We're marking Pride Month with Team Jamaica swimmer Michael Gunning, who's making waves not just in the pool but as a global advocate for LGBT+ rights.

Gunning came out in 2018 on the TV show the Bi Life, two years after switching allegiance from Great Britain to Jamaica. In this special episode, he talks about the positive reaction to coming out, how it's improved his performances in the pool, and gives advice to anyone who's scared of being open about their sexuality:

"Talk to someone", he says. "Once you tell one person it just gets so much easier and it's a massive burden, a relief that you just let go of."

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In the latest episode of our 22 Voices podcast we speak to Jaykae, one of the pioneers of Birmingham’s legendary grime music scene.

Chatting to presenter and MC Vital Powers, Jaykae talks about taking Ed Sheeran for a curry on Alum Rock Road after working with him on the number one single “Take Me Back To London” in 2019. He also chats about his love of Peaky Blinders, set in Small Heath where he grew up and still lives, how boxing is in his blood, and the future of Birmingham’s grime scene.

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The Black Country-raised Olympic sprint champion Mark Lewis-Francis is the latest guest on the Birmingham 2022 podcast series 22 Voices, featuring sporting legends and cultural trailblazers in the run up to the Commonwealth Games.

In an honest and open chat, he talks about how athletics turned his life around as a teenager growing up in Smethwick, his journey to becoming Olympic champion aged just 21, and how he wishes he could dust off his spikes for Birmingham 2022!

Mark Lewis-Francis also reflects on the injury problems that cut his career short, the impact of the death of his childhood coach Steve Platt, how Linford Christie helped resurrect his career, and the quieter life he now enjoys in South Wales with his partner and four children.

He also speaks about the Black Lives Matter movement sparked by the death of George Floyd, and his own experiences of racism in the West Midlands.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.