It’s pretty self-explanatory. What’s your favourite UK-based podcast?

As someone in the food industry, I like Dish, but I’m also interested in topics like investing and money in general, history, nature, and self-improvement.

I’d like to stay away from podcasts like The Diary of a CEO, though — I’m not really a fan for a number of reasons.

Any suggestions? Or something completely different that you think is worth listening to?

Hi everyone!

My wife and I have decided, somewhat spontaneously, to do a 3–4 month trip around Europe in a campervan, starting around mid-April 2027. The plan is to eventually make our way up to Northern Scotland. It will be the two of us, our 18-month-old child and our dog.

We have quite a bit of camping experience, but only with tents. We’ve never owned or used a campervan or caravan, so we’re complete beginners when it comes to this.

Our budget is around €40k, with some flexibility up to €50k. After the trip we’re planning to settle in the UK, so the idea is to sell the camper there, even if that means taking a bit of a hit because it will be left-hand drive. There’s also a possibility that we’ll keep it, so we haven’t made up our minds yet.

At the moment I’m mainly looking at the Sunlight Cliff 600 Adventure, but I honestly have no idea if I’m even looking at the right type of vehicle. I think I’ve mostly been influenced by posts I’ve seen on social media.

I’d also be perfectly happy to buy something older and cheaper, but I’m a bit worried about potential problems/breakdowns while we’re on the road. That’s probably the main reason I’m leaning towards something newer.

So my question is: if you were in our position, what type of camper would you be looking for?

Does a van conversion like the Sunlight make sense for 3–4 months with a small child and a dog, or would you look for something larger?

I’d also really appreciate any advice about things that seem unimportant when buying, but that you only realize are important after actually living in a camper for a few weeks/months.

And finally, are there any forums or communities you’d recommend, that would be useful for learning as much as possible before making a purchase?

Thanks in advance!

Hi everyone,
I’m in my mid-30s and I’m seriously considering becoming a private chef. I’d really appreciate some advice from people who’ve actually made the transition.
I’ve been cooking professionally for 16 years, from Michelin kitchens to pubs and cafés, and for the last 8 years I’ve been the executive chef of an established catering company.
The truth is, I’m burned out. Becoming a father has completely changed my priorities, and while I’m not sure I want to stay in the restaurant and catering world forever, I still love cooking too much to walk away from it without trying this first. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll probably switch careers entirely.
We’ll be moving to Scotland soon and buying a house, most likely in a smaller town or village within commuting distance of a city. I’m happy to travel for work, but I’m also trying to figure out what areas actually have enough demand for private chef services.
Right now, all I really have is 16 years of experience and a fairly decent Instagram page that showcases my food. I’ve thought about building a website, but beyond that I honestly don’t know what the first steps should be.
If you were starting from scratch, how would you go about it? How did you get your first clients? Did Instagram actually bring in work, or was it mostly word of mouth? Is a website worth having from day one? Are agencies or platforms worth looking at?
I’d especially love to hear from anyone working as a private chef in Scotland, but advice from anywhere is welcome.
Thanks in advance.

Hi everyone,
I’m in my mid-30s and I’m seriously considering becoming a private chef. I’d really appreciate some advice from people who’ve actually made the transition.
I’ve been cooking professionally for 16 years, from Michelin kitchens to pubs and cafés, and for the last 8 years I’ve been the executive chef of an established catering company.
The truth is, I’m burned out. Becoming a father has completely changed my priorities, and while I’m not sure I want to stay in the restaurant and catering world forever, I still love cooking too much to walk away from it without trying this first. If it doesn’t work out, I’ll probably switch careers entirely.
We’ll be moving to Scotland soon and buying a house, most likely in a smaller town or village within commuting distance of a city. I’m happy to travel for work, but I’m also trying to figure out what areas actually have enough demand for private chef services.
Right now, all I really have is 16 years of experience and a fairly decent Instagram page that showcases my food. I’ve thought about building a website, but beyond that I honestly don’t know what the first steps should be.
If you were starting from scratch, how would you go about it? How did you get your first clients? Did Instagram actually bring in work, or was it mostly word of mouth? Is a website worth having from day one? Are agencies or platforms worth looking at?
I’d especially love to hear from anyone working as a private chef in Scotland, but advice from anywhere is welcome.
Thanks in advance.

Hi everyone.

My wife and I are planning to move to Scotland in spring next year and I am trying to understand the UK tax implications of moving with existing investments and a significant amount of cash.

We are both 35, currently live in Bulgaria and both have British citizenship. We expect to become UK tax residents once we move. My wife is currently on maternity leave and I am about to take a 6 to 8 month career break until the move, Her maternity income should cover our living expenses until then so we should hopefully not need to use our savings.

Our current assets are approximately €12,000 in cash savings, €14,000 invested in VWCE through IBKR, €300,000 in cash from a property I recently sold and a fully paid off car worth around €11,000. I will sell the car prior to moving and buy another one in the UK once we are there.

The €300,000 is currently sitting in cash following the property sale. We may use some or all of it for a property purchase in Scotland but we expect to rent or potentially stay with family for the first 6 to 12 months while I look for work and decide where we want to settle.

My wife may potentially remain on maternity leave for up to three years, which is something we have planned for financially.

The main issue I am trying to understand is what happens to my existing VWCE investment when I become UK tax resident I currently hold it through IBKR while being Bulgarian tax resident and Bulgaria does not currently impose capital gains tax on this type of investment in my circumstances.

Would selling the VWCE while still Bulgarian tax resident and repurchasing after becoming UK tax resident create any tax advantage, or would this simply create unnecessary transaction costs and complexity.

I am also trying to understand whether there are any specific UK tax rules around the acquisition cost or valuation of investments that were already owned before becoming UK tax resident.

Once we move, we intend to make use of both ISA allowances and are considering keeping the remaining cash in savings accounts while we decide whether to buy a property with cash or use a mortgage.

I would particularly appreciate input from anyone familiar with the UK tax treatment of investments held before becoming UK tax resident, ISA allowances after moving to the UK and the tax treatment of interest on a large cash balance.

I am not looking for predictions or general investment advice I am mainly trying to understand the tax rules and the practical steps involved so that I can structure everything correctly before the move, and make the most out of the amount we currently have.

Many thanks.

Hi everyone,

My wife and I are in our mid-30s and would really appreciate some outside perspectives. We’re feeling overwhelmed by the number of financial decisions we’re trying to make.

Our situation

• Married, both British citizens currently living in Bulgaria.
• One 1-year-old child, two dogs, and we’re hoping to have a second child next year.
• Combined monthly net income: around €3,500 (my salary + my wife’s maternity pay).
• No debt.
• Own a fairly new car.
• Around €20,000 invested in VWCE.
• We recently sold our property for €450,000, so we’ll soon have a substantial amount of cash to allocate.

Careers

I’m a head chef with around 15 years of experience. If we move, I’d either try to become a private chef or potentially leave hospitality altogether and start a new career. I want to be more available for my children and have more structure in my life.

My wife is a Chartered Accountant and also has teaching qualifications. She’ll likely return to finance eventually (possibly remotely or part-time), although that may be delayed if we have our second child. Long term, she has very good earning potential.

Why Scotland?

We’re seriously considering relocating to Scotland, ideally somewhere semi-rural in the northwest but still within commuting distance of a major city. We like the lifestyle, nature, and the idea of raising our children there.

Our dilemma

The biggest uncertainty is that we’d probably both be starting from scratch professionally, at least for a while. That makes deciding what to do with the money from the house sale much harder.

The two options we’re considering are:

1. Rent first.
Move to Scotland, rent for a year or two, keep the proceeds in a high-yield savings account, settle in, and only buy once we know where we want to live long term and our careers are more stable.

2. Buy immediately.
Purchase a house for around €350,000 (or the GBP equivalent), own it outright, and remove the pressure of needing a high income immediately. Later, once my wife returns to work and our finances are more predictable, we could potentially remortgage and invest some of the equity if that made sense.

Investing

Retirement investing is one of our biggest priorities.

One complication is taxes. While living in Bulgaria, capital gains on UCITS ETFs such as VWCE are effectively taxed at 0% under the current rules. If we become UK tax residents, that advantage disappears.

We know we can each invest £20,000 per year into an ISA, but that still leaves a significant amount of cash uninvested. We’re unsure what the most tax-efficient strategy would be after moving to the UK.

I also keep wondering whether we should invest more before moving, wait until after we’ve settled, or simply prioritise buying a home first.

At the moment, I feel like I’m constantly jumping between different scenarios and second-guessing every decision.

If you were in our position, how would you approach this?

• Would you rent first or buy immediately?
• How would you think about investing the proceeds from the house sale while transitioning from Bulgaria to the UK?
• Is there anything we’re overlooking or any obvious mistakes in our thinking?

I’d really appreciate any advice, especially from people who have relocated countries or had to balance career uncertainty with investing.

Hi everyone,

I’m struggling with a situation where business and friendship have become deeply intertwined, and I’d appreciate some outside perspectives.

I’ve worked at the same company for the past eight years. It was started by one of my best friends and his wife, whom I’ve known for around 15 years.

I originally joined just to help out for a while, but I became incredibly passionate about what we were building. Over the years I ended up working alongside them almost as if I were a partner. There was never any ownership or formal partnership on paper, but I was heavily involved in growing the business, making decisions, solving problems, and generally doing whatever needed to be done. I was paid well and received bonuses, so I never felt taken advantage of.

The downside was that I treated it like it was my own company. I worked constantly, was always available, rarely took proper time off, and sacrificed a lot of my personal life.

About a year ago, while my wife was pregnant, I realised I couldn’t keep living that way. I was burned out and wanted a different life.

I sat down with my friend and his wife and told them that I no longer wanted to work with them in the way I had been. I wanted to work for them instead—with defined responsibilities, normal working hours, and regular days off.

They seemed understanding, and on paper that’s what happened. I now have proper days off and a much healthier work-life balance.

The problem is that something still feels different.

They continue to work relentlessly, and I sometimes get the feeling they’re expecting me to eventually “snap out of it” and become my old self again. Even when work is extremely busy, I take my scheduled days off, and when I come back I can’t shake the feeling that they’re disappointed or wondering why I’m no longer stepping up the way I used to. Nothing has been said directly, but the dynamic between us definitely feels different.

Over the past year I’ve realised this isn’t just burnout. My priorities have genuinely changed. My family comes first now, and I want a completely different lifestyle than I did in my twenties.

My wife and I have also decided that we’re planning to move to another country within the next year. Because of that, I don’t see a long-term future for myself in the company anymore. It’s not because I’m unhappy with them or the business—it’s simply that the life I want now is very different from the one I wanted when we started this journey together.

The difficult part is that the company relies on me heavily. Replacing me won’t be easy, and a lot of what I currently do will probably fall back onto my friend while he continues running the business.

My current plan is to leave in about a year. The reason I’m staying that long is because I genuinely care about them and want to leave in the best possible way, giving them plenty of time to prepare rather than dropping the news with only a few weeks’ notice. I also have some other tings to deal with that will take time (buying a property etc.)

I’m not worried about being fired if I tell them now. I trust them completely and I’m confident they’d keep me until I decide to leave.

What I’m struggling with is whether I should tell them now.

Part of me wants to be honest, get it off my chest, and hopefully help them understand that this isn’t a temporary phase. I’m not eventually going back to being the person who worked every hour of every day. I also think giving them as much notice as possible is the respectful thing to do.

The other part of me wonders whether telling them a full year in advance will just create unnecessary tension and make the next year awkward.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? If you were in my shoes, would you tell them now or wait until you’re closer to leaving? If you would tell them now, how would you approach that conversation while doing everything possible to preserve a 15-year friendship?

Hi everyone,

My wife and I (both British) are planning to move to Scotland in the near future. We lived there previously and have family in the Kilmacolm area, so that’s where we’re hoping to settle permanently.

Our situation is a little different because we have a 6-month-old son. My wife is currently on maternity leave and won’t be working immediately, but she’s both an accountant and a qualified teacher, so we’re fairly confident she’ll be able to find flexible or remote work when the time comes.

My situation is a bit more complicated.

I’ve been a chef for the last 16 years, working in five different countries, including Michelin-starred restaurants, hotels, and now as the Executive Chef of a catering company, where I’ve been for the past seven years.

I’ve reached a point where I know I want to leave hospitality behind. The long hours, evenings, weekends and holidays aren’t compatible with the kind of father and husband I want to be. I want to be present for my family, spend time with my son while he’s growing up, and build a life with a healthier work-life balance.

Financially, we’re in a reasonably secure position. I’m planning to sell a property before we move, which should allow us to buy a home in Scotland without a mortgage. That gives us a safety net, but with a young child I still don’t want to make an unrealistic or reckless career move.

The problem is that I genuinely don’t know what comes next.

I’ve thought about teaching cooking in a school or college, or becoming a development chef, but those would probably be my fallback options. And wven if I decide to do so I don’t know if I have the experience for it. it’s slightly different that working in a restaurant . Ideally I’d like to leave the food industry altogether.

I’ve also looked into apprenticeships in trades like plumbing, as well as general maintenance or handyman work. I enjoy practical, hands-on work, being outdoors, solving problems and working with people. Throughout my career I’ve managed teams, organised large operations and worked in high-pressure environments, so I know I have transferable skills—I just don’t know where they’d fit best outside hospitality. And also even though I have the skills people want to see experience as close as possible to the job and not a transferable skill from completely different industry)

I realise this is quite a broad question, but my head is all over the place at the moment.

For those of you living in Scotland, especially around Inverclyde, Renfrewshire or similar areas:

• How is the job market at the moment?
• Has anyone here successfully changed careers in their 30s with a young family?
• Are there industries that value management and practical experience more than formal qualifications?
• Is moving to an area like Kilmacolm likely to make changing careers much harder?

I’d really appreciate any advice, personal experiences or even a reality check. If you’ve been through something similar, I’d love to hear how it worked out.

Thank you for reading.

I just picked up a second-hand Roborock S8 Pro Ultra for €350, and I’m beyond happy with it!

Before I add any cleaning solution to the water tank, I want to make sure it’s actually safe to do so. I want to take good care of the robot and avoid damaging anything.

Can I use a cleaning solution, and if so, are there any specific ones you’d recommend?