Aside from the threat to our health, one of the biggest disruptions from this pandemic has been the impact on children’s education across the UK. Home schooling has been the norm for so many households, but by the first week of September the majority of the UK’s secondary and primary pupils will be back at school. ITV News presenter Lucrezia Millarini is joined on this edition of the podcast by John Jolly from the charity Parentkind to tell you what you need to know about the big return....
Aug 30, 2020•20 min
News At Ten anchor Tom Bradby is joined by ITV News Science Editor Tom Clarke to answer all your key questions on the coronavirus pandemic. The Q&A session was driven by our Facebook users on Tuesday night as the pair appeared live and reacted to the incoming queries before appearing on News At Ten. Which included... How close are we now to a vaccine? How are cases going up but deaths and hospital admissions declined? Is it really safe for children to go back to school? What are the chances ...
Aug 28, 2020•21 min
We're almost six months into pandemic in the UK and many of us have adjusted to our drastically different lifestyles. But are you doing enough to protect your health? As society becomes a little too relaxed with the lessened restrictions across summer, how can you ensure that you're not only placing yourself at greater risk of contracting the virus but also avoiding passing it on. Dr Amir Khan has become a familiar face to more than just his patients as the star of TV’s GPs Behind Closed Doors a...
Aug 20, 2020•17 min
How do news outlets reach an audience that wants to switch off from information that affects everybody's health? And why should you avoid avoidance strategies? Around a third of people in the UK say they are now actively avoiding information about the coronavirus - a figure that jumps to 46% among 25-34 year olds. News At Ten anchor Tom Bradby joins fellow ITV News presenter Lucrezia Millarini and Professor Bruce Hood of the University of Bristol to discuss how bulletins are put together and sha...
Aug 07, 2020•27 min
Usually found up a mountain or racing across a remote part of the world, adventurer Ben Fogle's schedule has been shaken up since the pandemic hit. Kylie Pentelow checks in with the broadcaster to find out how he handled staying so close to home for so long and reconnected with the English countryside. He explains how a humble veg patch has helped him with parenting and how you can take advantage of the great outdoors.
Aug 05, 2020•13 min
Many of us are setting new life goals in lockdown but how do you actually achieve them once things 'go back to normal'? Hollywood mentor to A-list celebrities Susie Pearl joins Kylie Pentelow to discuss all thing fulfilment and happiness. Just a year ago Susie was diagnosed with a brain tumour and given six weeks to live. But getting in touch with her creative side - and writing a book on the subject - she found new ways to cope with big life changes. Susie, author of The Art of Creativity: 7 Po...
Jul 30, 2020•18 min
When people like Max Brooks warn of a new germ warfare threat, you have to listen. The World War Z author had already imagined how the world would deal with a virus crisis years before 2020 happened - and has been proven eerily right over the last few months. The writer of new title Devolution had researched the spread of pandemics and isolated living long before they became a shocking reality in lives across the globe. So accurate is his research for his fiction stories that the son of Hollywoo...
Jul 27, 2020•16 min
Smokers have quit the habit in record numbers as people in the UK renew focus on their health amid the pandemic. Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) estimates one million people have stopped smoking since April, the biggest fall for a decade. “We did check our numbers more than once, I can tell you!” Hazel Cheeseman, the director of policy at the campaigning public health charity, tells Kylie Pentelow. Hazel shares the various social factors which may have changed people’s habits and explains why...
Jul 23, 2020•20 min
If you’ve been avidly tracking coronavirus information online then it’s likely that you’ll have encountered posts, memes and articles by anti-vaxxers. Social media accounts warning against the claimed harm of a potential vaccine - which has yet to have been produced - have gained almost 20% more followers during the pandemic. The claims - some of which have gained celebrity endorsement - are shared across YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and include a number of conspiracy theories. So ho...
Jul 21, 2020•18 min
Melinda Gates talks to ITV News Presenter Julie Etchingham on the progress made for a vaccine, gender divides and Donald Trump’s mishandling of the crisis. More than 138,000 people have died in the US after contracting the virus, resulting in heavy criticism of the Trump administration. Alongside her husband, Microsoft founder Bill, Melinda has been supporting work to create a Covid-19 vaccine, giving £596m to research being carried out at the University of Oxford. She updates Julie on the progr...
Jul 17, 2020•15 min
She may be one of the most famous names - and faces - in Hollywood, but for the past two decades Goldie Hawn has been dedicated to helping a generation of children deal with a rise in anger, aggression, anxiety and depression. The Private Benjamin and First Wives Club star tells Julie Etchingham - exclusively for ITV Tonight - how the science behind her MindUp programme can help those growing up in this time of crisis cope. She also addresses the steps she took to handle her own panic attacks at...
Jul 15, 2020•25 min
Psychologist Jo Hemmings is a familiar face on ITV and here the relationship and dating coach shares her advice for love-seeking listeners with Kylie Pentelow. The lockdown restrictions made traditional dating impossible - so how did people cope with virtual dates and what has she learned from talking to her regular clients during the pandemic? Jo shares why a phone call is actually more valuable than a video call for testing chemistry, explains why lockdown has brought some benefits to people h...
Jul 15, 2020•16 min
Even before the outbreak of a global pandemic, we were all used to hearing that the NHS was stretched to breaking point, suffering a shortage of staff and beds, and lacking vital investment. So what state is the National Health Service in after four months of battling coronavirus? Health Editor Emily Morgan has been a frequent visitor to hospitals across the country during the period to see how frontline doctors, nurses and patients have been coping. She explains to ITV News Presenter Mary Night...
Jul 14, 2020•19 min
The long-awaited reopening of borders for UK travellers has fuelled huge enthusiasm for summer holidays. So what's the new reality of travelling abroad and how can you plan for a safe trip? The Sun Travel Editor Lisa Minot tells ITV News Presenter Lucrezia Millarini what you need to know before booking your holiday, packing for a trip and prepping to board a plane for the first time in months. If you're keen to holiday closer at home, Lisa offers her advice for booking staycations. Plus she give...
Jul 10, 2020•15 min
It’s one of the go-to destinations for a sun-filled summer holiday, but Florida has been far from immune from Covid-19. ITV News International Affairs Editor Rageh Omaar talks to Fort Lauderdale mayor Dean Trantalis on how his county and the state itself has handled the virus and learned along the way. Mayor Trantalis has a direct warning for the UK based on his experience of what happened when Florida reopened its bars and restaurants. As he says: “It’s an education curve that we all have to go...
Jul 10, 2020•10 min
The government's green light for gyms to reopen ends months of fitness goers being locked out of their usual places of workout. On the eve of the announcement Pure Gym ceo Humphrey Cobbold and Professor Greg Whyte told ITV News Presenter Lucrezia Millarini what gymgoers could expect when they return. With Pure Gym already open abroad, a working template is there for social distancing measures. But how do they work in practice? Will gyms introduce temperature testing? And can we really expect to ...
Jul 09, 2020•25 min
While everyone else has been largely restricted from travel these past four months, Emma Murphy has been almost permanently on the go - far away from home. The ITV News Correspondent has been switching back and forth between Italy, Spain, Portugal and France, reporting from some of the world's most famous tourist sites now free of tourists - or as she describes it to ITV News Presenter Mary Nightingale "with more pigeons than people". So what has she learned from our near neighbours' approach to...
Jul 08, 2020•21 min
The four-nation approach to handling coronavirus has seen the UK divided like never before. Rather than be led by the UK government, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have all adopted their own set of rules and restrictions while facing the pandemic. So what does that mean for the future of the UK? Will there be a demand for more power to be devolved to the nations once lockdown is over? Will decision-making in the UK ever be the same again? To answer those heavyweight questions, ITV Cymru Wa...
Jul 07, 2020•26 min
Marcus Brigstocke has become a household name as a comedian - so what has life been like for the TV star now he’s only able to broadcast from his own home? He spoke to Kylie Pentelow about the challenges he and others have been facing in lockdown and whether it’s right to joke about the coronavirus. Plus he explains how a new Drive-In Club venture will get people out to see live stand-ups again, from the comfort of their car seats.
Jul 03, 2020•20 min
“You’ve got my cousins just crying and you can’t do anything.” In this emotional extended edition of the podcast, Charlene White tells fellow ITV News Presenter Julie Etchingham how hard it was to attend a socially-distanced funeral. Lockdown measures have changed how we pay our respects. Funeral mourners are limited to just a handful of close family members and passing a tissue to a teary relative could land you in trouble. Charlene explains how the stripped back process was a world away from t...
Jul 02, 2020•36 min
The introduction of lockdown impacted so many people’s working lives. For Stephen Laughton it stopped short his career’s ambition. The playwright had been working hand to mouth before finally seeing one of his plays, One Jewish Boy, open to packed audiences and rave reviews in London’s West End. Then a week later the introduction of lockdown shut theatres, blocked crowds and left his play with no certain date of return. Which meant TV and film deals were all put on pause, leaving Stephen in real...
Jul 01, 2020•15 min
“You’ll have some people celebrating and being thrilled. You’ll have other people really terrified of making those first steps into the communities they once felt completely at peace within.” So says TV presenter and psychologist Emma Kenny on how different people are likely to respond to the easing of lockdown measures. She has timely advice for those suffering from ‘return anxiety’ as things in society begin to resemble what life was like pre-pandemic. The Manchester-based psychologist talks K...
Jun 30, 2020•21 min
Lockdown has drastically changed the way we live our lives. While the dramatic restrictions have hindered so many freedoms, some have found benefits from the simplification of their daily lives. Could it be that once the lockdown is over, people will look to retain some elements of this newfound simpler form of living? Or will the pace of 'normal' life overrun our best intentions? In this episode, psychotherapist John Halker explains to ITV Channel's Gary Burgess how we could use what we've lear...
Jun 23, 2020•16 min
Are you desperate for a haircut? The wait could soon be over with salons and hairdressers hopeful of reopening by summer. Hairdressers to the stars George Northwood explains to Kylie Pentelow how salons like his are taking steps to reopen safely, why he’s expecting to deal with some drastic DIY cuts and why lockdown has made him rethink what getting a haircut means to people. George - whose clients include Meghan Markle and Alexa Chung - says he and other salon owners are not prepared to comprom...
Jun 22, 2020•20 min
Despite the strict stay-at-home restrictions at the start of lockdown, some brave people continued to move home - often through forced circumstances. Mary Nightingale speaks to Monica Menniti who was stuck living with her ex-fiancé when lockdown started and had an anything-but-ideal experience when she moved into a studio flat in London which she'd only seen through a virtual viewing. Miles Shipside from Rightmove.com then explains how lockdown has affected the way people search for their next h...
Jun 19, 2020•22 min
ITV News Presenter Kylie Pentelow speaks to British swimming legend Duncan Goodhew on the future of the nation’s favourite form of exercise. “It’s the longest time I’ve been out of the water. It’s not been easy,” he admits as he and other avid swimmers endure a third month of pools being shut across the UK with no return date in sight. The Olympic golden boy at Moscow 1980 is now president of the Swimathon charity and explains the actions he wants to see taken to get pools back open amid lockdow...
Jun 18, 2020•20 min
Coronavirus: Q&A, which airs on ITV every Monday night, puts your questions to key public figures involved in making the big decisions affecting our lives at the moment, plus our resident health and consumer affairs experts. ITV News Presenter Nina Hossain puts viewers' health and consumer questions to Dr Sarah Jarvis, CEO of the British Retail Consortium Helen Dickinson and Political Correspondent Daniel Hewitt. Among the questions this week: Should we wear PPE that covers our eyes? Will so...
Jun 17, 2020•14 min
The national sport is back on June 17 as wall-to-wall football comes to living rooms and smartphones across the UK. The Premier League insists footballers are safer on the pitch than at the supermarket, but how will the games in empty stadia work in practice and what happens if an outbreak of the virus hits one of the 20 teams? Sports Editor Steve Scott talks Mary Nightingale through all the issues, including the prospect of Liverpool clinching their first title in 30 years at the home of their ...
Jun 16, 2020•24 min
The Faroe Islands has become one of the first countries in the world to declare itself Covid-19 free. Scotland Correspondent Peter Smith speaks to member of parliament, Kristina Háfoss, who explains how a swift in the strategy brought in in March has succeeded. She argues there were disadvantages as well as advantages to fighting a pandemic among a relatively small population. And she explains what other nations could learn from its approach, particularly its testing regime....
Jun 15, 2020•23 min
Northern Ireland is the first country in the UK to confirm it will reopen its hotels. July 20 is set to be the day guests are welcomed back for a night or an extended stay away from home. So how will social distancing work and can hotels really ensure there will be no spread of the virus as people stay from one night to the next? UTV's Gareth Wilkinson spoke to Claire Hunter of the Marine Hotel in Ballycastle as she prepared to pioneer the new normal in her industry. The interview was recorded p...
Jun 12, 2020•25 min
