He Left School at 15. They Told Him He Wasn’t Good Enough.

He Left School at 15. They Told Him He Wasn’t Good Enough.

Doug Liversidge CBE grew up on a Sheffield council estate, left school at 15, and was told he wasn’t good enough for the company’s graduate programme. It could have been the end of the story. Instead, it became the beginning. In this first episode of The Digital Forge, Doug reflects on growing up in post-war Sheffield, the teacher who changed his life, his early years at English Steel, winning a scholarship to the University of Sheffield, and the National Service that transformed a shy teenager into a confident leader. Along the way he shares remarkable stories of navigating the Libyan desert with nothing more than a compass and a watch, returning to Sheffield to build a career in Britain’s steel industry, and the lessons that shaped one of the city’s most influential industrial leaders. The episode closes with an unforgettable first meeting in 1979 with a young production engineer called Pam, a woman Doug initially believed wasn’t right for his team. He couldn’t have been more wrong. Subscribe to The Digital Forge on Spotify, Apple Podcasts or YouTube for conversations with the founders, innovators and leaders shaping the future of Britain.

Health Is the New Wealth. Richard Stubbs on the NHS, AI and Britain’s £278 Billion Opportunity

Richard Stubbs believes Britain has been looking at health the wrong way. Not as an economic engine. Not as productivity infrastructure. Not as one of the great determinants of national prosperity. Too often, we treat the NHS as a cost to be managed rather than a platform for growth, prevention and human potential. In Part Two of this conversation with David Richards MBE, Richard argues that poor health is now one of Britain’s biggest economic problems. He explains why prevention, workplace wellbeing, AI, data and regional innovation could unlock enormous productivity gains, keep more people in work and help rebuild communities too often left behind. The conversation moves from the NHS to the workplace, from mental health to musculoskeletal disease, from Yorkshire’s life sciences strengths to the failure of Britain to commercialise its own research. Richard also speaks candidly about race, leadership and institutional power. He explains why diversity in healthcare innovation is not a slogan, but a matter of life and death, including the shocking example of pulse oximeters that did not work properly on darker skin. This is a conversation about the future of the NHS, but also about something bigger: whether Britain can build a healthier, fairer and more productive country. You can also meet speakers like Richard Stubbs live at The Digital Forge, where founders, investors, policymakers and industry leaders come together to explore the future of technology, innovation and regional growth. Find upcoming events and join the community at ForgedForGrowth.com. For more essays, analysis and commentary from David Richards MBE on AI, technology, work and society, subscribe to The Sunday Signal at thesundaysignal.ai [http://thesundaysignal.ai/].

From Orgreave to AI. Richard Stubbs on the NHS, Innovation and the Fight for Health Equity

Richard Stubbs grew up in Maltby, in a mining family shaped by the strike, Orgreave and the long shadow of deindustrialisation. His father fought the state on land that would later become the Advanced Manufacturing Park. A generation later, Richard chaired the region’s economic board on that same ground. That journey sits at the heart of Part One of this conversation. In this episode of The Digital Forge, David Richards MBE speaks to Richard Stubbs, Chief Executive of Health Innovation Yorkshire & Humber, about class, opportunity, the NHS, technology and the future of healthcare. Richard reflects on his mother’s journey from Jamaica to senior NHS leadership, his own path from Maltby to the BBC, and how live television gave him the urgency and resilience he later brought into the health service. Then the conversation moves to the big question: why is the NHS so good at invention, but so slow at adoption? Richard explains why healthcare innovation is not just a technology problem. It is a culture problem. A systems problem. An implementation problem. From fax machines and paper notes to pilots that never scale, he lays bare why the NHS can take years to adopt what already works. The episode then turns to AI, ambient voice technology, patient data, Palantir, clinical risk, trust and the future role of doctors. Richard argues that AI could transform productivity, triage and access, but only if the public trusts it and the system understands the risks of standing still. This is a conversation about the NHS at a breaking point, but also at a moment of extraordinary possibility. If Part One asks whether the NHS can change fast enough, Part Two asks something even bigger: whether health is now the foundation of Britain’s economic future. You can also meet speakers like Richard Stubbs live at The Digital Forge, where founders, investors, policymakers and industry leaders come together to explore the future of technology, innovation and regional growth. Find upcoming events and join the community at ForgedForGrowth.com. For more essays, analysis and commentary from David Richards MBE on AI, technology, work and society, subscribe to The Sunday Signal at thesundaysignal.ai [http://thesundaysignal.ai/]

Stalked for Four Years. It Took Prison to Stop It. Naomi Timperley Part Two.

Naomi Timperley built her career on visibility. Then it became a threat. In Part Two of The Digital Forge, David Richards MBE sits down with Naomi to explore a stalking ordeal that lasted four years, escalated across multiple platforms, and exposed just how unprepared our systems are to deal with this kind of abuse. What began with two brief encounters spiralled into thousands of posts, relentless harassment and a campaign that affected not just Naomi, but multiple victims. Police involvement. Bail breaches. Years of delays. And eventually, a prison sentence. Naomi speaks with clarity and courage about what it actually felt like. The loss of trust. The impact on her health, her work and her family. The fear of simply showing up. And the reality that even after a conviction, the risk does not disappear. This is also a story about failure at scale. Social platforms that did nothing. Systems that moved too slowly. Laws that are still catching up with the way harm is now delivered. And yet, it is also a story about resilience. Naomi shares what she has learned, how she rebuilt her sense of control, and what others can do if they find themselves in the same position. Her message is practical, grounded and hard-won. If Part One was about building influence, Part Two is about what happens when that influence is turned against you. This is not an easy listen. But it is an important one.

From Holiday Rep to Most Influential Woman in UK Tech. Naomi Timperley, Part One

Naomi Timperley did not come through the front door of the tech industry. She built her own way in. In Part One of The Digital Forge, David Richards MBE sits down with Naomi to trace a journey that begins in army towns and travel agencies and ends at the very centre of the UK’s technology ecosystem. Born in Devon, raised across military communities, Naomi describes a childhood shaped by movement, resilience and learning differently. Undiagnosed ADHD meant school never quite fit, but what she lacked in conventional academics, she made up for in instinct, communication and sheer drive. From selling holidays to working as a rep in Bulgaria, to being bullied out of a tech recruitment role, Naomi’s early career was anything but smooth. Then came the pivot. A chance discovery of an American concept led her to launch Baby Loves Disco in the UK, scaling it to nine cities, landing national press before the first event, and turning down investment on Dragons’ Den. What followed was not a business career in the traditional sense, but something far more influential. Naomi helped build the networks, communities and programmes that underpin the North’s tech ecosystem today. From Enterprise Lab to Tech North Advocates, from mentoring founders to championing women in tech, she became one of the most recognisable voices in UK innovation. This is a story about confidence built the hard way. About backing yourself before anyone else does. And about creating opportunity where none existed. Part One ends at the point where everything changes. In Part Two, Naomi speaks about a stalking ordeal that would test her resilience, challenge the systems meant to protect her, and reshape how she thinks about visibility and power.