Supreme Court quashed his conviction.

He was a black man ar...

"I was exploited by TV producers" from 2019-04-25T13:16

“I was the last person who should have gone on a TV show.” The thoughts of Caroline Wharram, a Big Brother contestant from 2012 who hit the headlines after being accused of being racist. She tel...

Twentieth Anniversary of the Columbine Shootings from 2019-04-18T15:42

Clare McDonnell talks to Beth Nimmo whose daughter Rachel was of the twelve students who were murdered in the Columbine school shootings alongside one of their teachers.

Willy Phillips Junior from 2019-04-15T10:21

Willy Phillips Junior, who in 2010 survived a plane crash which killed his father, talks to Emma Barnett about how he escaped, and how he has only recently overcome crippling fears and anxieties...

Rotherham Whistleblower from 2019-03-21T14:58

Angie Heal, a former specialist drugs worker with South Yorkshire Police, talks to Emma Barnett about how she helped raise the alarm about the horrific grooming of children and young people taki...

Surviving a terror attack from 2019-02-21T15:06

Ahmad Nawaz escaped the Taliban four years ago, when extremists stormed his school in 2014, killing 149 people, including his younger brother. He now lives in Birmingham and campaigns against ex...

NHS Whistleblower from 2019-02-14T19:28

Peter Duffy, the NHS surgeon who was accused of racism and 'forced out' of his job after raising concerns about three Asian colleagues. Peter, once voted doctor of the year, said the experience ...

Steve Brookstein from 2019-01-17T14:56

The winner of the first ever series of the X Factor.

Andy Grant from 2019-01-14T15:20

A man who survived being blown up in Afghanistan, and refused to let it ruin his life

Mark Oaten from 2019-01-14T14:53

The former Liberal Democrat MP who was at the centre of a tabloid sex scandal.

The inspiring legacy of Jane Tomlinson from 2018-12-13T13:30

Mike Tomlinson remembers the incredible life of his wife Jane Tomlinson, an amateur English athlete who raised £1.85 million for charity by completing a series of athletic challenges, despite su...

Bataclan survivors from 2018-11-29T13:50

British couple Tony Scott and Justine Merton-Scott survived the horrific attack on the Bataclan Theatre in Paris on 13 November 2015. They tell Emma Barnett what it was like - and what it was l...

'I spent 25 years in prison for a murder I didn't commit' from 2018-11-22T13:59

In January 1977, Annie Walsh was murdered in her Manchester flat.

Four months later, neighbour Robert Brown was arrested. Within 36 hours he'd signed a confession - a confession which he ...

Karen Downes from 2018-11-02T10:06

Karen Downes, whose 14-year-old daughter went out with friends in 2003, and has never been seen since, tells Anna Foster about how she's coped with life after that moment. She describes in hone...

Rogue trader from 2018-11-02T10:00

Kweku Adoboli, the trader jailed for the UK's biggest financial fraud, tells Anna Foster why he's now fighting deportation to Ghana, the country of his birth which he left aged 4.

Mid-Staffs whistleblower from 2018-10-25T13:06

Helene Donnelly, the nurse who revealed the scandal at Stafford Hospital, tells Anna Foster what prompted her to become a whistleblower, and what it was like to face the backlash and the bullyin...

Utøya Attack Survivor from 2018-10-18T12:55

Lisa-Marie Husby loved her summer trips to Utøya Island - until the day Anders Breivik turned the idyllic retreat into the scene of a mass murder. She tells Jim Taylor the story of her escape, a...

Pilot accused of lying from 2018-10-11T13:04

Tracey Curtis-Taylor on being accused of being a fraud. She flies a vintage biplane around the world, but was accused of lying about flying solo. In 2013, she flew a 1940s Stearman from Cape Tow...

The first woman to accuse Larry Nassar from 2018-10-04T17:30

Rachael Denhollander on exposing the greatest sexual assault scandal in sports history. The American lawyer and former gymnast was the first woman to publicly accuse Larry Nassar, the former USA...

Paul Conroy from 2018-09-13T14:06

War photographer Paul Conroy on his final assignment in Syria with reporter Marie Colvin before she was killed by an airstrike in Homs in 2012. Paul made it out alive - just - after being caught...

Hated for 'buying' twins from 2018-09-06T12:32

In 2001 Judith Silett was branded Britain's most hated woman. She and her then husband had paid a US agency £8,200 to adopt twin girls from America.

The press accused them of buying the c...

Youngest person to swim the Channel from 2018-08-30T13:00

Tom Gregory on swimming the English Channel aged 11 in 1988. He became the youngest person to swim the 32-mile crossing and it took him 32 hours. He still holds the record and has written a book...

The Bosnian Anne Frank from 2018-08-23T13:05

Zlata Filipovic, whose childhood diary, written during the war in Sarajevo, became a bestseller. Thousands of civilians were killed as hundreds of shells bombarded the city each day. But Zlata a...

Tiger Mom from 2018-08-16T12:57

Amy Chua, author of Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, on being a tough parent. Her memoir outlines her strict "Chinese" style of parenting which saw her daughters Sofia and Lulu follow a strict r...

Dancing Man: Sean O'Brien from 2018-08-09T13:49

Sean O'Brien, also known as 'Dancing Man' was fatshamed when pictures of him dancing were posted online by strangers. However his story took an unusual turn when musicians and stars turned out t...

Surviving jumping off a bridge from 2018-08-02T12:56

Michael Josephson on surviving his suicide attempt, where he broke nearly every bone in his body by jumping off a 60-foot high bridge.

20 years later, he has an MBE and a multi-million po...

Anne Scargill from 2018-07-26T13:11

Anne Scargill is the ex-wife of former NUM leader Arthur Scargill, and co-founded the Women Against Pit Closures. She says the miners’ strike of 1984-5 was her political awakening, and opens up...

Chloe Ayling from 2018-07-12T15:11

Model Chloe Ayling was kidnapped in Milan and held captive for six days. But doubt was cast on her story when she returned to the UK. The doubters were proved wrong when her kidnapper was jailed...

Aron Ralston from 2018-06-28T18:14

It’s fifteen years since Aron Ralston set off for a few days of fun and relaxation in Utah’s Bluejohn Canyon. He became trapped by a boulder and the resulting ordeal lasted 127 hours. Aron’s rem...

Rebecca Black from 2018-06-07T12:52

Rebecca Black was just 13 years old in 2011, when she recorded a song and music video. ‘Friday’ became one of the biggest viral videos in YouTube history – all for being labelled possibly the wo...

The Stranger on the Bridge from 2018-05-24T12:49

Neil Laybourn was heading to work, when he saw a man climbing over the railings, intending to end his life. That man was Jonny Benjamin, and Neil managed to pull him back from the brink. Anna Fo...

Lee Rigby's mother from 2018-05-17T13:12

Lyn Rigby is the mother of fusilier Lee Rigby, murdered outside a barracks in Woolwich in London by two Islamic extremists. The terror attack, in May 2013, shocked the nation. Lyn tells Anna Fo...

James Bulger's mother from 2018-05-03T13:43

The murder of James Bulger in 1993 by two 10-year-old boys shocked the nation. His mother, Denise Fergus, alongside her husband Stuart, tells Anna Foster what it was really like and how James's...

Touching The Void climber from 2018-05-03T13:38

The mountain climber Simon Yates tells Anna Foster what really happened when he and fellow climber Joe Simpson attempted to climb a Peruvian mountain. Simon had to cut the rope to save his own ...

Fab from Milli Vanilli from 2018-04-30T11:30

Fab Morvan was one half of iconic pop duo Milli Vanilli, alongside Rob Pilatus, who had Number Ones around the world in the late 1980s. But it all came crashing down when producer Frank Farian ...

Rhys Jones’s parents from 2018-04-19T16:08

Mel and Steve Jones talk to Anna Foster about the murder of their 11-year-old son, Rhys, which shocked the UK when he was shot dead after being caught in the crosshairs of a gang fight in Loverp...

Fashion designer murder from 2018-04-19T15:55

Jason Braham, formerly the director of art at Harrow School, tells Anna Foster about the brutal murder of his fashion designer daughter Lucy Braham in 2006. Lucy was stabbed to death by a forme...

Jonathan Aitken from 2018-03-29T14:25

Disgraced MP Jonathan Aitken speaks to Sam Walker about being found guilty of perjury and his spectacular fall from grace led to an unexpected turnaround in prison.

This is originally fro...

Gurpal Virdi from 2018-03-22T13:55

Anna speaks to former policeman Gurpal Virdi who faced accusations of racial discrimination in the 1990s. He was cleared by an employment tribunal, but then, following his retirement, he became...

Islamic State survivor from 2018-03-01T14:50

Scottish grandmother ‘Nour Abdullah’ (not her real name) tells Anna Foster about why she left Scotland to live in Iraq, and what it was like surviving three years under so-called Islamic State, ...

Simon Thomas from 2018-02-27T14:38

TV presenter Simon Thomas talks to Anna Foster about the sudden death of his wife, Gemma, who died In November 2017 just three days after being told she had acute myeloid leukaemia – and the imp...

Ben Dunne from 2018-02-22T14:01

Ben Dunne, father of Viola Beach band member River Reeves, talks about the death of his son, who was killed in a car crash along with his fellow band members and their manager, in Sweden in Febr...

Emma Slade from 2018-02-15T14:15

From Hong Kong banker to Buddhist Monk: Emma Slade tells Emma Barnett how a chance encounter with an armed man in her five-star hotel turned her life around and made her re-evaluate all her prio...

John Nichol from 2018-02-08T14:08

The British airman, who was taken hostage by Saddam’s troops in Iraq in 1991, tells Anna Foster how he came to fight in the First Gulf War, what it was like to be paraded on national television,...

Nemone Lethbridge from 2018-01-25T14:26

Leading female barrister in the 1950's.

Emily Maitlis from 2018-01-18T16:53

The TV presenter gives her first on-air interview Emma Barnett, to tell her what it’s been like to undergo a 27-year-ordeal at the hands of a stalker. She explains the impact of the stalking on ...

Rebecca Loos from 2018-01-18T16:48

The woman at the centre of tabloid allegations in 2004 tells Emma Barnett what it was like once she went public with claims that she’d had an affair with David Beckham – something he’s always de...

June Steenkamp from 2018-01-11T14:45

The mother of Reeva Steenkamp tells Emma Barnett about her daughter, who was killed by Oscar Pistorius in 2013 -- and how that devastating moment has changed her and her husband's lives forever....

The real-life Molly’s Game from 2017-12-21T14:28

Ski-hopeful Molly Bloom tells Emma Barnett how her life was turned upside down when the FBI raided her poker business – a true-life story which inspired the Hollywood film Molly’s Game, written ...

Chennai Six from 2017-12-08T14:30

Nick Dunn, who was imprisoned in India for several years before having his sentence quashed on appeal in November 2017, talks honestly to Emma Barnett less than 24 hours after his return to the ...

Colin Stagg from 2017-12-07T14:20

The man wrongly accused of Rachel Nickell’s murder in 1992 tells Emma Barnett what it was like to be hounded by the tabloids – and only exonerated by the police after 10 years.

Fake News Victim from 2017-12-07T14:17

Jackie Teale, a teacher, tells Emma Barnett what it was like to be on the wrong end of a column written by Katie Hopkins and published by the MailOnline. Katie Hopkins had accused her of taking...

Why I kept my rapist's baby from 2017-11-23T16:12

Catherine became pregnant after being raped by a man she had considered her friend. She explains to Emma why she decided to give birth to the child - and why the hardest thing for her is looking...

Macer Gifford from 2017-11-23T14:02

The former banker tells Emma Barnett why he gave up a lucrative career in the City to go off and fight the so-called Islamic State in Syria.

Sylvia Lancaster from 2017-11-16T13:37

Emma speaks to Sylvia the mother of 20-year-old Sophie Lancaster who back in the August of 2007 along with her boyfriend Rob were brutally attacked late at night by a gang in a park in Rossendal...

Rogue trader Alexis Stenfors from 2017-11-09T14:29

City trader Alexis Stenfors was sacked after losing hundreds of millions of pounds. He tells Emma Barnett why he did it and what impact it has had on his life

I survived a Taliban kidnap from 2017-11-02T14:57

TV filmmaker Sean Langan was kidnapped by the Taliban in 2008. He tells Emma Barnett how it all came about, and how he survived, the terrifying, gruelling ordeal.

Hilda Matthews from 2017-10-26T13:24

To mark the 50th anniversary of the legalisation of abortion, 5 live’s Emma Barnett speaks to 77 year old Hilda Matthews. She fell pregnant in her 20s when abortion was banned. She was one of th...

Vicky Beeching and Tim Collins from 2017-10-19T11:13

What's it like to suddenly have the world's media descend on you? In this episode Emma Barnett hears from Tim Collins and Vicky Beeching.

Paddy Armstrong from 2017-10-12T12:56

In 1975, Paddy Armstrong was one of several people sent to prison after the IRA bombed a Guildford pub the year before, killing five and injuring 60. But in 1990, his conviction was quashed. P...

Jane Nicklinson from 2017-09-29T14:29

In August 2012, right-to-die campaigner Tony Nicklinson, who had locked-in syndrome, lost his legal battle to choose when he died. He immediately refused food, and died a week later. Five year...

Charlie Webster from 2017-09-22T14:22

The TV and sport presenter talks honestly and revealingly to Emma Barnett about what happened when a rare form of malaria took her close to death after an epic 3,000 mile cycle ride to Rio – and...

‘Gamergate’ controversy from 2017-09-08T15:45

Zoe Quinn, the video game developer who faced extreme harassment after an ex-boyfriend published details of her love life online, tells Emma Barnett how the controversial episode changed her lif...

Child prodigy James/Lauren Harries from 2017-08-31T12:36

Lauren Harries shot to fame as James in 1988 on TV chatshow Wogan. She tells Emma Barnett what really happened then, and how her dramatic life has changed since, including her transition to be...

Mark Austin&his daughter from 2017-08-24T15:30

TV newsreader Mark Austin and his daughter Maddy tell Emma Barnett about how they coped with her struggle with anorexia

Art forger from 2017-08-24T14:57

A name you may not have heard of, but you’ll recognise his work. Or the works he copied. Shaun Greenhalgh tells Emma Barnett how he created fake art masterpieces from his shed in Bolton – and ...

Sharon Shoesmith from 2017-08-17T13:24

Sharon Shoesmith, the former head of Haringey Children’s Services, talks about the tragic death of baby Peter Connolly in 2007 and the impact it had on her life and her profession.

Struck by lightning from 2017-08-03T14:47

Geordie Allen tells Emma Barnett the extraordinary story of how he was hit by lightning and, despite horrific injuries, went on to rebuild his life

Sacked ‘anti-semitic’ columnist from 2017-08-02T14:11

Kevin Myers, sacked after writing a column making remarks about two female TV presenters that were criticised as anti-semitic, tells Emma Barnett why he regrets writing it.

Tim Farron from 2017-07-14T14:16

Emma Barnett meets someone at the heart of a news story to find out what really happened. Today, the Lib Dem leader reveals why pressure over his Christian beliefs led him to step down much earl...

Prime Minister Theresa May from 2017-07-13T10:36

Emma Barnett meets Theresa May in the prime minister's first one-on-one, in-depth interview since the 2017 general election, and a year on from taking office.

Sully's 'Miracle on the Hudson' from 2017-06-29T14:24

The incredible story of Chesley 'Sully' Sullenberger, who tells Emma Barnett how he landed his Airbus A320 on the Hudson River in 2009, saving 155 lives.

Blind Date 'hoaxer' from 2017-06-22T12:46

Undercover journo Nicola Gill tells Emma Barnett what happened when she tried to get on Blind Date as a contestant in 1997 – and how she was rumbled by Cilla Black and her team.

‘My son cut off his penis’ from 2017-06-02T12:49

‘Nick’ tells Emma Barnett the harrowing story of how his son cut off his penis while high on skunk – and how he and his family recovered.

Nuremberg prosecutor from 2017-05-18T15:17

98-year-old Ben Ferencz tells Emma Barnett what it was like being one of the US prosecutors at the Nuremberg war crimes trial at the end of World War Two.

“Piegate” goalie from 2017-05-11T13:08

Sacked Sutton United goalie Wayne Shaw tells Emma Barnett how eating a pasty on camera made his “world fall in”

Royal Prank DJs from 2017-05-04T12:44

Australian DJ Mel Greig tells Emma about the infamous prank call that went tragically wrong, and how she coped with the aftermath.

Alice Wells from 2017-04-21T14:15

Mum and doctor Alice Wells tells Emma Barnett about the nightmare of discovering that her husband was a paedophile – and that he’d abused their daughter.

Vicky Beeching from 2017-04-06T12:52

Christian singer Vicky Beeching stunned and divided the evangelical church with two little words: “I’m gay”. She tells Emma Barnett what it was like to come out and how she dealt with the react...

Rio Ferdinand from 2017-03-31T14:31

Former England captain Rio Ferdinand talks honestly to Emma Barnett about the impact of the death of his wife Rebecca, and how it’s affected his children.

Stutter Boy from 2017-03-30T14:20

Hero of Educating Yorkshire, Mushy, tells Emma Barnett what it was like becoming an internet star for battling his stammer, and why he is proud to be known as 'Stutter Boy'.

The 'Angel of Woolwich' from 2017-03-24T13:36

Ingrid Loyau-Kennett, the passer-by who confronted the killers of Fusilier Lee Rigby in May 2013, tells Emma Barnett why she got involved, and the impact that's had on her life

Leah Betts' Dad from 2017-03-23T17:21

Paul Betts tells Emma Barnett why he published a picture of his 18-year-old daughter Leah dying after she took an ecstasy tablet - and how that decision changed his family's life.

First Millionaire winner from 2017-03-23T17:16

Emma Barnett meets those who found themselves at the centre of a big news story to find out what really happened and how it changed their lives. Tonight, Judith Keppel discusses being the first...

Accused of child sex abuse from 2017-03-23T17:14

Teacher and media personality Simon Warr tells Emma Barnett what it was like to be wrongly charged with child sex abuse – and how, despite being cleared, it’s ruined his life.

Airport bomb tweeter from 2017-03-23T17:11

Fake bomb tweeter Paul Chambers tells Emma Barnett about the battle to clear his name after he jokingly tweeted that he would blow up Robin Hood Airport.

Jailed planespotters from 2017-03-23T17:05

Planespotters Paul and Lesley Clinton tell Emma Barnett what it was like to be jailed for six weeks in Greece after they were arrested for spying.

Conkergate! from 2017-03-23T17:00

Headteacher Shaun Halfpenny tells Emma Barnett the truth behind the story that he’d banned conkers in his school playground.

Gerald Ratner from 2017-03-23T16:35

Emma Barnett meets the person at the heart of a news story to find out what really happened and how their life changed overnight. This week jewellery boss Gerald Ratner tells Emma why he called ...