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In this episode I speak with Miguel Da Silva. Miguel is a radio DJ presenter and Shaman. Born in Portugal and growing up through the civil war, Miguel’s childhood was far from easy. In his teenage years he sought escape through drugs and alcohol. After several failed relationships he moved to England. His love of music attracted him to pirate radio where he became a DJ presenter, something he still does to this day. His life experiences drew him towards Shamanism, ancient beliefs connecting with nature and the universe.It’s a moving account of one man’s life and through adversity, he learnt to be resilient and finally love himself once again.

In this first episode, retired police officers Michael Brown, Richard Horton and Dave Thomas discuss the various aspect's of police work in general, and how it and the organisation influenced their own wellbeing. TRIGGER WARNING ⚠️ These podcasts examine and discuss suicide and associated trauma. If you have been affected by anything in these podcasts, you can contact the Samaritans on 116 123For several years now, the levels of mental health and well-being within the UK police have been in decline. Many will argue that this is a result of an ever-increasing workload, a reduction in capacity and experience, underfunding, and a perception that social and mainstream media proactively portray a negative narrative of law enforcement within the UK.Additionally, lenient sentencing, poor organizational practices, and the disproportionate time spent on officers under investigation have contributed to create a perfect storm. In this short series of podcasts, I will be looking at the rising trend of police officers taking their own lives. I will be speaking with a variety of people to put a spotlight on police suicide, the reasons behind it, and hopefully how we can halt its rise.DCT Audio

2024 marked the 200th Anniversary of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, an organisation funded wholly by voluntary contributions, keeping our seas safe since 1824. In this episode we visit the volunteers and boat crews who are based at the Blackpool Lifeboat Station, one of the busiest in the country. On their open day in the summer of 2024 we find out what makes them tick and the motivation behind why they do what they do. Willing to risk their own lives in order to save others.We also weave the heroic story of Grace Darling into the podcast, whose actions assisting her father William saved many lives, in a daring rescue that became national news in the 19th century. If you wish, you can donate to the RNLI here. It’s your donation that really does go to saving lives.

Yorkshire Poet.Tom was invited to write poems about the Maurice Dobson Museum and the man to whom it is dedicated too. Tom Juniper is a poet based in Sheffield. His work often focuses on the experience of being other, whether that’s talking about being autistic, being part of the queer community (He is a bi, non binary trans guy), or about the Other as in strange and mysterious creatures and entities from various folklore traditions.He is an experienced slam poet, and has competed in the Great Northern Slam, the Hammer & Tongue National Final, the Axis Slam, Word War, Oooh Behive Slam, Poetry At Your Place a d even the Anti Slam. He has won slams a few times and come second many more!He is also an educator and workshop leader with a background in youth work and arts education. He delivers poetry workshops through The Writer’s Workshop in Sheffield, and online.He also offers equality, diversity and inclusion workshops, focusing on disability and/or LGBTQ+ inclusion.

In the second of two episodes we talk to the local people from the Yorkshire town of Darfield and wider afield, who share their personal stories of life growing up in bygone times. The podcast has been produced in partnership with the Maurice Dobson Museum located in Darfield.

In a preview for the forthcoming podcast about people’s stories in and around Darfield and the Yorkshire area, Sheila McMillan describes uncovering the story surrounding her grandfather she never knew. It is a moving tribute to him and Sheila wrote a short book about his life. All the proceeds go to the Poppy Appeal.

Author of “No Ordinary Day”.Matt Johnson is a former military veteran and police officer. Due to his experiences he suffered from PTSD and was advised to take up writing as a form of therapy. It turned out he was rather good at it and has now penned four award winning novels. His latest book is a non fiction account of the murder of WPC Yvonne Fletcher outside the Libyan Embassy in 1984 and her close friend PC John Murray 37 year quest to bring her killers to justice. He draws on his own experiences that day and his investigation into the incident which saw the involvement of the government, the Secret Intelligence Service and the Libyans themselves. It is an eye opening account of state collusion involving the purchase of oil from the Libyan's in order to break the miners strike at the time. You have to keep reminding yourself when you reads Matt’s book, it is a factual account and not a work of fiction.

Barrister and Police OfficerWell here we are at last. For years, this has been an interview I have wanted to to do. How many folk do you know that are both criminal barrister and police officer? From an unique position we discuss the judiciary, the police service AND how, perhaps we can improve it.It’s a conversation filled with brevity and humour 🌱