Simon Woodroffe’s lifejackets - mountaineering, sailing, Spinal Tap, The Crown, Clarkson on the farm, Touching the Void, action, meditation, Ian Dury, and Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway.
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When life knocked him down, what kept Simon Woodroffe from sinking? In this extension episode, the Yo! Sushi founder and Dragon’s Den star shares the unconventional lifelines—his “lifejackets”—that helped him stay afloat when he was stuck. From the adrenaline of mountaineering and sailing to the wisdom of Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway, Spinal Tap, and the unexpected lessons from Clarkson’s Farm and The Crown, Simon unpacks the action, adventure, and mindset shifts that shaped his resilience.
Life Jackets
Lifejackets in this podcast refer to the personal tools and rituals that keep us afloat in the waves of life. Whether it’s a film, tv show, music, a favourite book, a crossword puzzle, or the steady presence of a dog, these are the things that keep us afloat. Everyone needs their own lifejackets—small but essential things that help us stay sane in an insane world.
- Gardening – At home with Pim in the North of Thailand or at our hut in the jungle near Hua Hin
- Hobbies/Exercise – Climbing: Have a “thank God hold”, Sailing
- TV – Don’t watch much TV, other than on YouTube, and The Crown and Clarkson’s Farm
- Films – Sound of Music and Spinal Tap
- Book – Don’t read novels but read just about every pop biog, history biog and autobiog from business to entertainment and could answer MasterMind subjects on Mountaineering or adventure expeditions from the exploration of the south pole to John Hunt on the ascent of Everest and Chris Bonnington’s life, Joe Simpson’s Touching the Void
- Music – Free Solo, Dawn Wall, Know a lot of song lyrics from Ian Dury and Billericay Dicky, that I can recite, to much of the Beatles and Rock music of the 60s, 70s and 80s.
- Poems – How to get rich, a poem by Felix Dennis I never get tired of, or Stop the Clocks, W H Auden on life and death
- Other – Insight timer: an app that, for 20 years, I have used both for meditation and my own version of yoga at 6am for 50 minutes, usually.
- Other – Scottish Doctor declared you need three things to be happy: – Something to do – Someone or something to love – Something to hope for
- Other – If a young man aged 22, similar to yourself, knocked on your door, asking for directions, what would you say? Curiosity and ability not to give up/resilience
Write up your Life Jackets in comments below
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