Gary Lineker needs no introduction. Golden Boot winner at the 1986 World Cup. Sixty-eight goals for England and one of only four players in history never to receive a yellow card. And for thirty years, the most recognisable face in British football broadcasting. And through almost all of it, a quiet persistent voice telling him he didn't quite belong — that sooner or later, someone was going to find him out.

What's fascinating about this conversation is how honest Gary is about that feeling, and how completely he refuses to pretend it wasn't there. He talks about the terrifying manager who pinned him against a dressing room wall after he'd scored two goals in a half, and the life lesson that was buried somewhere inside that moment. He opens up about what it was really like at Barcelona — playing at the absolute peak of his powers and still running back to the halfway line thinking he'd just got lucky again. He tells the story of his dad, who said "I love you" for the first and only time as he lay dying, and what that did to Gary standing alone in a hospital lift. And he shares the lesson from Des Lynam that quietly shaped the way he approached thirty years of live television.

You'll hear Gary talk on why luck matters more than most people admit. On what it means to go two marriages deep and still consider yourself blessed. On kindness as a non-negotiable. And on why his greatest asset was never his right foot... it was his mind.

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High Performance just passed 400 episodes. To mark it, producer Will puts Jake in the hot seat — not for a highlights reel, but to go deep on the conversations that actually changed him.

Which guest challenged him most personally? Which episode stayed with him? What happened in the room with Jonny Wilkinson that nobody heard? Why did Dame Stephanie Shirley's words make him rethink the entire purpose of the show? And what was the episode that left him completely broken down on camera?

Jake also reveals the show that High Performance almost was instead — and why that origin story still shapes every interview he walks into.

Episodes mentioned in this conversation:

• Jonny Wilkinson https://pod.fo/e/9cca4
• Dame Stephanie Shirley https://pod.fo/e/16a443
• Danny Gray https://pod.fo/e/145c8a
• Paul Gascoigne https://pod.fo/e/3917fd
• Claire Williams https://pod.fo/e/2b956b
• Dr Chris Van Tulleken https://pod.fo/e/24d790

If you're new to High Performance, this is the best place to start. If you've been here since the beginning, this one's for you.

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Peter Kenyon is a global sports powerbroker and Williams F1 Board Advisor, famed for transforming Premier League giants and securing major partnerships with global brands.

In this episode, Peter joins Damian to discuss the leadership principles that shaped his success and how his "Holy Trinity Framework", balancing the roles of owner, CEO, and manager, was key to building sustainable winning cultures at two of football’s biggest clubs.

He dives into his philosophy on culture, explaining how he made tough calls like rejecting Ronaldinho for his lifestyle and selling David Beckham despite his commercial value. He also reveals how he prioritised structure over short-term success, even when it meant making bold moves like replacing Claudio Ranieri at Chelsea.

This episode is an insightful look at how maintaining a strong structure, ruthless execution, and cultural standards is essential for lasting achievement, both on and off the field.

Heights 👉 Get 20% off your subscription by using Code: HP20 here: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp_heights_au3 

Go Henry 👉 Grow their skills and their money at gohenry.com/highperformance with £5 FREE to get started!

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Randox 👉 Book a test today and save 20% on all health checks with the code HP20 at : https://highpfrmc.com/HPP_Randoxhealth_au 

Visit CLIF at www.eu.clifbar.com or www.instagram.com/clifeurope to learn more and shop your favourite flavours on www.amazon.co.uk/clif

Find out more about Williams F1: https://www.williamsf1.com/

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Jean Todt is one of the most influential figures in motorsport, with a career that spans decades of unparalleled success, from leading Ferrari to dominance in Formula 1 to his work with the United Nations on road safety.

In this episode, Jean discusses his "life in chapters" philosophy and how his F1 success fueled a mission to tackle the "silent pandemic" of road deaths. He shares moving insights into his bond with Michael Schumacher, the importance of protecting those you lead, and why integrity matters more than trophies. 

With powerful stories of overcoming adversity and maintaining integrity, this episode offers a rare glimpse into the leadership that shaped one of the most successful eras in Formula 1 history.

Heights 👉 Get 20% off your subscription by using Code: HP20 here: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp_heights_au3 

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Randox 👉 Book a test today and save 20% on all health checks with the code HP20 at : https://highpfrmc.com/HPP_Randoxhealth_au 

XTB 👉 To find out more and make your money work, use code HPP at: https://highpfrmc.com/XTB-hpp-au 

Visit CLIF at www.eu.clifbar.com or www.instagram.com/clifeurope to learn more and shop your favourite flavours on www.amazon.co.uk/clif

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In 2024, Jake and Damian met the remarkable Olympian David Smith MBE at Fearne Cotton's Happy Place Festival and held an audience of 300 people spellbound. David had a terminal cancer diagnosis — and a message about how to live that neither of them has forgotten since.

This week, they share a voice note David recorded from his hospital bed after becoming a full quadriplegic with recent news he has just months left to live, where he speaks about dancing with life, finding beauty in stillness, and why the journey — not the destination — is everything.

Jake and Damian reflect on David's three guiding values of compassion, curiosity and courage and why so many of us wait for the worst news of our lives before we start truly living.

If you've never heard the full episode with David Smith, it's Episode 215 — and this conversation is the perfect place to start.

Please donate to Ed Jackson’s Go fund me for David Smith here .It is raising money to help fund the treatment, care, equipment, rehabilitation and wider support Dave needs, while also helping to ease some of the pressure on him and his family.

Find David on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidsmithmbe/

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Yaya Touré is one of football’s most dominant midfielders, a key figure in transforming Manchester City into a title-winning force. In this episode, Yaya shares the unseen moments behind that success, from arriving at a club with a losing mentality to helping build a culture driven by focus, respect, dedication, and passion.

He opens up about the turning point that changed everything, a heated halftime confrontation that sparked a shift in standards and turned City into “a machine.” Drawing on his time at Barcelona under Pep Guardiola, Yaya explains why winning teams are built on brotherhood, purpose, and an obsession with excellence, not just talent.

Yaya also reflects on the managers who shaped him and the identity that defined his career: “I’m a winner.” This is a powerful insight into what it really takes to build a championship mentality and sustain success at the highest level.

Our partners for this episode:

Heights 👉 Get 20% off your subscription by using Code: HP20 here: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp_heights_au3 

EXCLUSIVE NordVPN Deal 👉 https://nordvpn.com/highperformance Try it risk-free now with a 30-day money-back guarantee 

Randox 👉 Book a test today and save 20% on all health checks with the code HP20 at : https://highpfrmc.com/HPP_Randoxhealth_au 

XTB 👉 To find out more and make your money work, use code HPP at: https://highpfrmc.com/XTB-hpp-au  

Visit CLIF at www.eu.clifbar.com or www.instagram.com/clifeurope to learn more and shop your favourite flavours on www.amazon.co.uk/clif

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Martin Lewis will tell you himself - he's not an entrepreneur, not a celebrity, not a website owner. He's a campaigning journalist. One who happened to build MoneySavingExpert into the most powerful consumer platform in the country, recover billions of pounds for ordinary people, and become the most trusted voice in Britain in the process.

We're revisiting one of the most powerful conversations we've ever had on High Performance and we think it's more relevant now than when we first recorded it.

This conversation is about what drives a person to dedicate their life to fighting for strangers. Where that fire comes from. What it costs to carry the weight of millions of people's trust. And what Martin Lewis has had to go through to get here.

You'll hear Martin on why trust cannot be marketed, only earned. On the moment that shifted his entire philosophy from beating the system to protecting the people the system exploits. And on why success, however hard won, is never the whole story.

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Mo Salah is leaving Liverpool as a legend. Trent Alexander-Arnold left to boos and a painted-over mural. What made the difference — and what does it tell us about legacy, loyalty, and how we all choose to move on?

Jake and Damian dig into the psychology of the exit: why the ultimatum game explains fan reaction, how Salah's struggles at Chelsea made him a better player at Liverpool, and what Roy Hodgson returning to management at 78 says about purpose and passion.

Plus: Georgia Hunter Bell's remarkable comeback from telesales to World Indoor champion, Kimi Antonelli's back-to-back Formula One wins and what one victory does to the mind, and Josh Kerr's pursuit of the world mile record. Damian's High Performer of the Week will stop you in your tracks.

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Brené Brown is a world-renowned researcher and author, known for her work on vulnerability, courage, and what makes truly effective leaders. She has spent decades studying human behaviour, uncovering how fear, connection, and self-awareness shape performance at the highest level.

In this episode, Brené sits down with Jake and Damian to explore the difference between safe and unsafe leadership, and how fear quietly drives decisions at work and at home. She explains why the best leaders don’t avoid vulnerability, but use it to build trust, clarity, and stronger teams.

They cover why your greatest strength might secretly be your armour, the formula every elite performer needs to understand (performance = potential minus interference), why organisational leaders are the only high-performers in the world where coaching isn't expected, and what England's penalty curse and Liverpool's current struggles really tell us about the psychology of winning.

Plus — a special surprise message from Steven Gerrard leaves Brené lost for words!

Subscribe to Brené’s podcast ‘The Curiosity Shop’ on YouTube or your favorite app for new episodes every Thursday.

Brené’s latest book ‘Strong Ground’ is available now: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Strong-Ground-Leadership-Tenacity-Vermilion/dp/178504320X

Links referenced in podcast: The lethality of loneliness: John Cacioppo TED TALK

Our partners in this episode:

Heights 👉 Get 20% off your subscription by using Code: HP20 here: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp_heights_au3 

Randox 👉 Book a test today and save 20% on all health checks with the code HP20 at : https://highpfrmc.com/HPP_Randoxhealth_au

Visit Seattle 👉 Start planning your perfect summer of football by searching Visit Seattle on social media, or discover more at: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp-visitseattle-au

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Shane Parrish is the founder of Farnam Street and one of the world's most respected voices on decision-making and clear thinking.

In this episode we re-visit with Shane, he introduces the concept of positioning — the small daily choices that put you on easy mode or hard mode before a single big decision is made. He breaks down the four defaults that hijack your thinking (emotion, ego, social pressure, and inertia), explains why fear of success holds people back just as much as fear of failure, and shares the Kissinger test that reveals whether you're truly doing your best work.

If you're tired of making life harder than it needs to be, this one's for you.

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Louis Theroux's Manosphere documentary has got everyone talking - but Jake and Damian think we might be asking the wrong questions. Is shining a light on extreme influencers actually making them more attractive? And is the phrase 'toxic masculinity' doing more harm than good to the young men it's supposed to help?

Jake shares research from the Centre for Male Psychology suggesting the term may be damaging to boys, while Damian breaks down why labels drive identity, and why that can become a self-fulfilling prophecy. 

Also this week...

• The treatment of Liam Rosenior 
• Head coach Johann van Graan's transformation of Bath Rugby
• LeBron James broke the NBA all-time games played record 
• And Norwich is officially the best place to live in the UK (Jake has thoughts)

Heights 👉 Get 20% off your subscription by using Code: HP20 here: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp_heights_au3 

Visit Seattle 👉 Start planning your perfect summer of football by searching Visit Seattle on social media, or discover more at: https://highpfrmc.com/hpp-visitseattle-au

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