The Shift with Sam Baker

Amanda de Cadenet on reframing ambition and success in midlife

30 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today has lived a lot of lives in her 50 years.  If you were knocking around in 1990, Amanda de Cadenet burst into your world when she beca...

Minnie Driver on ageing, expectation and creased Brad Pitt! - THE SHIFT REVISITED

23 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest this week is one of the most enduring movie actresses of our (by which I mean my!) generation. Minnie Driver made her first film, Circle of F...

Mariella Frostrup on refusing to be "scrap-heaped" at 50 - THE SHIFT REVISITED

16 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

A couple of weeks ago, journalist and broadcaster Mariella Frostrup stepped down from her presenting role at Times Radio so she could concentrate full...

Marian Keyes on HRT, Botox and learning to be shameless - THE SHIFT REVISITED

09 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

This week, Marian Keyes celebrates the publication of her 16th novel, My Favourite Mistake. So it seemed like as good a time as any to revisit the sec...

Cathy Newman: "turning 50 feels like a superpower"

02 Apr 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest this week is the first female main presenter of Channel 4 news, Cathy Newman. Cathy joined Channel 4 News as political correspondent in 2006...

Helen Garner on marriage, divorce and why she couldn't give a monkey's about the erotic gaze

26 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the writer Helen Garner. I’m pretty sure that right now you are either going, wow I LOVE her, or looking a bit vague. Because desp...

Leslie Jamison on divorce, ambition & discovering the parts of ourselves we don't yet know

19 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the American author and essayist, Leslie Jamison. Leslie has the kind of CV that makes other writers weep with envy: the memoir of h...

Lyn Slater (aka Accidental Icon) on writing a new narrative for ageing

12 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is a woman who knows all about reinvention. For 45 years, Lyn Slater was a professor of social work with a side-passion for fashion. Fe...

Karyn McCluskey on menopause, paying it forward & being the only woman in the room

05 Mar 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Regular listeners have probably noticed that I’m trying a few different things with this series. I wanted to hear more women’s voices, with more v...

Annie Macmanus on rebuilding her identity at 45

27 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Last time Annie Macmanus came on The Shift she was about to make a MASSIVE change. Then, in her early 40s, one of the country’s biggest female DJs w...

Lucinda Chambers: the former Vogue fashion director gives us a midlife style masterclass

20 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is a woman whose style I have admired for a very long time. To quote the fashion journalist Jess Cartner-Morley, fashion director, sty...

Bryony Gordon on burnout, binge eating and perimenopause

13 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Today I’m delighted to welcome back one of The Shift’s very first guests, journalist and mental health campaigner Bryony Gordon. Bryony has been ...

Jennifer Clement on women, art, creativity & why we love Frida Kahlo

06 Feb 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today has lived, well, a life like no other. The writer Jennifer Clement grew up in 1960s Mexico, at the tail end of the Mexican Golden Age, ...

DJ paulette: how perimeno knocked her sideways at 39 (39!)

30 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is a true trailblazer. If you’ve ever been a clubber, DJ Paulette will need zero introduction. If you haven’t, well, all you really...

Delia Ephron on getting a second chance at love in your 70s - THE SHIFT REVISITED

23 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

For the last of our January archive episodes, we're revisiting an emotional and uplifting chat with screenwriter Delia Ephron. Next week, we're back w...

Julia Cameron believes creativity is the answer, whatever the question - THE SHIFT REVISITED

16 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Been meaning to get going on those Morning Pages since forever? Well, as part of our January motivation series, this week we're revisiting my fascinat...

Dr Sharon Blackie wants you to embrace your inner hag - THE SHIFT REVISITED

09 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Yes, it's still January! And this week we're revisiting an episode with psychologist, folklorist, mythologist and all-round one-woman campaigner for u...

Raynor Winn on the power of hope & becoming a public person at 60 - THE SHIFT REVISITED

02 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

It's January (Again! So soon!) so, rather than give up everything, this month we're revisiting a host of episodes that are all about a little inspirat...

Lindsey Hilsum on menopause in a warzone and why going grey is NOT brave - THE SHIFT REVISITED

26 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're revisiting one of my favourite episodes from one of the first series. It was back in the day when it was still taboo to talk about men...

Nina Stibbe on menopause, middle age and midlife sex scenes - THE SHIFT REVISITED

19 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Last week, Nina Stibbe joined me on The Shift bookclub (if you're not a member, I've taken the "lock" off for a week or so, so you can check it out on...

Miriam Margolyes on the power of living a life with no secrets

12 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It’s the final episode of the season and all my podcasting dreams have come true. Because my guest this week - by popular demand and a whole ton of ...

Bee Wilson on how cooking helped her heal after divorce

05 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is a food writer’s food writer. Beloved by such luminaries as Nigella Lawson, Diana Henry and Yotam Ottolenghi, Bee Wilson may be a b...

Patricia Cornwell on how writing helped her take back control of her life

28 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest this week is the crime writing legend, Patricia Cornwell. Patricia wrote her first novel about forensic pathologist kay scarpetta in 1990. Ca...

Lindsey Kelk on grief, gynae hell and why she's had enough of ageism in romcoms

21 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Anyone else feel in serious need a romcom right now? I know I do. And my guest today has your back. Lindsey Kelk’s unashamedly feel good fiction has...

Dr Gladys McGarey: a 102-year-old shares their life lessons

14 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A few months ago I read an article that took my breath away. The author was 102 years old and in it she wrote candidly about losing her partner in lif...

India Knight answers your midlife beauty questions

07 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest is the Sunday Times’ Style’s beauty columnist India Knight. Every week thousands of women turn to her column for beauty advice - n...

Tracy-Ann Oberman on the strong women who've shaped her

31 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest, Tracy-Ann Oberman has made a career out of defying expectations. After training as an actor she went straight to the RSC before decid...

The Shift LIVE: Trinny Woodall on how she learnt to fear less in her 50s

24 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest for this very special live episode of The Shift is the entrepreneur, CEO, fashion and beauty expert, presenter and author Trinny Woodall. Tri...

Dr Louise Newson: I was "told off" for prescribing HRT

17 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today we’re celebrating Menopause Awareness month (now there’s a phrase I couldn’t have imagined saying four years ago when I was writing The Sh...

Agony Aunt Philippa Perry is back!

10 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I’m delighted to welcome back one of my most popular guests ever, Philippa Perry. Philippa is an artist, psychotherapist, agony aunt and TV present...

Grace Dent on balancing a Gen X body image with eating for a living

03 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest and I have lived parallel-ish lives. Growing up “ordinary” her in the north, me in the south, Grace Dent and I both spent our chil...

Stacey Duguid on coming back from midlife collapse

26 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Before I got to know today’s guest, Stacey Duguid, I thought she was a bit scary TBH. Fierce in all the ways. And then I got to know her - when I wa...

Sara Pascoe: what happens when a weirdo grows up!

19 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week’s guest is the comedian, writer, and all-round screen hogger, Sara Pascoe. Host of The Great British Sewing Bee, presenter of Last Woman o...

Natasha Walter on being a middle-aged activist

12 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the journalist and human rights activist, Natasha Walter. She is the author of two generation-defining books about feminism - The N...

Maggie Smith on her midlife reappearing act

05 Sep 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Like most of the rest of the world, I first discovered today’s guest Maggie Smith (no, not the legendary British actress, the American poet) when he...

Helen Rebanks is flying the flag for invisible women

29 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the farmer, business woman, cook, conservationist, mother and now writer, Helen Rebanks. She has been cooking and baking, profession...

Dawn Butler is living proof that well-behaved women seldom make history

22 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today has made history – more than once. Dawn Butler, MP for Brent Central was only the third Black woman elected to parliament, when she b...

Miki Berenyi on freeing yourself from the anxiety of youth

15 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest is the singer-songwriter Miki Berenyi. If you were a teenager in the late 80s or early 90s with even vaguely alternative taste you can...

Leila Slimani: It's time women started telling each other the truth

08 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the prize winning author, Leila Slimani. Leila was the first Moroccan woman to win France’s prestigious Prix Goncourt for her spin...

Andi Osho: I'm 50, get used to it!

01 Aug 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Welcome to season 12 of The Shift! Season 12! How did that happen?! My guest today is the actor hyphen screenwriter hyphen comedian hyphen novelist - ...

Annie Macmanus: why middle aged women are a force to be reckoned with - THE SHIFT REVISITED

25 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Back in season 4, I spoke to Annie Macmanus just as she was about to make the big leap from mega-DJ to... something entirely new. It's fascinating to ...

Emma Freud on mothering millennials and refusing to lie about her age - THE SHIFT REVISITED

18 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Back at the very beginning, when The Shift was still a hair-brained idea, I sat in Emma Freud's kitchen chatting about being old birds. It ended up be...

Alison Bechdel on her search for inner and outer strength - THE SHIFT REVISITED

11 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're revisiting cartoonist and creator of the Bechdel test, Alison Bechdel. This episode first ran back in season 4. My guest this week is ...

Barbara Blake Hannah on feeling new at 80 - THE SHIFT REVISITED

04 Jul 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week we're revisiting the legendary Jamaican journalist Barbara Blake Hannah. I spoke to Barbara at the start of last year and she blew me away. ...

Tracey Thorn has got it all going on at 60 - THE SHIFT REVISITED

27 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

While we take our summer hiatus we're revisiting some classic episodes of The Shift with Sam Baker. Since I recorded this interview with Tracey back a...

Jo Whiley on menopause, finding your fashion mojo and... gardening - THE SHIFT REVISITED

20 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

To celebrate the DJ's 27th year of presenting Glastonbury on the BBC, we revisit one of the very first episodes of The Shift podcast, back in 2020, wi...

BONUS EPISODE: Barbara Kingsolver on why life gets better with every passing decade

15 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For this bonus episode of The Shift, I’m delighted to welcome a very special guest: the award-winning author of ten bestselling novels, Barbara King...

Lennie Goodings on ageism, bringing your A-game and the women who've shaped her

13 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

If 18-year-old Sam was here now, today’s episode would be a real pinch-me moment. Back in the mid-80s, I was a student in Birmingham when I first st...

Aasmah Mir on how she finally dislodged the pebble in her throat

06 Jun 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the award-winning broadcaster Aasmah Mir. Born and brought up in Glasgow, of Pakistani Heritage, Aasmah started in newspapers before...

Tanya Sarne on losing Ghost, surviving rehab and living life to the full

30 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I’m pretty sure there isn’t a woman who was alive in the 90s who didn’t own one of this designer's dresses (or at least one heavily inspired by ...

Josie Long on why she hopes she'll still be doing standup at 80 (old lady arms and all!)

23 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest is the comedian Josie Long. Josie started early – and I mean EARLY. She has been performing standup since she was 14, and by 17 won ...

Joanna Cannon on why it took her 50 years to learn it's OK to be her

16 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest for Mental Health Awareness Week 2023 is mental health campaigner, psychiatrist and bestselling novelist Joanna Cannon. Jo left school at 15 ...

Ruby Wax on building an emotional toolkit for the second half of your life

09 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

OK, I admit it, I’m a bit in awe, because today’s guest is someone I’ve wanted to get on The Shift for the longest time. You might know Ruby Wax...

Melanie Sykes on her autism diagnosis at 51 and being her own person

02 May 2023

Contributed by Lukas

How does it feel to walk into a room and know that everyone already thinks they know all there is to know about you. That’s the position today’s g...

Natasha Carthew on class, poverty and refusing to stay in her lane

25 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This week's guest is the rural poverty campaigner Natasha Carthew. Natasha was born and brought up in Cornwall, in the 19th century fishing and farmin...

Marina Benjamin on emotional labour & the caring conundrum

18 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I first encountered today’s guest, Marina Benjamin, when I was researching The Shift book and stumbled across her memoir, The Middlepause. An insigh...

Curtis Sittenfeld rejects the idea that ageing is somehow bad or shameful

11 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the bestselling author of American Wife and Prep, Curtis Sittenfeld. I first came across Curtis when both our debut novels were name...

Sarah Knight on finding the courage to make change and why selfish isn't a four letter word

04 Apr 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest is the anti-guru behind the massive No F*cks Given franchise, Sarah Knight. What started life with the Marie Kondo pastiche, The Life ...

Anita B on why the beauty industry wants us to fear ageing

28 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest, Anita Bhagwandas, is that rare thing, a beauty journalist who’s prepared to call out the beauty industry. Anita B, as she's known, ...

Anna Murphy shares her take-no-prisoners approach to growing older

21 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest is one of the most stylish women I know, but I also know that she won’t mind me saying, it wasn’t always that way. Now Fashion Dir...

Dani Shapiro on family secrets and coming into your full potential at 60

14 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the bestselling writer Dani Shapiro. Dani is best known for the memoirs that made her name. Startlingly honest works of self-investi...

Katherine May on burnout and why we all need a little more wonder in our lives

07 Mar 2023

Contributed by Lukas

We’ve all had those moments in our lives when everything feels… darker, colder, a little (or a lot) less hopeful. Those emotional winters were per...

Martha Wainwright on music, motherhood and finding love in your 40s

28 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I first met todays guest, Canadian singer-songwriter Martha Wainwright, when I interviewed her in Glasgow a few weeks ago. We got talking about the nu...

Carolyn Hays on parenting a transgender child

21 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

This episode is a first for me: it’s the first time I’ve interviewed someone without knowing who they are. Because today’s guest, Carolyn Hays, ...

Charlene White on fighting the bias that still exists against older women

14 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I’ve been trying to get today’s guest into The Shift hot seat for the longest time - after a mixture of long covid (me) and impromptu trips to the...

Jojo Moyes on the total liberation of being in your 50s

07 Feb 2023

Contributed by Lukas

I’m delighted to welcome back my good friend Jojo Moyes. Jojo was one of the very first people I interviewed for the pod back when it was just a ran...

Cariad Lloyd on what she's learnt from 25 years in The Grief Club

31 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Hello and welcome back to The Shift. Somehow we're onto our 11th season and I'm thrilled to start 2023 with podcasting legend, the creator of Griefcas...

Clover Stroud on sex, sisterhood & looking forward to menopause - THE SHIFT REVISITED

24 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Over the Christmas period and into the new year, I'm going to be replaying some of my quiet-favourite episodes of 2022. This week is the utterly fearl...

Kit de Waal on race, class – and her exceedingly cool hair! - THE SHIFT REVISITED

17 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Over the Christmas period and into January I'm going to be replaying some of my quiet favourite episodes of 2022. This week is the brilliantly outspok...

Kat Farmer has the answer to all your "my wardrobe hates me" dilemmas - THE SHIFT REVISITED

10 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Over the Christmas period and into January I'm going to be replaying some of my quiet favourite episodes of 2022. This week, let stylist and Instagram...

Poorna Bell on the unexpected power in being 40 - THE SHIFT REVISITED

03 Jan 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Over the Christmas period and into January I'm going to be replaying some of my quiet favourite episodes of 2022. This week's, journalist, power-lifte...

Sheila Hancock on the class ceiling and the "strong woman" problem - THE SHIFT REVISITED

29 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Over the Christmas period and into January I'm going to be replaying some of my quiet favourite episodes of 2022. This week is acting legend, national...

Abi Morgan on rebuilding just about everything in your 50s - THE SHIFT REVISITED

27 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Over the Christmas period and into January I'm going to be replaying some of my quiet favourite episodes of 2022. First up is screenwriter Abi Morgan....

The Shift LIVE: Ruth Jones on daughterhood, menopause and being Nanny Ruth

22 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In the run up to Christmas I'll be dropping two special live episodes recorded live at the Birmingham Literature Festival earlier this autumn. The sec...

The Shift LIVE: Elif Shafak on intersectionality, identity and finding the courage to come out in her 40s

20 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In the run up to Christmas I'll be dropping two special live episodes recorded live at the Birmingham Literature Festival earlier this autumn. The fir...

Nadiya Hussain on becoming the independent woman her nan was afraid of

13 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Somehow, it's the end of season 10! How did that even happen? And I'm so thrilled to end the season with this week's guest. I’ve fangirled Nadiya Hu...

Kaye Adams on ambition, insecurity and surviving Strictly

06 Dec 2022

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the journalist and broadcaster Kaye Adams. Kaye is the host of BBC Radio Scotland’s morning show and a longstanding panellist on I...

Sali Hughes on the positive power of being a grown up

29 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest has a talent for tapping into what people are thinking, not to mention an enviable BS radar. Since we first met almost 15 years ago, S...

Milly Johnson on grafting, greetings cards and life in the "sandwich" zone

22 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the dose of salts that is Milly Johnson. Milly started writing books in her late 30s when the birth of her first son showed her the ...

Caryn Franklin on how being a carer in her thirties changed her attitude to ageing

15 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest is my personal hero, Caryn Franklin. Caryn started her career in the 80s as a fashion editor before moving into TV where she presented...

Marina Hyde on gaining confidence and growing older riskily

08 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today has been lauded as “the most lethal, screamingly funny truth-teller of our time”. Guardian columnist Marina Hyde has made her name ...

Dawn O'Porter on cats, kaftans and kicking the need to be liked

01 Nov 2022

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today has packed a helluva lot into her 43 years. Dawn O’Porter started her career in TV production, before finding her way in front of the...

Sharon Blackie on embracing your inner hag & the magic of menopause!

25 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How do I want to age? What does the rest of my life look like? Those are questions I know many of you have given A LOT of thought. Well, my guest toda...

Susannah Constantine on alcoholism, 'mental' menopause & finding herself in her 50s

18 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

You might think you know all there is to know about today’s guest. Posh girl who once dated Princess Margaret’s son. Half of the early noughties s...

Raynor Winn on walking, nature and the power of hope

11 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

One hundred episodes... how did that happen?! The little podcast that started on a whim and a prayer (and no, that's not a typo!) is still here and so...

Deborah Frances-White on feminism, guilt-exfoliation and being diagnosed with ADHD in her 40s

04 Oct 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Hello and welcome to this special bonus episode of The Shift with Sam Baker. Consider it a taster for season 10, which starts next Tuesday. If you’r...

Dr Jen Gunter has things she wants you to know about the menopause - THE SHIFT REVISITED

27 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

One of my favourite things about making The Shift podcast is all the fascinating women I get to interview - and learn a little bit from. So I’m revi...

Nana-Ama Danquah on the triple burden of mental health, menopause and being Black - THE SHIFT REVISITED

20 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

One of my favourite things about making The Shift podcast is all the fascinating women I get to interview - and learn a little bit from. So I’m revi...

Anita Rani on why her 40s are her power decade - THE SHIFT REVISITED

13 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

One of my favourite things about making The Shift podcast is all the fascinating women I get to interview - and learn a little bit from. So I’m revi...

Lisa Jewell on hitting a golden seam of success in her 50s

06 Sep 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest is one of Britain’s best loved novelists, Lisa Jewell. Her career started with a smash hit debut novel Ralph’s Party - which she s...

Hilma Wolitzer: 80 years of writing, and not done yet

30 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the writer Hilma Wolitzer. Born in 1930, Hilma had her first poem published at the age of 9. She then shelved that ambition in favou...

Clare Grogan on the superpower that helped her survive her most difficult decade

23 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

I can’t remember the first time I met my friend Clare Grogan. But like many Gen-Xers, I remember the first time I saw her in the cult movie Gregory’...

Emma Forrest on sex, celibacy and solitude

16 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Who hasn’t looked at those things you should have done by the time you’re 30/40/50/whatever lists and rolled their eyes? And yet consciously or no...

Kit de Waal on race, class, privilege – and her exceedingly cool hair!

09 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s guest is the award-winning writer, Kit De Waal. Until she was 21, Kit had never read a book voluntarily. But once she started there was no s...

Julia Cameron on alcoholism, creativity and emotional sobriety

02 Aug 2022

Contributed by Lukas

My guest today is the author of the cult bestseller The Artist’s Way, Julia Cameron. Part book, part tool-kit, part spiritual guide, The Artists Way...

Jane Fallon on embracing 60 and being a Botox hold-out

26 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you always wanted to wreak revenge on your worst enemies? Those who’ve wronged you, conned you or just crossed you? Well, if you’ve ever lain...

CJ Hauser on learning to live your own dreams, not other people’s

19 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How does it feel to be catapulted to Internet fame, literally overnight. My guest this week, CJ Hauser, found out when she wrote a little essay back i...

A quick word from Sam

13 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Hello everyone! I just wanted to let you know about a new initiative coming from The Shift. I launched The Shift with Sam Baker podcast 18 months ago ...

Poorna Bell on the unexpected power in being 40

12 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

By her own admission, today’s guest, award winning journalist Poorna Bell, wasn’t looking forward to 40. She feared, as society had taught her, th...

Lisa Taddeo on women, power and the success stitch-up

05 Jul 2022

Contributed by Lukas

My guest this week is never happier than when she’s making her readers feel uncomfortable. Lisa Taddeo was a skint journalist when she wrote the gro...