Meet the Bedford man who beat £10k gambling addiction to launch successful podcast on Spotify

After clocking up a staggering gambling debt of £10,000 and drinking to numb the pain, Freddie Nicholson had hit rock bottom.

The 28-year-old even climbed on to a bridge and contemplated taking his own life.

But, amazingly, this brave Kempston man has managed to turn things around and help others through his podcast on Spotify. So much so, he’s now reached 20,000 streams on the platform.

Freddie had accumulated the huge debt through a combination of gambling, loans and drinking. He’d spend hundreds of pounds EVERY WEEK on horse racing and football bets.

He said: “I was drinking bottles of wine, which doesn’t sound a lot but it was constant. I would say it was binge drinking but for example at my worst I wouldn’t eat all day, then drink bottles of wine, cocktails, spirits.”

It was at that point Freddie reached his lowest ebb and contemplated taken his own life.

He said: “I climbed down from the bridge where I intended to jump, and after not eating or drinking all day I remember I was weak and emotionally numb.

"I went home and broke down to my mum and the next day she took me to the doctors where I was then dealt with by the Bedford Crisis Team.”

This is when the bounceback began and Freddie decided to make a podcast.

"To be completely honest I made it at the very beginning so that if I ever felt the way I did and did take my own life, my mum could always hear my voice – as bad as that sounds.

"But once I started to feel better mentally I wanted particularly to be a influencer for men and someone they can look up to and think they too can turn their life around.”

Freddie’s podcast is called The Life Of Fred and had already earned him a plaque from Spotify for being so popular.

It discusses poetry, men's health and promotes the need for men to share their feelings.

You can access the podcast here

So what does it mean to reach so many people?

“Honestly it’s quite emotional for me, remembering how I use to feel,” Freddie said.

"I never would have thought many people would have got behind what I’m trying to do.

"I just hope I can push on now. I have plans to talk on stage, do more podcasts particularly video podcasts, as much exposure as possible.”

If you are experiencing a mental health crisis, call Bedford Crisis Team on 111 (option 2). Support is available 24/7,

Alternatively, you can call The Samaritans on 116 123.