Mia McKenna-Bruce : "The world is not built for working mums"

From ‘Tracy Beaker’ to a BAFTA Rising Star win and a leading role in Netflix’s ‘Agatha Christie’s Seven Dials’, Mia McKenna-Bruce has grown into one of Britain’s most exciting talents. In this deeply honest chat with Josh Mia opens up about burnout, motherhood, learning to advocate for herself after breaking her foot on set, unlearning people-pleasing, navigating life as a working mum, and why we need to be talking about consent more. We also talk about Mia’s upcoming roles, including one of the year’s most anticipated TV series, The Lady, where she plays the dresser to the former Duchess of York, and her portrayal of Maureen Starkey, Ringo Starr’s first wife, in The Beatles biopic. 00:00 – Trailer 00:30 – Intro 01:05 – Her Greatest Chat: Helena Bonham Carter 02:10 – Why I’m bad at advocating for myself 02:45 – Breaking my foot… and saying “I’m fine” 04:00 – Fear of being labelled ‘difficult’ 05:10 – Women, work, and burnout 06:40 – Growing up as a child actor 07:45 – Learning self-respect as an adult 08:40 – Motherhood, guilt, and ambition 10:00 – Why the world isn’t built for working mums 11:45 – Losing yourself after having a baby 13:40 – Acting as therapy 15:10 – Stepping away from acting at 18 16:45 – Australia, starting again, and finding purpose 18:30 – Rejection, auditions, and not taking it personally 20:00 – Why How to Have Sex mattered 22:00 – Consent, language, and unspoken experiences 24:00 – When men came forward after the film 26:00 – Sex education failed us 28:00 – Grief, humour, and talking it through 30:00 – Playing real women with real pain 33:30 – Class, power, and being judged 36:20 – Agatha Christie & The Beatles 38:50 – What should we be talking about more? 40:10 – Outro ________ Josh Smith’s Great Chat Show (@joshsmithsgreatchatshow) Brought you by Next Chapter Studios (@theNextChapterStudios) Host: Josh Smith (@joshsmithhosts) Creative Director: Carrie Rose Senior Producer: Bella Neale This podcast is part of the Spotify Partner Programme. Follow Josh Smith’s Great Chat Show on Spotify and tap the 🔔 to be notified when new episodes drop. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices