Today’s conversation is powerful, moving, and deeply human.

My guest is Councillor Professor Bharat Pankhania — the 798th Mayor of Bath — and a leading expert in communicable disease control. Many of you will recognise him as one of the calm, trusted medical voices who helped the public make sense of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But this episode goes far beyond titles.

Bharat shares his journey from a childhood in Nairobi, Kenya, to arriving in the UK at fourteen — a sudden departure, a new life, and experiences that left lasting scars. He speaks honestly about racism, belonging and what it means to keep going when the world feels hostile.

And running through everything is one clear message: education is empowerment — a lifeline, a doorway, a way forward. We also talk about his love of nature and gardening, his passion for cooking vegetarian Gujarati food for charity and his determination to help make the UK a fairer, kinder place for everyone.

It’s an episode about resilience, identity and hope. I really hope you enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed talking to Bharat.

Right… on with the show.

Thanks for listening!


Music thanks to John Bartmann

In this moving and memorable episode of Two Worlds, One Me, I sit down with British-Ghanaian artist Joshua Donkor, whose award-winning portraits explore diasporic identity, ancestral memory and the stories that shape who we are.

Joshua's work is deeply personal, filled with image transfers, textures and fragments of family photographs, but it speaks to all of us who have ever wondered where we belong. We talk about growing up mixed-race in the UK, about finally visiting Ghana and meeting his grandmother, and dancing together when words weren’t possible. We also explore his time living in Italy, how that experience helped him grow, and how painting became a way to both discover and document his identity.

We reflect on the joy of family, the power of archiving our stories, and why memory, like colour and scent, can carry so much meaning.

This episode is for anyone who has lived between cultures, carries more than one soul within them, or simply wants to understand the beauty and complexity of identity through the eyes of an artist.

Featuring:

• The story behind Joshua’s most powerful paintings
• His English mother’s letters from Ghana
• What “home” means when you belong to more than one place
• The smell of groundnut soup and the colour of belonging
• And why dancing can sometimes say more than words ever could

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Joshua’s exhibition title was inspired by the poet Fernando Pessoa: "I have more souls than one..." By the end of this episode, you might find yourself feeling the same.

Music featured in this episode - Kofi Sammy - Akoko Batan (Ghana highlife), Joshua's uncle

Joshua's website - https://www.joshuadonkorart.co.uk/

Groundnut soup receipe - https://www.seriouseats.com/ghana-west-african-peanut-stew-chicken-groundnut-soup

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Got a story to share? Write to me: hello@twoworlds.oneme.cafe

Subscribe, share and join us again soon for another episode of Two Worlds, One Me.

Thanks for listening!


Music thanks to John Bartmann

In this deeply moving and deliciously evocative episode, I talk to Irina Janakievska – a North-Macedonian-British writer, recipe developer and author of the acclaimed The Balkan Kitchen. Born in Skopje, raised in Kuwait, and now based in London, Irina shares her remarkable journey across continents, cultures and careers – from corporate law to culinary storytelling.

We talk about her vibrant multicultural upbringing, the legacy of former Yugoslavia, finding home in more than one place and how food can carry memory, history and identity across generations and borders. Irina tells the powerful story behind her cookbook, her mother’s bravery and the flavours that shaped her sense of self.

Expect warm reflections, laughter, and a shared love for quince trees, ajvar, and the language of food.

This episode is your invitation to sit at the table and listen in.

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Instagram @balkankitchen

Thanks for listening!


Music thanks to John Bartmann