Unscripted - The official podcast of Rotary in Great Britain and Ireland

What does Rotary look like in 2026 and moving into 2027? That is the question at the heart of the October edition of Rotary Unscripted, as Dave King and Alicia Reade welcome three guests from three very different corners of the Rotary world. Joining online from Australia is Evan Burrell, one of Rotary’s most colourful public image advocates; from Germany, Björn Lange, Editor-in-Chief of Rotary Magazin for Germany and Austria; and from Nottingham, Sophie Leadley, who is helping tell the story of one of Britain’s longest-established Rotary clubs and its work with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library. All three are under 50. All three are communicators. But their experiences of Rotary could hardly be more different. --- You have been listening to 'Unscripted', the official podcast of Rotary in Great Britain & Ireland. Unscripted is hosted by Dave King and Alicia Reade. If you’d like to find out more about Rotary or join us, visit rotarygbi.org/join and read more stories in Rotary Magazine at magazine.rotarygbi.org. You can listen to our archive wherever you found this podcast. Please follow us to get new episodes immediately downloaded to your device. If you’ve enjoyed this you can leave us a 5* review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts – it helps to spread the word. We’d love you to share this podcast with friends, family and colleagues inside and outside of Rotary.

In this episode of Rotary Unscripted, we meet Sylvia Whitlock, the pioneering Rotarian whose club took on an 11-year legal battle that reached the US Supreme Court and helped pave the way for women to join Rotary. Sylvia reflects on that remarkable chapter in Rotary’s history, becoming the world’s first female Rotary club president and the changes she has witnessed since. We also turn to one of Rotary’s major humanitarian challenges today. Former Rotary GB&I President Eve Conway shares what she discovered on a recent visit to Zambia, where community health workers are helping tackle malaria on the frontline, while Professor Ben Bradley introduces GIMMEE, a giant interactive mosquito with an important mission: getting people talking about a disease that still claims hundreds of thousands of lives each year. From challenging attitudes within Rotary to tackling disease around the world, three guests share stories which demonstrate what can happen when people decide that the way things are doesn’t have to be the way things remain. --- You have been listening to 'Unscripted', the official podcast of Rotary in Great Britain & Ireland. Unscripted is hosted by Dave King and Alicia Reade. If you’d like to find out more about Rotary or join us, visit rotarygbi.org/join and read more stories in Rotary Magazine at magazine.rotarygbi.org. You can listen to our archive wherever you found this podcast. Please follow us to get new episodes immediately downloaded to your device. If you’ve enjoyed this you can leave us a 5* review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts – it helps to spread the word. We’d love you to share this podcast with friends, family and colleagues inside and outside of Rotary.

On our 1 year anniversary episode, we're joined by Rotary Great Britain & Ireland Chief Executive Amanda Watkin to discuss more than a decade leading the Rotary Support Centre, how Rotary has evolved during that time and the opportunities and challenges facing the organisation in the years ahead. We also speak to to Debbie Vincent, President of Swindon Rotary Club, as the club celebrates its centenary. Their conversation looks back at 100 years of community service and the projects which have shaped one of Rotary's oldest clubs. The programme also focuses on literacy, bringing together Becky Turner, founder of the Rotary GB&I Book Club, and award-winning playwright Joan Greening. Together they discuss reading, writing, book clubs and encouraging young people to discover the pleasure of books before all four guests come together for a round-table discussion on leadership, volunteering, education and community. --- You have been listening to 'Unscripted', the official podcast of Rotary in Great Britain & Ireland. Unscripted is hosted by Dave King and Alicia Reade. If you’d like to find out more about Rotary or join us, visit rotarygbi.org/join and read more stories in Rotary Magazine at magazine.rotarygbi.org. You can listen to our archive wherever you found this podcast. Please follow us to get new episodes immediately downloaded to your device. If you’ve enjoyed this you can leave us a 5* review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts – it helps to spread the word. We’d love you to share this podcast with friends, family and colleagues inside and outside of Rotary.

Food poverty affects millions of people across Great Britain and Ireland, but as the latest edition of ‘Rotary Unscripted’ reveals, the issue is about far more than food alone. The July episode of Rotary Magazine's podcast brings together charity leaders and Rotarians working on the frontline of community support to explore the realities of food insecurity, the pressures facing families and the practical ways communities are responding. The programme begins with Emma Revie, Co-Chief Executive of Trussell, the anti-poverty charity supporting a network of more than 1,400 food bank centres across the United Kingdom. Last year, food banks within the Trussell community distributed more than 2.6 million emergency food parcels. Emma discusses the scale of food poverty today, why many working households are struggling to make ends meet, and the growing demand for support being seen across the country. We also hear from Bromley Rotary Game Changers in south-east London and Brynmawr Rotary Club in South Wales about the projects they're involved in to help tackle the issue of food poverty. --- You have been listening to 'Unscripted', the official podcast of Rotary in Great Britain & Ireland. Unscripted is hosted by Dave King and Alicia Reade. If you’d like to find out more about Rotary or join us, visit rotarygbi.org/join and read more stories in Rotary Magazine at magazine.rotarygbi.org. You can listen to our archive wherever you found this podcast. Please follow us to get new episodes immediately downloaded to your device. If you’ve enjoyed this you can leave us a 5* review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts – it helps to spread the word. We’d love you to share this podcast with friends, family and colleagues inside and outside of Rotary.

This month's special guest on Unscripted is Tom Gump, one of the most recognisable international advocates for modernising Rotary’s membership approach. A Rotary International Director-elect from Minnesota, he has built a reputation around creating flexible, cause-driven clubs focused on issues such as refugee support, anti-human trafficking and veterans’ welfare. The discussion examines whether Rotary’s traditional structures still fit modern volunteering culture, particularly in an era where work patterns, family life and digital communication have fundamentally altered how people engage with organisations. That generational conversation continues with Chloe Rollings, who represents one of the emerging younger leadership voices within Rotary and Rotaract in Great Britain & Ireland. Chloe, whose own Rotary journey began through the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards programme only a few years ago, speaks candidly about perceptions surrounding Rotary among younger professionals. The conversation then shifts towards another crucial question facing Rotary internationally: long-term financial sustainability. Cheryl Law’s interview offers a thoughtful exploration of how The Rotary Foundation increasingly relies not only on annual fundraising but also on planned giving, endowments and major donor support. --- You have been listening to 'Unscripted', the official podcast of Rotary in Great Britain & Ireland. Unscripted is hosted by Dave King and Alicia Reade. If you’d like to find out more about Rotary or join us, visit rotarygbi.org/join and read more stories in Rotary Magazine at magazine.rotarygbi.org. You can listen to our archive wherever you found this podcast. Please follow us to get new episodes immediately downloaded to your device. If you’ve enjoyed this you can leave us a 5* review on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts – it helps to spread the word. We’d love you to share this podcast with friends, family and colleagues inside and outside of Rotary.