We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Helen Shephard. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Helen below.

Helen, appreciate you joining us today. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

I quit my TV hosting job in London to move to LA with no job offer or clue how I was going to make it work. I just knew I had to listen to my gut and take the leap. I had been in a dark place in London, I was partying too much and had no direction. I knew I wanted a more fulfilling and creative life for myself and needed to make a big change. It has not been easy and there have been many trials along the way; I signed with a manager in LA and a month or so after that he sadly passed away. Then the pandemic hit and I had to decide whether to go back home or ride it out. I am so glad I stayed, I have grown so much creatively and as a person here in LA. I got sober, met my now husband, I have made so many inspiring friends, started a podcast and whole new career in comedy and acting.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I am an actor, comedian and TV host. I was working as a model in London and met some people who encouraged me to audition for a TV hosting job for a dating show. I got the job and then spent over 10 years in London hosting everything from game shows to fashion shows and live events. I had always wanted to be an actor – as a child I took drama classes and opted for Drama and Theatre Studies in school. However I was warned from an early age that it was a difficult career and so few people are successful in it. I choose an acting adjacent career path instead, in reality TV hosting is just as hard as acting, but that wasn’t the narrative I’d been fed! I knew I wanted to act, I had all these stories inside me I wanted to tell. so I decided to start over in LA, I thought stand up comedy would be a good place to tell some of my personal stories too. When I moved here I took classes in comedy and acting. I still enjoy hosting, but I love the creativity of acting and writing and performing comedy. I love hearing and sharing other people’s stories too, so I started my podcast, The Hollywood Reveal.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

Some days I wish I’d started classes for acting, writing and comedy sooner. I wish I’d been brave enough to invest in myself, though I do believe in the divine timing of things, perhaps doing it sooner would have been helpful! I have made incredible, likeminded, creative friends and community through my classes and found teachers that have encouraged and inspired me. I think if you have a dream and a passion, take a class in it. It’s a disservice to yourself and the world not to.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Connecting to people, telling a joke that makes someone else feel seen, hearing how my podcast Inspired someone to follow their dream and creative pursuits. I also think that by being an artist and following our dreams we give others the permission to be artists too and that is important. And also entertaining people, making people laugh, Laughter counteracts stress hormones and increases endorphins so it literally heals us, how cool is that?

Contact Info:

• Website: helenshephard.com
• Instagram: helenshephard1
• Facebook: HEShephard
• Twitter: helenshephard
• Other: TikTok: helenshephard1 Podcast: The Hollywood Reveal on all platforms!

Image Credits
First photo: Sean Kara Pink backdrop photos: Chase Baker Purple top and black and white striped top: Jonny Marlow