In this Valentine’s special of It’s a Death Sentence, we explore one of humanity’s oldest, strangest and most uncomfortable pairings: love and death. From broken hearts that physically fail, to myths of abduction and devotion, to killings committed in the name of love, we examine how romance, grief, obsession and mortality have always been tightly interwoven.

What We Explore

- When Love Becomes Physical: We look at broken heart syndrome and the way extreme emotional stress can manifest in the body, reminding us that love, grief and loss are not just emotional experiences, but physiological ones too.

- Love Beyond Life and Logic: We explore how different cultures and myths have tried to reconcile love and death - from posthumous marriages in rural China to the story of Hades and Persephone - asking whether these are love stories, coping mechanisms, or metaphors for grief and change.

- Killing in the Name of Love: We confront the uncomfortable reality that people are still harmed and killed in the name of love today, examining obsession, control, jealousy and violence and questioning why society continues to romanticise certain forms of suffering.

One thing is clear: love and death are not opposites. They sit side by side, shaping our myths, our bodies, our relationships and our behaviour. Love can heal and connect but it can also destabilise, consume and destroy.

This Valentine’s Day, we invite you to sit with the complexity… and ideally, not poison anyone over dinner.

It's A Death Sentence shares real stories of life after loss and is produced by Urban Podcasts. Listener discretion is always advised.

We had an absolute blast at Birmingham City Library for the Matter of Life and Death Festival with Brum Yodo - that's You Only Die Once, a brilliant group making death conversations feel normal and even fun.

In this special compilation episode of It's a Death Sentence, Carrie and I pull together our favourite bits from the day. We chat with Sarah Barton from Stirchley Art Room about her death-inspired art, a funeral director on the realities of the job, a death doula sharing end-of-life wisdom, a nurse on hospital experiences, and GIOVANNI ESPOSITO (aka Spoz) from the Dead Good Death Cafe dropping hilarious truths about farts, funerals, and family secrets.

What We Uncover

- Art That Faces Death: Sarah Barton on how creating around loss helps process grief and spark conversations.

- Behind the Curtain: A funeral director and death doula reveal the everyday realities of guiding people through their final chapters.

- Hospital Truths & Cafe Laughs: A nurse's frontline stories and Spoz's no-filter take on family farts and funeral awkwardness.

This festival reminded us why talking about death doesn't have to be heavy - it can be healing, hilarious, and human.

It's A Death Sentence shares real stories of life after loss and is produced by Urban Podcasts. Listener discretion is always advised.

How do we date when death has already changed us and how honest do we need to be about the grief we carry?

In this episode of It’s a Death Sentence, we talk openly about dating after loss. Whether through bereavement, serious illness, miscarriage or sudden change, death has a way of reshaping how we relate, trust and attach. And yet, dating culture rarely makes space for that reality.

Together, we explore what it means to return to dating when you’re no longer the same person you were before loss. We talk about timing, disclosure, fear, desire, awkward conversations, and the quiet tension between wanting connection and wanting to protect yourself.

What We Explore

- How Loss Changes the Way We Date: We reflect on how grief reshapes identity, attachment and expectations, and why dating after loss can feel both tender and terrifying.

- When and How to Talk About Death: We explore the unspoken rules around disclosure - when to share, how much to say, and why honesty doesn’t mean leading with trauma.

- Love, Risk and Letting Yourself Be Seen Again: We talk about vulnerability, fear of future loss, and the courage it takes to open yourself to connection when you already know what it costs.

As we reflect, one truth becomes clear: dating after death is not about going back - it’s about moving forward as someone new. Loss doesn’t make us unlovable, broken or too much. It makes us human.

This episode is an invitation to approach dating with more gentleness - for ourselves and for each other. To allow complexity, to soften expectations, and to remember that love doesn’t require us to forget what we’ve lost in order to begin again.

If you’re dating with grief in your pocket, you’re not doing it wrong. You’re just doing it honestly.

It's A Death Sentence shares real stories of life after loss and is produced by Urban Podcasts. Listener discretion is always advised.

What does it mean to work with death every day and how does that change the way we think about living, grieving and planning our own endings?

In this episode of It’s a Death Sentence, we’re joined by Allyse Worland, a first-generation funeral director and embalmer from the United States, whose career began at just 15 years old after a deeply personal experience of loss.

We talk openly with Allyse about entering a profession many people fear, the emotional and physical toll of death work, and why she has built her career around one core principle - being the person she needed when she was younger. Along the way, we explore embalming as an art, funeral traditions across cultures, and why talking about death early is one of the kindest things we can do for the people we love.

What We Explore

- Finding Purpose in Death Work: We talk about what draws people into the funeral profession, the importance of mentorship - especially women supporting women and why openness and shared knowledge matter in a field that can be emotionally demanding and isolating.

- Embalming, Ritual and Changing Traditions: We explore embalming as both a technical skill and an art form, how funeral practices have shifted over the last 16 years, and why seeing a loved one after death can be an important part of grief for many families.

- Planning Ahead as a Final Act of Care: We reflect on pre-planning funerals, wills and wishes, and Allyse shares a powerful insight - that grief hijacks the brain, and planning ahead is heart work that protects the people we leave behind.

As this conversation unfolds, one truth becomes unmistakable: talking about death does not make it darker - it makes it kinder. Allyse reminds us that dignity, clarity and compassion don’t begin at the funeral - they begin long before, in the conversations we’re willing to have while we’re still alive.

This episode is an invitation to think differently about death, to plan with intention, and to see preparation not as morbid, but as one of the greatest gifts we can leave behind.

If this conversation resonates, we encourage you to start the conversation with someone you love - because silence never protects, but understanding often does.

Connect with Allyse Worland on LinkedIn.

It's A Death Sentence shares real stories of life after loss and is produced by Urban Podcasts. Listener discretion is always advised.

What if we didn’t wait for children to experience loss before teaching them how to understand it?

In this episode of It’s a Death Sentence, we talk openly about a landmark change coming to UK education. From September 2026, grief and bereavement education will become part of the statutory RSHE curriculum, and we wanted to take time to unpack what that really means - for schools, for children, and for families.

We speak directly to teachers, school leaders, pastoral teams and anyone working with children and young people. Together, we explore why this change matters, what the new guidance includes, and how schools can deliver it with confidence, care and creativity rather than fear.

We also share why this shift aligns so closely with everything this podcast stands for - normalising conversations about death, dying, loss and grief, and giving people language and understanding before they need it most.

What We Explore

- Why Grief Belongs in the Classroom: We look at the scale of childhood bereavement in the UK and why acknowledging loss as a natural part of life is long overdue in education.

- Language, Fear and Getting It Wrong: We explore why adults often avoid talking about death with children, how unclear language creates confusion, and why saying the words ‘death’, ‘dying’ and ‘dead’ matters.

- Supporting Schools Through Mini Pod Workshops: We introduce our mini pod workshops and explain how podcasting can offer a safe, age-appropriate and creative way for pupils to explore grief, ask questions and build emotional literacy.

If we can help create a generation that knows how to talk about loss, ask for support, and sit with difficult emotions, then this curriculum change has the potential to be genuinely transformative.

If you work in a school and want to explore how our mini pod workshops could support your delivery of the new RSHE guidance from 2026, we’d love to hear from you.

It's A Death Sentence shares real stories of life after loss and is produced by Urban Podcasts. Listener discretion is always advised.

Is the short fuse, the sudden tears, the “why am I fighting everyone?” moment just you… or is it grief wearing a disguise?

In this episode of It’s a Death Sentence, we sit down and ask the question we (and probably you) keep wondering: how do we know if we’re just having a bad day… or if grief is quietly driving the wheel?

From screaming at partners over nothing, to realising your tolerance for bullshit has vanished, to wondering why the gym suddenly feels like a boxing ring, we explore the messy overlap between normal human moods and the long, sneaky tail of bereavement.

What You’ll Learn

- Anger as Armour: Why it’s easier to snap than to say “I’m heartbroken”… and how that rage can hide in plain sight for months (or years).

- The Grief Litmus Test: Simple questions to ask yourself when patience evaporates.

- Permission to Be Both: You can be fiery bitch AND grieving. You can be healing AND still lose your shit. Both things can be true.

This is the conversation you wish you’d overheard in the pub - one that reminds you you’re not going mad, you’re just grieving in a world that expects you to be “over it” by now. If you’ve ever wondered “is it grief?”, this one’s for you.

It's A Death Sentence shares real stories of life after loss and is produced by Urban Podcasts. Listener discretion is always advised.

New year, new me? Yeah, right! When you’re carrying grief, January 1st doesn’t magically wipe the slate clean - it just swaps the tinsel for a hangover and a side of guilt.

In this episode, we ditch the resolutions and get real about what “new year, new me” actually feels like when someone you love is missing from the table. We explore why grief doesn’t give a toss about the calendar.

What You’ll Learn

- New Year, Same Grief: Why the fireworks and “this is my year” posts can feel like salt in an open wound.

- The Only Resolution That Matters: Feel the feels, trust yourself, take positive risks, and let the rest slide.

- 2025’s Hard-Won Lessons: Patience is key, online dating is hell, and leaving the house is overrated.

Spoiler: 2026 isn’t “our year” because we’ve suddenly fixed everything. It’s our year because we’re still here, still laughing through the tears, and still refusing to pretend it’s all shiny and new.

It's A Death Sentence shares real stories of life after loss and is produced by Urban Podcasts. Listener discretion is always advised.

You’ve just lost a loved one in hospital. Everyone’s crying. And then… the admin avalanche begins.

In this no-filter, step-by-step guide we walk you through the exact bureaucratic gauntlet of what happens if a loved one dies in hospital. From bank-holiday hell to coroners, certificates, and finally getting your loved one to the funeral director - this is the episode nobody wants to need… but everyone eventually does.

What You’ll Learn

- The Bank-Holiday Trap: Why dying on a Friday (or any public holiday) can leave you in limbo.

- Coroner or No Coroner: Who gets referred, who doesn’t, and why it completely changes the timeline.

- The Paperwork Maze: Death certificate → cremation forms → registrar → funeral director: the exact order (and who can actually help you).

If you ever have to do this, you’ll wish you’d listened first. Because nobody hands you the manual and now you’ve got one.

(And yes… the best advice we’ve got? Try not to die on a bank holiday.)

It's A Death Sentence shares real stories of life after loss and is produced by Urban Podcasts. Listener discretion is always advised.