
Bryn Williams on building confidence, feeling the rhythm, and enjoying our ocean playground
From Swim Chats by Shona Riddell
February 23, 2026 · 1h 1m · Season 2 · Episode 3
About this episode
Bryn Williams shares his experiences as an ocean swimmer and his journey of building confidence in the water.
Bryn Williams is a Wellington ocean swimmer and is a great person to swim with. He helps nervous newbies (like me, a few years ago) and encourages us to have fun in the water whether it's jumping off the pontoons or doing handstands in the shallows. He's full of fun and lifts everyone's spirits just by showing up. Bryn moved to NZ from Wales in the late 1970s, at the age of 14. When Bryn was young his uncle Tommy, who was in the Navy during WW2 and witnessed multiple drownings, taught his dozens of nephews and nieces to swim in the fresh, choppy Irish Sea. Bryn learned to navigate the waves and the jelllies. and as an adult he finds peace and joy in the sea, calling it his "Prozac". No wetsuit, no goggles, and sometimes accompanied by his golden retriever Ruby, a competitive harbour swimmer. Bryn and I recorded this episode at his house and it's a great chat, so grab a cuppa and enjoy! * Jono Ridler is currently swimming down the east coast of NZ's North Island (1,600km over 90 days) to raise awareness of destructive bottom trawling in the ocean. Find out more at swim4theocean.com and sign the petition. * Support the Swim Chats podcast ($5 per month) via …
People in this episode
Host: Shona Riddell
Guest: Bryn Williams
Topics covered
- ocean swimming
- confidence building
- enjoying the sea
- community
- mental health
Keywords
- ocean swimming
- confidence
- Wellington
- mental health
- community swimming
Mentioned in this episode
Places: Wellington, NZ, Wales, Irish Sea, North Island
More episodes of Swim Chats
- Swimming and sea poems with special guest Sinéad Kehoe · May 26, 2026 · 44 min
- Mountains to Sea Wellington’s Zoe Studd on the joys, challenges and possibilities of connecting people with the water · May 21, 2026 · 48 min
- ‘Jump In’ author Nicola McCloy on NZ’s best swimming spots – and how she found them · May 8, 2026 · 60 min
- RE-RELEASE – Sir Bernard Freyberg's heroic wartime swim and our ANZAC tribute (with special guest John Hancock) · April 22, 2026 · 43 min
- Triple Crown swimmer Wen Erh Hsu on the importance of enjoying every stroke · April 13, 2026 · 40 min
- Seti Afoa on running Samoa Events, learning to swim, and overcoming our fear of the deep · April 6, 2026 · 58 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Swim Chats podcast page.