Carol McGiffin: The agony aunt solving no one’s issues!
‘There was a time, in my angstridden teens and 20s, when I would worship at the altar of “agony aunts”, hanging on their every word, soaking up their empathy. I would stay up and listen to the late-night agony slots on the radio. Anna (Raeburn) and the Doc, on Capital Radio, were legendary.
I had an admiration for them that was reserved for seniors of authority – they were authoritative, trained, professional people who could do no wrong and were awesome in their relentless need to help others.
But then everything changed and you no longer had to be qualified to give advice – suddenly everyone was an expert. From journalists to television personalities and pop stars, eventually they all ended up with a column or a slot on breakfast radio or TV, solving people’s dilemmas by pretending to know what they were talking about.
I know my limitations and am not the most sympathetic or empathetic person in the world, so I never thought it was for me. But then, in late 2019, a DJ friend and former radio partner-in-crime, Nick Abbot, called me up and said, “Let’s do a show”. I said OK, and our podcast, What’s Your Problem with Nick and Carol was born.
It was my big break. I was in, and I could finally call myself an agony aunt (no, I haven’t spelt that wrong!).
Sixty episodes later and we’re still going strong. We deal with around three problems per show, sometimes more, often less. And, to date, we have solved absolutely nothing, helped absolutely no one, and laughed at absolutely every single one.
But real therapists will tell you, laughter is itself a form of therapy, the best medicine, and all that? So we are providing a service, even if it sounds like we’re taking the p*** lol!’
THEWAY ISEEIT... Wisewords fromourfeisty, fearless andfunny columnist