Listeners urged to ‘take strength’ from the players’ stories
From left, Jack Charles, Gemma Oaten and Chris Charles(Image: Hull Trains)
Hull Trains’ ground-breaking mental health podcast is shining a spotlight on men’s mental health with a newly released episode featuring two Hull KR rugby players. Legendary former captain Chris Charles and his son Jack, a promising young halfback, join host Gemma Oaten to discuss how they cope with the challenges of the sport and the changing attitudes towards men’s mental health over the years.
Episodes of “Moving Minds” are recorded on real train journeys on the East Coast Main Line, with guests joining a Hull Trains service to record their episode. The video podcasts feature personal stories about mental health, as well as the small things guests do to look after their own wellbeing.
In this new episode, Chris, who played for Hull KR for a number of years, opens up about the struggles he faced during his career. Both Chris and Jack acknowledge the power of opening up about how you are feeling, especially for those within a high-pressure environment such as professional sport.
Previous guests on the podcast have included Traitors star Jessie Stride, who recently joined to speak about her experience on the show and raise awareness of stammering. Graeme Hall, the star of Channel 5’s Dogs Behaving Badly, also revealed how he dealt with his sudden rise to fame.
For host Gemma, this is a particularly special episode, as Chris is Gemma’s brother and Jack is her nephew. She said: “This episode of ‘Moving Minds’ is a proper family affair and it’s a real joy to chat to two people I love about their mental health stories and why there’s no shame in speaking up about your wellbeing.
“I hope that anyone listening to this episode will take strength from both of their stories. The response to ‘Moving Minds’ continues to shock me and I’m so pleased that it’s inspiring people to have a good natter about how they’re feeling. That’s what it’s all about for me.”
Chris said: “Thanks to Gemma for giving us the chance to join her on the podcast, which is raising awareness about a very important topic. It’s not every day you get to chat so openly with your sister on a podcast, but we both really appreciate the opportunity. It’s important to open up about how you’re feeling, no matter who you are.”
Nathan Rayne, interim service delivery director at Hull Trains, said: “We’re very proud of the continued positive response to ‘Moving Minds’ and this latest episode is sure to be another hit with our listeners. We’re a long-term supporter of Hull KR, as well as our other local rugby club Hull FC. I’d like to thank both Chris and Jack for giving their time to join us and share their stories.”
Moving Minds is the first podcast that the operator has released and it is watchable on the Hull Trains YouTube channel, as well as being available on other podcast platforms. More episodes are on the way, with BBC Morning Live presenter Jack Marriner Brown joining Gemma to chat about his own mental health story in the coming weeks.
Watch the latest episode with Chris and Jack on the Hull Trains YouTube channel.
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