The childhood struggle that inspired the world’s greatest fish chef - for reel!

The childhood struggle that inspired the world’s greatest fish chef - for reel!

From The Imperfects by Hugh van Cuylenburg, Ryan Shelton & Josh van Cuylenburg

August 23, 2026 · 1h 7m · Season 8 · Episode 30

About this episode

Josh Niland discusses how his childhood cancer experience shaped his adult life and culinary career.

How does having cancer as a child impact the way you live as an adult? Uber successful chef and restauranteur Josh Niland doesn’t do things in halves (no, literally, have you read his book The Whole Fish?). From opening a restaurant at 26, to becoming the first Australian to win the James Beard Book of the Year award when he was just 30, Josh’s creativity came from a place of desperation to explore every opportunity presented to him. 💌Join 9,400+ people getting a Dr Emily values worksheet and takeaways from this week’s episode in our newsletter - http://bit.ly/45NyQDy Diagnosed with cancer 2 days after his 8th birthday, Josh’s childhood transformed in a matter of hours into hospital hallways, chemotherapy and facing his own mortality. In this episode, Josh joins us in the Vulnerabilitea House to talk us through an experience which profoundly changed him, which he is now grateful for. Hugh, Ryan and Josh (our Josh), also ask about where his drive and ambitious creativity comes from, and just how close to failure Josh’s culinary career came. We wish this chat could have gone on longer, If you want to watch this full episode on YouTube, follow this link - 🫖Other Imperfect’s…

People in this episode

Hosts: Hugh van Cuylenburg, Ryan Shelton

Guest: Josh Niland

Topics covered

  • childhood cancer
  • culinary career
  • creativity
  • personal growth
  • mental health

Keywords

  • childhood cancer
  • Josh Niland
  • culinary creativity
  • mental health
  • personal growth

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: James Beard

Books & works: The Whole Fish, Saint Peter: Chapter & Verse

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