Share

cover art for Amol Rajan on redefining ambition, balancing family life, and the art of conversation

White Wine Question Time

Amol Rajan on redefining ambition, balancing family life, and the art of conversation

Joining us today is a man whose voice is at the heart of some of the BBC’s most powerful conversations. He’s an award-winning journalist, interviewer, and radio presenter known for his quick wit, depth, and relentless curiosity: it’s the brilliant Amol Rajan!


In this episode, Amol takes us through his fascinating journey from a state school in Tooting to the hallowed halls of Cambridge, reflecting on the mentors who helped shape his career and the tenacity that led him to become the youngest-ever editor of The Independent. He also opens up about the challenges of balancing a demanding broadcasting career with fatherhood, his unique approach to interviews that have drawn icons like Bill Gates, Nile Rodgers and Billie Jean King, and the life-changing impact of losing his father. With humour and heart, Amol shares his philosophy on ambition, resilience, and the joys of family life, offering a glimpse into what drives him both on and off the air.


If you’re eager for more, catch Amol on The Today Programme, University Challenge, and his acclaimed BBC interview series.


For all the latest news, click here to follow us on Instagram!


***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!***

More episodes

View all episodes

  • Something from the Cellar: Great Confessions

    20:26|
    Today, we're diving into some of the most unforgettable confessions and astonishing revelations we’ve heard on the show.Join us for a wild hen night story from the Duchess of York, where she and the late Princess Diana found themselves in quite the predicament. We also revisit Ade Edmondson’s candid reflection on his complex relationship with his father, a dynamic that profoundly shaped his own approach to parenting. And, of course, we can’t forget Bez, who shares his most outrageous moment at Glastonbury – a tale that’s guaranteed to leave you astonished!For more laughs, gasps, and heartfelt moments, listen to the full episodes here: Duchess of York, Ade Edmondson, and Bez!For all the latest news, click here to follow us on Instagram!***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!***
  • Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen on challenging the norm, proper countryside living and design disasters

    01:11:22|
    Today's guest is a pantomime design dandy who's fantastically extra on every level. He's an interior designer and TV personality who has spent almost three decades on screen telling us what to do with our homes: it's Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen! Now in "so-called retirement", Laurence fills his time with about as wide a range of design tasks as possible. He joins us to chat about where those hobbies have taken him, what he's learned from three decades on screen and how he really feels about the design disasters people earnestly credit him for so often! For all the latest news, click here to follow us on Instagram!***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!***
  • Something from the cellar: Vicky Pattison

    47:11|
    With November on the horizon, we're gearing up for another wild season of I'm a Celeb! To celebrate, we're dusting off a fan-favourite episode with none other than the 2015 Jungle Queen herself: the lovely Vicky Pattison! Join us as we dive back into her world of life, love, and all the juicy bits in between.For all the latest news, click here to follow us on Instagram!***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!***
  • Vanessa Feltz on shaking off expectations, living life to its fullest, and the best of her broadcasting

    48:50|
    Our guest today is a hugely impressive woman who can turn her hand seamlessly to just about anything: it’s legendary broadcaster and journalist, Vanessa Feltz!We spoke to Vanessa ahead of the release of her deeply personal autobiography - the book she swore she’d never write - about the ups and downs of an amazing professional and personal life. It’s an inspiring, occasionally heartbreaking lesson in resilience, persistence and insisting on having a bloody good time whenever possible!Grab your copy of Vanessa's new autobiography 'Vanessa Bares All' right here! For all the latest news, click here to follow us on Instagram!***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!***
  • Something from the Cellar: Post menopause and life beyond

    27:10|
    This week, we’re wrapping up Menopause Awareness Month with an inspiring lineup of women who’ve come out the other side!First, Sex and the City creator Candace Bushnell shares how post-menopause is her most empowering chapter yet - and dishes on the new trend of 70-something weddings! Next, Kaye Adams opens up about overcoming her age-phobic past and embracing her 60s with confidence. And finally, the cast of Dun Breedin’ - Julie Graham, Angela Griffin, Denise Welch, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Alison Newman, and Tamzin Outhwaite - reflect on womanhood and offer advice to their younger selves!Loved these chats? Click here to listen to the full episodes now: Candace Bushnell, Kaye Adams and the cast of Dun Breedin!For all the latest news, click here to follow us on Instagram!***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!***
  • Johnny Vaughan on mastering radio, managing pressure and breakfast TV chaos

    52:22|
    Joining us today is a man whose voice is synonymous with radio greatness and whose charm, sharp wit, and quick humour has made him a favourite on our screens. He knows how to keep an audience hooked: it’s the brilliant Johnny Vaughan!In this episode, Johnny looks back at his time working on The Big Breakfast, reflecting on the challenge of stepping into big shoes and how he quickly made the role distinctly his own. He also shares how he’s built one of radio’s most loyal audiences, navigated the pressures of being one of the BBC’s highest-paid presenters and how some hilarious interviews led to delightfully unexpected friendships with legends like David Bowie and George Michael.If you can’t get enough of him, tune into The 4 to 7 Thang every weekday on Radio X.For all the latest news, click here to follow us on Instagram!***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!***
  • Menopause Awareness Month 2024: “Your podcast might have saved our marriage.”

    56:00|
    Today, instead of taking our regular trip down to the cellar, Kate welcomes Lynn and Terry, two White Wine Question Time listeners who bravely share how our menopause series has transformed their relationship in such a difficult life stage.In this candid chat, they reflect on the challenges menopause can bring to our closest relationships, and how, with a little support and allyship, they found a way through. But that’s not all – Kate also catches up with her (and Lynn’s!) personal trainer, Richie, to get expert advice on how exercise during menopause and perimenopause can reduce stress and boost your mood in a time you need it most.You can find the rest of our menopause series here: The Menopause - and what’s next with Tamzin Outhwaite and Dr. Lydia Robertson, Bridging the age gap on Menopause Awareness and World Menopause Day with Lisa Snowdon & Dr. Naomi Potter.If, like Lynn and Terry, our episodes have made a difference to your menopause journey, we’d love to hear your story - drop us a message on Instagram here!***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!***
  • Sarah Parish on acting adventures, her worst jobs and overcoming unthinkable tragedy

    52:54|
    You’ll no doubt recognise today’s guest from some of the biggest shows on British TV over the last two decades - from Peak Practice and Doctor Who to Bancroft and Industry. And if not those, then definitely that insane Boddingtons beer advert in 1994: it’s Sarah Parish!Sarah joins Kate on the show a few years late - she explains everything - for a chat about some of the scarcely believable acting gigs she’s had, how tragedy has shaped her incredible charity work and some of the scrapes she’s gotten herself into while living her life to the absolute fullest!Catch Sarah in the new Paramount+ drama Curfew right here!For all the latest news, click here to follow us on Instagram!***Please take the time to rate and review us on Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your pods. It means a great deal to the show and will make it easier for other potential listeners to find us. Thanks!***