Midweek - 08/02/2012

Libby Purves is joined by actor Katherine Kelly; Dr Steve Peters, psychiatrist with the British Cycling Team; former US army chief Rhonda Cornum; and BBC presenter Clare Balding.

Katherine Kelly played brassy barmaid Becky McDonald in ITV's Coronation Street for five years. She is now in The National Theatre's production of She Stoops to Conquer, a comedy offering a celebration of chaos, courtship and the dysfunctional family.

Dr Steve Peters is a consultant psychiatrist who has worked in the clinical field of psychiatry for over 20 years. Since 2001 he has been resident psychiatrist to the British Cycling Team. His mind management techniques have been credited in helping to transform the performances of not only Olympic cyclists but also other Olympic Sports such as Taekwondo and Canoeing. His book 'The Chimp Paradox - The Mind Management Programme for Confidence, Success and Happiness' is published by Vermilion.

Rhonda Cornum was a flight surgeon with the 229th Attack Helicopter Regiment who was shot down and captured in February 1991 during the first Gulf War. Her decorations include the Legion of Merit, the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Purple Heart. She retired from the US Army on 31st January 2012. She is delivering a lecture on resilience at the Young Foundation in London.

Clare Balding is currently presenting a 30-part BBC Radio 4 series charting how sport has shaped the British and how Britain has shaped sport, Sport and the British. She also presents the BBC's horseracing coverage of events including the Grand National, Royal Ascot and the Derby and was a presenter of both the Olympic and Paralympic Games from Beijing in 2008, Athens in 2004 and Sydney in 2000.

Producer: Paula McGinley.