Evie King – Get Ahead of Being Dead - Planning for death. Getting organised. And all the things you probably haven't even thought about!

This week on Dying for a Cuppa®, I'm delighted to welcome back the wonderful Evie King, author of Get Ahead of Being Dead (and Ashes to Admin)

Evie is an absolute font of knowledge, and thanks to her work within local government dealing with public health funerals, she has a truly unique insight into what happens when someone dies, particularly when plans haven't been made, arrangements aren't in place, or life takes an unexpected turn.

And believe me, there are things you haven't even considered!

This conversation is very much about the practicalities of dying and death. The planning, the paperwork, the decisions, the conversations and all those little details that can make such a difference to the people we leave behind.

We explore the situations we might never imagine finding ourselves in, the assumptions we make about what happens when we die, and why getting our affairs in order isn't just sensible, it's an act of care and CONSIDERATION for ourselves and those we love.

Evie's book, Get Ahead of Being Dead, is packed with practical information, guidance and insight, and this episode gives you a wonderful introduction to why these conversations and preparations matter so much.

As always, Evie is an absolute joy to talk to. She's knowledgeable, refreshingly honest, wonderfully down to earth, and makes even the trickiest subjects feel approachable.

If you've ever thought about getting your affairs in order, planning your funeral, or simply understanding what you need to consider before you die, this really is an episode not to miss.

So grab yourself a cuppa, perhaps a notebook and pen, and join us. There's plenty to learn!

Find Evie's book:

Get Ahead of Being Dead – Available through book retailers, including Amazon.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Get-Ahead-Being-Dead-Planner/dp/180419378X/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

Huge thanks to Match and Dispatch - Outstanding celebrant training for supporting this episode

https://matchanddispatch.com/

© 2026 Katie Costello. Dying for a Cuppa® is a registered trademark of Katie Costello. All rights reserved.

This podcast and its content, including audio recordings, descriptions, and associated materials, are protected by copyright. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission, except for personal, non-commercial use.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect those of any affiliated organisations. This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as professional, legal, or medical advice.

I first saw Silas Armstrong perform at the Child Bereavement UK Christmas concert in December 2025.

I knew a little of his story - Silas and his family had experienced the unimaginable — the death of his three-year-old son, Teddy, from a brain tumour.

What I didn’t know was just how much there was behind that story.

Silas had already connected with and supported Child Bereavement UK before his family found themselves needing the charity’s support personally. And in this episode of Dying for a Cuppa®, he shares with extraordinary openness what life has looked like since Teddy died.

We talk about Teddy, his life and his death. About being his dad. About the diagnosis and the realities of navigating hospitals and healthcare, including, very honestly, some of the good, the bad and the ugly.

We talk about what grief does to a person.

We also explore faith and spirituality, and how reaching towards something beyond ourselves can sometimes help us find connection or meaning when absolutely nothing about what has happened makes sense.

And then there is music.

Silas is an independent British artist whose music has achieved more than 55 million streams across platforms and projects. In 2024, an Instagram Reel featuring his music reached more than 60 million views, while his album About Time produced five consecutive BBC Introducing Track of the Day selections.

Music has always been part of Silas’s life — he began playing and performing at just 11 years old — but following Teddy’s death, it has also provided somewhere for grief to go.

We talk about creativity, songwriting and using music to express some of the things for which ordinary words simply aren’t enough.

This is a conversation about the death of a child, so inevitably there are parts that are incredibly difficult. But it isn’t only about death.

It’s about Teddy’s life. A father’s love. Grief. Music. Faith. Relationships. Anger. Hope. And somehow learning how to continue living when your world has changed forever.

Silas trusted me with an incredibly personal conversation, and I’m very grateful that he did.

Grab a cuppa and join us. ☕️❤️

Please also take some time to discover Silas’s music and support the work of Child Bereavement UK.

https://www.youtube.com/@silasarmstrong

https://www.childbereavementuk.org/?gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=1693143101&gbraid=0AAAAADrvdLQ4kGXotrqjFlmg879OvLwG2&gclid=CjwKCAjwnvTUBhBoEiwAZNDxZ0CdFnkmYuqXtYeDneGgMA7EXQxXWOsM2Rvo9G9jT3ZadUX_6gXgeBoCrzgQAvD_BwE

Huge thanks to Match and Dispatch - Outstanding celebrant training for supporting this episode

https://matchanddispatch.com/

© 2026 Katie Costello. Dying for a Cuppa® is a registered trademark of Katie Costello. All rights reserved.

This podcast and its content, including audio recordings, descriptions, and associated materials, are protected by copyright. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission, except for personal, non-commercial use.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect those of any affiliated organisations. This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as professional, legal, or medical advice.

I’ll admit it. I had a bit of a fangirl moment with this one!!

For years, I’ve followed Hospice Nurse Penny — Penny Hawkins Smith from across the pond, watching her talk about death and dying with the kind of honesty, humour and straight-talking approach that I absolutely love.

Penny is a nationally certified hospice and palliative care nurse with more than 17 years’ experience. During the pandemic, she took her death education onto social media — using straight talk, storytelling, humour and the occasional TikTok trend to make conversations about dying accessible to millions of people around the world.

Today, her community across TikTok, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube exceeds two million followers.

So having Penny join me on Dying for a Cuppa® was a real privilege.

We go right back to the beginning — how she found her way into nursing and hospice care, what years alongside dying people have taught her, and how social media unexpectedly gave her a platform to educate people on an extraordinary scale. And, unsurprisingly, we talk very openly about dying.

What actually happens to our bodies. Why understanding the dying process can take away so much fear. The expectations families can carry. And why avoiding conversations about death doesn’t stop death from happening.

We also explore faith, spirituality and belief at the end of life — including the assumptions and expectations that can sometimes be projected onto dying people, and what Penny has actually witnessed after years of caring for people with many different beliefs and none.

Penny is refreshingly open on social media about her own journey and the experiences that have shaped the woman she is today — something I think is a huge part of why people connect with her.

No fluff. No euphemisms. Just an honest conversation about something that happens to every single one of us.

I absolutely loved this one!!

Two death educators. Two sides of the Atlantic. One very frank conversation about dying. Grab a cuppa and let us know what you think! ☕️❤️

You can find Penny, her work and her book Influencing Death: Reframing Dying for Better Living at Hospice Nurse Penny⁠.

https://www.hospicenursepenny.com/about

https://www.hospicenursepenny.com/book

Huge thanks to Match and Dispatch - Outstanding celebrant training for supporting this episode

⁠https://matchanddispatch.com/⁠

© 2026 Katie Costello. Dying for a Cuppa® is a registered trademark of Katie Costello. All rights reserved.

This podcast and its content, including audio recordings, descriptions, and associated materials, are protected by copyright. No part of this podcast may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission, except for personal, non-commercial use.

The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect those of any affiliated organisations. This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not intended as professional, legal, or medical advice.