What happens when the skills that have helped you solve problems, lead people and build a career cannot prepare you for the greatest loss of your life?

In this episode, Brij Thankey sits down with Donna Hodges, founder of the Bodie Hodges Foundation, to talk about leadership, child bereavement and rebuilding a life after profound loss.

Donna spent 13 years working inside the NHS in leadership development, coaching and organisational change before establishing her own training and consultancy business.

Then, in 2012, her 10-month-old son, Bodie, died. Bodie became an organ donor, and four other children lived because of him. Donna and her husband, Nick, made a promise to do good things in his name. That promise became the Bodie Hodges Foundation, a charity supporting families who have experienced the death of a child.

But building the foundation also meant finding her way back to herself. Donna lost her confidence and questioned whether she would ever work again. She had to confront the reality that not everything can be solved, planned for or made better through sheer determination.

Today, Donna continues to lead the foundation while protecting the compassion and human connection at the heart of its work.

This episode covers:

• The leadership lessons Donna learned during her time in the NHS
• Why not every problem can be solved
• Rebuilding confidence after losing a child
• The promise that became the Bodie Hodges Foundation

• Navigating grief differently within a marriage
• Supporting bereaved families without telling them how to grieve
• Making difficult decisions as a charity grows
• Protecting human connection as an organisation expands
• Why grief does not follow a timetable
• Staying connected to the child you have lost while learning to live again

A conversation about leadership, child bereavement, relationships, resilience and finding a way forward without having to leave the person you lost behind.

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ABOUT DONNA

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Donna Hodges is the founder and CEO of the Bodie Hodges Foundation, a Leicestershire charity supporting families who have experienced the death of a child.

After 13 years in NHS training, leadership development and organisational change, Donna established her own consultancy business. Following the death of her son, Bodie, she and her husband, Nick, built the foundation to provide support, connection and hope to other bereaved families.

Donna received an honorary doctorate from Coventry University in 2023 and was named Inspiring Leader of the Year at the 2025 VAL Awards.

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What happens to ambition when life asks more of you than any business plan could prepare you for?

In this episode, Brij Thankey sits down with Gemma Orton, entrepreneur, marketing specialist, apprenticeship advocate and business leader.

Gemma started her career as a business administration apprentice before moving into sports marketing at Leicester Tigers and later joining Donington Park, where she helped rebuild the business following a collapsed F1 bid.

She went on to build a marketing agency from freelance work into a team of 15, working through two pregnancies before eventually selling the business through a management buyout.

But the biggest chapter of Gemma's life was not a business one.

In July 2022, her seven-year-old son Freddie died in a car accident. Gemma stepped away from business entirely. She and her husband Dave focused on getting through each day, raising their younger son Harry and building a life around the family and the animals they had once promised Freddie they would have.

Four years later, Gemma is rebuilding her career while raising Harry and her youngest son Rory, and learning how to hold happiness and heartbreak at the same time.

This episode covers:

• Saying yes before you know how

• Building and selling a 15-person agency

• Ambition, motherhood and knowing when to let go

• The value of apprenticeships and investing in young people

• Leadership, AI and the importance of human connection

• Rebuilding your identity after profound loss

• Choosing happiness while living with grief

• What “Be More Freddie” means

• What matters most when the business world falls away

A conversation about ambition, motherhood, grief, identity, resilience and choosing to live fully even when heartbreak becomes part of your story.

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ABOUT GEMMA

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Gemma Orton is an entrepreneur, marketing specialist, apprenticeship advocate and business leader based in the East Midlands.

She began her career as an apprentice before building a career across sports, marketing and business development. She later founded and grew her own marketing agency into a 15-person team before selling the business through a management buyout.

Today, Gemma works in apprenticeship training and regional business development while raising her family and continuing to build a life shaped by both profound loss and profound love.

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What happens when the conviction that helps you build extraordinary things also becomes your blind spot?

In this episode, Brij Thankey sits down with Peter Marples — entrepreneur, former KPMG equity partner, former Derby County director and co-founder of 3aaa.

Peter became an equity partner at KPMG before 30, led the sale of a business for more than £25 million, fulfilled a childhood promise to his father by becoming part of the consortium that bought Derby County and later helped build 3aaa from a £300,000 contract into a £30 million business.

But behind those achievements are periods of profound difficulty, controversy and reflection.

Peter shares why selling his business left him feeling empty, what owning Derby County taught him about passion and responsibility, how 3aaa grew so quickly and his perspective on its collapse and the subsequent legal battle.

He also reflects on the decisions he believes he got wrong, why being “overly positive” can become a weakness, and how CBT has shaped the way he approaches difficult periods in his life.

This episode covers:

• Why a £25m business exit left Peter feeling empty
• Fulfilling his childhood dream of buying Derby County
• What owning the club taught him about passion and responsibility
• How 3aaa grew from £300k to £30m
• The principles behind its rapid growth
• Peter's perspective on the collapse of 3aaa and subsequent legal battle
• The decisions he now looks back on differently
• Why optimism can become a blind spot
• How CBT changed his approach to work, life and resilience
• Why he continues to work while living with advanced melanoma

A conversation about ambition, identity, conviction, failure and what it means to keep going when the things you've built don't go according to plan.

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ABOUT PETER

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Peter Marples is a British entrepreneur and former KPMG equity partner whose career has spanned professional services, business, education and football.

He was part of the consortium that acquired Derby County and later co-founded apprenticeship provider 3aaa. Today, Peter continues to work and build businesses while undergoing treatment for advanced melanoma.

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