Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe's Parenting Hell - S9 EP37: Gladiators chat & January Blues

Episode Date: January 7, 2025

More misadventures in parenting, life, and beyond with Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe... This episode we chat new years, Rob's appearance on Gladiators, January blues, and Josh's ongoing building work woes.... Please follow and leave a rating and review you filthy street dogs... xx Small Business info: knittedbysally.etsy.com [e-mail] If you want to get in touch with the show with any correspondence, kids intro audio clips, small business shout outs, and more.... here's how: EMAIL: [e-mail] INSTAGRAM: @parentinghell Parenting Hell is a Spotify Podcast, available free everywhere every Tuesday and Friday. MAILING LIST: parentinghellpodcast.mailchimpsites.com Join the mailing list to be first to hear about live show dates and tickets, Parenting Hell merch and any other exciting news... A 'Keep It Light Media' Production  Sales, advertising, and general enquiries: [e-mail] Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello, I'm Rob Beckett. And I'm Josh Willicombe. Welcome to Parenting Hell, the show in which Josh and I discuss what it's really like to be a parent, which I would say can be a little tricky. So to make ourselves and hopefully you feel better about the trials and tribulations of modern day parenting, each week we'll be chatting to a famous parent about how they're coping. Or hopefully how they're not coping. And we'll also be hearing from you, the listener, with your tips, advice, and of course,

tales of parenting woe. Because let's be honest, there are plenty of times where none of us know what we're doing. This episode is brought to you by Canon Canada. From street interviews to vlogging or filmmaking, great content gets even better when you're shooting with great gear. That's what Canon's Level Up sales event is all about. With awesome deals on the range of cameras and lenses, you can grab everything you need for that shot or scene

you've been dreaming of for less. Whether you're helping that special person take their content up a notch or adding that extra quality to your own shoots, Canon's got you covered. Shop the Level Up sales event today at canon.ca. Hello, you're listening to Parenting Hell with... Olive, can you say Rob Beckett?

Rob Beckett. And can you say Josh Whiddicombe? Josh Whiddicombe. Well done. That was a good one. Do you know what I liked about that, Rob? What? Efficient.

True, but I think that's because we are excited to chat to each other. But if we were at the end of a three episode in a day record, you'd want that dragged out. Spin it out. Spin it out. Salmon, olive. I reckon you've got a good chance of this. Yeah, I think that's Kent. Essex, one and the same. One and the same. Must be near Kent though. Do you get people that think you're from Essex? All the time. Some people think I'm off Towie. Do they? But then I did go on Mock the Week and pretend not to know those.

Well I didn't pretend not to know, I just didn't know a lot of stuff about politics. Because it wasn't in my remit and I didn't know about Radio 4 and stuff like that. You still don't know who Monte Don is? No, and I've seen him now, I'm aware of what's going on with him. Rose really fancies Monte Don. I don't get you to. Monte Don's like in his 60s. You're nothing like him. To be fair, Lou fancies Jason Momoa. Who's Jason Momoa? The guy that says snooker. All right. That's Jason Mohamed. Very similar. But to be fair, why would you want to go for someone that you've already got at home? You want to go and stretch your legs?

Do you know what I mean? Yeah, I don't think you're much like Jason Momoa. No, you're not. No, you're not. I'd say you're more like Monty Don than I am Jason Momoa. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I'll give you that. She likes a bit of a...

Does she like a posh guy then? Because you're a bit... You present posh, but you're not posh you're a weird one i know you're actually from a working class background in devon but you just you just give up you've just i'd say we're middle class with no money that's middle class with no money okay fair enough yeah but you give off an upper middle class edge that's the problem i remember doing a um did you ever do Edinburgh? And I'm sure you didn't. Rob Thingy, the guy that plays all the instruments. Rob Dearing. Rob Dearing. He used to do a music quiz in Edinburgh. God, this is a long way around just to agree with you that I...

That you're a bit posh. Me and Acastle were a team. We're very early know, anyone knew who we were. And he said, and what's your team name? And someone shouted out public school boys. Oh, and that's always always really sat with me not I've got anything against public school boys. My friends. If you want to go down that route. Yeah, yes. It's just sometimes when I look at public school boys, they're so tall and I don't get it. And they're so thin and naturally fit. And I think, is that

a genetic thing? Yeah, is it better school dinners? When me and Ellis James, who is from Wales and from a working class background, he literally looks like a miner and I look like a docker. We are squat, we are short, we're strong, we're fast, we're wide, we literally look like we carry stuff on our backs. We stand next to Alex Keeley and Ivo Graham, we went to Eaton, and they're like two massive erections with these sad little nuts next to them. On that, Rob, we've got to discuss before we move on to New Year and Christmas, Yeah, we've got to discuss before we move on to New Year and Christmas. Um, you on gladiators and what a fucking hero the Beaver is.

The Beaver, the Beaver, the, uh, my, my gladiator name was the Beaver. And it really struck a chord, I'd say with young children across the nation, but don't know if I want to be the guy that got children chanting, come on Beaver. I think you do. I actually, I think if anyone's gonna be that guy. Do you know what my thing is? And this really sums up my approach to my job now. I was calling myself the badger, right? Until three seconds before I said the words to be even why we the badger. Well, when I was in when I interviewed

Nitro on radio to he was trying to give me a thingy name and he called me the badger because I'm sort of he was like, because you're a bit relentless and quite like little and angry. Yeah, kind of thing. Because he basically said you need to graduate a name that is your personality. That's the best way to pick one. So I was the badger. And I thought it's quite funny. Then I was like, because I'm angry, and I've got TB, which was quite funny. Yeah, funny. Just as I've got to walk out, I just thought, I don't know if children know what TV is. Yeah, it's basically a show for children. They'll think TV. Yeah, it's got TV. We've all got TVs. Yeah. And then basically, like with I didn't, I literally badly said to me, what's your,

what's your name? And I didn't think about it. I just said the words, the beaver. Fucking brilliant. And then it turned into quite a good bit. You're the Maradona of our, of our generation in that you're, you're like one of those people, a bit like Wayne Rooney, God rest his soul. He's alive. He's alive. If anything, he's been reborn since he's had to leave fucking Climbeau. You'd say RIP, I said RIP when he said he was going to be their manager. Wayne Rooney, but he'll have less opportunity to go out now that he's living with Colleen again. He's like, he's fucked it.

He should have quit when she was in the jungle. He could have got right on it. Yeah, and he was at the dance 48 hours after leaving Plymouth Argyle. Do you know what I respect? Who the fuck wants to manage Plymouth? Never mind having 100 mil in the bank. Oh, come on, come on, Rob. You turn it down.

Yeah, I don't want to. You can't do zone five. But what was I gonna say? Yeah, you've got your like, you know how Wayne Rooney people I read an article that described him as the last of the street footballers before like, before, you know, the academies and stuff, you're the last of the street gladiators contestants, well, who's just pure kind of absolute total raw aggression. And the way you went through the gauntlet was, I would say, that's the best. I'd say that gave Britain hope. It was one of the best gauntlets of all time. It was one of the best gauntlets of all time. And do you know what you were unlucky with?

Because you went first of the four, I just presumed, fucking hell, this one must be easy till you see the other three people struggling. You don't realize what an achievement it is. Well, I did go first on everything, which was difficult because once you could because it's so different seeing it edited on telly. Once it's in sequence, it's just the same every time, presumably the order. Yeah. So when you watch, you can watch the other people do it. You can work out a bit of tactics and stuff. So I think like you could see the best way to approach the stuff. Can I ask if you get to do it much beforehand? No, no. I mean, like the gauntlet, the gauntlet is quite straightforward though.

You basically head down and just go for it. But I am quite, I've got, I'm quite, well, I'm quite, I'm a fairly fast acceleration. I'm quite heavy and wide. So that was quite good for me for gauntlet. But yeah, you don't, you have a little go, but you mean you had to go on the gauntlet with, um, producers and stuff. And when they're, but you don't you have a little go. But you mean you had a go on the gauntlet with producers and stuff and when they're, but you don't really like we like we they let us run up and down on the bridge before the bridge one, but you don't actually have to have a go while people are

swinging in and out. That one looks quite fun. And Powerball, it was like, Oh, I just have a go at that. And it was me, Joel, Louise, Minchin and Ellie having a little play about. Do you know what annoyed me? I don't I've what annoyed me? I've mentally detached myself from comments about me online, about my comedy, you know, my personality and my looks, because I've had that for years now. However, I did feel I was getting a little bit touchy when people were commenting on my physical abilities, because I've never had that before.

But you did really well. The accusations of people saying that the gladiators weren't taking it seriously. Go fuck yourself. Fuck off. I couldn't walk for three days. They were hammering me. I was batting. Have you seen them?

They're massive. They were hammering you. They nearly took Joel's head off on goal. They don't want to fucking lose to you or Joel Dommet. No. Or Louise Minchin or Ellie Taylor. They absolutely don't want to lose. And they don't want to fucking lose to you or Joel Dommet. Or Louise Minchin or Ellie Taylor. They absolutely don't want to lose. And they don't care.

You know, they just want to look impressive. And yeah, they've got a contract. I wonder whether it's like, your numbers, Nitro, your numbers on Duel aren't good. We're not sure we're going to renew you for next series. They're playing for contracts out there, John. The other thing as well, because I did the darts over Christmas as well. Oh, we're going to renew you for next series. They're playing for contracts out there, John. Exactly. And the other thing as well, because I did the darts over Christmas as well.

Me and Robish played the darts, and it was absolutely awful. They were so horrible. The crowd were being so mean to us. One of them was shouting, you're the one time. Have you ever been to the darts, Rob? Yeah, I know, but it was horrible. They were like, you're fucking shit. Not just your shit, you're fucking shit.

Like, I felt like I was being attacked outside of a pub. How far away is this person? Like, it's like you stood with him at a bus stop, right? It's like being outside a nightclub. Your shit, your fucking shit. And then I am shit at dance. And as I'm doing, because normally when I do stand up, I'm constantly telling myself I'm shit, but actually I'm not. I know what I'm doing.

That's just a negative voice. But when you're physically doing something that you are shit at, and as I'm doing it, I'm going, your shit, and the dance isarts are shit, and someone else shouts, you're shit. I'm like, yeah, I know, I am shit. And then loads of people go, oh, I think it's terrible. They didn't even properly practice for the darts. They didn't even properly practice for 10 years. I knew I was doing it about six months ago. Yeah. Do you know what I've done in that six months, right? I've done a UK tour, I've been set on fire in America, I've done gladiators, I've tried to do a podcast. Radio Two, live my life.

The dart ball to the garage, a car's parked underneath it, so I could only ever practice when Lou took the car out, right? I didn't have time to practice, and when I did practice, I was really shit. Also, it's a comedy show in which why would you be practicing the darts? No one wants to watch us being half good. No, exactly.

So yeah busy time over to strictly gladiators and darts. I had a bit of a problem with the darts Rob. We went ice skating before Christmas to Ali Pali. Oh yeah? I hadn't realised the darts was on. Oh god, that's not a very Christmassy... That is a mad... Did you get abused? No, but because it was... I had my hood up. I just like... You just obviously got kids in.

You just obviously got kids in. You got kids with you. Yeah, don't leave it like that. It's a weird drop off when there's kids ice skating and darts in the same building. It was feral. Everyone... People are dressed as the... Why Fred Flintstone?

If you're not famous, great day out. Yeah. If you're famous, nightmare. Because all they do is scream down your pint. If you're famous and you don't drink, imagine it, Rob. Anyway, I don't want to be too famous. Well done, Luke Littler. Congratulations. Incredible. Gladiators, don't ever do it. It's absolutely... Well, actually, I would like to see you do it, Josh. Well, sorry. Well done, Luke Littler. Congratulations. Incredible. Gladiators don't ever do it. It's absolutely... Well, actually, I would like to see you do it, Josh. Well, no. I think you'd be

great at the final... I think I'd get fucking smashed. But you don't really matter. It's all about the final eliminator anyway, and you're quick and got the constraint. Oh, no, I don't mean I'd lose. That wasn't what I meant, Rob. Oh, sorry. It's quite liberating going up against Joel, though, because it was like... Yeah. There was no pressure. I suppose my worst case scenario would be I go on against someone I should beat. Like Nish Kumar for you. You could have lost to Nish. But then I think even, yeah, like someone old, like suddenly I'm being beaten in the middle. You two have barely fucking... Jeremy Vine.

Jeremy Vine and smashing. He'd only have to do one step up the rope net and he'd be on the top level with his little helmet on and go bright. He's straining behind Jeremy Vine as he pumps up the old travelator. In whinging that you've crossed the uveered into his lane. I'm on a fucking bike. How is your new year? You don't like this time of year, do you hate this time yet? So we like we've very luckily went away after Christmas for a bit of winter sun. I always try and go away on my birthday birthday second a jam. Oh, yeah, of course. We don't do we don't do birthday presents. We just have a holiday after class. That's how that's what that's what we

do. So we went there and it was it was nice. Actually, it was quite soulless. Abu Dhabi. But if you want to just sleep and lie in the sun, it's quite... You're quite soulless. Yeah, yeah. Do you know what? I am. And do you know what?

When you got young kids, I don't want any soul. I want a fucking buffet with some plain pasta and a pint on draft and fucking put me to bed. Well I was knackered after Christmas. It's been such a busy month. Like I've got the tour going, birthdays, Christmas and stuff like that. So it's nice to go away. A lot of Russians in Abu Dhabi though. I don't know if you've had many dealings with Russians. What's your vibe in Russia? Not a huge amount of dealings with Russians. No. Generally. Just have met some lovely Russians. Have you? Yeah. Don't strictly rob. There's loads of them. Loads of dancing Russians.

They're all in the dancing. And I'm not judging them by their leader. I struggle with Russians. But it's very difficult this because if you're Russian, you're allowed to say that. If I just picked another nationality, we could get canceled. But no, I struggle with Russians in the sense that culturally, they don't really smile or have a laugh. Yes, I know what you mean. Their default face is quite

stern. So when I was on this holiday, have you been to Russia? Yeah, a couple of times. I must go for the football and immediately got kidnapped in a cab and I had to jump out. Lloyd also got kidnapped on that holiday in a cab. Yeah, we had to pay pay them off to be released from my god. And then I was in St. Petersburg with Richie Awad a but I'd say any to Petersburg We saw a lot of show that was a TV show. Yeah, he was getting It was getting more looks at me. So, you know

I say he was more at risk than me in a That's the strangest triangulation you rich a ward in St. Petersburg as a trio Yeah, me and Ramesh Ranganathan in South Korea was quite full on as well. But at least you and Ramesh make sense. There were, in South Korea, it is everyone is Korean. Ramesh did not see another brown person, apart from Barney the cameraman, he was the only brown person. So funny. So it was just all Korean people.

And then they were sort of looking at Ramesh quite a lot because there was no people of color there. And then these two black American guys walked past and they saw Ramesh quite a lot because there was no people of color there. And then these two black American guys walked past and they saw Ramesh and Barney and they just all had a big hug and a high five. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. So I get treated quite suspiciously by Russians because I'm so smiley and happy

they think there's something wrong with me. Yeah, yeah. I'm coming around to their way of thinking. But yeah, a lot of Russians there so it makes Kids Club quite full on. You know what I mean? It's not like, it's not like as relaxed as normal. Can I ask what your plans for January are? Are you, you say you don't like January. Do you get, is it SAD or is it just January?

That's seasonal affective disorder. And I don't know. So I really, really struggle between I'd say know. So I really, really struggle between, I'd say the 27th. And then so we're recording this Monday, the sixth of Jan. I'm pretty good from now because I need a, I need routine and structure, but I don't need too much of it. So I'll get exhausted and go mental. So I need a balance. So now I'm quite excited because I've got a bit of work this month, but my tour doesn't properly kick off to the end of Jan, so I can do my work, but also start eating well and doing exercise. So, but that middle bit between the 27th of December

and sixth of Jan, I get so fed up. Even being on holiday, I was very privileged to be able to go away. I am battling every day from negative thoughts, so I just lay there. Is that because of the kind of listlessness after Christmas? I don't know what it is, I don't know where it comes from. Did I hear a voice or was that my own?

Is that Adrian? I think it might be Adrian. Alright. Is that Adrian? How is Adrian? Did you have a good Christmas? He was ill over Christmas. Poor Adrian. Lou was ill as well. By the way, you've tied up your office, well done. Thank you very much. You've got a mirror covering your window. Yeah, well that hasn't been moved yet.

We've got to deal with that. But back on track though, so I don't know what it is, but I get so negative in my own head and so down in that period. Wherever I am in the world, obviously it's slightly better if I'm somewhere nice, 100%, when I used to work in an office job and I was going back into work on the 28th,

and you know, and stuff and drinking and all that, and I'm drinking a bit less now, but I get so so I just lay there Josh at night not being able to sleep listening all the things I've done wrong or shouldn't have done this, shouldn't have done that and it's so bleak and so it's horrible and I'd never really know how to get out of it to be honest. The best way to describe it is I'm a scared little boy sat in the corner and my own brain is four school bullies that stand there telling me why I'm shit. And I've basically got that going through my mind. And that happens to me if I'm absolutely

exhausted or overworked or under too much pressure. However, even if I'm not overworked... It's like a clarity of thought when you suddenly realize that you are shit. That's... I think it's starting to dance. But that sort of... I don't know if we can call it depression or that extreme anxiety that can lead to feelings of despair. Mason overworked, I have them and stuff. And that's why I've learned to work a bit less and do meditation and karma. Right. But the weird thing over that period is, it comes at me no matter how well I had enough sleep, I wasn't working, I was

spending lovely time with the kids. I was having that I still really struggle with that. So I've just had to learn I have to sort of batten down hatches and just sort of let it pass if that makes sense. But like, you know, it's, I mean, this is, this might be too much for the podcast, but like, I can't sleep at night, I'm just laying on the bed. And I just be like going through all the things I might have done wrong. Even now these days, or is this?

Yeah, even like, like last week, right? And it's a bit better now that I'm at home and I can get try and get a bit of routine and stuff like that. But I don't really know what the answer is. But I'm absolutely fine. And I'm I know how to deal with this. And it's just what my brain does. So don't panic or like reach out. But I've got loads of coping mechanisms. I'm very lucky. I'm very I've got a lot of I've got way less problems now than I did years ago. I'm financially stable, but I will still continually tell myself I'm useless. And I've made thoughts like be easier if I wasn't here. Or

And you can understand you can almost label those thoughts now Yeah, exactly, but it's not nice Um, but I always try and take myself to somewhere where to deal with that is and I'm a very privileged position to be able To do it, but I just I just don't know what it is. And you know, I booked in speak to a therapist It's good that your birthday's in the middle of it. Well, maybe that's part of it I don't know. But I just... Happy birthday. I'm dealing with aging in the worst possible...

Surrounded by Russians, I won't smile at you. Come on, mate. It'll be out here. So, yes, I feel a lot better, but it's so hard for people out there and stuff like that. And I'm feeling like that. And I haven really, I haven't really got any problems. If you know, to be honest, I'm in very comfortable position, very happily married kids and I'm very blessed and lucky that everyone's healthy and happy and stuff like that. But I, I don't know what it is, but I find that such a difficult time of the year to navigate. But I feel a lot more positive and happier now that I'm gonna be at also, so you're not eating well.

I'm at my routine. I'm not exercising properly. I'm not allowed to do anything that I'm good at, if you know what I mean, where I don't wanna work too much, but you know, it's good to go to work and have a purpose. I find, do you know what? I really find it difficult to, without sounding like a knob,

over Christmas, I realized how much my self-worth is built within work. Because you know, you go, I've just got to get to Christmas because I'm so busy, so busy. And then you're like, oh God, it's almost like it's all gone away. Do you know what I mean? Even though it's Christmas. And you go, fuck, I'm not doing anything. I'm, oh God.

I'm over eating, I'm putting on weight. Yeah, this is, who am I? You know, all that kind of, do I enjoy doing? Yeah, you reflect a little bit on what's going on. Yeah, and last night, I always, it's not nearly as extreme, but like I always go straight into January at too much speed, because I'm

trying to, right, now I've got to get to this, do this, do that. I've got to do everything now. So today is my first day back. And last night I was lying in bed. And I was like sweating, thinking, right, I've got to do this. As soon as I finished the podcast, have I got time to exercise? Probably not, because I've got to make that phone call. And then I'm like, and you're like, one of the things that you know, you talk about the, the gratitudes that you're lucky, I feel so incredibly lucky that I like my job. Yeah, there's a thought of going back into January looking like I do look forward to work.

Well, my, my old job, I can still shut my eyes and feel the trousers of that job going on my legs when I used to work in a job I didn't like. You were a clown, weren't you? I wasn't a clown. Well, no, but I'm these horrible, a couple of jobs, these horrible nylon-y trousers at the supermarket where I used to do horrible two till 10 shifts at night. And then again, with my office job, these gray trousers, I used to wear every day, I used to put them on, I could feel, I'd get, I'd feel them going over my thighs and

be like, but, but I think that the answer is really, it's like, there isn't actually that much you can, I can do or anyone can do when you really feel like that. You've just got to accept that this will pass at some point. Obviously, going out, getting drunk and doing stupid things won't help. But eating well and all the boring stuff, go for a walk, eat well. It won't eradicate it, but it will help you navigate through it. I look at it, it's like a storm coming.

When I say there's a storm coming, it's going to be windy, might lose a few roof tiles and whatever. So you just shut your window, shut your door, shut your curtains and try and go to sleep and try and get through. You don't go and stand in the middle of a field while it's happening. You know what I mean? So just do the best you can to get through it. So I feel like I've started the podcast on a negative energy. No, we've had a lovely chat about gladiators and this will cheer you up.

Yes. How many children? We went away with some couples for Christmas, for New Year. Oh yeah. Where'd you go New Year? Cornwall. Lovely. Ten children in the house. That New Year? Cornwall. Lovely. Ten children in the house. That's a lot of children. That is a lot of children. I struggled with four kids at Arvest the other week. And the weather was bad so they're not able to go outside. Yeah. So ten children all on parents' floors because there's obviously not room for children to have

their own bedrooms in that situation. So they're all on floors. It's a bit like home alone when it starts, you know, there are kids everywhere. Yeah, it was. But you know what Rob? Yeah. 10 I've come to find it's a great number. Easier than two. It's easier than two. It's always, if there's a child, there's always a spare one to pick them up. Do you know what I mean?

There's always, they've always got someone to play with. Oh, no, I struggle with that. Honestly, I've never had more free time with my children in the house than that. Right, now, however, yeah, so is that because you're not actually parenting, you're just having a chat and then some sort of poor other bugger's upstairs with nine kids?

No, does that sound like me? No. No, but you might surround yourself with people that are even more sort of... Guilt-ridden. Guilt-ridden, that will go up there. No, not at all. Then you can just ride it out. No? No, because there's different groups of kids, there's a TV. What else have you been up to? Parenting? What's going on with parenting?

I'm quite happy about going back to school. I was going back tomorrow. Yeah, me too. But I didn't realize that my son, I thought he went back today until we were meant to record this at 10am, weren't we? Because I thought I was taking him to nursery. But we can move it to nine because he's actually got an inset day. So our kids got inset day. So they're in another room on their iPad. I haven't checked on them. So what is the inset day? It's teacher training, but he's at nursery still. I don't know what the inset day is. Is it teacher training, inset days?

I think we've discussed it before, I don't really know. I think they just use that. What does inset mean? I don't know. We've definitely done this before, but let's roll out the hint. I think it means that the teachers are in teachers attend school without students to participate in training or complete administrative tasks Oh doing fuck or wandering around having a biscuit in a chat getting their boards ready They're basically doing what we're doing now I watched the darkness documentary oh it was

really good yeah yeah no I don't know why he fell out with his brother either yeah no Yeah happy new year are we still have to say that. Do you know what, Rob? I want to say about Christmas. God. I don't think there's anything more. I don't know what to do about this. There's anything. Can you hear that drilling? Yep. I was getting to stop if he does it again. I don't think there's anything more. if he does it again. I don't know anything. I think I'll do it again What's a builder? We've done one drill

See you next week just If he does it again, I'll get him to stop if he doesn't do it again, I'm not paying him Win-win. Yeah win-win. Um, he's true. He's done. No, he go. Oh for fuck's sake, I'll be back in a sec. I'll leave these on. At least all your building work got done before Christmas. Oh, don't roll. Okay, so Josh, we've had to stop and start there because you're back to your AirPods. So I've got a little question.

Why don't you order three pairs of 499 headphones next time? I'm going to do it now. Oh, maybe do it when you finish recording. I'm not going to do it now. I'm going to forget to do it afterwards. They're your options. When I was working at office and I used to leave, I used to try and get time off at last minute for gigs. So if I got off at a gig in Nottingham and I have to leave London at like three o'clock. So I'd go into my boss and say, um, Oh, tomorrow, can I leave at three? And I make up the time next

week or book it off as holiday. Cause I've got to get to a gig and they're like, no, you can't. And I go, okay, well I'm going. So we can either, we can either do it as holiday or put it down as I missed absence and he can give me a full informal warning, verbal warning, whatever the first warning is. That's why I used to love putting on those nylon trousers every morning. Polyester. Polyester trousers. Oh my gosh. Couple of questions, Josh.

You've sent me that video of your office. You've tidied your office up. What I would say is, I don't. You've tidied your office up. What I would say is, I don't think you've tidied your office up. You've tidied up Rose's storeroom so you can gain access to the tiny little desk you've got in the corner. Yeah. Could that be a fair description of your office? No, a lot of that stuff is mine.

Okay, well there's four lampshades. Yeah, they've gone into storage. They're yours, are they, for your office? One of them's there. You can see it there. And how's the building work going Josh? So you're right. Your iPad's run out of charge. Okay you need to charge it then. So say hello to Josh. Hello. I like your snowman. Is that a jumper or is that pajamas? I like your snowman. Is that jump or is that pajamas? I like your snowman pajamas. Thank you.

Bye. Love you. Bye. Right. So that was the oldest one. She's got a great haircut. She's got a bob. Really suits her. So she's got a bob. But then the other daughter, the other daughter, my daughter, she had really long hair and then she wanted a bob.

But she mainly wanted a bob because if they have long hair, they've got to tie it up at school and she hates having it tied up. But she's grown her hair now so we're gonna have one bob because I think it's nice to have their own personalities but then Lou's got a bob because she's grown her hair out but needed it cut short. My hair's not far away from a bob at the moment so it's like the old bob boys, the old bob bobbers. Bobby Beckett. Exactly oh no oh yeah I'm recording thank god I filmed that bit. Oh my god. Oh, I'm recording. Thank God. I thought I wasn't recording that bit. Oh my God.

Two questions. We've got time for this, I think. New Year's resolutions, plans, which is a bit of a hack topic. I do think we need to. Yeah, no. And is your kitchen ready? Is your building work done? Okay.

Number one, my answer number two, get our kitchen done is when you use resolution. So can you use the kitchen at the moment? Yeah, yeah. So we can use the kitchen. You've got sideboards? A plywood ones. Still got the plywood, fair enough, no worries. Yeah.

So you got them last year, didn't you? So it's been a year. Well, very few people deliver workspaces during the Christmas period. Yeah, again, another reason why not to get it done before Christmas, but each to their own. Okay, okay. Everyone's an expert after it's happened. Everyone's an expert, aren't they? And for you, during, during. During, during. During.

At the, slightly before actually, quietly. At the before, yeah, yeah. Everyone's an expert throughout the process. All I, all I can say is I think getting your kitchen done in December's a great idea. Rob, if I was heading into that now, I would be heading into the worst three months of my existence. Yes, sure. But not the worst three. We've all we've all seen some of the things that's happened to me since this podcast started. But the kitchen's nearly done. It's workable. It's workable.

Everything's we're in that. I mean, can you call a kitchen sideboard a snag list? But we're in that. I got the old snag list here, mate. The roof. Need a roof. Some walls wouldn't go amiss. Yesterday, our gutters lead to. Okay, is the fridge working? Yeah. Plugged in working? Okay, is the fridge working? Yeah. Plugged in working? Great. Is the oven working? Yeah.

Plugged in working? Great. Yeah. Sink, dishwasher? Yeah. Yeah. So it's just a bit, that's fine. Yeah, yeah.

You'd rather wait and get it done properly. You can use the kitchen. Doesn't look perfect, but that's fine. But the freedom of the spillages and the cut in this fucking super. I know, you love that plywood. You're gonna be sad to see it go. I'm gonna decide, do you know what, You're gonna be sad to see it go. I'm gonna decide, you know what, I'm gonna fight for, maybe we just have a piece of plywood that every three months we just get a new piece of plywood.

And that's where you do all your chopping up on? And that's where we do all our chopping up. Money we save on chopping boards. There'll be no scratches, no dents. And do you know what, the kids could draw on it if they wanted, you know, they could express themselves creatively and then we just get rid of that plywood start again. Go for it. Anyway, anyway, I got it. It's leaking onto the house. I still need a roof tile by the way as well.

Oh, my phone's gone. She's got my phone. Oh, he's still got the roof tile. Still got a roof tile, there'd have been more rain. Oh no, yeah, so it's leaked through the door. So we've got through the wall because it's wetting the wall too much. Because basically it's creating.

It's getting a bit of damp because it's wetting the wall too much. So there's a man, one of the dads at school, for the last three years, I've seen him dropping his kid off in his gutter. He's called gutter pro in his gutter pro van. I was like, I know exactly the man for the job. Well, the danger here is if he does a bad job.

No, he won't do a bad job. No, I'm just saying. He's the gutter pro, Rob. He's the gutter pro. This is, you need his wife, by the way, is a huge fan of the podcast. Okay, that's great. That's good.

But I'm just saying the pressure is really on him to do a good job now, because he's got to see you at the school gates. And you know, cause I, cause Josh, if I say to you next week, how's your gutter in and you go still leaking. That's not worked. Yeah. Well, she'll be right on his case to get it done. So maybe it's a good person to have. Rob he talked about, I tell you why I know he's a gutter pro. He said something about a camera. What? Yeah. I said, Hi, mate, Josh, we're gonna commit. I hope you had a good Christmas. We have a gutter problem. Would you be free to

come and have a look in brackets? I'm presuming that's your job judging by your van. Nice bit of fun. It's blocked or broken and means the wall gets soaked below and it gets the interior wall wet. Yes. And he's written, it could mean both but would need a camera inspection to understand what's going on. Does that mean an extra 100 quid? How about you get on a fucking ladder and have a look first? Yeah. How about we how about you

have a little look with your eyeballs before you start whipping out 100 quid camera? Yeah. I love that you can't see it. You've just come up with the cost. You've just come up with the cost. You've just come up with the cost. You came up with the cost two seconds earlier and then used it to be in with 10 seconds later. Don't you talk to me about 100 quid camera, mate.

I've heard you say 100 quid. Yeah, if he does it wrong, though, you could just write, do a little dash and write am pro am, got a pro am. No, no, you know, he probably does need a camera, but I'd have a little look see with the old eyeballs right yeah if you don't like a ladder in your gutter guy you got problems yeah well we've got scaffolding you won't even need to bring a ladder is that still up yeah because we're having the wallets up He's like, I was all built a new house. I know. I know. While it's up, what's going on? We're having all of the window frames done. Right, OK, fair enough.

Yeah, while it's up. While it's up. You know when I say while it's up, I don't feel like it'll ever be down at the moment. Well, I feel like houses and interiors is Rose's passion, as is my football shirt collection. I can't stop. I can't stop getting more.

And if I see one, I get one. I love it. I'm addicted. I think Rose is the same with improvements. Yeah, well, the good thing is she's doing quite a lot of other people's now. So she needs to be able to take her eyes off our house. Okay, so that's the, that's the main aim. Yeah. Oh God. What are you looking at? Something's popped up in your screen.

Boon has great ex's of me. Oh, what's that? While it's up. While it's up. Just did a chimney. Our son is hell bent on getting the massive arts and crafts bag up from the seller. Oh God. I just want one day when the house is tidy. Not gonna happen mate. No. So that bag's down in the cellar. Yeah. But once you get your storage will that be upstairs? Ideally it'll be in a skip. How is the storage coming along? The storage? Yeah. Good. Good. We've got stuff in big yellow storage at the moment. So is all that stuff in big yellow storage going to come back to your house once your cupboards are done? No, no. We're selling most of it. Right. But we need to photograph it to sell it.

What? Like, I'd say everything in life is on a spectrum, right? Yeah. Nothing is like, you are definitely this, you're definitely that. You sort of slide along this spectrum depending on who you are, how life works out, access to stuff, money and stuff like that. Where would you place you and Rose on a spectrum of hoarder? Oh, I used to be a seven. Yep. I'd say I'm a bit a hoardery and I've got better. I'm now a three. So there's certain things when I'm absolutely brutal get ready get ready Food wastage. I've become much more. Let's just be honest. We're not gonna have that half tin of beans Let's just be honest with ourselves now. Yeah, and not deal with it in a week. They always say to it mentally Yeah, we're not we've never seen this through

Yeah, we're not we've never seen this through. Let's give up now. By the little half packs. Yeah, they're not big enough. The halves are too small. The bigs are too big. Anyway, and what about Rose? But then it's part of a job, isn't it?

To have find sell stuff. No, she's pretty good. Actually, she's got much better like me. We've basically lived for seven years to the point where we're now like, this has got to change because we've had a house designed for two independent adults, not a family home. Exactly. It's big enough for a family home, but you've just not designed for it. Exactly.

And so now everything's changing. But it does mean- Why did it take so long? Was you in denial for a bit, do you think? Why did it take so long? Did you get denial for a bit, do you think? Why did it take so long? Yes. But I think that was me as well. Cause I remember when I first come around and I saw the knickknacks out the side,

I was like, I don't know. Also I do think your eldest daughter was like, quite chilled. She wouldn't grab it or smash it where your son's a little bit more rumbunctious. No, no, he's all right. I think if you grow up surrounded by knickknacks, they you just you just show respect to the knickknacks. Okay, fair enough. They just become your world. They just become your world. So there's still knickknacks out and about, but there's going

to be more storage. Why did it take so long? Because I think I wasn't ready to admit that we needed a load of work done on the house. Right. And you didn't want to move. And the financial implications of that. Because you had to move or do the work basically. Yes. And currently did we make the right decision at the moment? It's up in the air. Up in the air, scaffold still up? The scaffold scaffold still up. Why are the scaffolds up? Do a loft extension? Don't. That's a consideration.

No, it's already extended. It's already extended. Okay. De-extend. Ball it up. De-extend the br- get rid of the loft! If anything, it's too high. Ball it up, use it as storage.

Exactly. Exactly. Anyway, right. Should we do small business shout out? Yeah. Got a pro. Got a pro. We ain't done the job yet. No, next week. A lot of pressure on gutter pro. Hello, we have a small family run business called Rose Tree Surgeons. We specialize in tree

work, fencing, grounds maintenance and vegetation clearance. My husband and I started in the business in lockdown with me on maternity leave from my NHS role with my second child and I never returned. We now have three babies, our own business and are navigating the madness of three babies in our own family business. We are based in Beds, Bucks, Boulders. Bedfordshire Buckinghamshire? Is that right?

Beds, Bucks? Beds, Bucks, Boulders. But work from here up to Birmingham and outside the M25, we can be found on Facebook and Instagram, Rosetreesurgence. Or you could drop us a message on admin at rosetreesurgence.co.uk. For a free no obligation quotation, we absolutely love the show.

We'll be stoked for a shout out. Thank you, Gemma Rose. That's nice. Good luck, guys. I love people that started doing something else and went... Yeah, I'm such a big fan of that. Gutter Pro is a franchise. It doesn't qualify for small business. No. But good on him. Hello Rob, Josh and Michael. Thank you so much for the podcast. I've listened for years and I'm so grateful for all the laughs while I've been commuting from Oxford to Birmingham several times a week

for work. It's not that bad, is it? No, it's not that bad. But I just Sounds bad, doesn't it? journey. It's just a journey I've never thought about. Oh, Birmingham. Is it direct? Have you ever been from London to Aberystwyth on the train?

Oh, have I? Yes. You get trained to Birmingham, you change at Birmingham, and then you get another one to somewhere like Shropshire that you track, the train you're on goes in and then reverses out. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Fuck off. Two carriages. Feels like you're going back to London.

Two carriages. Two carriages. No toilet. No, Aberystwyth is a beautiful place, but fuck me, it's a bastard to get to. Do you want to hear the ultimate first world complaint, Rob? Go on. The ultimate, what was it called? Ivory Tower complaint.

They're not shy about selling you a first class ticket from London to Aberystwyth, even though once you get to Birmingham, there's no fucking first class. Scum. The trains are disgusting at the moment. So expensive, so bad. There you go. I've said it. I've said it.

I have a six year old son, Harry. And when I was pregnant with him, my husband's 90-year-old Nan Maureen started knitting beautiful baby jackets ready for her great-grandson's arrival. She made soft little hoodies in bright, colorful patterns, and we all love them so much that she started making them for friends and family too. Six years later, and my mother-in-law Sally and her mom Maureen, so the same woman, have knitted hundreds of jackets together. She's now 96. Oh, god, Maureen. They are so popular that we started selling them on Etsy and post them worldwide. This is incredible.

They are absolutely beautiful and make them in sizes from newborn up to three-year-olds. I'm so proud of how hard they've been working on this. And they get so excited every time they make a sale. Absolutely incredible that I've added that. Check out our jackets on knitted by Sally dot Etsy.com or knitted by Sally on Instagram. Use the promo code parenting hell for 20% discount. Thanks for making my mother in law and Nan very happy. All the best Annie. Absolutely fair play. Oh, lovely Rob they're absolutely lovely I can't because my daughter's got my phone because her iPad's running out of battery

and I'm gonna say it I think they're under priced how much are they 11 or 15 pounds and they are beautiful pump up the pump up the price pump Pump up the price. They are great. Josh, I see you. You love that you're a big fan of Maury. You'll have to see. I just love a 96 year old woman. All right, pervert. Knitting away. That's normal. Yes, that's very nice. Let's be normal. Let's be normal.

Thank you, Josh. See you Friday. See you Friday. Also, big shout out to anyone else struggling with January. Just plough on, tell your friends and family if you are feeling down or you're struggling and it will get better. It always does Josh. It's just a little storm, a little blow away. I'll speak to you next week. Speak to you next week. Bye. Bye.