The High Performance Podcast

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 a...

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...

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...

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 Schu...

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...

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...

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...

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...

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 decisio...

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 ...

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 Dam...

When global instability dominates the headlines, it can be hard to know what to think...or how to lead. This week, Jake and Damian sit down with General Sir Richard Shirreff, former Deputy Supreme Allied Commander of NATO, to cut through the noise.

With 37 years commanding British soldiers, Richard has led through some of the most complex and high-stakes environments imaginable - from the streets of Basra to the corridors of NAT...

Mark Webber came from a small town in rural Australia with no money, no connections, and a body the wrong size for a Formula One car. He made it to the very top anyway, achieving nine Grand Prix wins, 42 podiums and World Endurance Champion - becoming one of the most respected drivers of his generation.

We re-visit this conversation with Mark, where he opens up about the years at Red Bull when he believed his own team was favour...

What happens inside a dressing room when a team loses faith in itself? Jake and Damian go beyond the results and the headlines to examine the psychology of collective belief failure — using Tottenham's historic 12-game winless run as the defining case study.

Joined by goalkeeper Tim Krul, who has experienced relegation with both Newcastle and Luton, they explore what fear actually looks like on a pitch, why managers can lose a d...

Kumar Sangakkara is one of cricket's greatest legends, known for his unparalleled skill, leadership, and transformative philosophy. In this episode, Kumar joins Jake and Damian to share the key moments and philosophies that shaped his career both on and off the field, offering a profound perspective on performance, identity, and resilience.

Kumar explains how this philosophy shaped his approach to coaching and his own career, em...

Johann Hari has spent years doing what most of us don't have time to do — travelling the world, interviewing the world's leading neuroscientists, psychiatrists, and Silicon Valley insiders to find out why depression, anxiety, and loneliness are rising every single year. What he found will change how you see your phone, your mind, and your daily life.

Today we re-visit this impactful conversation with Johann, but it's not all doo...

Jake and Damian go inside the 2026 Australian Grand Prix — not with lap times and race analysis, but with something rarer: direct messages from the people who were actually there.

Jake shares a WhatsApp from Haas team principal Ayao Komatsu on leading through complete uncertainty. A message from Fernando Alonso's number one mechanic on why culture beats performance when nothing is certain. And a voice note from former Williams t...

David Dein is one of the most influential figures in modern football, the visionary former vice-chairman of Arsenal F.C. who helped reshape the English game. In this episode, David sits down with Jake to reveal the decisions, relationships, and moments that defined one of football’s most transformative eras.

He tells the inside story of discovering Arsène Wenger, a seven-year belief that would eventually change Arsenal forever. ...

Mo Gawdat rose to become Chief Business Officer of Google X, the moonshot factory tasked with solving the world's biggest problems. He had 16 cars in his garage, a nine-bedroom house, and by every conventional measure, had won. And then, in four hours, a preventable surgical mistake took his 21-year-old son Ali. What happened next changed everything.

In this episode, Mo shares the promise he made to Ali, to make him "everywhere ...