Global News Podcast - The Happy Pod: Adopting a grandparent to tackle loneliness

Episode Date: October 5, 2024

We speak to a Canadian family and an elderly UK woman about the joy of Adopt a Grandparent -- which tackles loneliness while sharing life experiences. Also: Alaska's Fat Bear Week; and dozens of whacky cars.

Hello, this is the Global News Podcast from the BBC World Service, with reports and analysis from across the world. The latest news seven days a week. BBC World Service podcasts are supported by advertising. Life and death were two very realistic co-existing possibilities in my life. I didn't even think I'd make it to like my 16th birthday, to be honest. I grew up being scared of who I was. Any one of us at any time can be affected by mental health and addictions. Just taking that first step makes a big difference.

It's the hardest step. But CAMH was there from the beginning. Everyone deserves better mental health care. To hear more stories of recovery, visit camh.ca. If you're hearing this, you're probably already listening to BBC's award-winning news podcasts. But did you know that you can listen to them without ads? Get current affairs podcasts like Global News, AmeriCast and The Global Story, plus other great BBC podcasts from history to comedy to true crime, all ad-free.

Simply subscribe to BBC Podcast Premium on Apple Podcasts or listen to Amazon Music with a Prime membership. Spend less time on ads and more time with BBC Podcasts. Hello, I'm Angela. I'm in Canada and you're currently listening to the BBC's Happy Pod. Hello, I'm Oliver Conway and in this edition... We all need more connections in our lives. I feel as if I've known Angela all my life and her family. She has such positive energy and she just brightens our week. A transatlantic friendship across the generations,

celebrating nature in Alaska. Success for bears is getting fat and you vote for your favourite fattest bear. Also, wacky cars, how a running club helped change lives around the world and... And... how a running club helped change lives around the world and... A record-breaking haka. All in the Happy Pod from the BBC World Service.

After last week's podcast all about young people changing the world, we start this edition with a story of friendship spanning the generations and the Atlantic Ocean. Despite living more than 5,500 kilometres apart, Angela Martin and her family in Ontario, Canada, and Anne Lucas, an 83-year-old who lives in a care home in England, have built a close bond after being introduced in July. It's part of a project to tackle loneliness and give young people a chance to learn from their elders. The charity, Adopt a Grandparent, was established five years ago here in the UK. But after going virtual during the pandemic, it now has more than 100,000 volunteers around the world. Angela and Anne have been chatting to the Happy Pods, Abiona Boya. I was just looking for a new place for our family to volunteer and I found the

Adopt-a-Grandparent website. They had a statistic on there that 200,000 older people haven't spoken to a friend or family member in over a month. we thought that's something we'd like to help with at least in a little way so we signed up and we got matched up with ann pretty quickly the lady that did the matching there we are so grateful for her because we are so glad she matched us up with ann right we just we love getting to hear all her adventures yeah and Ian's really nice. Yeah, Ian's really nice. Hi, who's that? It's your lovely daughter. I'm Caitlin. Hi, Caitlin. Hi.

Do you know, it's been wonderful, and they look forward to speaking to me every so often. I say, well, right now, I will soon have to speak to Angela and family. I don't know, this has been really important for us, Now I will soon have to speak to Angela and family. I don't know, this has been really important for us. And I think also if there are lonely people out there and maybe, you know, the elders, well, it's maybe the families also could use more people.

We all need more connections in our lives. In fact, everybody I tell about it says they'd like to sign up also, but I mean, they're not all going to get in, but the matching process seems to work really well. It's through an app called the Togetherly app. And we just click on a link that we're emailed and it sets us right up to talk. My grandparents, my relationship with them was really important to me. And we don't have any seniors in our lives now.

So I thought this would be a good opportunity for us to get the perspective of someone who's lived through different experiences but we we got like more than we bargained for we're so lucky to be matched up with Anne because she's had ever so many adventures she tells us all about her past and her family and her travels and we learn all about the causes she's interested in lots of things lots of things we talk about everything she sent me some lovely photographs of all her family and what they were all doing she was ever so kind to do that and she put in a lovely little map of canada and it was you know I really appreciate that because I always look at that quite often. I look forward to our Thursday meetings I just really feel really grateful that we've we've found

Anne and that the Adopt a Grandparent organization was able to make this possible and we talk often about how amazing it is because you know we live we live so far apart. We never would have had the chance to meet otherwise. It's surprising how the time's gone. I feel as if I've known Angela all my life. I do, and our family. They all adore Anne. They're hiding right now because they're shy, but otherwise they would be here with us.

Yeah, and Daddy's at work. Yeah, daddy's at work yeah daddy's at work the boys are but uh yeah we all love talking to ann and hearing her stories i mean she is so positive she has such positive energy and she just brightens our week really so would you say that angela and her wonderful family have become your chosen family well they have i love them all they're really nice because she wrote me a wonderful letter and i've got it here and she sent me photographs of all her lovely children i am very close to them now they're very all very good looking and kevin her husband has got a wonderful sense of humor well i've got a good sense of humor so many people today are so miserable and i think you've got to lift your spirits up and do things and lucas and angela Martin. And the charity says it is particularly keen to

hear from elderly people who'd like to be adopted as grandparents. Now, if you listen to the Global News podcast earlier this week, you'll be aware of the phenomenon that is Fat Bear Week. It's when the brown bears in the US state of Alaska gorge themselves in preparation for hibernation and the public vote on their favourite, as Isabella Jewell reports. Imagine not eating for six months. Well, if you're a brown bear in Katmai National Park, it's an annual test. Before the creatures hunker down in their dens in October and November, they're in a race to fatten up, feasting on fresh

salmon, grass and berries. But little do they know they're also in another annual battle to win the title of Katmai's fattest bear. Naomi Boak co-runs the competition. Fat Bear Week is the way that we celebrate the success of the bears of the Brooks River and Katmai National Park, Alaska. Success for bears is getting fat because that's what they live off of during six months of hibernation and then spring where there's very little food around. The competition is in its 10th year and has boomed in popularity, as Naomi explains. The first Fat Bear Day, there were 1,700 votes. Last year, in 2023, there were nearly 1.4 million votes from over 100 countries. You'll see a picture of the bears when they were skinny in early summer and fat right now. And you vote for your favourite

fattest bear. Many of those taking part in the competition are faithful followers of the live stream cameras, which broadcast in real time the activities of the bears on the reserve. You watch these bears over years and it's five soap operas a day. You know sometimes people come home from work and they think well check in on the bears. They keep watching the bears because it's exciting and you get to follow them, know them as individuals. None of the bears are tagged which is where visual information specialist Sarah Bruce comes in. She watches the bears at Katmai intently to identify and give each of them a name. One of the bears that along the Brookshiver that I find the most recognizable right now is bear 128 Grazer. She has this medium dark fur pattern, but she has these big blonde

puffball ears that are really hard to miss. Something else that's really helpful is bear 32 chunk. His body is shaped like a light bulb and he also has this big scar on his nose. There were 12 bears on the ballot at the start of the competition, with their before and after weight gain pictures on the website. The difference in size is staggering. While the park rangers can't weigh them, scientists use special technology to estimate their weight. When they come out of the den, these bears might be weighing anywhere between maybe five and 700 pounds or so. The largest bear we've seen we think was around 1400

pounds. They can really double their weight throughout the summer for hibernation. To paint a picture, 1400 pounds or 635 kilograms is about the weight of a grand piano. Now that's a lot of salmon. So who are this year's favourites? I asked Naomi and Sarah. I think there might be a very serious final competition between last year's Fat Bear Week champion, 128 Grazer, and 32 Chunk. But Sarah is backing an underdog, Bear 519. She's only two and a half years old, almost three, so she's actually the youngest bear in the bracket. She's the bear that I think has changed and grown the most throughout the summer. I don't know that a sub-adult can really beat out a bear like 32 who is 1200 pounds but I'm really rooting for her.

Whether it's sheer size or progress that's rewarded this year the real aim of Fat Bear Week is to shine a spotlight on the beauty of our planet. Here's Naomi Boak again. Enjoy Fat Bear Week, celebrate the richness and the health of the Brooks River ecosystem and do what you can to mitigate climate change and enjoy nature and wildlife wherever you live. Naomi Boak ending that report from Isabella Jewell. And if you want to vote in Fat Bear Week or just look at the pictures, it is fatbearweek.org. Now, I'm not the happiest traveller when confronted by delays. I mean, who is?

But perhaps I could learn from the passengers whose voyage was four months late. A round-the-world cruise ship that had been stuck in Belfast since its scheduled departure on the 30th of May, finally set sail this week. Unlike a normal cruise, passengers had the option of buying a cabin outright, allowing them to live on board for the initial three-year tour and beyond. They're encouraged to treat it as their home, even bringing their pets. And it seems many of the 125 passengers made the most of being delayed for the past few months. Andrew Peach spoke to Angela and Stephen Ferriac from the US. We came late May thinking we were going to board and they ran into a few hiccups and obstacles

repairing and fixing everything, but the time has finally come. That's longer than you get stuck on the International Space Station. Yeah, sounds like it. We just thought that it was just a small setback. And so we took off on not one cruise, but two different ones during those first couple of setbacks and explored the Mediterranean for a 10-day cruise and then on a 21-day cruise up to Iceland and Greenland.

Wow. So this is two cruises within a cruise while you're being delayed on the one. You've explored half of Europe by the sound of it. Oh, yes. Wow. So this is two cruises within a cruise while you're being delayed on the one. You've explored half of Europe by the sound of it. Oh, yes. We thought we had to make the most of this adventure. And it is all part of the journey. So might as well travel in the waiting. Yeah. And I'm just wondering if anyone else that you've met had all this time to spare in the way that you clearly did have the time to enjoy yourself and do all sorts of great things.

I suppose if you're under more time pressure, the whole thing might have been more stressful. Oh, sure. Well, most of the people that are joining us are either one, retired, or two, they're digital nomads and they can work from anywhere. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to really choose this lifestyle. So it's kind of worked out for most people. A lot of people have travelled and explored even all of Europe in the waiting and some stuck around and some even had cats, so they stayed put in Belfast the entire time. Well, cats are important. I'm a cat person, so I get the importance of staying with your cat.

And just for people who've not had this experience, Steve, what is the joy of being on a cruise ship? Why is this the way to see the world? Oh, my gosh. It's just the best. Going to bed at night and then waking up the next morning in just different places, different countries is so relaxing. As opposed to in this case where you wake up every morning and it's still Belfast. What about other passengers?

Have you had any contact with the other people who you're supposed to be on a cruise with? Oh, absolutely. And we've created some huge bonds, great friends. We're actually hanging out here with some friends now in the lounge. You know, we're all in this together in this adventure. So we've all formed this bond. We're all travelers and adventurers at heart, so we found some common ground and made some great friends. Who have you got there with you? We have Becky and Jeff Cressy, who are close by. Hi, Becky and Jeff.

And Stephen, tell me, what's been the best bit? So you've been on little holidays within this period of time. You've been back home to the States. You've done all sorts. What's been the best moment of this lengthy delay while you've waited for the ship to be fixed? I think the best moments have been just getting together with the other residents and really creating lifelong friends here in this time of waiting. I mean, it's been great to get to know each other in such a lovely little city. I mean, you've got to say

that because you've got Becky and Jeff sitting right next to you. Angela and Stephen Therriac talking to Andrew Peach. And still to come on the Happy Podcast. It was just lovely like a sense of camaraderie, like seeing other brides, like a sense of

love in the air. When you got here with all the other couples, there's all the excitement of it. Why a hundred couples got married in one venue in one day. Life and death were two very realistic coexisting possibilities in my life. I didn't even think I'd make it to like my 16th birthday, to be honest. I grew up being scared of who I was. Any one of us at any time can be affected by mental health and addictions.

Just taking that first step makes a big difference. It's the hardest step. But CAMH was there from the beginning. Everyone deserves better mental health care. To hear more stories of recovery, visit camh.ca. If you're hearing this, you're probably already listening to BBC's award-winning news podcasts. But did you know that you can listen to them without ads? Get current affairs podcasts like Global News, AmeriCast and The Global Story,

plus other great BBC podcasts from history to comedy to true crime, all ad-free. Simply subscribe to BBC Podcast Premium on Apple Podcasts or listen to Amazon Music with a Prime membership. Spend less time on ads and more time with BBC Podcasts. 20 years ago this week, a man called Paul Sinton-Hewitt gathered 13 friends to run five kilometres around Bushy Park in south-west London. He was unemployed, suffering mental health issues and unable to run himself because of an injured leg. From there, the event grew into a global phenomenon called Park Run. Two decades on, it has more than 10 million registered members across 23 countries. Charlotte Gallagher went to Bushy Park for the anniversary

celebrations where I caught up with her. It has been such a good atmosphere today here, Ollie. I hate to tell you, I have not run myself. I've had boots on, I've not had my trainers on, but there are plenty of people that have been running, including Wendy and Edward. Edward, how was that today? Oh, it was lovely. The weather's great. We've had a really good run. There were plenty of people, but not too many. It was the right amount. And it was a great, it was a great vibe. Yeah. What is it about Park Run that makes it the event that it is? I think it's really the community. I think you can come here and you can not know anyone. And then just over time running, you can get to know so many different people,

so many different types of people. And I think that's really great. And how about you, Wendy? What's Parkrun done for you? We've met lots and lots of people in our local community that we didn't know before. This is my 10th year that I've been coming here now. And I've started volunteering when I did my 50th run. That way, I then met lots more people as well.

So it's been really important to us. And it's kind of incredible that it started here 20 years ago and now is this worldwide phenomenon. Millions of people have done it and it's changed people's lives. Oh, it's completely changed so many people's lives. Not just the health benefit, but the social side as well. I think it's really an amazing achievement for Paul St. Inhuey. He should be very proud of what he's done.

Thank you both so much. People really do love Park Run, Ollie. It's a part of their weekly tradition. They do it on a Saturday morning. It really is just this phenomenon that's taken off. And I've been speaking to the man of the moment, Paul Sinton-Hewitt, who founded Park Run 20 years ago. My life's been changed too. So it's a wonderful story. Everybody's in this together. We're all invited. There are many many people whose lives have been changed because of Parkrun. I feel so grateful to be here today. We heard this morning from someone who said Parkrun saved them essentially. It saved their mental health. There's a couple that got married after meeting

on Parkrun. There was a lady who said it gives her time for herself because she's a carer for her husband. How do those stories make you feel? Well, they're overwhelming, really, and I get them all the time. But, you know, my story was pretty much that. I needed some respite for health and well-being. My mental health wasn't good, and Park Run was there for me. I was a volunteer to begin with.

It's been exceptional in helping me deal with mental health issues. And the growth that you've seen, it must be amazing to see it popping up across the world. And there's prison parkruns as well. And you've got 23 countries now. Yeah, 23 countries, 2,500 events. We've recorded 100 million finishers over those years. It's quite extraordinary.

Nearly 100,000 volunteers. I mean, isn't that number just mind-blowing? The volunteers are the glue that make it all happen, and without them, none of this really would happen. So it's extraordinary, the stuff that goes on in Parkrun. It's just so friendly, so joyful. What would your advice be to someone who they might see this and think, oh, I'd like to have a go, but I've not run before, I'm not sure, is it going to be intimidating?

Parkrun is not about running. It's the least important part of what we do. Parkrun is about coming out, being with your friends, getting to know a lot of people. We welcome walkers. Walking is a critical part of what we do. So everybody can do it. And I would say to take that first step. And that's what people have been saying to me today. If you're intimidated, if you're not sure about having a go, it's not about the time it takes you to do it.

It's not about breaking records. It's just doing it and having fun. And we've spoken to people who say it's really helped their mental health. It's essentially saved them doing this one thing every week. And you can, of course, set up parkruns. If there isn't a parkrun near you, you can go on the website and you can try and set up one near where you live. Charlotte Gallagher.

Sometimes a car is more than a means of getting from A to B. It can be the owner's pride and joy, done up to catch the eye and bring a smile to anyone who sees it. For Sudhakar Kanyaboyana, creating cars like that was his childhood dream. And now that dream has become a reality, as his museum has won a Guinness World Record for the largest collection of wacky vehicles. Paul Moss asked him where the idea came from. Right from my childhood, I've been working on bicycles to vintage cars. So then I thought I

should start something which is very different because I'm not a commercial guy. And then it is just out of passion. I started, the first car I made is a shoe-shaped car. It's come out nice and the people really liked it. And when I first had my road show, almost 25 years back, I was expecting a turnout of 1,000-2,000 people, but the turnout was more than 100,000. At what point did you decide that you should turn all this into a museum? So this is just out of hobby. I've collected so many cars.

Then I started the museum. The response was so good because a lot of children come to see these beautiful cars. They love to see a football or a basketball or a bad car. Seeing their interest, I started making more wacky cars. What was the reaction of your friends and family? I mean, did any of them think it was, you know, just a little eccentric rather than collecting sports cars or flashy cars

that people usually used to show off with? In the beginning, people thought I'm mad. Then when people started visiting my museum and enjoying a lot of schools visit, schoolchildren. And I make cars according to their suggestions also. I made a hamburger-shaped car. Now I'm working on a pizza-shaped car. What do you get from looking at the cars?

I mean, what feeling do you get? A lot of people feel very proud if they've got a flashy car. What's the reason you keep going? Because it sounds like an awful lot of work. See, you can say I'm a crazy guy. I love designing. I'm still excited about working. Whatever the car I'm working, I'm excited about to see this finish. And that excitement, enthusiasm is still there. That matters, you know. How did you find out that your museum was a world record breaker?

They approached me. I didn't approach them. I'm so lucky. I think people must have seen my videos across the globe and they decided to give me Guinness World Record 2025. Do you ever get fans approaching you and asking you to make a special car for them, one they've got in mind? Yes, a lot of people approach me, even for their children's birthday also, they approach me, why don't you make a cake-shaped car or a chocolate-shaped car?

Because I don't do it. Right from the beginning, it was very clear, I don't want to commercialise this hobby. Now my target is also about 100 wacky designs. And I think till now I've made 57, 58 Wacky cars. So it will take another maybe 10 years, 12 years, 15 years. And then I'm planning to have my museum across the globe if possible, because children love it. I mean, the children can't visit from all over the world. But I would like to take my museum across the globe. That's my dream. Paul Moss talking to Sudhakar Kanyaboyna, also known as Sudhakar Yadav.

Here in London this week, love has been in the air. One of England's most popular wedding venues hosted 100 weddings in a single day to celebrate its 100th birthday. With the details, Holly Gibbs. The old Marylebone Town Hall has hosted many star-studded weddings in its 100 years, including those of former Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, Oasis lead singer Liam Gallagher and the actor Jude Law. It was also the venue for the first same-sex union in England and Wales back in 2005. But now, couples like Georgia and Connor can add their names to the list. It was just lovely, like a sense of camaraderie, like seeing other brides and just saying, oh, you look beautiful, congratulations.

It's just like a sense of all being in it together. And it's just like a lovely sense of love in the air. More than 125,000 weddings have taken place there and to mark 100 years since the first it hosted 100 back-to-back ceremonies including civil partnerships and people renewing their vows. Couples were charged £100 or around $130 to be part of the day. It usually costs at least six times that amount. The wedding started as early as eight o'clock in the morning and carried on right into the evening. Andy and Mel were another couple to tie the knot after 36 years together. It's an iconic thing to happen you know and you and also when you get married here you very rarely see all the other all other bride and grooms. We're seeing

eight people getting married at the same time it's's got fun. And there's a buzz. When you get married to a church or a registry officer, it just tends to be yourself and that's it. You don't see anybody else. But when you got here with all the other couples, there's all the excitement of it. I am very happy to declare that you are now legally husband and husband.

There were 43 wedding officials or registrars on hand. Couples were allowed to bring up to eight people with them and a maximum of two pets. Dan and Daisy bought their four-legged friend Marvin. The couple said they came as a package deal. He's every day with us. We're like a bit of a trio. Everywhere we go, he comes with us. Everything's kind of planned around him being happy. And the minute we actually became husband and wife,

he went quite wild, so that was a nice... Yeah. You know, he's a lot more clever than I think we give him credit, so, yeah, I think he did know. Yeah. Of course, in true British fashion, it rained all day in the capital. But that didn't stop the celebrations. The happy pods, Holly Gibbs.

And if you have an unusual or funny wedding story to share, send us an email or a voice note to globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk. We end this episode in New Zealand. Where thousands of people gathered together to perform the traditional Maori haka. Men, women and children packed into the Eden Park Stadium in Auckland to join the Ka Mate Haka, made famous by the All Blacks rugby team, which involves vigorous arm movements, stamping feet and rhythmic chanting.

The event was designed to beat the world record of just over 4,000 participants held by France since 2014, with organisers saying they wanted to bring the pride of the haka back home. And an official from Guinness World Records was on hand to declare it a success. Everyone here tonight, while the official number is still being counted because it's a large number, I can safely say that you have surpassed the record to beat. Woo-hoo-hoo-hoo! Officially amazing!

And that big number was later confirmed to be 6,531. And that's all from The Happy Pod for now. If you have a story to share, the address as ever is globalpodcast at bbc.co.uk. This edition was mixed by Chris Hansen. The producers were Holly Gibbs and Rachel Bulkley. Our editors, Karen Martin. I'm Oliver Conway. Until next time, goodbye. Life and death were two very realistic

coexisting possibilities in my life. I didn't even think I'd make it to like my 16th birthday, to be honest. I grew up being scared of who I was. Any one of us at any time can be affected by mental health and addictions. Just taking that first step makes a big difference. It's the hardest step. But CAMH was there from the beginning. Everyone deserves better mental health care. To hear more stories of recovery, visit camh.ca. If you're hearing this, you're probably already listening

to BBC's award-winning news podcasts. But did you know that you can listen to them without ads? Get current affairs podcasts like Global News, AmeriCast and The Global Story, plus other great BBC podcasts from history to comedy to true crime, all ad-free. Simply subscribe to BBC Podcast Premium on Apple Podcasts Plus other great BBC podcasts from history to comedy to true crime. All ad-free. Simply subscribe to BBC Podcast Premium on Apple Podcasts or listen to Amazon Music with a Prime membership.

Spend less time on ads and more time with BBC Podcasts.