Headliners BBC Radio 5 Live

Radio genius Richard Bacon is back on the 5 Live airwaves for the latest Headliners slot – so will there yet be a return of the Special Half Hour, 15 years on?

A radio mastermind and no slouch in the TV department either, the pair also delve into Richard’s TV production credits both sides of the Atlantic, and discuss how his ADHD diagnosis and near death experience in adulthood have affected him: “’You were meant to die’, I think about that phrase everyday’.”

Oh, and how he’s technically married to Britney Spears; what happened when he played a montage of Partridge-inspired on-air moments to Steve Coogan; why he has high hopes for a high tech phone case you’ve never seen before; and how life in LA has changed his perspective of what’s realistically achievable.

Enjoy, Great Britain, wherever you are!

Australian actress and comedian Rebel Wilson shot to fame in Hollywood in Bridesmaids and the Pitch Perfect trilogy, where she played a character called "Fat Amy”. She has just released her autobiography, ‘Rebel Rising’, charting her course to fame. She also dives deep into her personal and private life, documenting her struggles with weight, romance and fertility.

'I'm not a victim, I call myself a survivor'
Former Manchester United defender, Patrice Evra, discusses how he was sexually abused aged 13, and why he's now working with the UN and WHO to ensure other children grow up in a world free of violence and abuse.
He also reflects on his time at Manchester United, his early life growing up as one of 24 siblings, and how his partner Margaux changed his life.

As a warning to listeners - some of this podcast makes for difficult listening – with discussions of sexual abuse.

“When I arrived at the hospital they thought it might already be too late”

The Booker Prize-winning author, Sir Salman Rushdie speaks to Nihal.

He is one of most famous and most celebrated authors of our time. And in August 2022 he was stabbed on stage in New York.

Sir Salman said he is using his new book, ‘Knife’, as a way of fighting back against what happened.

As a warning to listeners - some of this podcast makes for difficult listening – with depictions of violence.

Comedian Helen Lederer on evolving attitudes toward neurodiversity, how alternative comedy has developed since the 1980s, and how her definition of happiness changes with age.
Helen and Gordon also get into social media and entertainers' relationships with reviews, working with great comedians like Harry Enfield, and why her candid new memoir Not That I’m Bitter proves “you can be funny about sad things”.

Comedian Jason Byrne on varying degrees of honesty from family and different audiences, the list of eccentricities he’s noticed of his Scottish and Irish fans he’s met from world tours, his new show for Edinburgh Festival, and how his late father’s wisdom has helped shape an award-winning one-man play.
The pair also get into Jason trying to connect his brand of comedy to children, health, heart disease and being awake during six (yes, six!) stent installs, mental health coping strategies, growing up in Dublin, and what it’s like meeting up with old mates who’ve no filter and no fame.