Every success story you've ever been told is incomplete. How To Fail with Elizabeth Day is the part they leave out. Each week, Sunday Times #1 bestselling author Elizabeth Day sits down with someone extraordinary - and asks them about the moments that didn’t go according to plan and how these failures shaped them. Kate Winslet on body image. Malala Yousafzai on rewriting her story. Pamela Anderson on refuting shame. Phoebe Waller-Bridge on creativity. Salman Rushdie on survival. Emilia Clarke on fame. What happens when the people you most admire stop performing and start telling the truth? Five hundred episodes in, we're still finding out. With sold-out nights at the London Palladium and Sydney Opera House, millions of listeners worldwide, and a British Podcast Award to its name, How To Fail is one of the UK's most successful podcasts. And yes, we're aware of the irony. Pick an episode. Start anywhere. An Elizabeth Day and Sony Music Entertainment production. All guest booking is managed from an official Sony Music email address. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow @sonypodcastsTo bring your brand to life in this podcast, email podcastadsales@sonymusic.com
What this show covers
Grieffailurecreativityfamilyrelationshipspoliticsmental healthfeminismsobrietyfriendshipmotherhoodThe PartyTV adaptationLuke EvansSarah Solemani
What listeners will find here
How The Party became TV: Luke Evans, Sarah Solemani and Elizabeth Day unpack the adaptation
The Party is the focus here as Luke Evans, Sarah Solemani and Elizabeth Day trace the path from 2017 novel to a five-part ITV drama. They get into how the project began, what the story explores, and the creative choices behind adapting it for screen.
Bonnie Garmus on adoption, resilience, and the long road to Lessons in Chemistry
Bonnie Garmus discusses the success of Lessons in Chemistry alongside the personal experiences that shaped it, from sexism and stuttering to adoption and repeated rejection. It’s a wide-ranging conversation about family, creativity, and persistence later in life.
Russell T Davies on Doctor Who, loss, creativity and changing TV
Russell T Davies talks about the forces behind his career, from an early obsession with television to the creative instincts that shaped Queer as Folk, It’s A Sin and Doctor Who. The episode also turns deeply personal, touching on grief, memory and finding love again.
Paul Smith on insecurity, independence and the accident that changed everything
Fashion is the starting point, but this episode ranges far beyond clothes. Sir Paul Smith reflects on the cycling crash that redirected his life, the values behind 56 years of independence, and what tailoring reveals about confidence, comparison and staying grounded.
Louise O’Neill on heartbreak, dating across three cities, and believing recovery is possible
Louise O’Neill discusses her memoir A Bigger Life, from a post-breakup dating experiment in Paris, London and New York to the deeper questions it raised about hope, vulnerability and identity. The conversation also explores pressure on women, aging, and recovery from a long-term eating disorder.
Episodes
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