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Question The Default is a new podcast that dares to ask the questions too often left unspoken. It is hosted by entrepreneur, speaker, and mental health ambassador Harry Corin and created in support of leading suicide prevention charity CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably). The first guest of the series is Chris Hughes, the former Love Island contestant who has become a leading light in mental health with his campaigns for CALM and his willingness to talk about his struggles with anxiety and depression in the face of public scrutiny. Now he has revealed to Harry Corin that Liam Payne reached out to him during one of his darkest moments. On the podcast, Hughes says that after an altercation with tabloid photographers, Payne - the One Direction star who tragically fell to his death in a hotel in Argentina at just 31 - contacted him to help him through it. “When Liam Payne died, that hit me hard because he was one of the first people who reached out to me in that moment [the paparazzi incident],” he tells Corin, “He reached out, he sent me a message... the morning after that incident and [he] was just like, ‘You'll be anxious. It happens. It's normal.’ Which basically normalised it, to make me feel better. I thought that says a lot about the person's character.” Hughes goes on to describe the shock of Payne’s death which was shared by millions: “When we saw that news. Oh, my God, it hit you hard… First thing I thought of was how he was to me when I was going through a struggle.” Question the Default is a series which intends to challenges the default thinking that holds people back, opening up honest, fresh conversations about some of the biggest issues we face today – from mental health, addiction, and masculinity to the impact of AI on our wellbeing. Featuring guests from sport, politics, TV, and music, the podcast questions the stories we’ve been told and the assumptions we’ve come to accept. Host Harry Corin says, “We can’t create change if we keep thinking the same way. Question the Default is about challenging the norms we’ve absorbed that keep us stuck – and having honest conversations about what it really takes to make progress. I’m bringing together voices from all walks of life – from sport and entertainment to academia – to explore the issues shaping our lives. Whether it’s mental health, masculinity, or the impact of AI, I go deep into the topics we often hide from and shine a light on the questions we all need to face.” The subjects discussed are things Harry knows about all too well, at the age of 12 he lost his dad to suicide. Throughout his time at school, university and early jobs he hid that truth and never let anyone in. Just as he started a new role in a new city, he saw a CALM campaign raising awareness of the number of men who die by suicide each week in the UK, and it changed the course of his life. Speaking about it for the first time showed him how powerful honest conversations can be and how rarely people are given the space or safety to have them. Since then, preventing suicide has become his life’s mission. He believes society needs to do far more to create environments where people feel safe and supported long before reaching breaking point. Simon Gunning, CALM CEO says, “We’re proud to support CALM ambassador Harry Corin in the launch of the podcast Question the Default. Our mission has always been to get more people talking, because we know that conversations save lives. Sadly, more people than ever are struggling and need access to support. We have to keep finding new ways to spread our message. Podcasts are an incredibly powerful way to share real stories and break down the stigma that still surrounds suicide prevention and mental health. With Harry having direct experience of suicide loss, and as an active ambassador for CALM, I can’t think of a better person to host these important conversations. Harry and CALM both believe in doing things differently. We know we need to question the defaults that shape the way we think, feel, and talk about suicide prevention.” Elsewhere on the first episode, Chris Hughes talks about the pressures he faced coming out of Love Island, saying how, “Everything had changed and for me. It was tough because I don't watch loads of that type of TV. I think it took me about probably a good year to learn what not to react to. And it was kind of like I was adapting to a completely new environment and a new life and a new lifestyle. So things were tough in that respect. And the media stuff can be really tough at times.” He also discusses how some behavioural changes have helped him: “The way I am now is, if something has affected me, a good cry makes me feel unbelievable; it’s a real part of my therapy. I sit in bed and cry probably more often than people think and once I've done it, I feel like a different human. It genuinely feels like it's lifted like a weight. I've never been shy in showcasing how I feel because that’s the best way to get help. It shows people your vulnerabilities. I think that's where it comes to like bottling it up is not the thing to do because you're almost, you know, you're keeping all of that in without getting any help and people, people will help you. That's the beauty of it.” One of the key messages he discusses with Corin is finding ways for men to open up about their physical and mental health a lot more. Something which he has direct experience of after his brother’s cancer diagnosis. Hughes says, “I had an opportunity to go on This Morning and do this live testicular examination. How to check yourself for cancer. My brother obviously watched me and he checked himself. He was then diagnosed with testicular cancer. And then he found out he's completely infertile. So that was something else that hit home. It's so important that as men that we do speak about these things. I remember in the documentary we did a little bit where we went to the pub, there was five or six of us boys drinking beers, but just talking about our health. And it's a real way of men opening up and making that conversation comfortable and breaking down the stigma.” Further upcoming guests on the podcast series include: Question the Default is available to listen on Apple here and all major podcast platforms from 22nd of October CALM is a leading UK suicide prevention charity, on a mission to help people end their misery, not their lives. They offer tools and resources to help people find the support they need, including a life-saving helpline for people open every day from 5pm to midnight, as well as vital online resources for anyone who needs them. Visit thecalmzone.net.
