In episode 358 of The Just Checking In Podcast we checked in with Martyn James.
Martyn is a freelance journalist, broadcaster, presenter and consumer rights expert.
He has over two decades of experience working for the UK’s leading newspapers and broadcasters and at time of recording has done over 14,000 TV and radio appearances, conducting 15-20 a week.
His weekly newspaper columns feature in The Times, the Mirror and his syndicated column appears in over 100 newspapers and magazines around the UK, from The Scotsman to the Eastern Daily Press.
He has been a guest presenter on over 25 television programmes across all of the main channels in the UK, including BBC One’s Rip Off Britain for over a decade and is a regular guest on some of the nation’s most popular shows, from Morning Live to The One Show.
In this episode we discuss his journey into journalism, broadcasting, presenting and how he landed on his speciality as the consumer rights expert in the UK.
We explore what opportunities that’s brought him, the issues he covers and amplifies for UK consumers through a mental health lens and how his personal life has also intersected with the issues he covers too.
For Martyn’s mental health journey, we discuss his experience of suicidality when he was at school, being bullied for his sexuality as a gay man, and the context of coming out in the 1980s amidst high levels of homophobia.
We also talk about the death of his brother David from suicide in June 2020. He was just 38 years old at the time.
We explore all of the emotions around this grief, including stigmatised ones like anger, the impact his suicide had on Martyn’s family, and how they’ve moved forward as a family in the last six years.
As always, #itsokaytovent
You can find out more about Martyn’s work here.
TRIGGER WARNING: this podcast contains a deep discussion of grief, loss and the impact that losing a loved one to suicide can have, which some listeners may find distressing or upsetting, so please listen with caution.
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