Podcasts have proliferated over the past few years and people today have hundreds — if not thousands — of choices about who and what they listen to in their spare time. Back in 2017, three divers and friends (including this author) noticed that there wasn’t a U.K.-based scuba-focused podcast. With such an interesting and diverse sport — and so much to discuss — we couldn’t understand why. So, we decided to create a podcast of our own about scuba diving. The Scuba Confidential podcast, in the theory at least, was born.
What’s the dive plan?
Most of the podcasts we listened to when researching for Scuba Confidential seemed quite dry and specialized. We wanted to create a light-hearted look at the sport and recreate that sense of camaraderie that divers feel on a trip with friends and fellow divers. We also wanted the podcast to be independent, not beholden to a particular agency or dive center. We wanted to freely voice our opinions as if we were sitting together in a bar after a day’s diving.
We targeted our podcast to cover various subjects — everything from marine conservation to the importance of dive briefings. However, we also hoped it would offer listeners some valuable advice and information, encourage safety and good practice, and benefit divers wishing to develop on their scuba journey.
Who are we?
All three Scuba Confidential hosts are experienced, professional divers. I’m a Master Instructor and have been teaching for more than a decade, working around the world in various locations from the Similan Islands off the coast of Thailand to the warship wreck site of Scapa Flow in the Orkney Islands, Scotland. A self-confessed movie and music geek, I love to write, travel and can usually be found, headphones on, creating a new article on my laptop.
Ian and Louise are both PADI Divemasters and love helping new divers on their scuba adventures. Most of their diving takes place in the U.K., so they seize the chance to dive in warm, clear locations while traveling.
Ian recently went on his first liveaboard holiday to the Red Sea and, bitten by the reef-diving bug, plans to explore more dive locations further afield. Louise has been diving since 2005 and can often be found bouncing around the local dive center where she works part-time.
Between us, we have over 40 years’ experience diving all over the world, from the murky depths of U.K. quarries to the tropical waters of Southeast Asia. And, while we don’t proclaim to be experts in every field of scuba diving, we love sharing our experiences with new divers, seasoned scuba addicts, non-divers and anyone else who enjoys listening.
In another part of the U.K., our friend Steve, a graphic designer, put together our Scuba Confidential artwork. Our musician friends Ian and Lara, based in Italy, kindly gave us access to their back catalogue of music to choose something we liked. And together, we edited the opening podcasts and released them on iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, Acast and YouTube, as well as on our website. You can also find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
What are doing next?
We’re now 24 episodes into our project and have had thousands of downloads. We’ve explored different subject areas and welcomed our first guests to the podcast. During 2019 we hope to do more — to explore more areas of diving, have a more diverse group of guests on the podcast to talk about their diving experiences. and offer advice and opinions on conservation, scuba news and travel.
Want to get involved? We actively encourage interaction with our listeners and we’ve set up a Patreon page so that anyone with an interest in scuba diving can have a voice at Scuba Confidential.
Take your first breaths with Scuba Confidential here:
