Better Bloke

Episode 100 of the Better Bloke Podcast had to be this one.
For over two and a half years, Dave Holcomb has become a true icon inside Blokes Advice. Every Friday, without fail, he’s raised a VB tallie, called the first beer, and helped thousands of blokes punch into the weekend. To many, he’s the timekeeper, the face of knockoff drinks, and a symbol of consistency, humour, and community.
But behind the Friday posts is a much deeper story... In this episode, Dave opens up about his lifelong battle with bipolar, the highs and lows of relationships, and the devastating impact of carrying a secret for 25 years after experiencing abuse of the worse kind connected to the church. It’s a raw, honest, and powerful conversation about trauma, survival, identity, and what it takes to keep going when life keeps trying to drag you under.
Dave shares how he’s fought to stay, as he puts it, “above ground for another week” and why the version of someone we see online is rarely the full story. This is one of the most important episodes we’ve ever released.

Croc Turnbull joins us on the couch! The man many Aussies know from his viral Australiana content, and no-BS love for this country... but there’s a lot more to Croc than what you see online. He shares the full story of how he went from a trapeze artist to working in the crocodile industry, and years spent as a tour guide showing locals and international visitors the best of Australia.
We also get into the harder side of his journey, including the debilitating injury that ended his first career, the mental toll of not knowing what came next, and what it took to push through some of the darkest periods of his life. Croc opens up about resilience, seizing opportunities, rebuilding identity, and becoming a father later in life, plus he shares some unreal stories from his journey so far.
See more from Croc: https://linktr.ee/CrocTunbull

In this episode of the Better Bloke Project Podcast, we sit down with Cooper Chapman - ex-pro surfer turned motivational speaker - who’s become one of the most relatable voices in youth mental health, resilience, and personal values. Cooper doesn’t preach fluff or psychological jargon. He breaks down a science-backed, real-world approach to feeling better: 1% changes, focusing on what’s going right (not just what’s wrong), and learning how to live in a way that actually matches your values... not the version of “success” you were told to chase.
We go deep on what young people are facing right now in 2026 from social pressure, identity, attention, anxiety, comparison, to a world that moves faster than their parents ever had to deal with. Cooper sits in a rare lane: he can speak to youth in their language, while also helping parents and adults understand what’s really happening beneath the surface. If you’ve ever felt like there’s a growing gap between generations, or you’re trying to raise a strong, grounded young human in a chaotic world, this conversation will hit hard.
Keep up to date with Cooper: https://www.instagram.com/cooperchapman/

This one’s a little different... it’s just Rob and Matty on the mics, no guest, no script… just the kind of yarn we normally have off-air, shared with the world. It’s fast-moving, opinionated, and honest, bouncing between big-picture stuff and the everyday realities blokes are dealing with right now.We dig into what AI is doing to the way we consume content... how hard it’s getting to know what’s real, what’s staged, and what’s straight-up manufactured for clicks.
From there we get into the rise of the tradie as the new backbone of the middle class, and why the “uni or you’re behind” storyline is starting to look outdated. Rob shares about how his son is already primed for that pathway, and we unpack the uncomfortable truth: school isn’t built for everyone, and that doesn’t make you broken.
We hit the stuff that lands close to home: would you take a pay cut to protect your mental health, and where’s the line between “toughing it out” and burning out? We talk about mates who vanish when they ditch social media, and settle an important debate: can a cat ever qualify as a bloke’s best mate? We wrap by looking back at our favourite episodes so far and throwing it to you... do you want more experts, more epic guest stories, or more of these chaotic, real-world chats?

Jeremy Van Akerlaken, better known as Clown Repellent, has gone from relatively unknown to impossible to ignore in a matter of months. In this episode, we sit down with the man behind the name to unpack the rise to “infamy,” the heat that comes with having loud opinions, and why he believes woke culture has been used to justify or protect some genuinely ugly behaviour in recent years. It’s not a highlight reel... it’s a look at what drives the rage, what he thinks is true, and why he keeps stepping into the fire.
Before all of that, Jeremy was an entrepreneur who took an exit, and that reset gave him the space to rethink what he actually wanted to build next. We get into business, mindset, identity, and the shift from chasing wins on paper to chasing something that feels meaningful. He shares what surprised him most about putting his voice out there, and how relatability can open doors you never expected... for better and worse.It goes deeper than “hot takes.”
Mr Repellent tells stories of conversations with followers that go way beyond likes, views, and yelling at a camera... moments that hit hard, challenge assumptions, and show what’s really happening under the surface for a lot of everyday people.
See more from him at: https://www.instagram.com/clown_repellent/
Help us help the blokes who need it: https://www.betterblokeproject.org/pages/donate-now