Dig It with Jo Whiley and Zoe Ball - 101: Solo Holidays, Sore Bones and Freaky Dreams

Episode Date: June 10, 2026

Zoe dials in from a sunshine-soaked retreat in Portugal while Jo battles another week of rain, flattened roses and garden rescue missions.Special mentions to strange recurring dreams, midnight dog patrols, sleep routines and aching joints!Watch or listen now. GET IN TOUCH📧 Email us: [e-mail]📱 Text or Voice Note: 07477 038795💬 Or tap here to send a voice note or message on WhatsApp:⁠ ⁠https://wa.me/447477038795SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR SPONSORSThis episode is brought to you by:🍓 Belvoir Farm -  Made with real fruit juices, real flowers and natural ingredients, Belvoir Farm drinks contain no artificial sweeteners, flavourings or preservatives. Enjoy them chilled from the fridge for the freshest flavour. Available in major supermarkets nationwide.  https://belvoirfarm.co.uk/ 🛍️QVC — Summer gatherings always seem to end up in the garden, so why not make the space feel extra special? Explore My Garden Escape at www.qvcuk.com and use code QDIGIT for £10 off your first order. Minimum spend applies and full terms are on the QVC website.🩲 Stripe & Stare - Stripe & Stare’s super-soft knickers, sleepwear and everyday essentials are made from breathable natural fibres sourced from responsibly grown trees, with beautiful colours and styles designed for all-day comfort. Use code DIG20 at Stripe & Stare for 20% off your order. https://stripeandstare.com/CREDITSExec Producer: Jonathan O’SullivanProducer: Harriet Thurley & Samantha PsykAssistant Producer: Eve JonesTechnical Producer: Oliver GeraghtyVideo Editors: Cameron Laird and Jack Whiteside 

Coming up on Dig It. You know that dream when you're bashing on a window and you're trying to shout at someone? Yeah. Usually they can't hear you because it's, you know, it's like someone resolves situation that you go back over and over again. Yesterday I thought, forget about what it was like at school when no one picked you for their team. So I went yesterday to learn how to play pickle ball and paddle. I've always thought it's quite cruel, Joe, that my name is Ball and I am hopeless at all sports that involve one. I let him out at one o'clock.

I let him out at five o'clock. Nobody else wakes up at all. Part of me just wants to go and hammer on everybody's doors just going, can you hear the dog? Can you hear the dog? All of that right after this. With Trex, you get the most of everything, the most wood inspired,

the most eco-friendly, the most decking and railing designs, the most trusted. Trex, performance engineered for your life outdoors. Visit Trex.com today. Right, let's get this out of the way to start off with, right? So I had to come from my house to where I, I'm recording the studio now with an umbrella and I got absolutely drenched and I had to bring a hairdry over to dry my hair.

So I'm sat here feeling very soggy and very bedraggled. Where the hell are you? What's going on? Oh, I'm, yeah, I'm soggy and bedraggled and the weather here is terrible. I have escaped. I have come to Jason Vale's brand new, juicy escape, which is in the south of Portugal. is it about 50 minutes from Pharaoh and can I just say someone

my lovely mate is looking off to my house on the cat by the way before everyone goes. Yeah, don't get any ideas. Her house is empty. Don't worry. There's no one I can leave Wilbur and the garden without someone caring for both. I mean I hate you ball because outside it's lashing down. Oh, is it? It's amazing

for the garden. I'm so happy for the roses. So happy for the garden. All that kind of stuff. However, I've had enough for the rain. So I'm very, very jealous. It looks lovely. It looks so nice. Perfect blue skies. It is actually pretty toasty here. It's amazing. It really is.

So what do you do? What happens there? It's basically, he started these retreats as juicing retreats for people to go and have a little reset of your body and your mind, to be honest with you. And he's got one in Turkey in the mountain. And he's got one which is set on a river, which is beautiful, juicy oasis, also in Portugal. And the first time I went to one of the retreats, you do a week. and you just do juicing. Although here he's introduced a meal at night,

which is quite exciting. I'll tell you more about that. But the idea being that you can go, you know, I initially went for weight loss. And then when you meet all the people that you meet, you meet this, a random, fabulous collection of people from all walks of life. And people are there for so many different reasons.

For weight loss, to reset, to have a little break, for mental health, Some people are grieving. Some people have been through cancer treatment or are still going through cancer treatment. Some people just need a break from their kids. There's a fabulous lady who's here who has six kids under 10. Oh.

When she told us that, we all cheered. We're like, what a woman. She's amazing. So people come for all different reasons. And I have then been to Jason's retreats since that first time for different reasons. Okay. And I did go when I was grieving. And it was such a...

amazing place to be because you can get involved in all sorts or you can have a proper break. Joe Wiley, you would love it. Okay, what can I do? What can I do? I could probably put up the board and show you. This is a typical day. Oh, I do it all. So if we look at a typical day here, we can do as much of this or as little of this as you like. But today, these are the things I'm missing to talk to you actually because we're recording

this on the month. I'm sorry. It's okay. I've got it tomorrow. So sunrise yoga with Eddie at 7, the most amazing, beautiful sunrise comes up and everybody does yoga. And then you can either walk, go on a lovely walk, a little hike where you get to talk to different people, or you could do run club on the running track. Oh.

A track that I probably won't go anywhere near. I look at it. I think I'll do the walk. I'll get to the walk. I'm thinking of school. Then there's SORDA Club. Then Rebounding, which Jason hosts, which is amazing. Huge big room of everybody on trampolines.

He plays banging tunes and everyone. People laugh. Have you done it? I haven't done it yet. I'm going to try it later today because I'm just, you know me? I've got my blooming hip issues on both sides, slightly different issues. But I'm going to give it a go. And then again, I'm missing dirty, greasy spin, which is a spin class with the music from

dirty dancing and grease. We sing all the tunes. dreams. I mean, it is the dream. And it's so distracting from the fact that you're out of the saddle or you're down in the saddle. It's so fun. And then pure abs with Max. Max is formerly of the RAF. She is hardcore. She is brilliant. I absolutely love her. And then a nice calming yoga, a lot of meditation at the lunchtime yoga. And then the afternoon, because it's quite hot here, you get sort of time to yourself. And then later on, there's pickleball, paddle and tennis. And I did, I was really brave yesterday. I thought, forget about what it was. was like at school when no one picked you for their team. Go and see if you can get a game. So I went yesterday to learn how to play pickle ball and paddle. They both look so much fun. So later today, I'm going to be really brave and see if I can find some people at entry level who will have a game he'll have a game with me. I've always thought it's quite cruel, Joe, that my name is Ball, and I am hopeless at all sports that involve one, table tennis, volleyball. That is very cool.

And then you've got volleyball later. There's more yoga. And then tonight, I'm, I'm on the fuel week. And so this is a new thing Jason's introduced here, which is in the evening, you can either just do the juice plan or you can do the fuel plan, which is in the evening. You have a salad.

And it is the most delicious thing you will ever eat. My salad last night was spinach and melon and date and black beans and avocado. And it's a big old bowl. And you're just like, oh my God, this is so tasty. But you can do it. it just juice as well. Lots of people are doing just juice. But that's a typical day. But it's, it's, it's so lovely. I've already met some really fabulous ladies who'd come from Scotland. I've met some really

lovely ladies who are huge strictly fans. I've met a really fab guy called Max who runs a boot camp in Spain. I think he's from Argentina. Lovely last from Liverpool. You just meet different people all on the right. There's quite a lot of, you know, faces come here. There's somebody here who was on stage at Wembley on Saturday night and it was lovely to see her. But I won't say, just I'll check with her later whether I can mention her because I don't want to land her in it that she's here. Straight from stage at Wembley to the retreat. Literally straight to a retreat. And one of her friends climbed.

You know, do you remember the ropes in school in the playground? Yeah. And you climb the ropes. Could you ever do it? No. Nobody could ever do it. They've got those there. They've got them here.

And I watched one of her friends do it yesterday, straight up. Oh, wow. Wow. If you came here, you would probably do all the sports. You'd be straight in there, wouldn't you? Yeah, I probably would. But I'd probably, I don't know, I'd quite like to relax as well. So I'd probably do some of that.

But absolutely, I would do, I would take everything that was on board. Anything on off. Don't like spinning. Don't like cycling for some reason. I just find that quite hard. Probably wouldn't run around the track. Like you said, because of school. Because it just reminds you, when they, when they,

say, okay, today we're going to do 800 meters or even worse, 1,500 meters and your heart literally just drops to the fit of your stomach and you're like, I can't do that. So I wouldn't go anywhere near the track. But it sounds really good for some kind of a reset. If you can get the time, I'd find it hard to get a week, I think, because I always feel so guilty and I want to have the whole gang with me. So, but the thing is, if you could bring all the kids, um, oh, there'd, there'd be no, there's no vodka bar. There's no vodka bar. There's no vodka bar. That won't be happening there. Do you, Cass, do you want to go?

No, I don't think they would. I had a friend who came here and then said that they did four days and then they had to pretend they had to go back to England to a very big pop star because they couldn't hack it. But I've actually found it like a really great place to come for me. And I really love coming on my own. I read lots of books. You talk to all kinds of different people from different walks like you make friends, but you get a proper chill and a relax. And I think if you.

you're looking to get away, if you've been through a bit of a tough time and you want to reset, if you've got, if you've had some health issues, it is a great place to come. If you're loving Digit so far, hit follow or subscribe. That way you'll get brand new episodes every time they drop. I think going away on your own is a really lovely idea and definitely something that I would welcome doing. I think we've mentioned this before, but some people just hate the idea of eating alone or going to the cinema alone or going to the cinema alone or going on holiday loan is like the ultimate but I think I think it's good for you I think if you can just be at peace with yourself and just yeah just not have to make conversation and just kind of be in

your own head and do exactly what you want to do that's the dream isn't it just to have your own rules to not have to please anybody to not have to conform to anything anyone's uh anyone else's expectations I think it sounds wonderful yeah I think you'll probably find a lot of our diggers holiday on their own and and and really enjoy it and you can I think if you you you you you you know, wherever you go in the world, you can always strike up a conversation on the plane, on a train, you know, if you're brave enough to chat to people when you're away, or maybe you actually go away on your own because you just want the peace and quiet and to be lost in loads of books and the surroundings and sleep and stuff like that.

So, yeah, I mean, it is a real luxury, I think, to get a trip away on your own. So I'm very grateful. And I sort of think of that amazing mum with six kids. It's like, she deserves this. boy does she deserve it my goodness yeah so contrast i went to because of because of the rain which has been quite persistent i went to um a garden center the other day which is obviously the dream and you know when it's just raining so much you're just like i'm just going to get wet and steve and i disco and i bless him for coming along he was really lovely he was just like i said oh thank you so much for

coming to the garden center with me and it was a really nice garden center and he went no it's okay i just want to be with you that's fine so wherever you want to be that's fine and i was like oh this is very lovely but he did get really excited and didn't bought a house plant at one point. So we had a really nice time, but got absolutely drenched, but it really didn't matter. And the thing that I was buying, and I bet loads of diggers have done the same, was supports for the roses, because we've had a lot of rain and the wind as well has been relentless. Everything is so battered, and I cannot support everything enough at the moment.

So I bet loads of you are doing exactly the same thing. They're selling out, like, you go to garden centres, and there's nothing left because everyone's just like propping up a rose and tying it back and they're breaking as you go around. So I think it's been a challenging gardening week. It's that thing, isn't it? You think you're supporting them and you're thinking, oh, that'll be fine. And you forget how big they grow and how fast they grow. I had the conversation with my stepmom.

She was saying it's like there's been a wedding and it's confetti all over the lawn. Yeah. Because all her roses of, yeah, it's devastating. They all seem really tall this year. And every, I mean, this is a really fascinating thing about gardening is that it's different every single year. And the plants respond to whatever weather we have or whatever. ever is going on. So at the moment, all my roses, which I'd pruned back quite hard, and the stems are really long. So I guess they've been just searching for some sunlight, which we haven't really had.

So they're all really, really long. And that's why it's rained and it's been windy. And they've just gone, woo, I'm too thin and I'm too young. And I'm just going to collapse and fall. So that seems to be what's been going on in the garden when it comes to the roses, which is a damn shame, because they've been really, really pretty. I feel like I jinxed it because I said that my roses were doing really well. And then bang, rain, wind. I was like, Was that my fault? Because the last batch of rain, I think, was because I got the garden cushions out. It's like, oh, great.

I've got the garden cushions out. That's it. Total destruction. By the way, going back to you to disco saying that he just wanted to be with you, isn't that wonderful? How long are you two been together? We've been together, God, over 30 years. I can't remember.

Yeah, over 30 years, yeah. He still wants to be with you. Yes, he does. On a Sunday and go to the garden centre. That is the magic of love. I tell you, because there's people. probably a lot of our diggers right now who are like, oh, I go to the gardener's into to get away from my family.

That's a really lovely thing. It's so, to be that in love after 30 years, that's just, oh, it's gorgeous. I think it's weekends when, because I work in the evening, so I don't get to hang out with people, with the family in the evening. So when it comes to the weekends, it's, that's our opportunity to just to be together and do stuff all the time. We went to see back rooms the other day. Have you seen this film? No.

Is it? It's mad. Woody was telling me about it. Woody was obsessed with this. He's like, this is incredible about this guy who had become obsessed with this picture of a back room just during, you know, in an office that wasn't used during COVID or something rather. And then he's really young. Is he 2019 or 20? Yeah, yeah.

And he has made this film. Is it horror? No, it's, no, because I don't do horror. So obsession, I've not gone near because I think that's got lots of jump scares. But this, everyone just kept saying it'll freak you out. And that's what it does. It just plays with your mind and really freaks you out. And there are some very weird and trippy things that go on.

And it's very claustrophobic. I was with India as well. And she is claustrophobic. And I was like, surely this is your worst film ever. And she was like, yeah, absolutely it is. It's like climbing into small spaces that go on forever down corridors. It's all very oppressive. And then it gradually unfolds.

And it's just weird. It's got elements of stranger things. Is it a bit severance as well? It's very severance. It's like, yeah, it's based in the back room of a carpet warehouse. like showroom, showroom, that's what it is. And you go beyond the showroom and there's a secret door and this guy goes in. And then it just goes on forever and ever and ever.

So it's very harsh lighting and just beige, beige everywhere. And it's, yeah, it's the stuff that nightmares are made of. But it's a very good film. It didn't scare me too much, but I really liked it messing with my mind. It sounds like one of those dreams and you just cannot get out of it. You know that dream when you're bashing on a window and you're trying to shout at someone and they can't hear you. That always happens to me.

But no, people can't hear me in my dreams. Oh, God, it's awful. And you're like, shouting and they can't hear you. Usually they can't hear you because it's, you know, it's a tricky X or a, it's like someone resolves situation that go back over and over again in dreams. Or I'm really frightened. I'm trying to save the kids and I'm trying to shout to them to jump to safety or something and they can't hear me, that kind of thing.

It sounds to me like that. we just keep going and keep going or keep going. That's what it is. It's good. It's really good. If you're scared, if you don't like horror, it's okay,

because I did it, so it's fine. Interesting about dreams, though, that I've never had that dream of banging on a window and shouting, not being able to be heard. So that's a reflection of you

and something that is your thing. My own twisted mind. I'm so often in an aeroplane and I can't control it and I know that we're going to crash at some point. The kids are with me and it just gets lower and lower and lower and we're amongst buildings

and I'm like waiting for the crash, waiting for when it's going to hit, but we never actually do. Oh, yeah, flying. I'm always flying or falling. Falling in dreams is freaky, isn't it? How does that happen in dreams where you are falling and you get that sensation and then you land in your bed and you wake yourself up? That's so freaky. Isn't it incredible what the brain can do while we're asleep? My brother and I really dream a lot and have really intense dreams. And I remember my mum used to say, I don't really dream. I go to sleep and, you know, I have a lovely time. But my brother and I are like, it's like goes and goes and goes on and on.

And sometimes people, if they're staying in the night with you, have to wake me out and they're like, you're all right. I'm like, in there. Yeah. Sometimes fun, sometimes hideous. How are you sleeping now you're on the retreat? I always find when I go on holiday, I have really freaky dreams. And I think it's my brain just sorting out some stuff that's been on my mind.

And then towards the end of the holiday, I'll sleep better. But generally, I sleep really good these days. I think since I discovered, and this isn't going to be the same for everyone, I discovered, well, firstly, not getting up and doing an early morning show was a big change for my life. And that was great. I'm a bit of a bear. But also, I take at night, I get into bed, I take my progesterone, and I take my magnesium tablets. And then I read my book. And then I listen to newscast.

That is my going to bed scenario. Newscast. I fall asleep to Adam Fleming or Laura Coonsberg or Chris Mason or whoever is hosting and Paddy and the gang and I love it. I used to have a catch-up on the day and then sometimes I will just have drifted off and in the morning I'll listen to the rest of it if I've drifted off. I'm like, hang on, I think I feel asleep at this point. But yeah, who would have thought Adam Fleming is my good night story?

Good night story. But does that not get in your head because it's news and topic and things that would stimulate your brain? No, for some reason. Wow. Because I never used to be like this. I hate anything, music or anything, and I couldn't sort of sleep at all. But for some reason, I actually find it quite comforting.

I think it's Adam. I think he has a really good way. It's the voice. Of breaking the terrible news to me and making. But also he makes, I think it's a great podcast where they make sense of the news sometimes and they discuss it. And I know all the voices now of all the correspondents so well that they're like friends. I mean, it's a great podcast.

an odd thing to fall asleep to. But yeah, so that's my little nighttime routine. And I tried, lights are off. Sometimes Wilbur will climb on the bed. And if I'm on my own, which I am quite a lot, Wilbur will curl in next to me. And that's another part of my going to bed. If Nell's there, she nicks Wilbur. If Woody's there, he'll Nick Wilbur. But if the kids aren't there, I get Wilbur and I've been watching, what is it, Widows Bay? Oh, I need to say this. Is it good? Oh, is it Matthew Reese? Have I got a number of? Yes. It's really good. But it's really good. But it's, but it's, It's a bit jump scary.

And I freaked myself out too many times. I've realized I have to watch it in the daylight and I can't watch it at night. And then I have to watch something light at night. Because I've had a couple of nights of Wilbur. Seriously, where are you? I can hear noises. Something's coming out. There's going to be a clown in the cupboard.

And he's your protector. And he's my protector. He's a big fluffy cat who couldn't say booed to a goose. But he really protects me. But what about you? Going to bed. Because you get in late, don't you, from work? Yeah, I get in late.

So I get in about 11, half 11. But can I just echo what you've said. So for any digger, progesterone has been amazing and magnesium has been amazing because I never used to take them. I've been doing it for about a year or so. And I just get a deeper, richer sleep. And I am so cynical about these things. I really am. I take loads of, you know, I've tried to take turmeric religiously hoping it's going to help my joints and my fingers.

And honestly, I haven't found its help so far. But I do notice magnesium helps with fiducius legs and it just helps me to sleep better. So the whole family now take magnesium. And the progesterone has really helped as well. So I have my lentetto spray for HLT. It's such a nightmare, isn't it, with hormones? Because we go up and down, up and down. But that's what I do.

And I think the progesterone really helps sleep at night, I think, doesn't it? It really helps aid sleep. I've just found out if I had a better night's sleep. Yeah, and whether it's, yeah, I think it's a combination of both of those. Because I know that, again, lots of people don't sleep for various things. It could be stress. it could be people just you know I've got a lot going on at the time

and menopause is a nightmare with sleep I am quite obsessed with sleep and it's all about being comfortable in bed so when it comes to I have to have great sheets I have to have the right juve the pillows are really really important so I've done so much research

and one of the present that I often give to people is a pillow because I think I found a really great pillow and I'm like I want to gift you what I've found myself so here is this pillow and it's from John Lewis and it's a Hungarian goose pillow and it's expensive but I think it's worth it because it's because I've got scoliosis and I've got a wonky back and I ache a lot in bed you know I wake

in the morning I can never sleep for very long because my back will wake me up and hurt and it's always done that and my neck hurts as well because I'm so skewif so a pillow is really important so I will spend the money on a pillow and like I say Hungarian goose down and you can either have soft or you can have medium so I'll have the medium to sleep on then I'll have the soft one when I'm watching TV so at night time I'll have my really lovely sheets and then I will have Kirstian Phil location, location, location, or it could be Gardner's World, Monty Don, but I always go to sleep with the television on. And this is why Disco

and I don't often sleep together because he still wants his podcasts all about Nazi Germany and the war. And he will go to sleep listening to that. And I'm like, I cannot sleep. I cannot sleep listening to the stories about the Holocaust. It's just the truth of the Holocaust. It doesn't chime with me when it comes to trying to get a decent night's sleep. So, so. So, So, you know, we'll go our separate ways and our separate bedrooms and we'll have our separate really good night sleeps. But yeah, I always love to have TV on and then I'll turn it off at some point during the night. But the kids always have this joke about mum is never not awake because I sleep so lightly. And again, I think we've touched on this before, but it's that thing of being the mum of just always wanting to be alert.

I'm always on hypervigilance just in case something happens in the house I have to deal with and I have to solve. So I will just be awake in the blink of an eye. and last night I feel really tired at the moment because last night Django did his barky thing and again another night of me lying they're going

is anyone else here in the dog anyone else going to get up and answer him patently they're not I'm going to get out of bed and I will go and open the door and I'll let him out at 1 o'clock I led him out at 3 o'clock

I let him out at 5 o'clock nobody else wakes up at all how is this possible part of me just wants to go and hammer on everybody's doors just going can you hear the dog can you hear the dog

Can you hear the dog? Maybe they just know. They're like, mum will hear the dog. Mum will let, you know, maybe you should, I don't know. I think it is that. Steve's death. Steve is deaf. I mean, without a show of a doubt, that's why he doesn't.

And the others, I think they just sleep really deeply, whereas I don't. I just always want to be there for any emergency that might happen. And I think that's a, is it a mum thing? But do you think it's a mum thing? I reckon it is. I think it probably is, although my kids might say differently. And whenever they try to wake me up, if they wake me up, I always jump. and then I freak them out.

Oh, yeah, June does that. We have this, like, really funny thing where they'll do everything they can to be like this. And every single time I'll go, what is it? So it's terrifying for them to try and wake me up. And I like to think I sleep lightly and that I will hear the kids and hear there's an emergency. But I actually think I sleep like a bear.

Do you? I'm so jealous. Yeah, great, great mum. Great mum work, not alert at all, if there's drama. Yeah. Mum, you slept through it, what? They'll be fine. Don't worry, darling.

The house burnt down, but we're all okay, mum. You just carry on sleeping. We're going to do a sleep. Yeah, we'll do a sleep special because it... We are. Many people have issues with sleep for all kinds of reasons, like you just said. So we need an expert in, I think, to... Well, it'd just be nice to have an expert just to give us some guidance and give us some tips as to how to get a better night's sleep.

Well, like, when we had Owen on, we've had such an amazing reaction to Owen's episode. on anxiety, so many people have got in touch with us and with Owen. Thank you very much. And we will touch on some of your messages when we do our digging. If we got a sleep expert in, if you have trouble with sleep, let us know what are your sleep habits? Are there things that you used to do or you have started to do that have helped? Are you really struggling with your sleep? Just get in touch with us. If you've got any questions for a sleep expert, I think it'd be fascinating. Questions at digitpod.com.uk is our address. Diggers, if you want to get in touch. Time now for quick break for some ads.

But if you're keen to listen to these episodes early and ad-free, you can subscribe to the potting shed. Yearly subscriptions get a free Digit tote bag and Fothergill's Sew and Tell Seeds. Just click the link to subscribe in the show notes. See you in a bit. Digit is brought to you by Beaver Farm. Question for you, Joe. Do you ever wonder how you can keep a bottle of squash in a cupboard for months without it going off. It has crossed my mind. Well, this is the thing.

So much squash is packed full of preservatives so that it can last for ages once opened. But beaver farm are kind of the opposite to that. Hang on a minute. Beaver Farm. Yep. I always thought it's pronounced Bellevoir, which is like the really posh squash that you see in supermarkets. So not Bellevoir, but beaver.

Beaver Farm. Okay, right. This is news to me. Yeah. Joe, it surprises a lot of people. But at Beaver Farm. They're completely obsessed with taste, so they make their drinks properly using real fruit juices, real flowers and absolutely no artificial sweetness, flavourings or preservatives. Which does mean that once you open their cordials, they need to live in the fridge so they can be enjoyed fresh.

Yes, slightly less convenient, but so much more delicious. That's why you'll recognise all of the ingredients on the label, rather than sounding like something engineered in a lab. Try beaver farm drinks for yourself, enjoy them fresh from the fridge. perfect for sunny afternoons and they're available in all major supermarkets. At Beaver Farm, they never use anything artificial because the real thing just tastes better. I wonder if any other diggers feel like me, like I would give anything to not feel tired and creaky and achy. I mean, that end of, just, oh my God, every day, I wake up in the morning, I feel really tired. Every night gets to 8 o'clock, even though I'm on air, maybe 9 o'clock.

I'm like, oh, I could really do with being in bed now the weekends. I'm so tired. But darling, that really does sound like you're dealing with quite a lot there. And I'm sure there'll be other diggers who have similar issues that, you know, just listening to you talking about trying to get comfortable. I have that. I've had that with the hip, but that's a bit better now. So I don't have that all the time. To have that all the time when you sleep, that must be a lot, my love.

It's just, it's just annoying. It's just annoying. I just feel, I don't know, I'll be interested. But there's five years between us, I think, in age. I just feel so much physically like things hurt more of being the age. But maybe that's an arthritis thing as well. I don't know. I go to the gym.

And I remember I used to go to the gym. And afterwards you'd be like, oh, my legs are really aching. And it's a good kind of pain because you feel quite smug because you've been to the gym. And now it takes me days to recover from going to the gym because I just feel really, really sore for a long time. So I'll be interested to know if anyone is watching this or they're listening to this and they feel the same way or they've got solutions or thoughts about. it because I'm just a bit fed up of constantly like really hurting getting off the sofa making that oof noise yeah I think Steve does that when I get out the car and I get in and out the car if I've done a not even a long drive getting out the car at the supermarket I'm like

if and I laugh because sometimes people are like you're right I'm like sorry and the other thing that I've really found is like if I'm in the chemist or in the supermarket and I am getting something off the bottom shelf and I can't see so I have to put on my glasses and go into a squat. And then I'm down there, and I've got the basket in my shopping bag, and then I have to sort of ready myself. It's like, okay, kid, you're going to try and get up now. And I have to sort of hold a shelf.

And then, you know, I used to be able to leap up and down. I used to want to do that sexy slut drop. I can't get up from the bottom shelf. I mean, if I tried to show you now, it would be. And that, I do think, oh, my God. Is this it? Is this it now? That as you get each, I feel like as you get older each year,

takes its toll. The aches and pains, they take its toll a lot more than in your 40s, say. As 50s, I'm like, oh, right, this is aging. Yeah. This is aging. Yeah. And I guess you just learn to live with it, do you? Or never choose anything off the bottom shelf.

Yeah, you just don't go there. You don't go there. I just wanted to mention it's National Careers Week this week. So I wanted to do a shout out for anybody who finds themselves in the caring job, whether it's unpaid, and there are loads and loads of people who are doing unpaid caring work or whether you're a paid carer. Just, yeah, just to say, just to show appreciation and to acknowledge how hard you work and how tough it is and how you keep the world spinning for so many different people. So if you're in that position, and I know it can be really lonely, it can be absolutely exhausting. and there must be times when you're thinking, why am I doing this?

And quite often you don't have a choice. You're just doing it because that's your scenario, that's your situation, and you love the people that you're caring for. So just to send my love to anybody who is doing that on National Caring Week or National Cairers Week. Thank you. That's it, quite simply. It's amazing, isn't it? There's lots of kids out there are looking after moms and dads.

Yeah, yeah. And siblings as well, yeah. Siblings, yeah, as well. And people caring for their own relatives. It's quite amazing. And you're right to do that, Joe, because they really are some of the hardest working folk out there, and it is a tough job caring. Yeah, you have to work with it. I mean, you see and you deal with extraordinary things that most people are oblivious to.

You know, there are so many cleaning people is really tough, cleaning up rubbish all the time, you know, physically lifting. It's very grueling. There are things that young people are exposed to that they shouldn't have to be at their age. But they do because they love the people they're caring for. And I bet there are people who are watching Digit right now and you're being looked after who are being helped by people who are amazing carers. So can we do a shout out for lots of people? Can we hear your stories? Can we big some people up? Do like a roll call of the fantastic people who are working in the caring profession. If you want to share with us the great carers in your life,

just send them to questions at digitpod.co.com. We'd love to hear the lengths they go to, why they mean something to you, what they do for you and why you love them so much. Simple as questions. at digipod.co.com. And can I just mention Emma, who is helping out with my mum and dad at the moment because I do what I can, but God, she is there. She is keeping us going at the moment. She's there all the time to take my mum out shopping, to do all the cleaning, to just be there to support everybody physically and mentally.

So Emma, we love you. Thank you very much indeed. Oh, she sounds amazing. And I'm doing a shout out to Lou who helped us when we were caring for mum. and she just, you know, helped her so much. I will never, never, ever be able to thank her enough for what she did. So Lou, because I know she's out there caring for people every day. She's amazing.

This week, we're joined by Gardner Nicola Hope to banish some myths about the Chelsea Chop. Ah, to Chelsea Chop or not, Joe, that's the question. I've chopped. Hi, Joe and Zoe. Chelsea Flower Show is a gorgeous. just fluoriferous memory now. We all had a fantastic time whether we were there or watching it on the TV. There is a horticultural technique associated with Chelsea called the Chelsea Chop and a lot of people think that you have to do it during

the week of Chelsea but that's actually not strictly true. There are some really tough plants that can take a chop right through till, well, I've been known to do a Hampton Court chop and Hampton Court flower show usually takes place at the beginning of July. This is a Loveterra, cultivar name Q Rose and it is tough as old boots. In fact, it, for some reason it has moved from that part of my garden over there, over to this part of my garden and I'm thrilled because it is a really, really good doer and flowers, well, you can see that there are flower buds forming already. Now I'm going to be quite ruthless and I am going to chop it down by half. You can do this with your saccoteurs and do it

quite neatly. You can go all the way down to above a leaf node or where the leaf meets the stem. Take quite a lot off. You can be even more cavernalus. and you can get some shears and just shear it down like you're cutting a hedge. And this will bounce back incredibly well. It will make it branch out even further to make a compact shrub rather than a kind of a a wafty shrub. Another thing that you can do is reduce half of it by half. Oh yeah.

What, leave the other half of tool? Yeah, leave bits. But leave some of it alone. to flower when it wants to flower, but it's staggered, and you'll be attracting butterflies and bees and other pollinators into your garden over a more extended period of time. What an amazing vocabulary. I can't even say it. Floriferous. And cavalier, she got into that as well.

I quite, I enjoyed that. Flouriferous. I can't even say, floriferous. Without saying it like that, floriferous. Yeah. I've never mastered the English language. If you want to find her on Instagram, she's Nicola Hope Gardener. She shares loads of tips, sketches and inspirations from the gorgeous Cotswolds.

And she's wonderful. So she will be back on Digit. Thank you, Nicola. So, Chelsea Chopping, do you do it? Because I haven't in my garden. I've cut the roses back since the windows battered them and the rain. Yeah. But I was looking, some of my geraniums have gone.

crackers. They're like up here. And I was wondering, oh, should I have to take those back, but I haven't chopped anything else because... I think you can. Yeah? Yeah. Yeah, we've got, it's Thaam, geranium phaum, which is really dark geranium. It's the first thing's flower in the garden. And we hack, Tabitha is my garden who comes every other week, who's fantastic little garden ninja. And she just hacked everything back. And for about four days, five days, it just looked hideous. Like the border was just like, look, ravaged, but it's all becoming to come back now and it's all growing and we'll get another show of flour. But yeah, you can just keep on going, I think. So I'm not sure about salvia. I've got some salvia that will flowered. And I know that I should cut them back

and hopefully they'll come back again, but I'm not quite sure where to cut them. So I'm going to have to look into that. Okay, cutting the salvia back. And do you get another show if you cut the salvia back off? Well, this is what I want to find out. I'm not totally sure, but I think I'm pretty sure, yes. And so does it extend the flowering season by chopping? Yeah, I think you get a second flush, don't you? You get a second. So you have it, it blooms initially, and then you cut it all back, and then new ones

begin to grow, and then you get new flowers. So they won't be, I don't think they're as strong and as showy as the first crop, but they do carry on. So yeah, you just have it constantly going throughout the summers. Particularly, I think geraniums are amazing, they're so good. And the peter for the edges of borders. Yeah. Brilliant. I've put NAPTA in for the first time, actually, and it's doing great. Yes, it's good this year.

My gore's gone bonkers. My cephalaria gigantica, my first one. Oh, it's so beautiful. I had a total disaster, which is that I've got a smoke bush. I've got a smokebrush. Hello. In a pot is in a giant pot and it got blown over in the wind onto my cephalaria gigantica. Oh, no.

No, please. And it survived. And it's sort of, I pulled it back out. I've shoved it into a corner. It's got to go in the ground. It's supposed to have gone in the ground. It's probably going to have to wait till next year now, the smoke bush. But it survived.

I'm so happy and it's an absolute beauty. I sent, we have a lovely friend called Merrily, who we've worked with the radio, who's massively into her garden. We always send each other pictures of our favorite garden plants. And I sent her a picture. I was like, look, my cephalaria, gigantic. So there were more flowers coming. So when I get back, I'll have a little peak.

But I have to say thank you to the rain gods, because boy, oh boy, did our gardens need the water. But is there's sunshine coming now. I think there is, yeah. No, I saw the forecast the other day and I think the heat wave's going to return. So I need to get a massive hammock. I don't know if anybody else does this, but I'm like, oh, it's okay. Now the rain's come. I'm not going to get anything for the garden.

And as soon as it gets a little bit warm, you're like, oh, God, I need a hammock. I need a bench. I need some cushions. I need a mattress to line. in the garden and then they've all sold out and there's nothing left. So, yeah, Heatwave is incoming, I think, in a week or so's time. So get your ordering now. That's what I'm going to try and do today.

Go and order your hammock, love. Yeah, because the last one got smashed to Smithereens when we had a party and there were like 14, 17 year olds lying on it. So it just went, we have show and tell now. And this has come in from Joe, who's one of our diggers. Joe says, I run the gym at St. Crispin Retirement Village in Northampton. Oh, my God. This, that place used to be a hospital. It was called the Princess Marine Hospital.

And it was a residential hospital. And my sister used to go there from the age of, God, four, five, six. We used to go and visit her. And I remember all the sisters who used to work there. I remember all the other kids who were in the hospital there. It was a lovely, lovely place and they looked after her so well. Sister Coles, that's who used to look after her. So that, just saying St. Crispin Retirement Village,

brings back so many precious memories for me. And traumatic memories as well of leaving her and saying goodbye to her. but it was a really, really special place and they took good care of her. Anyway, I digress. Joe says, like any good retirement village, we have a gardening club. So on their behalf, I thought I'd like to do their sew and tell. Oh, this is great. The first picture is of an amazing acer tree, which is my view outside of the windows of the gym.

Oh, wow. It's really beautiful. Asa's are gorgeous, aren't they? And then Joe says, the second picture is of the rose garden. Look at this. I walk through this every day to get into work. And it is this beautiful. rose garden. Are they yellow

peachy kind of roses on the side? Yeah, you've got lovely pinks going over the top of an arch and then some lovely red roses there, all different colours. Can you imagine the smell as you walk down that rose walkway? For retirement villages to be surrounded. I mean obviously having a gardening club I bet it's so busy, I bet so many people find their joy in going to that gardening club. It's so special. Joe also says I'd like to give a special mention to one of the gardening club

members. Lovely Beryl. She's 93. years young and bakes the most fantastic cakes for our McMillan coffee morning. So big up Beryl, 93 years young, who makes amazing cakes. Thank you, Joe. That's so nice. That's brought back a lot of memories in that gardening club. It's obviously thriving. I bet Beryl makes a great coffee and walnut cake. Always my favourite at a coffee morning. Coffee and walnut cake. I love it. And that's beautiful. Don't forget if you'd like to sew and tell, do show us your garden successes, also your garden disasters, or things you're particularly proud of, send us some pictures and we'll share them on the podcast. And we all learn from each other, which is wonderful.

My red roses this year have been incredible. They've been enormous, like huge, blousey, beautiful. And they smell so good. So, yeah, until the wind, it was indeed, like you said, Joe, a good year for the roses. But they're going to come back. I've cut them all back, yeah, the ones that have gone to, you cut it to the first five leaf. Yeah, when there's a big, strong, healthy looking five leaf. You just cut it just above there.

I always do it as a slant cut. I don't know whether that's the right thing to do, but I always do. And then they'll hopefully come back. And if you're going to go out and buy roses, I would always go for a repeat flowering rose because they won't be disappointed when it blooms and then it doesn't do anything more. Yeah, you want it to come back. You'd love all the flora and fauna here, Joe. Oh, is it?

I'm staying like, it's all eco and all the buildings are covered in cork, which is fantastic, but also the planting around. I've actually sent a little picture of some of the amazing planting around. And my room looks over a lake, which is, has turtles in it. So if you go for a swim and the little turtles pop up and say hi to you, it's amazing. There was one sunbathing just outside my room this morning. And there's loads of carp. And so whenever I put my feet over the edge before I jump, I'm not as brave as you.

I don't dive in. I just sort of climb in. all the carp come up to say hello because they think your food initially and then they realise you're just a big white woman and not really food so when they first swam up I thought

oh is it going to be like what you know when you put your feet in those tanks and their fish eat your oh my god I hate those skin I've never understood the want to do that that craze when it came it came to Milton Keynes yeah it came to Milton Keynes

there was like a place where you could go in and just put your feet in a bowl of fish I was like, stop, this is too far. I don't think this is healthy for anyone, the fish or the people. I don't think it's healthy for your feet or the fish. Those poor fish, it's like, give them something that's not like, oh, hard dead skin. Oh, anyway.

Yeah, but that's what I think when the carp come up, but they have not chewed my hot skin, so we're okay. Should we do some crate digging? Let's do some crate digging. What offerings do we have this week? Here's something I prepared earlier from Zoe Ball. I did. I prepared earlier before I.

came out because I'd gone out and bought some new music to bring with me. I really love Little Barry. Barry Cadogan's band. He's amazing. He's a fantastic session musician who has over the years work with Liam Gallagher, Primal Scream, Morris See the The. And this is his band's sixth album. They did the theme to Better Call Saul. So if you know that theme tune, you'll know their kind of music. They're sort of bluesy, psych rock, but I absolutely love this brand new album from them. It is called Gravity Freeze and some of my favorite tracks, I'm actually going to look at it up now because I might have to put my specs on because I've been listening to it whilst I've been out here and it's been creating a fantastic mood. Yeah, some of my favorite

tracks, opening track, more bad miles of road, so good December, talk if like it's what you wanted. There's so many gems on this album. I absolutely love it. So shout out to Little Barry. And also, when I was going through the albums in the record shop the other day, they've done a re-release of one of my favourites, Joe, Lemonheads. It's a shame about Ray. They've done a re-release.

It's green vinyl. It's absolutely fantastic. Great picture there of Evan and David. And Juliana Hatfield, who's on this album. It was such a great album. It was such a brilliant album came out in 1992. That's when I met them. I interviewed them.

My friend Christy and I followed them around for quite a bit to loads of their gigs. There's so many tracks on that. It's a shame about Ray. Obviously, their cover of Mrs. Robinson. And rudderless. Oh, it's so good. And my drug buddy, which is my Christy and I, that's our anthem. And, yeah, you laugh at them too, don't you?

No, outdoor type is one of my favorite songs in the world ever. There's just something about that The melody, the way it's sung And God, I might play it in my show tonight Yes, I will And it's such, you should play it You often play it on your show And I love it when you play it

And it really makes me laugh Because it's all the things that, you know Some people I've lied about being the outdoor type Yeah It's, you know, we've all done it at some point Oh yes, I'll be fine camping It's like never rid a bike Don't like sleeping under the stars

It's great And Evandando, what a legend Great band Can I mention Waysia Project Who I've mentioned them before but they did a session for me last week. And God, it was fantastic. Yeah.

They are crazy young, like 20 and 22. It's Will and Olivia, who are siblings. And they are obviously supremely talented. Her voice is phenomenal. They did a cover of cloudbusting, Kate Bush. So you'd be able to listen to it again on BBC Sounds, but they were really good. And I just wanted to tell people to look out for them.

Their album's coming out later on in the year, and they're playing a few festivals, but it's all happening later. But Waysia Project, W-S-I-A. are somebody you should look out for because they're really talented. And on that note, I've also got Jalen and Gonda, who's got a new album coming out, really soulful voice. He's so young, but really lets rip. So it's called Doctrine of Love is the title of the album,

just another young, talented guy with an amazing voice, super talented. I'll say that one more time, very talented. He sounds like he's from another era, doesn't he? Yeah, he does. When you listen to his music, you're in a completely different setting. It's also a gorgeous album to have on in the summer sunshine as well. Yeah. On a long drive, he's, yeah, he's amazing.

And talking of albums like Jane and Angonda to have her in the background, which is just going to sound great. Ezra Collective, they just make such a good noise. It's soul jazz, beautiful stuff. Dance, no one's watching was the last album. And they've got a new song out at the moment with Pastor Liu. And it is really great. It's so good.

So I'm very much in love with Ezra Collective. And then I discovered at the record shop, finally, a vinyl copy of Lily Alice. Allen's album, which just seemed to not exist for a really long time. It's clear vinyl and it's West End Girl. And I just think it was such a sensation when it came out, this record. There are so many good tracks on there and people have probably forgotten already. But it's definitely one to have in your record collection. So Lily, just if anyone wants to get the vinyl, it's there now. It's available. I think there was, I don't know why it wasn't available initially,

but it is now. So West End Girl, you can get that too. Also, out this week, which I might try and watch tonight, which I'm very excited about, is Quest Love has made. made a documentary about Earth Wind and Fire, one of the greatest bands for all time, one of my favorites. And he makes such good documentaries. So I think that is out on HBO. So you should be able to watch that if you can get like HBO with your Sky or whatever or online. But that is definitely one to watch out for. I don't know whether it's going to be at the cinema.

But if you love Earth Wind and Fire, it's their story. And that will be epic. Yeah. Okay. Anyway, listen to Joe, I've got to go. So I'm off to Max's Pure Abbs class. know, this six-pack is not going to look after itself. No, okay, you are so hardcore.

All right. Hopefully I'll make it to dirty, greasy spin. Enjoy your salad tonight. Thank you so much. I cannot wait for my salad. Love you. Love your diggers. Say hi to Jason.

Bye. I will do. Bye. Digit is a Persefonica production.