🎙️ Ep. 50 – Anne Widdecombe: Politics, Pressure & The Paso
Recorded inside a bee pod, because why not?

What do you get when you mix a political heavyweight, two pals reflecting on 50 episodes and the gentle hum of 60,000 bees? An episode that’s part celebration, part provocation — and 100% Mind Cake.

In this special milestone instalment, Lee Crompton and Paul Beeson sit down with the inimitable Anne Widdecombe to talk mental health, public scrutiny, reality TV resilience and why “nothing lasts forever.”

🔥 Expect discussion on:

• Anne’s take on the mental health conversation — controversial, yes, but revealing

• The difference between stress, struggle and serious illness

• What Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother taught her about pressure

• Freedom of speech in the age of social media

• The unexpected calm of bee therapy

Love her or loathe her, Anne doesn’t hold back. And that’s what makes this episode worth hearing — not to agree, but to listen, reflect and keep the conversation going.

🎧 Listen now and celebrate 50 episodes of curiosity, chaos and cake.

💬 Let us know what you think
📸 Follow us on Instagram @mindcakepodcast
🧠 Catch up on past episodes via linktr.ee/mindcake

What does a box of tangled old cables, a Turkish delight cake and a Netflix documentary about waste all have in common?

They’re all in this episode—along with a deep, funny and practical chat about how clutter affects our mental health.

This week on Mind Cake, we’re joined by Kerri from KC’s Clutter Cure, a professional declutterer who’s seen it all—from overflowing sock drawers to garages that haven’t seen a car since 1998. Kerri takes us through the psychology of clutter, how it impacts our wellbeing, and why the simple act of tidying might be more therapeutic than you think.

We cover:

• 🧠 Why clutter increases anxiety and stress (and it’s not just laziness)

• 📦 What your “clutter tolerance” says about your emotional load

• 🔌 That one box of cables we all pretend we might need someday

• 🍰 A surprise cake chat (yes, Turkish delight is involved)

• 📉 Why things are designed to break—and how that fuels our throwaway culture

• 🏭 A peek at the scale of global waste, the rise of fast-consumption, and what China’s mega shipping ports say about our modern lives

Kerri also shares practical, compassionate tips for:

• Letting go of sentimental items without guilt

• Creating systems that work with your natural habits

• Reframing decluttering as emotional self-care—not punishment

“The brain is incapable of being both creative and anxious at the same time.” — Kerry

Whether you’re a minimalist in training or still hoarding cables “just in case,” this episode will give you permission to let go—and breathe a little easier.

🎧 Listen now and start decluttering more than just your living room.

LINKS:Buy Now! The Shopping Conspiracy

Pulls back the curtain on the world's top brands, exposing the hidden tactics and covert strategies used to keep all of us locked in an endless cycle of buying, no matter the cost.https://www.netflix.com/gb/title/81554996

KC's Clutter Cure

https://kcscluttercure.com/

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What if your dreams are more than just random brain noise?
Renowned dream psychologist Ian Wallace joins Mind Cake to explore how understanding your dream life can unlock emotional growth, creativity — and even control.

In this fascinating episode, we’re joined by psychologist and dream expert Ian Wallace to uncover what our dreams are really trying to tell us — and how we can use them to navigate emotional challenges in waking life.

💤 From recurring nightmares to flying fantasies, we explore:

• 🌙 The surprising connection between our emotions and recurring dream themes

• 💭 How dreams act as emotional problem-solvers — not just random brain static

• 🛌 Lucid dreaming: can you really learn to control your dreams?

• 🧠 Why understanding your unconscious mind can boost your mental health and creativity

• 🤖 The eerie overlap between dream logic and artificial intelligence (yes, really)

Ian also shares his unique perspective on why every dream has meaning, and how we can shift from fearing our dream world to working with it.

If you’ve ever woken up wondering what the hell was that about? — this one’s for you.

🎧 Listen now and explore the psychology of dreaming in a whole new way.

LINKS

Ian Wallace's Website

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