Episode 1 – Gareth Mitchell

In this first episode of Adventures in Venture, I interview Gareth Mitchell (Milly), an old friend of mine. While somewhat off the topic of Venture Capital, it is an erudite and interesting start to Adventures in Venture.

As the presenter of BBC Digital Planet for over 18 years, Milly shares his journey into the world of media and radio. He discusses his early fascination with TV shows like Tomorrow's World and his dream of working in the media. Milly got his start in student radio and fell in love with the discipline and ritual of radio production.

He describes the transformative moment of visiting a BBC radio studio at Bush House and feeling like he had found his place. Milly also reflects on the significance of the BBC as a global entity and its role in broadcasting. The conversation explores the role of broadcasting and media in shaping public opinion and combating propaganda.

We discuss the importance of the BBC World Service as an independent and trusted source of news and information. The conversation also touches on the topic of Brexit and its impact on the UK's global outlook. We delve into the field of science communication and the challenges faced by scientists in effectively communicating their work to the public. Milly knows something about this as it's what he does for a job.

We then conclude our conversation in a somewhat grand manner with a discussion on the nature of science and the potential for a unified theory of everything. A fine chat!. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Key Sections

00:00 Introduction and Background

20:22 Early Passion for Media and Broadcasting

29:18 Transformative Moment: Visiting a Radio Studio at Bush House

36:21 Reflections on the Impact of the BBC

51:20 Challenges in Science Communication

58:07 The Nature of Science and a Unified Theory of Everything

01:06:31 Advice for Those Starting in Media

01:13:37 Be Decent to People