Resilience for Stage Ready, Mind Ready Artists. Inspiring interviews with successful actors and artists exploring how they maintain positive mental wellbeing and resilience through the highs and lows of their career.
Created by Generation Arts. This production is supported using public funding by Arts Council England.
Hosts: Ali Godfrey & Unique Spencer
Brian Cox: losing everything at 8, the art of persisting, Succession and lessons from a 60-year career
Content Warning: There is a brief mention of attempted suicide in this episode. What happens when resilience becomes a way of life? Brian Cox, the award-winning actor known worldwide for his portrayal of Logan Roy in Succession, chats to Ali and Unique and takes us on a masterclass journey through his extraordinary 60-year career. Having grown up in working-class Dundee, Brian shares how losing his father at eight years old and his mother's subsequent breakdown became the foundation for his ...
5 Jun 2025
Patsy Palmer: from the East End to Eastenders, 30 years as an iconic soap character
Actress Patsy Palmer recounts her experiences growing up in London's East End and building a 30-year acting career, including her iconic role in EastEnders, in this interview.
26 May 2025
Sarah Seggari: Resilience behind the role, from Drama School to BBC Drama, and finding love for Shakespeare
Actor Sarah Seggari discusses her path from South London to BBC's Casualty, emphasizing the importance of trusting her instincts and building community, in an interview with Ali and Unique.
13 May 2025
Helder Fernandes: From Harlesden to Hollywood? Netflix success and staying humble, side jobs as a working actor
An episode for aspiring actors looking for inspiration on resilience, success, and a grounding in the realities of being a jobbing actor. Actor Helder Fernandes has starred in Black Mirror, Rings of Power, The Gentlemen, Top Boy, and the National Theatre's Our Generation. In this down-to-earth conversation with Ali and Unique he shares his journey from struggling to get into drama school to starring in Netflix hits while maintaining a side job for a supermarket. Helder refl...
30 Apr 2025
Tamara Lawrance: Fearless in Get Millie Black, the courage to choose carefully, building a career that matters
What happens when a performer refuses to compromise on their artistic integrity from day one? Tamara Lawrance's remarkable career journey offers a masterclass in building success through meaningful choices and unwavering self-belief. Tamara chats to Ali and Unique about their recent work in "The Comeuppance" at the Almeida Theatre and their groundbreaking role in Channel 4's "Get Millie Black" – a production they describe as "seminal" for its unprecedented representation of diverse Jamaican ...
13 Feb 2025
Gabrielle Nimo: Thriving without an agent, blending football and theatre, Black women in the West End, and making space for rest
What happens when your passion becomes your career, but then a setback threatens everything you've built? In this honest conversation with Ali and Unique, Gabrielle Nimo, West End Movement Director, shares her inspiring story of resilience and adaptability, highlighting her transformative journey through productions like "Red Pitch" and "Strategic Love Play." With no agent and relying solely on her organic network, Gaby's career thrives, showcasing how versatility across roles like dancer, fa...
25 Sept 2024
Casting Director Q&A: Unlocking the secrets of casting with Suzy Catliff on self-taping, auditioning, and getting seen
In this special Q&A episode, Suzy Catliff CDG, a renowned Casting Director and author of The Casting Handbook, shares her wealth of experience from iconic TV shows like Silent Witness and Casualty to film classics like The English Patient. Suzy takes you behind the scenes of the audition room, revealing exactly what casting directors look for and how to approach them with confidence. Whether you're just starting out or looking to refine your craft, this episode is packed with practical ad...
6 Sept 2024
Your Questions: Getting into acting, auditions, getting an agent, self tapes and mental resilience
Ali and Unique respond to listeners' questions.If you found this episode helpful let us know. If you have more topics you want us to cover, or guests you want to hear from get in touch with us on Instagram @GEN_ARTS or message us below.During the episode we discuss getting into acting as a new or aspiring actor. These opportunities and organisations might be helpful:Get Into TheatreLondon BubbleYoung VicRoundhouse ProjectsStratford East Young CompanyAlmeidaKiln TheatreRoyal Central School of ...
22 Aug 2024
Jennifer Irons: Breaking the mould, not seeking permission, and performing grief
Award-winning choreographer, dancer, and director Jennifer Irons shares her journey from immigrant beginnings in London to becoming a trailblazer in the world of contemporary dance and theatre. In this episode, Jennifer reveals how her experience as an outsider has profoundly influenced her work and led her to defy traditional expectations in the dance industry. From large-scale stadium performances to commercial music videos, and her own one-woman show, Jennifer's story is one of grit, resil...
13 Aug 2024
Hayley Konadu: Starring in a Netflix hit, not going to drama school, Black hair for actors, and staying grounded
Hayley Konadu is an actor, and facilitator who recently starred as Flo Bones in Lockwood & Co (Netflix) and has worked on screen and theatre, as well as extensively as an facilitator and assistant director with young people and in arts education settings. In this richly authentic conversation with Ali and Unique, Hayley discusses the process of auditioning and being cast as Flo Bones in Netflix's smash hit Lockwood & Co. She opens up about the realities of coping with mass...
25 Jul 2024
Chetna Pandya: Overcoming barriers into the arts, starring in Heartstopper, and building creative resilience
Chetna Pandya is an Actor, Director, Producer and Creative advocate, most recently known to many for her role as Coach Singh in Heartstopper (Netflix) and for her extensive acting career in TV shows such as The Trouble with Maggie Cole, This Way Up, Feel Good and Black Mirror. She has worked nationally and internationally across stage, television, film & radio performing with Complicité, Royal Shakespeare Company, Royal Court Theatre and BBC Radio Drama to name a few.In this conversa...
18 Jul 2024
Ace Ruele: From prison to Hollywood, mastering a positive mindset and transforming the industry
Ace Ruele is a leading motion capture film and video games actor, and founder of Creature Bionics. In this conversation he discusses his extraordinary journey from 4.5 years in prison, through to acting in Hollywood movies, TV and commercials and more recently developing a world-leading company which is transforming how the film industry approaches motion capture, animal and creature work. Ace shares his personal philosophy about how he has maintained his remarkable positive attitude across a...
17 Jul 2024
Ira Mandela Siobhan: Overcoming Dyslexia and racism, a lesson from Tom Cruise, and why artistic perfection doesn't exist
Ira Mandela Siobhan is a leading Actor, Dancer and Movement Director, and joins Ali and Unique directly from final rehearsals for The Grapes of Wrath at the National Theatre where he is Movement Director. In this conversation Ira shares personal insights into his childhood growing up as the only Black kid at school, moving from the basketball court into dance training, and how his path led him to starring on stage with DV8, Shakespeare's Globe, on the West End, working with Tom Cruise a...
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