Rugby Lives – Details, episodes & analysis

Welcome to Rugby Lives, a brand-new podcast from the award-winning Rugby Journal, welcoming guests from beyond the sport to talk about their passion for the oval ball game.

Two Michelin-starred chef and lifelong Gloucester fan Tom Kerridge talks about his love for the Cherry & Whites, growing up in the west country and the role models he found at his local club. This is his Rugby Life.

Better known as Ben from BBC's Outnumbered, Danny Roche joins us to talk about suddenly becoming good at rugby, playing with future England stars and why he's still lacing up his boots today. And, of course, what it's like to be part of one of TV's most famous families. This is his Rugby Life.

The Irish-Italian comedian who sold out the Edinburgh Fringe, has played at the Proms, and recently scored his first try for new club Haringey Rhinos joins us to talk all things from rugby's sectarian divide in Northern Ireland to pissing off Piers Morgan. This is his Rugby Life.

This week we're in Westminster to meet the only sitting British MP to have played rugby for their country, Labour's MP for Gower, Tonia Antoniazzi. The former Wales prop shares stories of the early days of women's rugby, playing for Benetton Treviso and the 1998 World Cup. She explains why she's getting involved at the coalface for her beloved Scarlets, and how she's helping drive through change in the Welsh game. This is her Rugby Life.

This week we're joined by Adam Bishop, a two-time winner of Britain's Strongest Man and former S&C coach at Harlequins. We ask him about his time in rugby, his target of deadlifting 505 kilos and who would be in a Strongman sevens team. This is his Rugby Life.

In a special episode of Rugby Lives we meet Bryn Meredith, the three-time British and Irish Lions tourist and truly one of the greats of the game. The 94-year-old tells us about growing under the shadow of World War Two, playing his first game of rugby in his school shoes, and why he would still, if asked, pull his boots on today. This is his Rugby Life.

This week we speak to a man who played for British & Irish Lions, won Grand Slams with England and was the body double for Hagrid in the Harry Potter movies, Martin Bayfield. We talk about his life in the wizarding world, almost landing the role of Darth Vader, and even some rugby too, from the legendary 90s England team to the heartbreak of retirement. This is his Rugby Life.

This week we speak to Jill Douglas, the legendary presenter who's been part and parcel of the Six Nations since the late 1990s. From her upbringing in the rugby heartlands of the Scottish Borders, Jill tells us about her rugby folk singing father, her friendship with Doddie Weir, what happens when snooker players get angry, and why proper journalism matters. This is her Rugby Life.

We kick off Series Two with former Wales and British & Irish Lion John Taylor, who remembers when he first came across JPR Williams, the victory of 1971, refusing to play against apartheid South Africa, rooming with the great Willie John McBride, and becoming mates with George Best. This is his Rugby Life.