Tom's Talks

Tom Dickinson
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Self-Improvement
  • Updated Weekly

Welcome to the Tom's Talks Podcast, where we explore the unique stories that shape extraordinary lives.Join me, Tom Dickinson - public speaker, mindset coach and mental health advocate, as I sit down with inspiring individuals from all walks of life. In each episode, we delve into personal journeys, uncovering the pivotal moments, triumphs and challenges that have defined them. The Tom's Talks Podcast offers raw and authentic conversations that remind us we're all on our own unique path.Tune in to be inspired, enlightened, and empowered to embrace your own story.

  1. 6d ago

    The Phone Call That Stopped Him Crashing At 100mph | Adam Smith on Tom's Talks Podcast

    The Tom's Talks Podcast is a place where we speak to a vast array of people from different walks of life and find out what makes them them. We will speak about their unique journey and delve into the highs and the lows which ultimately define them.  This episode discusses suicide, addiction and mental health. If you're struggling, Samaritans are available 24/7 on 116 123. "I don't think anybody wants to really die. I think they want the pain to stop." At 30, Adam Smith was single, overweight, jobless and back living with his mum and dad. He had been the golden boy of a hospitality career, working 80 hour weeks and drinking a bottle of whiskey on a weekend while still turning up to run the bar. Then he was signed off with depression, his partner left, three family members died in the space of a few weeks, and his employer quietly managed him out. At his best friend's dad's wake he drank eight pints, said goodbye to his parents thinking it was for the last time, and got in the car intending to crash it. He was doing 100 miles an hour looking for a bridge when his phone rang on the dashboard. It was his mum, calling to ask whether he wanted her to drop his wallet round later. He pulled into a lay by and cried for five hours. He has not had a drink since, and he now coaches founders and CEOs for a living, having worked with over 500 people in six years. What we get into: The compound years in hospitality - 80 hour weeks, drinking after shifts, and the Christmas he could only tell what day it was by how busy the bar was Being signed off with depression, his partner leaving, and three bereavements in a matter of weeks The wake, the eight pints, and the drive that was meant to be his last The phone call that interrupted it, and why he puts it down to dumb luck rather than anything divine Why he believes nobody actually wants to die, they just want the pain to stop Giving up alcohol - the flat pint in the Lake District, the 30 days that became 60, and the Christmas he realised he did not need it The honest reason he drank, which was never really about the drink The moderation maths, and why "everything in moderation" falls apart the moment you count it What 20 years of studying human behaviour tells him about why people leave cruel comments online The Drama Triangle - victim, rescuer, persecutor - and what to say to your kid or your partner instead of "don't be so silly" The question that defuses almost any argument at home: what do you need from me right now? Adam coaching Tom live on camera through one of his most powerful exercises, and Tom's reaction straight afterwards "Have you had enough pain yet?" - the question he asks every client, and why change only comes after the answer is yes Tom has spoken before about losing his brother Liam, and there is a lot here that will land for anyone who has watched someone they love struggle and not known what to say. Adam is unusually clear about what actually helps, and it is rarely what we reach for first. An honest conversation about rock bottom, suicide, sobriety, men's mental health, grief and the practical psychology of getting unstuck. Subscribe to Tom's Talks for a new episode every week. If you found value in this episode: 👍 Like the video 💬 Comment your biggest takeaway 🔔 Subscribe for weekly conversations that matter Subscribe for weekly conversations with inspiring guests sharing real stories about resilience, growth and overcoming life’s challenges. It would mean the world to me if you were to like, comment, subscribe on my videos whilst I share my ongoing journey. Check out my website: https://toms-talks.co.uk/ Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toms.talks__/ Proudly sponsored by: https://osiofficefurniture.co.uk/ Support the show Check out my website: toms-talks.co.uk Follow me on Instagram: toms.talks__ Follow me on TikTok: tomstalks Subscribe on YouTube: TomsTalks

  2. Oct 11

    Brothers Suicide, Becoming a Parent & Finding Purpose | Tom Dickinson on Tom's Talks Podcast

    The Tom's Talks Podcast is a place where we speak to a vast array of people from different walks of life and find out what makes them them. We will speak about their unique journey and delve into the highs and the lows which ultimately define them.  This episode discusses suicide, addiction and mental health. If you're struggling, Samaritans are available 24/7 on 116 123. "When Liam died, all he really needed was somebody to put his arm around him and say: you're not a burden." For this one we turned the show around. Tom has spent years asking other people the hardest questions of their lives. This time Joe asks them back, and Tom answers every one of them. Tom's brother Liam was knocked off his scooter at 16 and spent months in hospital, some of it in an induced coma. At 18 the compensation came through. What followed was years of addiction that Tom freely admits he misunderstood completely at the time, because a decade ago nobody was talking about any of this. For a long time he just thought his brother was being selfish. Liam died at 22, and what came next was anger, self blame, and a long stretch of hating the world and himself. This is the full story behind Tom's Talks, told properly for the first time. At the start of 2024 he had fewer than 10,000 followers. He now has over 600,000, and the whole thing started with one talk in a school and a photo of its final slide. What we get into: Liam's accident at 16, the months in hospital, and the compensation that landed when he turned 18 How the addiction took hold, and why Tom spent years believing his brother simply did not care Liam's death at 22, and the anger and self blame that followed The first talk he ever gave in a school, and the last slide that ended it: suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem Getting paid to speak for the first time, and the moment he realised this could be a career rather than a mission he funded himself The man who stopped him outside a club in Leeds at 3am to tell him his videos had saved his life Becoming a dad to Daisy, the guilt of not being present enough, and what fatherhood has changed in him Why he spends so little time on social media despite the numbers, and the one rule he has about who to follow Why "it's okay not to be okay" is only half of it, and what has to come after the talking The conversation he would still love to have with his brother, and the apology he wants to give him What he would say to himself the day after Liam died If you have ever watched someone you love change and not understood why, or lost them before you worked it out, this one will be hard to listen to and worth it anyway. It is an honest conversation about grief, addiction, men's mental health, guilt and what it actually takes to rebuild. Subscribe to Tom's Talks for a new episode every week. If you found value in this episode: 👍 Like the video 💬 Comment your biggest takeaway 🔔 Subscribe for weekly conversations that matter Subscribe for weekly conversations with inspiring guests sharing real stories about resilience, growth and overcoming life’s challenges. It would mean the world to me if you were to like, comment, subscribe on my videos whilst I share my ongoing journey. Check out my website: https://toms-talks.co.uk/ Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toms.talks__/ Proudly sponsored by: https://osiofficefurniture.co.uk/ Support the show Check out my website: toms-talks.co.uk Follow me on Instagram: toms.talks__ Follow me on TikTok: tomstalks Subscribe on YouTube: TomsTalks

  3. Oct 4

    Losing My Mum Was The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me | Joe Fishburn on Tom's Talks Podcast

    The Tom's Talks Podcast is a place where we speak to a vast array of people from different walks of life and find out what makes them them. We will speak about their unique journey and delve into the highs and the lows which ultimately define them. "I do think that losing my mum was the best thing that's ever happened to me." Joe Fishburn was two years old when his mum died of pneumonia. He was raised by his grandmother, went on to medal at a European championships in gymnastics, and in 2024 became a Gladiators champion. He is also the first person we have had on who has said that sentence out loud, and then explained it in a way that makes complete sense. This is not an episode about getting over something. Joe talks about how he only recently became able to say that line at all, and how he traces every part of his life back to a loss he was too young to remember. He is honest about the parts that were not inspiring at the time, like realising he was different when his grandma could not stand at the side of the pitch with the other parents, or the day a kid at school made a your mum joke and someone else had to tap him on the shoulder and tell him not to. He also shares something he tells us he has never talked about publicly before, which is how his mum actually died. What we get into: The Gladiators trophy on his grandmother Christine's mantelpiece, and why he calls it a metaphorical thank you for everything she did for him How his mum died, and why he had never shared it before now. The moment he realised he had a different upbringing to everyone else, and what it is like to look at the sidelines and see other people's parents. The your mum joke at school, and what that lands like when yours has died How gymnastics started by accident, because he had too much energy, and became the way he processed grief without knowing it. His first European medal, going out unprepared, getting beaten, and saying "we got exactly what we deserved" Why he calls it one of the best moments of his life and the worst, in the same breath. The resilience lesson from gymnastics: "you're falling over 99 times to get something a little bit better on the 100th" What pressure does to a child, and why the kids who find it easy early are often the first to quit. Being spotted by Roddy, the trials, and driving down in a day to audition for Gladiators. The final, doubting himself against a faster opponent, and winning anyway Starting a YouTube channel scared of what people would think, paying a mate to film the first one, and promising himself five years no matter what Comparison, the highlight reel, and why it has never been easier to feel behind "Becoming is better than being" What he would say to two year old Joe, and to 23 year old Joe on the day he won Tom has talked before about losing his brother Liam, and there is a lot in this conversation that will sound familiar to anyone who has lost someone early: the way grief quietly shapes the person you turn into, and how long it takes before you can talk about it without flinching. If you have been through something similar, this one is worth your time. A genuinely honest conversation about grief, resilience, mental health, family, and what adversity actually does to you when you grow up inside it. Subscribe to Tom's Talks for a new episode every week. If you found value in this episode: 👍 Like the video 💬 Comment your biggest takeaway 🔔 Subscribe for weekly conversations that matter Subscribe for weekly conversations with inspiring guests sharing real stories about resilience, growth and overcoming life’s challenges. It would mean the world to me if you were to like, comment, subscribe on my videos whilst I share my ongoing journey. Check out my website: https://toms-talks.co.uk/ Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toms.talks__/ Proudly sponsored by: https://osiofficefurniture.co.uk/ Support the show Check out my website: toms-talks.co.uk Follow me on Instagram: toms.talks__ Follow me on TikTok: tomstalks Subscribe on YouTube: TomsTalks

  4. Sep 27

    "He Took My Innocence" - Surviving Child Sexual Abuse | Chloe Jean on Tom's Talks Podcast

    The Tom's Talks Podcast is a place where we speak to a vast array of people from different walks of life and find out what makes them them. We will speak about their unique journey and delve into the highs and the lows which ultimately define them.  This episode discusses child sexual abuse, rape, disordered eating and suicide. If you're struggling, Samaritans are available 24/7 on 116 123. Chloe was nine years old when the man her family trusted to drive her to school began grooming her. The abuse went on until she was nearly 13, and she stayed silent because he told her no one would believe her. It would be 17 years before she went to the police. Chloe is the founder of the Be Brave Project, a podcast and platform giving survivors of sexual abuse a voice. In this conversation she shares her story with real honesty: how grooming actually works, why so many children never tell anyone, and what happened when she finally did. She also talks about the things survivors are most afraid to say out loud, the trial that followed, and why healing is never really finished. Her message to any child going through it now is simple: you will be believed. What we get into: • How a trusted family driver groomed her from the age of nine, with jokes, treats and making her feel special • The threats he used to keep her quiet, and why she believed every one of them • The confusion and shame survivors rarely talk about, and why she now speaks about it openly • The day she jumped from a climbing frame and broke her arm so he wouldn't be the one to pick her up • Telling her sister at 15, and the years that followed: drinking, dangerous situations and being raped at 22 • The depression that came from carrying it alone, and how she stopped eating when she was anxious • How her mum found out, and the call to the NSPCC helpline that led her to the police • What a two-week trial is really like, from three days on the stand to hearing her abuser behind a curtain • Why she felt guilty when he was sentenced to nine years, and what his possible release means when he lives ten minutes away • Why abusers are rarely the "scary monster" people imagine, and are usually someone the child already knows • Forgiveness, and the one question she would ask him if she could • Consent, misogyny, and why staying silent when someone makes a rape joke is part of the problem • The Be Brave Project, speaking in schools, and why she believes healing never fully ends Tom also shares the night he found his brother Liam, why he believes life happens for you and not to you, and opens up about being sexually abused himself at 15. Subscribe to Tom's Talks for a new episode every week. If you found value in this episode: 👍 Like the video 💬 Comment your biggest takeaway 🔔 Subscribe for weekly conversations that matter Subscribe for weekly conversations with inspiring guests sharing real stories about resilience, growth and overcoming life’s challenges. It would mean the world to me if you were to like, comment, subscribe on my videos whilst I share my ongoing journey. Check out my website: https://toms-talks.co.uk/ Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toms.talks__/ Proudly sponsored by: https://osiofficefurniture.co.uk/ Support the show Check out my website: toms-talks.co.uk Follow me on Instagram: toms.talks__ Follow me on TikTok: tomstalks Subscribe on YouTube: TomsTalks

  5. Sep 20

    Refused A Hair Transplant, So He Built A Brand From His Shed | Tom Walker on The Tom's Talks Podcast

    The Tom's Talks Podcast is a place where we speak to a vast array of people from different walks of life and find out what makes them them. We will speak about their unique journey and delve into the highs and the lows which ultimately define them.  This episode discusses suicide. If you're struggling, Samaritans are available 24/7 on 116 123. Tom Walker was told he couldn't have a hair transplant. He walked out of that consultation feeling like he had no hope and no options - and then his first hair system left him feeling worse than the hair loss ever had. So he learned to do it himself, in a shed at the bottom of his garden. Tom is the founder of Hair Repair. Before that, he served in the Army, where his tour meant uncovering IEDs, and then worked shifts as an engineer at Rolls-Royce, fitting hair systems in the evenings. What started with a mate as his first client grew from the dining room to the garden shed to a brick building, and now to eleven locations including Dubai, with more than 500 specialists trained. But this conversation is less about hair than it is about confidence. We talk about the stigma that stops people admitting they're struggling at all, the children with alopecia and cancer who come through his door, and what it actually does to someone to finally feel like themselves again. What we get into: • Being refused a hair transplant, and why his first hair system made him feel worse, not better • The mate who became his first client, and why nobody noticing was the whole point • Running a business from the garden shed around Rolls-Royce shifts, and the day the police turned up • How hair systems actually work: real human hair, why the greys are synthetic, how often they need refitting, and why it can cost about the same as regular haircuts • The stigma: why he didn't admit to wearing one himself for two and a half years, and what changed when he did • Mental health, confidence and the pressure to look perfect in the age of social media • The children who stayed with him: the boy who wouldn't take his hat off at school, and a four-year-old girl who reminded him of his own daughter • His tour in the Army, and how he struggled after leaving • The lockdown launch that brought in over £10,000 in three minutes • Growing from Newcastle and London to Dubai, and the side venture that taught him a hard lesson about focus • Whether he sees himself restoring hair, or restoring confidence Tom also opens up about his own hair transplant, the time in his life when he wanted to take his own life, and the letter-writing exercise that helped him come to terms with losing his brother Liam to suicide. He explains why he thinks it could help anyone who's always chasing the next goal. Subscribe to Tom's Talks for a new episode every week. If you found value in this episode: 👍 Like the video 💬 Comment your biggest takeaway 🔔 Subscribe for weekly conversations that matter Subscribe for weekly conversations with inspiring guests sharing real stories about resilience, growth and overcoming life’s challenges. It would mean the world to me if you were to like, comment, subscribe on my videos whilst I share my ongoing journey. Check out my website: https://toms-talks.co.uk/ Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toms.talks__/ Proudly sponsored by: https://osiofficefurniture.co.uk/ Support the show Check out my website: toms-talks.co.uk Follow me on Instagram: toms.talks__ Follow me on TikTok: tomstalks Subscribe on YouTube: TomsTalks

  6. Sep 13

    How Gambling Nearly Cost Him Everything | Dan Kent on The Tom's Talks Podcast

    The Tom's Talks Podcast is a place where we speak to a vast array of people from different walks of life and find out what makes them them. We will speak about their unique journey and delve into the highs and the lows which ultimately define them.  ⚠️ This episode discusses addiction and suicidal thoughts. If you're struggling, Samaritans are available 24/7 on 116 123. Dan's dad taught him to gamble before he was old enough to understand what it was. Fruit machines as birthday presents. Horse racing meetings as father-son days out. It was the only way the two of them knew how to bond — and it also planted the addiction that would nearly destroy Dan's life. By 25, he'd spent close to £50,000. He was stealing to fund bets, pawning his own laptop, gambling through work shifts, and staying up until 5am chasing losses he'd never win back. A year ago, he watched a video Tom posted about losing his brother Liam — and it became the turning point that got him into his first GA meeting. This episode is Dan's first time telling this story in full — the environment that shaped him, the father he lost, the rock-bottom night with a bottle of gin, and what it actually takes to rebuild a life around vulnerability instead of secrecy. What we get into: Growing up around gambling — and how it became the only language he and his dad shared Placed in an environment "constantly around it," and why he doesn't blame his parents for it The first bet with real money at 16 — and the £500-a-day habit he built at university Stealing, pawning laptops, and running out of people to borrow from The night before he decided to stop: a laptop, a bottle of gin, and "one more, one more, one more" The breakdown in his mum's doorway at 11pm — and finally saying "I can't gamble ever again" Walking into his first GA meeting at 25 and not knowing how he'd ended up there Why he says he lost time, not money — and how gambling stole his presence from every relationship he had The moment watching Tom's video about Liam gave him the push to actually change Losing two relationships to the person gambling made him — inconsistent, absent, unreliable His dad's sudden death after a routine hospital procedure, and the guilt he still carries over a decision he couldn't have changed Working in social media for a gambling company while secretly relapsing — and what finally broke the cycle The biggest lie every gambling addict tells themselves: "I can win it tomorrow" Nearly a year gamble-free, and building Podcast Room Brighton with his two best friends — the space that's now helping him give back Plus Tom on losing his brother Liam to a ketamine addiction, the argument he still regrets, and how showing up vulnerably on this podcast has quietly changed someone else's life without him ever knowing it — until now. An honest, at times funny, and genuinely moving conversation about addiction, grief, fatherhood, and what happens when you finally stop hiding. If gambling is affecting you or someone you love, support is available through GamCare: 0808 8020 133 If you found value in this episode: 👍 Like the video 💬 Comment your biggest takeaway 🔔 Subscribe for weekly conversations that matter Subscribe for weekly conversations with inspiring guests sharing real stories about resilience, growth and overcoming life’s challenges. It would mean the world to me if you were to like, comment, subscribe on my videos whilst I share my ongoing journey. Check out my website: https://toms-talks.co.uk/ Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/toms.talks__/ Proudly sponsored by: https://osiofficefurniture.co.uk/ Support the show Check out my website: toms-talks.co.uk Follow me on Instagram: toms.talks__ Follow me on TikTok: tomstalks Subscribe on YouTube: TomsTalks

  7. Sep 9

    Father's Promise to His 6 Year Old Son With Cancer | Ceri Menai-Davis on Tom's Talks Podcast

    The Tom's Talks Podcast is a place where we speak to a vast array of people from different walks of life and find out what makes them them. We will speak about their unique journey and delve into the highs and the lows which ultimately define them. ⚠️ This episode discusses child loss and suicidal thoughts. If you're struggling, Samaritans are available 24/7 on 116 123. Hugh was born on his dad's first wedding anniversary. He had the bluest eyes, the blondest hair, and a personality to match. Two weeks after his sixth birthday, he died - after a ten-month battle with a rare form of cancer that took hold in the middle of a Covid lockdown, while the family hid the diagnosis from almost everyone they knew. Six days before Hugh passed away, he made his dad promise something: "Go run it, daddy. Go get the medal." Ceri kept that promise - running the London Marathon days after burying his son, crying for five and a half of the six hours, then placing the medal around Hugh's neck at the funeral home himself. In this episode, Ceri sits down with Tom for one of the most raw, unflinching conversations this podcast has ever had - about watching a child fight cancer with more bravery than most adults could summon, the total absence of support for parents in that situation, and how he turned devastating grief into a campaign that's already changing UK employment law. What we get into: The moment a routine "tummy ache" became a cancer diagnosis, and the surreal 3am phone call that started it all Life on a children's cancer ward - the bravery, the "beads of courage," and why Hugh accumulated over 2,400 of them Why the physical treatment isn't the hardest part - it's the complete lack of support given to parents while their child is dying The promise made six days before Hugh passed, and running the London Marathon with his son's shoes tied around his neck Burying Hugh with the marathon medal - and what "turning pain into purpose" actually means when you live it Founding the charity "It's Never You" - and the specific ways it supports parents financially and emotionally, including 48-hour crisis counselling Hugh's Law: the campaign to give parents of seriously ill children the legal right to be at their bedside - and why it currently doesn't exist for children over one year old The businesses (including Premier League football clubs) already backing the campaign, and what's blocking it from becoming law Why nearly 50% of couples who lose a child split up - and how Ceri and his wife stayed together The disclosure most parents are afraid to say out loud: is it selfish to ask for help when your child is the one who's sick? What he wishes he'd known in Hugh's final two weeks, and the one thing - Legoland - he still regrets not doing Giving up drinking, going to trauma therapy, and the small, physical tools he still uses to manage PTSD years later What a "good life" means to him now, and the advice he gives every grieving parent who reaches out Plus Tom on losing his brother Liam, the words he still regrets, and why he believes life happens for you, not to you. This conversation will stay with you. Whether you've experienced loss, know someone going through it, or just need to hear from someone who found a way through the unthinkable — this is essential listening. If you found value in this episode: 👍 Like the video 💬 Comment your biggest takeaway 🔔 Subscribe for weekly conversations that matter Subscribe for weekly conversations with inspiring guests sharing real stories about resilience, growth and overcoming life’s challenges. It would mean the world to me if you were to like, comment, subscribe on my videos whilst I share my ongoing journey. Check out my website: https://toms-talks.co.uk/ Follow me on Instagram:   / toms.talks__  Proudly sponsored by: https://osiofficefurniture.co.uk/ Support the show Check out my website: toms-talks.co.uk Follow me on Instagram: toms.talks__ Follow me on TikTok: tomstalks Subscribe on YouTube: TomsTalks

  8. Aug 30

    Two Hip Replacements By 23: “I Was Told to Wait Until I'm 40" | Jack Brennan

    Jack was five years old when he was diagnosed with Perthes disease - a rare condition that stops blood flow to the hip joint. By eighteen, his hips had essentially given up on him. He was told he'd need a double hip replacement eventually - but not until he was in his forties. He wasn't willing to wait that long. He couldn't. In this episode, Jack takes us through five years of chronic pain, being turned away by specialist after specialist, and the moment he broke down in an appointment and finally heard a surgeon say yes. He's brutally honest about what nobody tells you — the physical grief of learning to walk again, the mental collapse that hit once the physical pain finally lifted, and why "but you're so young" might be the most frustrating sentence he's ever heard. Support the show Check out my website: toms-talks.co.uk Follow me on Instagram: toms.talks__ Follow me on TikTok: tomstalks Subscribe on YouTube: TomsTalks

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About

Welcome to the Tom's Talks Podcast, where we explore the unique stories that shape extraordinary lives.Join me, Tom Dickinson - public speaker, mindset coach and mental health advocate, as I sit down with inspiring individuals from all walks of life. In each episode, we delve into personal journeys, uncovering the pivotal moments, triumphs and challenges that have defined them. The Tom's Talks Podcast offers raw and authentic conversations that remind us we're all on our own unique path.Tune in to be inspired, enlightened, and empowered to embrace your own story.

Information

  • Creator
    Tom Dickinson
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    89
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Tom's Talks
  • Show Website
    Tom's Talks

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