Local Heroes Podcast

About Local Heroes Podcast

At Local Heroes, it all begins with a story. Through our podcast, films, documentaries, events and creative collaborations, we explore the people, places, and stories that shape our communities. YouTube (https://www.youtube.com/@wearelocalheroes) | Patreon (http://www.patreon.com/LocalHeroesVIP) www.wearelocalheroes.com #people #place #purpose #community

Publisher

We Are Local Heroes

Category

society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

31 Jan 2025

Latest episode

24 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

89 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   24 Oct 2026

   EP88 | Hebburn, Hyenas and Headlocks | Jason Cook | Local Heroes Podcast

   This week on the Local Heroes Podcast, Chris and Dan are joined by comedian, writer and producer Jason Cook - the Hebburn lad who went from fixing engines in the Persian Gulf to turning his stories into a BBC sitcom. Jason spent seven years as a Merchant Navy engineer on oil and gas tankers, writing sketches on a typewriter in his boiler suit and posting them home in manila envelopes from all over the world. When he got back and saw his mates performing them at the Hyena Comedy Club, he quit the sea, sold the flat and sold the car. From there it's a ride: a German techno double act that opened music festivals without anyone being told they were comedians, a reboot of The Tube where thousands of people booed them off in front of Alex James, a gig booked between two strippers, and a bouncer who wanted £15 to let him into his own show. Jason makes the case that resilience is the whole job - everybody dies on stage, and the ones who last are the ones who come back. The lads get into writing Hebburn, the true family story the BBC decided was a step too far for telly, the 300 locals who stood in pin-drop silence for a night shoot, and the fight to get more North East telly actually filmed in the North East. Plus Murder on the Blackpool Express with Johnny Vegas, his podcast Things We Didn't Know with Carl Hutchinson, and Apocalypse Kev, his new prepper character. There's also the one-line prank on best mate Chris Ramsey that had him kicking open every door in his flat for six months. And then there's Dr Nigel and the giraffe. You'll want to stay tuned for that one. On the menu: past, present and future comedians, first pints, Jarrow Elvis, curry on a banana leaf in Cochin and a Greggs order with strong views on mince pie temperature. Jason's Laffs4Kids charity gig returns to Newcastle City Hall on Sunday 13 December, with an afternoon show at 1pm and an evening show. Tickets on sale now. Bring an unwrapped present - last year the audience collected over 21,000 for North East kids who'd otherwise have nothing on Christmas Day. This episode is a warm, daft and honest exploration into the mind of one of the North East's great storytellers - about taking the leap, failing in public, coming back for more, and never losing sight of where you're from. Insta - https://www.instagram.com/wearelocalheroes/ TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@wearelocalheroes?_t=ZG-8tKWkdyntYm&_r=1 Website - https://www.wearelocalheroes.com/

2. 

   17 Oct 2026

   EP87 | Padma Rao | Shields, Sangini and Serendipity | Local Heroes Podcast

   This week on the Local Heroes Podcast, Chris and Dan talk to artist, writer and activist Padma Rao. Padma’s story begins in India, where she wrote, performed and worked in radio drama, before moving to Britain in the early 1980s and finding herself having to rebuild not just a career, but a sense of identity and belonging. It’s a fascinating conversation about migration, racism, Britishness, art, activism and the power of bringing people together. Padma also shares the story of Sangini, the Black women-led organisation that began with women gathering around a kitchen table and has spent more than two decades using art, craft and community to tackle isolation, health inequalities and help women find confidence and connection. And then there’s South Shields. Padma explains how arriving on the South Shields coast reminded her of Visakhapatnam in India - leading to one of those wonderfully strange Local Heroes moments when Chris suddenly realises he’s actually been there. A completely unexpected connection involving India, South Shields and Chris’s former life working with coffee farmers leaves Padma genuinely stunned. Her first impressions of Shields were sealed by something even simpler: a grandmother walking with her grandchild in The Nook who looked across and smiled at her. Padma remembers thinking: I can be here. I can stay here. South Shields became home. Naturally, it wouldn't be Local Heroes without eventually getting onto food. Padma confesses to a weakness for white chocolate, including emergency “gift” chocolate hidden on the top shelf that may or may not ever reach its intended recipient. And we establish one important culinary rule: rice can be left behind, but NEVER leave the lamb. Afterall, it's the king of meats. Funny, challenging, warm and occasionally unexpected, this is a conversation about finding your place, holding onto who you are and how food, art, music and a bit of human connection can bridge divides. Insta - https://www.instagram.com/wearelocalheroes/ TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@wearelocalheroes?_t=ZG-8tKWkdyntYm&_r=1 Website - https://www.wearelocalheroes.com/

3. 

   10 Oct 2026

   EP86 | Sir John Burn | Discovery, DNA and Destiny | Local Heroes Podcast

   This week on the Local Heroes Podcast, Chris and Dan sit down with Sir John Burn for a fascinating conversation about genetics, medicine, curiosity and a lifetime spent looking for better ways to do things. John talks about growing up in West Auckland, County Durham, in a working class family where university, let alone a career in medicine, was far from an obvious path. After initially planning to become an engineer, a love of biology eventually led him into medicine and towards the emerging world of genetics, at a time when clinical genetics barely existed as a profession. That curiosity would go on to shape an extraordinary career. John shares the story of helping establish genetic services in the North East, building one of the region’s first DNA laboratories and playing a key role in the creation of Newcastle’s Centre for Life. He also talks about pioneering research into inherited cancers, the potential of aspirin in cancer prevention and how advances in DNA testing could transform the way we prevent, diagnose and treat disease. But this is as much a conversation about mindset as it is medicine. John reflects on the influence of his entrepreneurial father, his instinct for spotting opportunities and his tendency to chase the next interesting problem. He also speaks openly about the importance of surrounding himself with people who could turn those ideas into reality. The conversation explores the future of the NHS, personalised medicine, DNA testing, diet, microbiomes and the difficult ethical questions that come with knowing more and more about our genetic makeup. Along the way there are stories involving Sting, Catherine Cookson, Anthony Gormley, an Archbishop of Canterbury, Newcastle United and why John has his own brass plaque on Newcastle Quayside. And, naturally, we finish with the important questions: chocolate biscuits, red meat and the enduring appeal of a Greggs pasty. A funny, thought provoking and hugely insightful conversation about discovery, DNA and destiny, and a North East life spent asking what might be possible.

Who has been a guest on Local Heroes Podcast

Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.

• Hannah Graham
• Yasmin Sayed Ahmed
• James Fildes
• Joe Arrowsmith
• Steve Hoggy

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

YouTube views

45,014

Score snapshot 15 Sept 2025

Spotify

5.0 / 5

8 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 31 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

31

Social presence

0

YouTube

76

Engagement

0

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