Your Expat Life Podcast with Special Guest - Alastair Leithead on November 19 at 12PM ET
Alastair Leithead is the voice behind Off‑grid and Entertaining in Portugal, a Substack where he documents life after the frontline — swapping his longtime career as a foreign correspondent for the BBC for solar panels, cork‑oaks and wild beaches in the Alentejo region of Portugal.
With his wife Ana, Alastair bought a remote property, built an eco‑luxe off‑grid lodge, learned how to run water‑systems and hospitality from scratch, and now writes about the triumphs and mis‑steps of building a life that’s as wild as it is intentional.
From power‑cuts to wine tastings, guest check‑ins to solar failures, his stories reveal what happens when you trade the noise of big‑story journalism for the rhythms of rural Portugal.
What does it look like when you move abroad not once, but into a whole new way of living?
On this episode of Your Expat Life LIVE, host Sonaya Williams sits down with Alastair Leithead to explore how he turned his life as a war‑zone correspondent into a life of nature, community and off‑grid possibility on the Portuguese coast.
We’ll dive into:
Why he and Ana left the high‑stakes world of global news and logistics for seven hectares of cork‑oak and coastline
The unexpected challenges of building an eco‑luxe lodge off‑grid — from solar panels and water tanks to guest logistics and wine dinners
What he’s learned about belonging, self‑sufficiency, and redefining success when your backdrop changes from headlines to horizon
If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to turn the “move abroad” dream into a meaningful life beyond tourism, this conversation will give you something real to consider.