Where To Next? By Dan Kieran

Dan Kieran

The archive of episodes from my Do Radio Series, Where To Next? dankieran.substack.com

  1. Where To Next? Mike and Shuna Dickson

    18h ago

    Where To Next? Mike and Shuna Dickson

    A few weeks ago I was checking in with Mike Warwick about the show and planning when my new episodes will appear when I began telling him about the project I was working on in Salisbury (where I am trying to deploy the behaviour of entrepreneurship without the motivation of self interest). Towards the end of my explanation I told him about a quote I had recently discovered from Harry Truman I was using as the guiding principle for the project; “It’s amazing what you can accomplish when you do not care who gets the credit.” At this point Mike assumed an expression I can only describe as dumbstruck. His eyes opened so wide I thought they might fall out of his head and he began holding onto the table and rocking in his chair as though he was having a seizure. “That quote!” He managed to blurt out. “That quote!” In what has been a regular occurrence in the show so far, coincidence and serendipity had struck again. It turned out this quote was the guiding principle for Mike and Shuna Dickson too – a couple Mike W had just agreed an interview with for Where To Next? We agreed the universe had decided I was supposed to do the interview with him and so, a week later, we both arrived at a picture postcard house on the Portobello Road in West London before a genial man and his wife opened the door and ushered us in offering tea. Mike and Shuna are known as the Kindness Couple and Mike’s new book How To Be A Better Human is a warming radiator of good vibes that explains how to bring more kindness into your life. They are the co-founders of Whizz Kidz, a charity that provides mobility equipment for over 26,000 disabled children (over £150 million has been raised so far) and the book is a memoir / kindness manual that takes you through their journey to realising being kind changes your life just as much as the person who benefits from your kindness. And this is no mere platitude. They have taken this principle further than you can imagine by acting behind the scenes for decades to connect philanthropists with what they call ‘Pied Pipers’ - individuals who are performing miracles in local communities to make their part of the world a better place. We could tell Mike wasn’t entirely comfortable about the microphone finally being focussed on him, but he was generous and, with a bit of coaxing from Shuna, opened up about how they came to learn that kindness is the ultimate superpower. In the show so far Mike and I have been trying to figure out how, in Martin Shaw’s words, to be ‘real human beings’. In this interview you will hear from two people who have figured out how to do just that. It was incredibly inspiring and life affirming to be in their company. For more information about Mike, Shuna and their work visit their website and please do check out the book. Much love, Dan Thanks for reading! This post is public so feel free to share it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dankieran.substack.com/subscribe

    1 hr
  2. Where to Next? Belonging in England, part one

    12/17/2025

    Where to Next? Belonging in England, part one

    While I’m taking a break from travelling around the country to record my interview episodes, John Grigsby and I got together to have a series of conversations about what it means to be English and to belong in the nation known as Britain. In these sessions we track when people first arrived here after the last ice age nearly twelve thousands years ago, and from when these islands have been continuously populated ever since. We journey through our Hunter gatherer ancestors of the mesolithic to the beginnings of the neolithic when Britain was still connected to Europe by a bridge of land known as Doggerland. Using a mix of archeology, anthropology, myth and our own imaginations we try to make sense of where we, the English, originally came from. This is the fourteenth episode of my Do Lectures Radio Series Where To Next? A new episode is released every Monday. The week after each episode is aired I put it up here on my Substack to create a series archive for those who discover it in the future and want to go back to the start, and for those who want to re-listen to the wisdom of my guests that does seems to bloom on a second and third listening. That has been the case for me, anyway. This episode was first broadcast on Do Radio on December 8th. As always, please share it with anyone you think might find it illuminating. Much love, Dan This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dankieran.substack.com/subscribe

    1h 1m
  3. Where To Next? Episode twelve - Dr Iain McGilchrist (the full interview)

    12/06/2025

    Where To Next? Episode twelve - Dr Iain McGilchrist (the full interview)

    There have been moments in my life when I felt as though I had strayed from my authentic path and there have been other times when I felt certain I was on the correct one after all. This series has given me as much creative fulfilment as any other creative project I have ever embarked on and, in many ways, driving to the distant corner of the Isle of Skye to visit Iain felt like the culmination of that process. I wonder if there is a name for these kinds of moments? Those times in life when we stop and take our bearings from some inner compass and feel the catharsis of knowing we are on track after all. As to where that track might eventually lead, as you will hear in the episode, I get a steer on that as well. I was negotiating the end of a head cold on the journey, which is why my voice sounds strange in the intro but has recovered by the time I’m actually with Iain. It was an honour to be in his company and share a conversation with him. And it gave me the best answer to the meaning of life I have ever encountered and one that has given me much solace ever since. I hope you enjoy it. As I explain in the episode, there are many places you can go to enjoy Iain’s work. He has an illuminating substack and a comprehensive archive on his website, both of which I strongly recommend. And here is the link to the conversation with Iain and Bernardo Kastrup on Youtube I mentioned in the episode where they discuss the meaning of life. A note on the recording, this is the combined episodes 1 and 2 from my Do Lectures Radio show that were spread across two weeks when they were originally aired. I am now taking a break from traveling the country to interview people, but John Grigsby and I will take the show to Christmas discussing what it means to belong in England and beyond. See you for that next week. This is the twelfth and thirteenth episode of my Do Lectures Radio Series Where To Next? A new episode is released every Monday. The week after each episode is aired I put it up here on my Substack to create a series archive for those who discover it in the future and want to go back to the start, and for those who want to re-listen to the wisdom of my guests that does seems to bloom on a second and third listening. That has been the case for me, anyway. Episode 1 of my conversation with Iain was first broadcast on Do Radio on November 24th 2025 and Episode 2 was first broadcast on December 1st. As always, please share it with anyone you think might find it illuminating. Much love, Dan This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit dankieran.substack.com/subscribe

    2h 3m

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The archive of episodes from my Do Radio Series, Where To Next? dankieran.substack.com