Begin Again with Davina McCall

Katherine Ryan on Feminism, Face Lifts & Controversial Parenting!

2025-10-30

In this episode of Begin Again, comedian, writer and mother Katherine Ryan opens up about the fierce, funny and sometimes controversial journey that shaped who she is today. Katherine shares her unfiltered take on feminism, aging, and identity from her early years navigating beauty standards and working at Hooters, to embracing her femininity and her candid thoughts on getting surgery without shame. She speaks openly about her parenting choices, including co-sleeping, early potty training, and raising her children in a...

In this episode of Begin Again, comedian, writer and mother Katherine Ryan opens up about the fierce, funny and sometimes controversial journey that shaped who she is today.

Katherine shares her unfiltered take on feminism, aging, and identity from her early years navigating beauty standards and working at Hooters, to embracing her femininity and her candid thoughts on getting surgery without shame. She speaks openly about her parenting choices, including co-sleeping, early potty training, and raising her children in a way that challenges convention.

The conversation dives into the emotional complexity of family life, including Katherine’s experience brokering her parents’ divorce at 15, her mother’s influence, and the story behind the face lift she gifted her. She also reflects on rekindling love with her high school sweetheart, and how their shared small-town values created an unexpected foundation for her family today.

With trademark wit and remarkable vulnerability, Katherine Ryan invites us into her world a space where contradictions coexist, shame is optional, and motherhood, feminism, and identity are all up for redefinition.

(00:00) Intro
(01:22) Who Is Katherine Ryan?
(01:50) Embracing Femininity and Feminism
(03:59) Why Turning 40 Is Actually Great
(07:09) Oversharing, Shame, and Owning Your Story
(09:31) Protecting Children on Social Media
(11:55) Katherine on Her Parents and Childhood
(15:21) Learning to Stop Caring What Others Think
(17:13) Dealing With Offense, Annoying People, and Growing Thick Skin
(20:31) How Katherine Brokered Her Parents' Divorce at 15
(26:49) Single Motherhood and Spoiling Her Kids
(31:29) Do Parents Really Have a Favourite Child?
(32:34) Ancient & Brave Ad
(33:40) Reuniting With Her High School Sweetheart
(43:27) Working at Hooters: The Untold Story
(49:37) Starting Stand-Up at 20 and Being a Woman in Comedy
(56:33) Misogyny, the Patriarchy, Plastic Surgery, and Self-Love
(01:05:56) Inside Katherine’s Parenting Style
(01:15:24) Working in British Television
(01:22:18) What Legacy Does Katherine Ryan Want to Leave?