103. Jennie - perpetual optimist, community volunteer

103. Jennie - perpetual optimist, community volunteer

Early on a sunny morning we chat about a dog who brings calm, a difficult childhood, community gardening, and not getting on with your Mum. "Everyone goes through sh*t, but it's how you come out of that, that shapes who you are as a human being... because I had lots of horrible experiences growing up, that hasn't shaped me as a person, it hasn't made me bitter, it hasn't made me twisted". #otherlivesareavailable #podcast #eastlondon #parents

102. Anne - future pilot

This chat by the Thames starts with a love of planes, then goes on to the history of a family divided by World War II, the excitement of taking part in student protests in communist Poland, and why the Chernobyl nuclear accident still affects Anne's health. "I was feeling like I was in a real battle, the noise of it, the shouts... and then there was the gas... as young people we were going to change that horrible boring country and change it for something better". #otherlivesareavailable #podcast #eastlondon #poland

101. Hussey - ice cream enthusiast

This chat on a hot sunny day @mario_icecream is about a family business, giving up your summers, and working hard at a job you love. "If you look back into the 1980s, I believe across the whole UK there was over 68,000 ice cream traders, however … we are now down to around 8,400, because it’s a dying industry. And it’s a shame because it’s part of British culture… when there’s no ice cream vans in Britain it’s going to  be a very sad day.”  #otherlivesareavailable #eastlondon #podcast #icecream

100. Nigel - social butterfly

This chat in Bethnal Green is about the social benefit of a charity shop, buying a coffee for a stranger, the shrinking geography of London with age, and cleaning a telephone box. “If you’re someone who lives alone and you’re in your late 70s or late 80s… just to have interaction with a human being is absolutely fabulous… and sometimes they turn round, especially in winter time, and say ‘thank you very much, I haven’t seen anyone for 3 days’”. #otherlivesareavailable #podcast #eastlondon #charityshop

99. Antonia - thinker

This chat on a stormy day is about figuring out your identity at 19, learning to be an adult, french military service lasting one day, being stood up on a date, the comfort of your home area, losing friends as a teenager and learning to win them back. “I fell out with my friends, and my automatic response was just like ‘I’m going to be your worst nightmare!’… everybody was against me, for good reason to be fair, I was crazy!… so I was like ‘everything I’ve done so far hasn’t worked’…  I need to be more of a loving person to others and to myself”. #otherlivesareavailable #podcast #eastlondon #stratford