Ian Roberts - A Life Not Lived in Fear

This is a podcast where we sit down with some very successful people from the world of business, entertainment and sport about their life’s journey and what got them to the position that they’re in today.

In today’s episode we are chatting with Ian Roberts

Ian Roberts is known as one of toughest guys in rugby league. In 1995, Ian became the first high-profile Australian sports person and first rugby footballer in the world to come out to the public as gay. As a result of it, Ian has faced a lot of hurdles in his life that most of us wouldn’t ever have to consider.

In this chat we talk about how Ian’s sexuality at the time that he came out shaped a lot of his life’s experiences. Times were pretty different 30 years ago, and we talk about how far we have come in the way of acceptance of LGBTIQ+ people, but also how much further we have to go. 

Ian shares a truly heartbreaking story of what led him to moving to Townsville and joining the Cowboys. We speak about the super league and him playing over in England, who his favourite coaches and rivals were and his brain injuries that he has acquired as a result of the game. 

We also speak about Ian’s dyslexia, and how he learnt to read and write in his thirties, his passion for the arts and his life now acting.

Ian Roberts is a multi-faceted man and I just loved having the opportunity to really get to know him.

Please note that we need to add a content warning to this episode.We discussed sexual assault in this chat and drug use and if that is triggering to any of our listeners, we advise that you give this episode a miss, or possibly come back to it another time.

This podcast is brought to you by Shaw and Partners.

It is hosted by Gus Worland and produced by Keeshia Pettit

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