Share

A Little Birdie Told Me
#80 Harrison Gardner On Changing The World With His Ballerina Builders
On Episode 3 of Season 7 of A Little Birdie Told Me Rebecca talks to Harrison Gardner.
Harrison is a builder, tv presenter, author and teacher and the proud father of two little girls with his wife Erin. Harrison is originally from Australia and is passionate about self-building and creating communities where people can thrive and live self-sufficient lives with their families. He is educating people on to build their own homes, learning the skills to build everything from a wall to a kitchen table.
Harrison grew up north of Sydney in Australia to his South African parents. He discussed his childhood which was both lonely and adventurous at the same time, he discussed the culture in Australia at the time, his parents separation when he was 16 and the want to get out of Australia and travel and escape the life he was living.
Harrison worked in Africa and Asia before coming to Ireland and meeting his wife Erin on a chance encounter while serving coffee in the Fumbally Café in Dublin.
Harrison and Erin have since bought a cottage in Clare and Harrison has been adding to it and improving on it for years, the couple have two daughters who call themselves the ballerina builders and who they want to be able to be self sufficient and resilient and be able to build their own homes.
This is a conversation about following your heart and where it can lead you.
More episodes
View all episodes

2. #121 Mandy Maher On Persevering Through The Toughest Of Times
38:39||Season 11, Ep. 2On Season 11 Episode 2 of A Little Birdie Told me, Rebecca Horan is joined by Mandy Maher. Mandy is a popular model agent, owner of Catwalk Model Agency, The Platform by MM, a Television Stylist and of course a mother. Mandy and Rebecca have a conversation about Mandy's upbringing and how her mother's tenacity helped shape Mandy's strength of character and work ethic in her formative years. Mandy talks about meeting her husband Ger when she was just 19 and their life together raising their young family while working, Mandy also opens up about her successful businesses but how Covid nearly broke her and how she constantly pivoted in order to stay relevant and in business.
1. #120 Jennifer Wrynne On Her Cancer Battle While Parenting 4 Children
46:15||Season 11, Ep. 1On Episode 1 of Season 11 of A Little Birdie Told Me host Rebecca Horan talks to Jennifer Wrynne. Jennifer is an acclaimed Irish milliner and mum of four children. Jennifer discusses her harrowing cancer diagnosis only weeks after having her baby, she talks about the shock and affect on her family, she also opens up about the toll it has taken on her physically and the treatment and prognosis. On a lighter note Jennifer speaks to Rebecca about her relationship with her husband and how they met many years ago before reconnecting as adults, the surprise at getting pregnant with twins and being a mum to four. She also gets real about the hard work that goes into her successful Millinery business and well-loved profile in Ireland.
12. #119 Hazel Burton On Her Life-Changing Career Change And How It Improved Family Life
44:22||Season 10, Ep. 12On Season 10 Episode 12 of A Little Birdie Told Me, the final episode of this season, Rebecca talks to Hazel Burton. Hazel started the HomeReset.ie after working in corporate finance for over a decade and wanting more from her life, more joy, more balance and to do more of what she loves. The Home Reset is a home organising business, Hazel and her team do everything from sorting, decluttering to full house moves and storage. Hazel has worked with some big Irish names since she setup her company and is thriving and opens up to Rebecca about her journey from finance to female entrepruener and how her new life has impacted and enhanced her family.
11. #118 Isabel Gleeson On Finding Her Style And Voice After The Birth Of Her First Child
26:15||Season 10, Ep. 11On Season 10 Episode 11 of A Little Birdie Told Me host Rebecca Horan talks to Isabel Gleeson. Isabel is a stylist and personal shopper, known as styledbyisabel on Instagram. Isabel has had a very busy few years; she moved back from working in retail in London, got married to her college love, moved house from the city to the country and gave birth to her first baby, baby Cohen. Isabel gave Rebecca a first on this episode because baby Cohen was sitting with Isabel for the entire episode and was as good as gold. Isabel opened up about her pregnancy journey, her choice not to breastfeed, how easy-going her baby has been and how much she loves being a mother and is the happiest she has ever been. Isabel works for herself and takes styling and personal shopping clients on in between being a full-time mother.
10. #117 Psychotherapist Debbie Cullinane On Letting Go Of Her Past And Finally Living Her Best Life
46:25||Season 10, Ep. 10On Season 10 Episode 10 of A Little Birdie Told Me, host Rebecca Horan talks to Debbie Cullinane. Debbie is a leading child and adolescent Psychotherapist, she also hosts a podcast with Hayley Rice called "Is it just us?" and is a mum to two children. Debbie chats to Rebecca about her happy family life in Mayo and learning from her challenging past. Debbie also discussed what makes a home calm and caring and how to build a prosperous family life and her incredible work as a psychotherapist.
9. #116 Nutritionist Samantha Forrest On Her Back To Back Pregnancies And The Birth Of Her Business
39:09||Season 10, Ep. 9On Season 10 Episode 9 of A Little Birdie Told Me host Rebecca Horan talks to Samantha Forrest. Samantha is a nutritionist, the owner of the Irish business Fussy Food Plates and mum of three. Samantha spoke to Rebecca about her shock at having two pregnancies back to back and how she coped. Her and her husband then went on to have a third child years later. She also opened up about her training in science and work in pharma which led her to designing Fussy Food Plates for children who struggle to eat a variety of foods. Samantha is a qualified nutritionist and she spoke about how she felt she lost her identity after pregnancy and what she does now to stay fit and healthy and strong. This is an inspiring chat about overcoming challenges and true entrepreneurship.
8. #115 Kelly Donegan From Tallafornia To Two Under Two And Finding Her Joy As A Mother
41:55||Season 10, Ep. 8On Season 10 Episode 8 of A Little Birdie Told Me host Rebecca Horan speaks to Kelly Donegan. Kelly is a former reality TV star and featured in two seasons of Tallafornia, she is a podcaster, pilates coach and mum of two. Kelly and Rebecca had a very open and fun chat about parenting two children under 2, how she met her Hungarian boyfriend, her modelling career and pivot into fitness and her birth stories - two very different experiences.
7. #114 Becca Mehigan On Her Struggles With Colic And Breastfeeding And How She Found Her Calm
50:28||Season 10, Ep. 7On Season 10 Episode 7 of A Little Birdie Told Me, host Rebecca Horan talks to Becca Mehigan. Becca is a yoga practitioner, has a Masters in mindfulness based intervention and she loves to help people recover their busy brain. Becca is based in Dublin and is married to Dave Carney and they have a baby boy Zach. Becca opens up to Rebecca about her journey to motherhood, her struggles with colic, breastfeeding and the challenges she overcame. She also discussed her past life in corporate, her new career and grief and how she worked through it.
6. #113 Tanaiste Simon Harris Opens Up About His Childhood, Family Life And Hopes For The Future
33:49||Season 10, Ep. 6On Season 10 Episode 6 of A Little Birdie Told Me host Rebecca Horan talks to Tanaiste Simon Harris. Simon sat down to talk to Rebecca about his childhood, the birth of his brother Adam Harris who was diagnosed with Autism at a young age and his sister who he said is the glue in the Harris family. Simon spoke about how his parents battled to advocate for Adam and how this forced them all to grow up a lot quicker. As he turns 40 this year Simon also opened up about his early start in politics, his advocacy and campaigning work and family life. Simon then spoke to Rebecca about his hope to bring in a ban for under 16s on social media in Ireland and his hopes for the country in a national housing and cost of living crisis.