What I Did Next
Kanaal Besonderhede
What I Did Next
Connecting the dots across the Middle East through storytelling. Join host Malak Fouad, as she brings you the most inspiring people and unpacks their life journeys — successes, failures and everything in between!
Onlangse Episodes
141 episodes
Encore: Jalal Abu-Gazaleh & Dalia Sultan
I’m re-connecting again with one of my first guests, Jalal Abu-Gazaleh & Dalia Sultan, co-founders of Gourmet Egypt. The headline news since we first...
Tim Marshall on the importance of geography
We're continuing my conversation with journalist & best-selling author of Prisoners of Geography, Tim Marshall. On this episode, Tim tells me how the...
Tim Marshall
Tim Marshall joins me on the show this week to talk about his journey from starting out with the British Royal Air Force to his three-decade career in...
Empowering the arab youth, with Thuraya Ismail
I’m continuing my conversation with Thuraya Ismail, CEO of Mentor Arabia, an organisation dedicated to improving the well-being of the Arab youth. On...
Thuraya Ismail
I’m delighted to welcome Thuraya Ismail. She's the CEO of Mentor Arabia, an organisation dedicated to improving the well-being of young Arabs in gener...
Double-Take: Art & Heritage with Nada Debs, Louis Barthelemy, Omniya Abdel Barr & Sarah Beydoun
On this episode, you'll hear about the incredible message through art with designer Nada Debs and entrepreneur Sarah Beydoun, and the importance of pr...
Encore: Mo Hefzy
I'm re-connecting today with award-winning film producer Mo Hefzy. Since I first spoke to him in 2022, Mo has had a series of successful releases, inc...
Abdel Wahed El Wakil on the evolution of architecture
We’re continuing my conversation with legendary architecture Abdel Wahed El Wakil. Today, we’re diving deep into the world of architecture and materia...
Abdel Wahed El Wakil
I‘m joined today by a legend of from the world of architecture, Abdel Wahed El Wakil. I sat down with him a couple of weeks ago in Doha, where he now...
Encore: Bobby Chinn
I'm re-connecting today with celebrity chef & author Bobby Chinn. I first spoke to Bobby during the summer of 2021 in preparation for Season 2. That f...
Maria Shollenbarger on why destinations trend, and the future of travel
We’re continuing my conversation with luxury travel journalist and editor Maria Shollenbarger. Today, we’re delving into the travel industry—how and w...
Maria Shollenbarger
I’m excited to be kicking off the year with Maria Shollenbarger, travel editor at the Financial Times’ HTSI magazine. I got to know Maria last year at...
Welcome to our 6th year!
We all know the value of looking back to understand our path. But as the world becomes increasingly uncertain, I wanted to open a new chapter on the s...
My conversation with EFG Holding’s Mohamed Abdel Khabir
We’re closing out the year with a special episode with EFG Holding, and I’m joined today by the Group’s Chief Finance & Operations Officer, Mohamed Ab...
Bonus: Mounir Nakhla on MNT Halan's high-RPM expansion into Turkey, the UAE & Pakistan
Last week, Mounir Nakhla told me about his entrepreneurial journey with MNT Halan, and how the company has risen to become of the Africa’s fastest gro...
Mounir Nakhla
I'm joined today by entrepreneur Mounir Nakhla. Mounir is the co-founder & CEO of MNT-Halan, Egypt's fintech unicorn that has now served more than 8 m...
Encore: Dr. Nadine Hachach-Haram
I'm re-connecting today with Dr. Nadine Hachach-Haram. Dr. Nadine is the founder & CEO of Proximie and a practicing NHS surgeon with a specialty in...
Diving into the VC world with Karima El Hakim
We’re continuing my conversation with Karima Hakim on this episode, talking about the evolution of the private sector in Egypt and Africa, and her wor...
Karima El Hakim
I’m joined today by Karima El Hakim, Country Director at Plug & Play Egypt, and co-director for the company’s operations in the rest of Africa. Just a...
Hanaa Helmy
Today’s episode is a deep-dive with our sponsor, EFG Holding. As a long-time sponsor of the show, EFG have been with us from our single digit episode...
Celebrating 100 episodes!
We’re celebrating 100 episodes! So this week I’m sitting down with our producer Chirag Desai to celebrate this milestone and unpack some of the learni...
Azzam Fakhreddin on getting started in hospitality & his love for football
We’re continuing my conversation with Azzam Fakhreddin this week, where he tells me about his decision to shift focus to economics under the mentorshi...
Azzam Fakhreddin
I’m joined today by Azzam Fakhreddin, a name familiar to many across the Middle East as a notable figure in the hospitality industry. On Part 1 of our...
Our AI future, with Mo Gawdat, Tarek Nour, Omar Elsahy & Ramy Youssef
AI is a topic that has come up many times over the years on the show, so today I’m sharing a special episode of Double-Take where I’m connecting the d...
Mona Hamdy unpacks the role of Artificial intelligence and its ethical implications
Continuing my conversation with Dr. Mona Hamdy to unpack the role of AI, and how the emerging world should prioritise its adoption. We talk about the...
Dr. Mona Hamdy
The word AI gets bandied about by everyone in everything today, and I’ve been wanting to unpack the opportunities and challenges our future world hold...
Double-Take: Giving Back, with Sir Magdi Yacoub and Meta’s Fares Akkad
One of the themes that often comes up on the show is giving back to the community. Today I wanted to highlight two guests who instantly come to mind w...
How I prepare for guest interviews
Today I’m sharing the answer to another question I’m asked quite often: “how do you prepare for your interviews?”
Learn more about your ad choic...
Omar El Akkad
Author and commentator Omar El Akkad joins me this week to talk about his latest book “One day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This”. This is...
Encore: Amy Mowafi
Media powerhouse Amy Mowafi returns to the show for Encore, where I check-in with your favourite alumni guests.
Since we last spoke, Amy has be...
How I choose my guests
Another question I get asked often is “how do you select your guests?”Join me for a look behind-the-scenes at how I select my guests and some of the c...
Farrah El Dibany on her transformative journey playing Carmen
We’re continuing my conversation with the talented mezzo-soprano Farrah Al Dibany, exploring the world of opera.
Farrah tells me about her expe...
Farrah El Dibany
Mezzo-soprano Farrah El Dibany joins me on the show this week. We cover her journey from discovering her passion for singing at 14, to her incredible...
2025 so far…
It’s already been an exciting 2025 for What I Did Next. So this week, my producer, Chirag, and I decided to do a check-in and recap the last six month...
How I started ‘What I Did Next’
I’m often asked how I got started with the podcast. On a special solo episode this week, I’m taking you behind the scenes to tell you how and why I st...
Ayman Tamer
Ayman Tamer is the Chairman of the Tamer Group, a third-generation business with a 100-year history in Saudi Arabia.
Ayman tells me how his gran...
History and Culture: Perceptions of Egypt (The Narrative Summit 2025)
A few weeks ago, What I Did Next partnered with the 2025 edition of The Narrative Summit which was held at the breathtaking Soma Bay. Today, I’m delig...
Encore: Ali Ali
Welcome again to What I Did Next Encore, where I check-in with some of your favourite alumni guests.
Today, I’m re-connecting with one of the gu...
“Reclaim our narrative,” Fatenn Mostafa Kanafani on her work to document modern Egyptian artists
On this week’s bonus episode, Fatenn Mostafa Kanafani tells me about her work in documenting, codifying, and cataloging her research in art. She’s con...
Fatenn Mostafa Kanafani
Fatenn Mostafa Kanafani has led a life full of twists and turns. Her career trajectory has seen her go from being a successful marketer with Procter...