# GARETH GATES: I Was Beaten Up For My Stammer. Pop Idol Saved Me

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/great-company-with-jamie-laing-6839737/gareth-gates-i-was-beaten-up-for-my-stammer-pop-idol-saved-me
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/great-company-with-jamie-laing-6839737/gareth-gates-i-was-beaten-up-for-my-stammer-pop-idol-saved-me.md
Podcast: [Great Company with Jamie Laing](https://stenobird.com/podcast/great-company-with-jamie-laing-6839737)
Published: 2026-05-19T23:03:00+00:00
Episode link: https://shows.acast.com/great-company/episodes/gareth-gates-i-was-beaten-up-for-my-stutter-pop-idol-saved-m
Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/65d737dfdc02e00016c413b2/e/6a0c944e21889178f0c4e1d6/media.mp3
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/great-company-with-jamie-laing-6839737/episodes/gareth-gates-i-was-beaten-up-for-my-stammer-pop-idol-saved-me
Duration seconds: 3992

## Resource

Gareth Gates became a household name overnight. When the first series of Pop Idol aired in 2002, it was the first show of its kind and Gareth instantly captured the nation's hearts as the boy who defied his stammer to sing. Growing up in Bradford Gareth was severely bullied at school for his stammer, so convinced he was defective that he almost didn't audition for Pop Idol at all.  In our conversation, Gareth opens up about the whirlwind of Pop Idol fame, and how he's spent the years since learning to accept the very thing he once felt ashamed of.  In this episode, Gareth shares: Being bullied at school and how joining a choir became his escape Why he almost didn't audition for Pop Idol The reality of being thrown into the whirlwind of fame How his relationship with Katie Price changed the way he approaches love How he's finally learned to accept his stammer as part of who he is Gareth Gates is one of the kindest people I’ve ever met. He reminded me that being different isn't something to hide - it's the thing that makes you, you. Gareth Gates is Great Company.  Check out Gareth’s tour HERE Gareth’s Instagram - @gareth_gates If you enjoyed the show, you can also follow us:  Instagram- @greatcompanypodcast TikTok - @greatcompanypodcast  Jamie - @jamielaing And if you've got thoughts, questions and comments, you can email us at: greatcompany@jampotproductions.co.uk THE CREDITS Producer: Helen Burke Assistant Producer: Issy Weeks-Hankins Video: Josh Bennett Senior Social Media Manager: Laura Coughlan Audio: Rafi Amsili Geovannetti Executive Producer: Ewan Newbigging-Lister Great Company is an original podcast from JamPot. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/great-company-with-jamie-laing-6839737/episodes/gareth-gates-i-was-beaten-up-for-my-stammer-pop-idol-saved-me/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/great-company-with-jamie-laing-6839737/gareth-gates-i-was-beaten-up-for-my-stammer-pop-idol-saved-me.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.