We're often told "never meet your heroes" - well, two fingers up to that because meeting Phyll Opoku-Gyimah, or Lady Phyll as she's more affectionately known, has been a life changing experience.

Through her incredible work, Phyll has taught me so much when it comes to pride, allyship & showing up - for our community and each other, advocating for the needs of those around us and challenging systems of oppression.

I had a unique opportunity to stand in front of Lady Phyll and her family - both her actual family and her UK Black Pride family - to tell her exactly what she means to me and so many other queer people on the day she received an Honorary Graduate Degree from London South Bank University. It was one of the highlights of my life and such a special moment in time. Just as recording this episode of 'Pause. And Rewind...' was.

Her compassion, conviction and wisdom are paramount to the Lady Phyll we know & love. So it was the biggest privilege to dive into her origin story to find out where this comes from - and to find out more about Little Phyll, her love of books, her early experiences of racism and how this has shaped her life. There are some challenging topics discussed so please take care of yourself whilst listening.

The words Phyll uses to describe her story are 'Intense, Brave and With Purpose'. You're about to find out why... enjoy this wonderful conversation.