John is one of the fantastic lads who make up the Really, 007! podcast. While David has been honoured to be their guest multiple times and they've got to know each other well in real life, this is the first time John and David have publicly talked just the two of them.
Both men help people with problems as part of their professional lives having been motivated to do so by some of their own adverse experiences. Rarely are real life problems as easy to ‘eliminate’ as they are in the world of Bond. But that shouldn’t prevent us from trying.
John was eager to come onto On Our Minds Only? and we’re so glad he did. The story of John’s mental heath journey is a gripping one - and it has the power to change lives.
Both had no idea how this conversation would unfold. They start by introducing the topics of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder)… and then (a bit like episodes of ‘Really, 007!’) things take off in unexpected directions…
We won’t spoil it here, but instead urge you to hit PLAY and let John’s story unfold in its entirety.
A sneak preview: It begins with an eleven year old John having his world view turned upside down by a viewing of On Her Majesty’s Secret Service. We move on to nineteen year old John experiencing a significantly traumatic incident which was to reverberate through his whole life ever afterwards…
With great vulnerability, John doesn’t hold back from sharing what happened when he hit rock bottom. But this is ultimately an incredibly hopeful story. John made a life-changing decision to devote a lot of his time to helping others, using what he’d learned about himself.
Along the way, John and David relate everything back to Bond. This includes their own deeply personal takes on Licence to Kill and Skyfall.
Although this episode is longer than the others in this series, you will definitely want to watch the whole thing. Let us know what you think.