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‘Working with the Wild’ live podcast recording transcript excerpt
Dr Marie Power: We’re now moving to the Q&A part of this live podcast episode, coming to you live from the Women in Conservation and Nature Conference in Bristol, and I know a lot of hands are itching to be raised, so does anyone have any questions for Allie Lake or Dr Stewart?
Uhhh, can we get a microphone to . . . Oh, yes, Cliff, our lovely sound engineer is on his way [ audience laughter ] We love Cliff!
OK. You, please, with the pink dress . . .
Audience member: Hi. Hugely enjoying this conversation. And I hope you don’t mind that we broach this, um, but I know a lot of us women are wondering. Allie. How are you?
Allie Lake: [ silence ] I’m fine. Thank you.
Audience member: I saw the message on your website.
About Milo Ford. We probably all did. I firstly wanted to thank you for speaking out and redirecting the attention to the work so many of us do.
I just think it’s so commonplace for women to be scrutinised and whittled down to their appearance, their dating history, their flaws.
Even women like you. Women who are changing the world.
Allie Lake: It . . . I . . .
Dr Marie Power: I agree. I’m sure all the women here understand being under scrutiny. Like, how was it for you? How did it feel? If you didn’t mind speaking to this . . .
Allie Lake: [ pause ] Um. Well. It was . . . obviously very difficult. T . . . Traumatic. Which probably sounds overdramatic or overblown, but . . . it was. I’m a private person. Those were my messages. My personal diaries.
Dr Maria Power: Talk me through finding out that everything was out there.
Allie Lake: Oh. Er . . . Yes. Gosh, it felt . . . like the most horrible dream or something. A nightmare. Just. Yeah, I try not to think about it. It’s still obviously quite recent. Should we move to other questions? I can see there are lots and . . .
Dr Marie Power: Did you get any warning?
Allie Lake: That it was going to leak? No. We spoke the night before, everything was normal, we’d planned to meet the next day, to switch back our phones, then the day of the swap arrives . . . Sorry, this is really off topic, I’m conscious that we’re—
Dr Maria Power: No. I think this’ll help so many of us. A roomful of women supporting women.
Allie Lake: Right. Yes. Well. Milo suddenly wasn’t picking up the phone, then my best friend called and asked me if I’d been on social media. I . . . don’t really remember much after that. Other than almost being sick. Then actually being sick on the Heathrow Express.
Dr Maria Power: So you just open up your phone and there it all is?
Allie Lake: Correct.
Dr Maria Power: And you don’t for certain know exactly how?
Allie Lake: [ silence ] Um. No. Well. No, I’m not really comfortable . . . talking about that.
Dr Maria Power: Of course. So, did he eventually get in touch?
Allie Lake: Yes. By that point it was out there. I was panicked. He seemed to be too.
Dr Maria Power: And then what happened?
Allie Lake: We agreed we’d meet. Carry on as planned. Swap the phones. Meet in real life. Finally.
Dr Maria Power: And did that happen?
Allie Lake: No. My friend ended up collecting my phone from an assistant and by the following day, I’d made the decision not to meet him. Which was difficult. I felt quite torn, wondered whether I’d made the right decision. But then he did the show.
Dr Maria Power: A TV show?
Allie Lake: Yes. Days later, he went on TV and laughed about it.