Elizabeth Gilbert: "It's quite radical, what happens to us as we get older"

Elizabeth Gilbert: "It's quite radical, what happens to us as we get older"

From The Shift with Sam Baker by sam baker

February 24, 2026 · 1h 13m · Season 20 · Episode 280

About this episode

Elizabeth Gilbert discusses the impact of aging, personal freedom, and the themes of her latest memoir.

My guest today doesn’t really need an introduction. Elizabeth Gilbert is many things - an internationally bestselling author of the global phenomenon, Eat Pray Love, a Time 100 most influential person, a speaker and a teacher, with millions of online followers. But she is also, to put it in her own words, a ‘human permission slip’, the woman who told an entire generation of women it was OK to do whatever they needed to do, to travel for the sake of travelling. EPL sold millions of copies worldwide, was translated into 46 languages and the movie adaptation, starring Julia Roberts, grossed $200 million at the box office. Liz went on to write two bestselling novels (The Signature of all Things and City of Girls), the creativity book Big Magic (which has a permanent place on my shelf) and three more memoirs. Her latest, All The Way To The River, caused a media furore when it was published, in large part because of the candour with which Liz spoke about her own addictions - to love, sex, and control - and her relationship with her best friend, Rayya Elias who became her lover when Rayya was diagnosed with cancer. Liz joined me, on the 20th anniversary of Eat Pray Love to talk about…

People in this episode

Host: Sam Baker

Guest: Elizabeth Gilbert

Topics covered

  • radical ageing
  • financial independence
  • personal growth
  • addiction
  • love and relationships
  • women's empowerment

Keywords

  • Elizabeth Gilbert
  • Eat Pray Love
  • radical ageing
  • financial independence
  • addiction
  • sober dating
  • women's empowerment

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Eat Pray Love, The Signature of all Things, City of Girls, Big Magic, All The Way To The River

More episodes of The Shift with Sam Baker

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Shift with Sam Baker podcast page.