Explore every episode of the podcast In At The Deep End
| Title | Pub. Date | Duration | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Welcome to In At The Deep End | 04 Feb 2026 | 00:01:56 | |
Welcome to In at the Deep End, a new podcast hosted by swim coach Salim Ahmed. In this trailer you'll get a glimpse into the kinds of stories featured on the show: honest conversations with people whose lives have been shaped by swimming in ways that go far beyond the pool. Stories about resilience, identity, loss, ambition and the moments when the water became a place to think, heal, push on or start again. If swimming has ever meant more to you than just lengths and times, this is where it begins.
| |||
| Swimming as an escape from work in a war zone - with Dr Victoria 'Rosie' Rose | 10 Mar 2026 | 00:30:58 | |
In this debut episode of In At The Deep End, host and swim coach Salim Ahmed welcomes his first guest, Dr Victoria Rose - or 'Rosie' as he knows her - a consultant plastic surgeon whose life is defined by two remarkable worlds: the operating theatres of London hospitals and the war-torn hospitals of Gaza. Rosie shares her journey from dedicated runner to passionate swimmer, how a serious knee injury changed everything and why swimming has become a lifeline - not just physically, but mentally and emotionally - as she processes the harrowing work of treating children with blast, burn, and bullet injuries in one of the world's most dangerous conflict zones. Key themes in this episode:
Swimming & Open Water
Swim with Salim
Organisations Mentioned
Dr Victoria Rose Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...
| |||
| When swimming becomes a breast cancer lifeline - with Dr Mei-Ling Lancashire | 24 Mar 2026 | 00:35:02 | |
In Episode 2 of In At The Deep End, Salim is joined by Dr Mei-Ling Lancashire - GP, cancer survivor, single mum and swimmer. At the peak of her fitness, Mei-Ling discovered a breast lump and, as a GP with a background in breast cancer research, knew instantly what it meant. What followed was an aggressive diagnosis, gruelling chemotherapy, a double mastectomy and the challenge of holding everything together for her two young daughters. Swimming became her lifeline. From a childhood passion, cut short by societal misconceptions, to a primal fear of deep water and, eventually, open-water sessions at Shepperton Lake, her relationship with the water has been anything but simple. And that's exactly what makes her story so powerful. Key themes in this episode:
Useful Links Swimming & Open Water
Swim with Salim Cancer Awareness
Dr Mei-Ling Lancashire
Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...
| |||
| From operating table to open water - Adam Filby on liver donation, recovery and Ironman | 07 Apr 2026 | 00:42:13 | |
In Episode 3, Salim is joined by Adam Filby - technology professional, fundraiser, triathlete and dad. In May 2017, on the same day the WannaCry cyberattack was tearing through NHS systems across the country, Adam was on an operating table donating part of his liver to his seven-year-old daughter Florence, who had been born with a life-threatening liver condition. He came round from the anaesthetic not in intensive care, but in a makeshift room in a hospital corridor, and within 24 hours had signed up for an Ironman. Adam's relationship with swimming began years earlier, quietly shaped by the knowledge that one day his daughter might need him to be in the best possible shape. What followed was a journey from a man who could barely swim 50 metres, through triathlons, half Ironmans and four full Ironmans, to someone for whom the open water has become the place he finds the same peace he once found running through a forest the night before the operation. This is a story about love, purpose, the human body's extraordinary capacity to heal and what happens when you refuse to set a limit on what you might be capable of. Key themes in this episode:
Useful Links Swimming & Open Water
Swim with Salim Organ Donation
Adam Filby Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...
| |||
| Breaking records at 95 and loving life - with the inspirational Jane Asher BEM | 21 Apr 2026 | 00:50:00 | |
What does a life fully lived in the water look like? For Jane Asher, it looks like five world records broken in a single weekend, at the age of 95. A South London swimming legend and great-grandmother, Jane didn't even begin her competitive career until she was 55. Since then, she has become one of Masters swimming's most remarkable figures, currently holding world records in the 95–99 age group across the 50m, 100m, 200m, individual medley, and 50m backstroke. In this conversation, Salim sits down with Jane to trace the extraordinary arc of her life, from clandestine boarding school pool sessions in 1940s Johannesburg and witnessing apartheid at close quarters, to coaching the next generation and returning to competition in her late 50s. Jane reflects on the joy that has kept her in the water for over eight decades, the friendships swimming has given her across the world, and why she still does tumble turns.
Useful Links Swimming & Open Water
Swim with Salim Jane's record breaking achievements Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...
| |||
| How cold water carried me through midlife - with Lorraine Candy | 05 May 2026 | 00:51:44 | |
Lorraine Candy is one of Britain's most recognisable media voices. She is the former editor of Cosmopolitan, Elle and The Sunday Times Style, she's also a Sunday Times bestselling author and co-host of the hugely popular Postcards from Midlife podcast. But in this episode, it's not the magazine covers or the bestseller lists that take centre stage. It's the water. Lorraine came to open water swimming at 47, after a panic attack during a sprint triathlon left her terrified and determined never to feel that way again. What followed was a decade-long journey that she describes, without exaggeration, as the single thing that has most improved her life. In this episode Salim and Lorraine talk about what cold water actually gave her during the hardest years of perimenopause, why community is the most underreported benefit of open water swimming, and how the two of them ended up working together on something many swimmers avoid facing: going faster. It's a rich, honest conversation about bravery, belonging, and what it means to find a sport that will carry you through the rest of your life. In this episode:
Useful Links Lorraine Candy
Swimming & Open Water
Swim with Salim Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...
| |||
| Trailblazing Olympian Alice Dearing: Burnout, belonging & The Black Swimming Association | 19 May 2026 | 00:57:11 | |
Olympian. Marathon swimmer. History-maker. In this episode of In At The Deep End, Salim sits down with Alice Dearing, the first black woman to represent Team GB in Olympic swimming. But this conversation goes far beyond medals and Olympic qualification. Alice opens up about the emotional reality of elite sport: the burnout, the self-doubt, the pressure of representation and the strange tension between making history while simply wanting to perform well as an athlete. Together, Salim and Alice explore:
It’s an honest, thoughtful and timely conversation about water, identity, resilience and breaking down barriers. If you enjoy the episode, please follow In At The Deep End, leave a rating or review and share it with someone who’d love it too. Useful Links Alice Dearing
Swim with Salim Swimming & Open Water
| |||
| How Simon Griffiths built a magazine from scratch and got faster as he got older. | 02 Jun 2026 | 01:05:58 | |
In 2011, there was no magazine for people who swam outdoors. No shared home for the stories, the training, the destinations, the growing community of people quietly falling in love with open water. So Simon Griffiths made one. As the founder and publisher of Outdoor Swimmer, he helped give a movement a voice, and in doing so built one of the most quietly influential publications in UK sport. But the story behind the magazine is more personal, and more compelling, than the cover lines suggest. Simon started Outdoor Swimmer in the aftermath of the worst thing that had ever happened to him, driven by a need to keep moving, to build something and to stay afloat. More than a decade on, he is still doing exactly that, now turning 60 with a personal best 100m time, training across every stroke and distance, and launching the Renaissance Swimmer Project, a new venture that asks what swimming might unlock in the rest of your life. Together, Salim and Simon explore:
Useful links
Swim with Salim Be a part of the show: Here's how to get in touch...
| |||