Philippa York: ‘Am I always going to be seen as the cyclist who transitioned?’
How Do You Cope?
Significant Productions
4.9 • 868 Ratings
🗓️ 1 September 2025
⏱️ 62 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
What do great sporting achievements mean when you’re born in the wrong body?
John sits down with ex-cyclist Philippa York, who competed in the Tour de France under the name Robert Millar, to talk about transitioning from male to female, having her privacy invaded by the press, and the ups and downs of competing in cycling’s most prestigious race.
As Robert Millar, Philippa was the first British cyclist to win the King of the Mountains jersey in 1984’s Tour de France, and paved the way for future British cycling success.
But ever since she was young, Philippa knew that something wasn’t right within her body, and it was only after retiring from cycling and withdrawing from the public eye, that Philippa was able to transition. She talks about the impact of body and gender dysmorphia, and discusses how transitioning affected not only herself, but all of her loved ones too.
On Thursday in our bonus episode The Gratitude List, Philippa shares the things that she is currently grateful for.
You can send in your thoughts and reflections to hello@howdoyoucopepod.com or via howdoyoucopepod.com
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If you need support, you can find advice and someone to talk to by visiting www.samaritans.org, emailing jo@samaritans.org or calling 116 123.
How Do You Cope is a Significant Production.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to episodes of How Do You Cope early and ad-free? |
| 0:04.7 | Join Wondry Plus in the Wondry app or on Apple Podcasts. |
| 0:12.2 | Hello, I'm Marina Hyde. |
| 0:13.9 | And I'm Richard Osmond. |
| 0:15.0 | And we are the hosts of The Rest is Entertainment. |
| 0:17.5 | Now, each week, Richard and I speak about our favourite entertainment news stories and incredible behind-the-scenes facts. In the last few weeks, we've looked at the |
| 0:24.2 | wild story of Noel Edmund's new Kiwi Hideaway, the ongoing Beckham family feud, and |
| 0:29.1 | is John Robbins the greatest stand-up of his generation? Or is it Ellis James? In our Thursday |
| 0:33.7 | questions and answers episode, we tell you the secrets of showbiz, including how they film race across the world, why prop mugs are always empty, and why new books smell |
| 0:42.8 | like that. |
| 0:44.1 | You can catch the rest is entertainment wherever you get your podcast or such. |
| 0:47.4 | The Rest is Entertainment on YouTube. |
| 0:49.5 | Back to John. |
| 1:03.5 | A Hello everyone, I'm John Robbins and welcome to How Do You Cope, the podcast where I sit down with special guests to talk about their everyday coping mechanisms. Today's guest is the former |
| 1:08.3 | cyclist, now journalist and commentator, Philippa York, previously known as Robert Miller. |
| 1:14.0 | Philippa was born as male in Glasgow, and from an early age she knew that she wanted to be a girl. |
| 1:19.1 | She began cycling in her early teens as a way of escaping the urban environment where she lived and finding some greenery. |
| 1:26.5 | She quickly progressed, becoming the British |
| 1:28.4 | amateur champion at the age of 19. A few years later, Philippa turned professional and went on to |
| 1:33.9 | compete in the Tour de France, the most famous and grueling cycling raced on earth. She competed |
| 1:39.2 | 11 times, as well as finishing near the top in similar Grand Tour events in Italy and Spain. |
| 1:45.1 | The Tour de France was dominated by French and continental riders at the time, |
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