The Big Interview: Recent Episodes
Dubai Eye 103.8
Extraordinary people with extraordinary stories. Join Chris McHardy, Sonal Rupani, and Robbie Greenfield as they embark on a conversational adventure and speak to some of the world's most remarkable individuals. The Big Interview is produced by Tom Paul Smith.
Chris and Robbie are joined by legendary football commentator Clive Tyldesley to discuss life behind the mic. From his meticulous planning to his ultimate do’s and dont’s after 35 years of TV broadcasting. Clive also shares his run-ins with Sir Alex Ferguson, his tip for this season’s Premier League title and why Tiger Woods’ “return to glory” left him underwhelmed.
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Al Corbi is the go-to-guy when you're in the market for a James Bond villain style lair.
Doomsday prepping is nothing new, but following the revelation of Mark Zuckerberg's plans for a secretive underground bunker; described as a 5,000-sq-ft underground shelter with “its own energy and food supplies” and “what appears to be a blast-resistant door” other rich people decided they wanted to get their own 'fortified shelter'.
Sonal reached out to Al Corbi, president and founder of Virginia-based company SAFE (Strategically Armored & Fortified Environments) to find out how he became the guy that the rich and famous reach out to when they're in the market for a doomsday-proof luxury underground bunker.
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Chris and Robbie regularly meet people who put their achievements to shame, and that was very much the case when they spoke to Everan Oska who recently set an incredible running record in the UAE.
According to Evran he could go even faster if he got another chance! Wait until you hear how he got into ultra running in the first place, he makes it sound like we could all do it - there's hope for Chris' battle against the Dad bod yet.
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Chris talks to one those annoying people who can seemingly do it all, they make a success of whatever they turn their hand to.
Step forward basketball great turned actor and producer turned environmentalist: Rick Fox. As Chris found out, it's not luck or good fortune that has made Rick successful in so many fields, it's hard work and dedication.
Speaking of hard work, strap yourself in for one of the greatest Kobe Bryant tributes we've ever heard.
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The reality star from the loudest boxing dynasty of a generation, Tommy Fury is used to life in the public eye. He was the fresh faced the kid in the ring with his brother on that night in Düsseldorf, he was crowned winner of Love Island and he threw a few big payday boxing bouts with YouTubers for good measure, Tommy Fury has dealt with it all with class and grace.
He talks to Robbie and Chris about the champion mindset, cross over fights and why he sees his brother Tyson’s May 18th fight as being his easiest yet.
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It’s Sir Tom Jones, need we say anymore??
OK, well this octogenarian thought he had done everything there was to do in the entertainment industry over the last seven decades. But he had never spoke to Chris McHardy…until now.
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The Tinder Swindler, Don’t F* With Cats and most recently American Nightmare, Felicity Morris has brought some of the most incredible true crime shows of recent years to Netflix. Our in house TC fanatic Chris couldn’t wait to speak to her, he kept her for way longer than we expected her to allow us, and the conversation is just incredible. From Felicity’s process, to the most shocking things she’s learnt in working on these stories, to the effect the content has on the production team. This is one of our favourite Big Interviews.
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Chris finally managed to catch up with Kevin Ford after his story went viral last year.
Kevin is a brilliant man, a father of 4 daughters and grandad to three, he has never missed a day of work for 27 years and his life was turned on its head after a video was posted of him receiving a gift from management to acknowledge his service.
Kevin's grace, humanity and humility is an example to us all.
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BONUS REVISIT! Hard to believe Robbie spoke to competitive eater James 'Webby' Web nearly a year ago. We are scratching our heads to figure out why we didn't post this at the time, but it's a great one and definitely worth the wait.
Since this chat Webby's been around the world, smashed countless competitive eating records, climbed up the international rankings and stepped up on stage once again with the unofficial GOAT Joey Chestnuts at Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest.
We will check in with him again for a catch up in the future.
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Chris was granted an audience with a man who has been on our screens since the early 80s. Steve Harvey was brilliant, nothing more needs to be said!
Other than we hope he comes back to speak to all the Off Script gang in the studio soon.
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Laughing gas by day, laughing crowds by night, Chris, Sonal and Robbie were in stitches with the standout Emirati stand-up Abz Ali. He's gone viral recently for his series with Abdokhj covering "Arab Misconceptions" so the Off Script team got him in to expand on those misconceptions and to talk about his double life as both a 9-5 Dentist and a late night stand up.
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The Big Interview is back with a bang! Ant Middleton is an adventurer, author, TV personality and former UK Special Forces soldier, Royal Marines Commando, and Royal Engineer in the British Army. He was, of course, the Chief Instructor on TV's SAS: Who Dares Wins from 2015 until 2021. He's a new resident of Dubai and given that we first spoke to him almost 2 years ago to the day, he's a man that we are proud to call a friend of the show.
His workload and achievements in the intervening 2 years since we last spoke put us all to shame, there was a lot to catch up on!
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You'll know him as Happy Lowman in the FX series Sons of Anarchy, David Labrava joins Robbie to talk about life as an actor, writer, producer, director, tattoo artist and his best selling autobiography "Becoming a Son".
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The story of Dr. Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa - from migrant farmer to renowned brain surgeon. Here, Dr. Alfredo Quiñones-Hinojosa tells Off Script his incredible life story - from his impoverished childhood in the tiny village of Palaco, Mexico to his harrowing border crossing and his transformation from illegal immigrant to one of the brightest minds in the medical world. This is Dr. Quiñones-Hinojosa in his own words.
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Chris Gardner reveals the secret to happiness!
Off Script chats to Chris Gardner, a man whose story has inspired millions. Gardner’s positivity (not to mention his infectious laugh) is impossible to resist, as he reflects on a life that inspired the Hollywood movie “The Pursuit of Happyness”. What are the keys to finding your own path to success? And what are the pitfalls to avoid? Chris has the answers!
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When Mike Finkel received a call from a reporter asking why Christian Longo—a man apprehended on charges of murdering his wife and three children—was claiming to be him, Mike decided to confront the accused murderer face to face. Mike shares his first-hand account of the real-life tale portrayed in the James Franco and Jonah Hill film True Story.
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Xiye is a climate justice activist from Mexico, and one of the lead organisers of the Fridays For Future youth climate strike movement. At 18 she sits on the administration committee of the Peoples Climate Movement, where she brings the voice of youth to existing grassroots and climate organisations.
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At 21 years old Jasmine Harrison set a new world record to become the youngest female to row solo across the Atlantic Ocean. She completed a 4,800 kilometer journey from Spain to Antigua in 70 days, 3 hours and 48 minutes.
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As an FBI hostage negotiator, Chris Voss persuaded terrorists, bank robbers, and kidnappers to see things his way. Having worked on over 150 kidnappings, he talks about the tactics he employed in hostage negotiation and the most intense situation he found himself in.
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One of the world’s leading documentary filmmakers and a pioneer in immersive storytelling. Anthony has collaborated with natural historian legend David Attenborough for 11 documentaries - winning three BAFTAs in total.
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Former American New York mobster and caporegime of the Colombo crime family, Michael Franzese, takes us into the underground world of a New York Crime Family. If you are a fan of the Godfather, or Goodfellas, or the Sopranos, or indeed any gangster related pop culture classic, this interview is not to be missed.
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In 1975 Robert "Raven" Kraft, made a New Year's Resolution to run eight miles on Miami's South Beach each evening. More than 44 years later and over 129,200 miles, he has not missed one day. Learn all about this incredible feat and the man behind it.
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Over the course of his 30-year FBI career Gary Noesner has been involved in a number of high-profile hostage negotiations, chief among them the well-known siege at Waco, Texas. Gary gives us a front row seat into what happened during the 51-day standoff between the FBI and the ardent followers of David Koresh back in 1993, and explains how the event ultimately ended in tragedy.
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Chris Lemons is a deep-sea saturation diver who found himself face-to-face with death in an accident at sea in 2012. He explains what it was like to be trapped 100 meters below the surface, alone, in complete darkness, and with a rapidly dwindling supply of oxygen. We learned the miraculous story of how he survived the ordeal.
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In 2015, two convicted murders made a daring escape from the Clinton Correctional Facility in New York, precipitating the largest manhunt in the state’s history. Charles Gardner, a former correction officer who oversaw the training of prison staff and the author of Dannemora, shares the inside story of the felons’ intricate getaway plans and the 23-day search to apprehend them.
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The iconic 80s track "Oh Yeah" became an instant pop culture classic after being featured in the infamous Ferrari scene from Ferris Bueller's Day Off. Boris Blank, one half of the band Yello, tells us what inspired the catchy song.
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When 12-year-old Eric Zala connected with his classmate Chris Strompolos over a shared love for Indiana Jones, he had no idea how a simple idea would change his life. Together, they embarked on a 7-year mission to recreate the Steven Spielberg blockbuster Raiders of the Lost Ark scene for scene. From setting himself on fire, to a dramatic filmmakers feud, he took us behind the scenes of the cult favorite adaptation that ultimately earned the praise of Spielberg himself.
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Ness Knight is an explorer and endurance adventurer. She has cycled solo and self supported across the Northern Namib desert, and was also the first woman in history to swim the Thames River from its source to London. She told us about the challenges she's faced along the way and what keeps her going.
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Brendan McDonough was the sole survivor among the 20 members of the elite firefighting group the Granite Mountain Hotshots during the fatal Yarnell Hill fire of 2013. As the crew battled a raging wildfire, 19 perished in a tragic event that was memorialized in the film Only the Brave. Brendan tells us how he escaped death and about his agonizing road to recovery.
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Told in the words of filmmaker and journalist Louis Myles, this is the ridiculous true story of Carlos Kaiser, a footballer who managed a 26-year professional career without playing a single game.
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After being arrested at Don Muang airport, drug smuggler David McMillan spent over a year in Bangkok’s infamous Klong Prem prison. In this gripping account, he reveals the nightmare of existence in this notorious jail and explains how he did what no other Westerner has done: escape.
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The world's most famous paleontologist discovered the first dinosaur eggs in the Western Hemisphere, the first evidence of parental care among dinosaurs, and is the inspiration for the main character in the book and film Jurassic Park.
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Hollywood filmmaker Michael Robert Gale is best known as co-creator of the wildly popular Back to the Future trilogy. In this episode find out how the films got made, why they have endured, and the chances of seeing a sequel.
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In 2018, Claire Nelson took a lone hike in the desert. She shattered her pelvis in a fall and ran out of water. Here she retells the gripping account of her determination to survive.
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In 1974, Philippe Petit set out to achieve the unthinkable: a high-wire walk more than 1,300 feet in the air across New York City’s Twin Towers. The event that enthralled New Yorkers almost 50 years ago has been immortalized in an Oscar-winning documentary Man on Wire and the 2015 filmThe Walk. He told us how he constructed the audacious plan and what it felt like to look down on the world below.
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Paul de Gelder’s life was upended when a routine Navy dive brought him face to face with a 9-foot bull shark. He recounts the harrowing details of his attack, how he survived against the odds, and why he now refuses to succumb to fear.
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Terry Waite spent 1,736 days as a hostage in Lebanon between 1987-1991. Here he recounts in harrowing detail life in solitary confinement chained to a radiator for up to 23 hours a day and explains why the human spirit will never be broken.
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Mike Durant, the Black Hawk helicopter pilot made famous after being taken hostage in the Battle of Mogadishu, reflects on that fateful day on October 3, 1993 - the crash, the ensuing gunfight and 11 days in captivity.
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In 1971, retired sea captain Dougal Robertson made the outlandish decision to sail his young family around the world - only for their boat to be sunk in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. Nearly 40 years on, this remarkable story is told vividly through the account of his son, Douglas. It’s a tale of adventure, shipwreck and redemption, as Douglas reminisces on the last voyage of the Lucette.
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In 1985 Joe Simpson and his climbing companion Simon Yates become the first pair to successfully summit the west face of Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes. But after reaching the top and preparing for the descent, it was then that things started to go badly wrong.
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Since meeting Tom Cruise on the set of Edge Of Tomorrow, Stunt coordinator Wade Eastwood has never left the actor’s side - crafting stunts that have tested Cruise and left audiences in awe.
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Two time space shuttle captain and former commander of the International Space Station, Chris Hadfield paints a vivid picture of life in space, living aboard the ISS and the question of aliens.
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