The Blindly Wheeling Podcast

About The Blindly Wheeling Podcast

The Blindly Wheeling Podcast Stories, insights and the road to inclusive tourism, one episode at a time. Hosted by Paul Ralph, a wheelchair using traveller, storyteller and founder of Disabled Access Day, The Blindly Wheeling Podcast brings you tales from his life and adventures, together with excerpts from Paul’s new books. In each episode you will hear passages from Access All Areas – Inclusive Tourism in Practice and from his second volume Access All Events – Accessible Gathering in Practice, and delivered in his unique style. Every short episode explores a different facet of life as a disabled person and of inclusive travel. Paul shares lived experience, lessons learned and a few laughs along the way. From the joy of finding a genuinely accessible loo to the hidden power of a well‑trained welcome, he guides listeners through the practicalities and possibilities of accessible tourism and beyond. Whether you work in tourism, hospitality, heritage or events, you are a disabled traveller, an organiser, a curious ally or simply someone who enjoys a good story with a slice of cake on the side, this podcast is for you. No jargon. No lectures. Just honest chats, thoughtful reflections and plenty of ideas to make the world more welcoming for everyone. Listen in if you work in tourism, hospitality, heritage or events, if you want to learn how to better include disabled people, if you enjoy personal storytelling with purpose and humour, or if you believe accessibility is everyone’s business. If you would like to know more about Paul’s books, check out Access All Areas – Inclusive Tourism in Practice and Access All Events – Accessible Gathering in Practice on Amazon. My journey and adventures Paul describes himself as: “I am a consultant, author and public speaker passionate about accessibility and inclusive tourism. My journey has been shaped by my lived experience as a wheelchair user travelling through places that have inspired, challenged and sometimes frustrated me. I have explored distilleries in the Highlands, navigated historic castles, rolled into bustling city cafés and discovered that some of the most welcoming places are not always the ones you expect. There have been proud moments such as founding Disabled Access Day and watching it grow into a United Kingdom wide celebration, and the joy of working with Euan’s Guide to help thousands of disabled people find accessible places to visit. There have also been challenges: doors that did not open, websites that assumed, and conversations that needed nudging in a better direction. In each moment there has been learning and often an unexpected delight, whether it is a brilliant Changing Places toilet in a tiny village or the perfect slice of cake in a tucked away café. I bring to every conversation a blend of lived insight, practical ideas and a firm belief that inclusion is as much about opportunity as it is about access. My aim is to inspire, challenge and equip people to create places and experiences that welcome everyone.” Enjoy!

Publisher

Paul J Ralph

Category

society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

10 Aug 2025

Latest episode

8 Nov 2025

Latest episodes

35 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   8 Nov 2025

   Reviews and Ratings or maybe both? - Episode 37

   As someone who wheels through towns, museums, cafés and festivals, I have learned that the little details often make the biggest difference. A smooth ramp, a low counter, a staff member who greets you with a genuine smile and these are the moments that turn a visit from merely tolerable to truly welcoming. Yet when we look at most booking sites we are met with rows of stars, a tidy numeric shorthand that promises to tell us everything we need to know. In my experience, those stars are useful for a quick glance, but they rarely reveal whether a venue has thought about the full range of needs that a wheelchair user, a person with a visual impairment or a parent with a stroller might have.

2. 

   6 Nov 2025

   Technology a double edge for Inclusion - Episode 35

   Every year a fresh gadget arrives on the market with a headline that reads something like “the future is now”. Touch screens, voice assistants, biometric scanners – all of them are sold as answers to the problem of friction. The idea is appealing: a single surface that can do everything, a single voice that can command everything, a single card that can pay everywhere. In theory the world becomes smoother, faster, more elegant. But the reality is that most of these inventions are created without a seat at the table for people who experience the world differently. When a design team assumes that every user can see a bright icon, tap a tiny button and speak a clear command, they are building a wall as much as a bridge. The wall is invisible to those who do not need to climb over it, but it is solid and unyielding for the rest of us.

3. 

   4 Nov 2025

   Living with Disability? - Episode 36

   When I first heard the phrase “living with a disability” I imagined a suitcase packed with medical charts, a timetable of appointments and a steady stream of adaptations that I, as an individual, had to manage. The wording feels like a quiet admission that the condition belongs to me, that the obstacle sits inside my body and that I must learn to cope with it. Contrast that with “living with disability”. Suddenly the focus shifts from the person to the world around them. The sentence hints that the difficulty is not solely my fault, that the streets, the services, the attitudes and the policies all play a part in shaping the experience. It is a subtle but powerful change of perspective, one that mirrors the long‑standing debate between the medical model and the social model of disability.

Contact The Blindly Wheeling Podcast

Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.