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Episode details

World Service,04 Jul 2026,26 mins

The Happy Pod: Meeting a princess while climbing a mountain

Global News Podcast

Available for 364 days

Pete Haslam was carrying his paraplegic son Ted up a mountain, helped by friends and family, when they bumped into Catherine, Princess of Wales. She was doing the same climbing challenge, known as the Three Peaks, and stopped to chat to them three times. Pete says he almost didn't recognise Catherine in her walking gear but, when they got talking, she was very kind and motherly to Ted. Also: in a story suggested by a listener, we hear from the US man who crossed Africa on a skateboard. Jason Vanporppal was raising money for a skatepark in Uganda which he hopes will inspire young people. The unusual object that saved a man's life after an accident at sea. He survived by clinging to a cool box for four hours. Plus the twins who married twins, the Nigerian chef awarded 'icon status'. And the surprise school trip to a star studded movie premiere. Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson arranged for the pupils to see his latest film, Moana, after they'd tagged him in a socials video. Our weekly collection of inspiring, uplifting and happy news from around the world. (Photo: Pete Haslam talking to Catherine, Princess of Wales, on Ben Nevis. Credit: Pete Haslam) Presenter: Holly Gibbs. Music composed by Iona Hampson

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