Better Known

Ivan Wise

Each week, a guest makes a series of recommendations of things which they think should be better known. Our recommendations include interesting people, places, objects, stories, experiences and ideas which our guest feels haven't had the exposure that they deserve.

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Sunday · 30 min
Minette Batters
Minette Batters was the first woman to be elected President of the National Farmers’ Union in 113years. She worked with four Prime Ministers - three of them in one year - and six Defra Secretaries of State. She stood down from the post in February 2024. In 2020 she led the NFU on one of the most successful campaigns ever seen, bringing together a coalition of chefs, including Jamie Oliver, farmers, environmentalists, consumer groups and animal welfare experts - resulting in over one million people signing the NFU food standards petition. Minette also co-founded ‘Ladies in Beef’ and the Great British Beef Week. She’s an ambassador for Farm Africa and a passionate advocate and fundraiser for the Junior Diabetic Research Foundation. She’s run in four marathons, raising over £100,000 for charity. In 2021 Minette was made a Deputy Lieutenant to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, and in July 2024 she was made a Crossbench Peer in the House of Lords. Curriculum based learning of food production https://www.farminguk.com/news/children-have-huge-lack-of-food-and-farming-knowledge-nfu-says_48601.html Learning to cook and the importance of good nutrition https://www.theguardian.com/food/2023/jun/18/minette-batters-we-need-a-success-story-for-wild-spaces-but-also-for-farmers-and-food Nature and the natural environment https://www.countrylife.co.uk/comment-opinion/minette-batters-the-peppering-project-is-a-blueprint-for-delivering-food-and-nature-security-across-the-country-in-a-way-that-rewilding-on-its-own-never-will-270118 Exercise and sport https://impactreport.womeninsport.org/ Politics https://www.farmersguardian.com/news/4176394/last-press-conference-nfu-president-minette-batters Value of the rural economy https://lordslibrary.parliament.uk/the-rural-economy/ This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
August 16 · 29 min
Nick Freudenberg
Nick Freudenberg discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Nicholas Freudenberg is distinguished professor emeritus of public health at the City University of New York School of Public Health. His expertise includes childhood lead poisoning, AIDS prevention, urban food policy, community organization for health, and mass incarceration. Since the 1970s, Freudenberg has studied, evaluated, taught about, and participated in health activist campaigns in New York City and elsewhere. Freudenberg is the author of several books, including At What Cost: Modern Capitalism and the Future of Health (2021), Lethal but Legal Corporation, Consumption and Protecting Public Health (2014) and Not in Our Backyards! Community Action for Health and the Environment (1984). He was the founding director of the CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute, the CUNY Public Health Doctoral Program, and the Hunter College Center on AIDS, Drugs and Community Health. His new book is Fighting for New York, which is available at https://cup.columbia.edu/book/fighting-for-new-york/9780231221405/. Many advances in health are due to activists’ health campaigns Changes in living conditions are more important than advances in medicine Short-term failures in activism may turn into long-term success The idea that the current situation is inevitable is the biggest threat to activism Activist groups win by bringing different communities together The key is to convince politicians they have more to lose by following demands of wealthier supporters This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
August 9 · 29 min
Ian Green
Ian Green discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Ian Green is a writer from Northern Scotland with a PhD in epigenetics. His debut fantasy trilogy The Rotstorm began with the Sunday Times bestseller The Gauntlet and the First Beneath. His short fiction has been widely published and he won the BBC Radio 4 Opening Lines competition, the Futurebook Future Fiction Prize, and was shortlisted for Best Newcomer at the British Fantasy Awards. His biopunk eco-terrorism thriller Extremophile was one of Financial Times’ Best Science Fiction Books of 2024 and was shortlisted for the Arthur C. Clarke Award and Dragon Award for Best Science Fiction Novel. His swashbuckling new book The Deep and the Drowned is out now from Head of Zeus. The British Fantasy Society https://britishfantasysociety.org/ The Last Blade Priest by W.P. Wiles https://www.grimdarkmagazine.com/review-the-last-blade-priest-by-w-p-wiles/ The Gormenghast books by Mervyn Peake https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/titus-alone-peake-gormenghast-trilogy-review-essay/ How much fun having kids is https://ifstudies.org/blog/why-bother-having-kids Historic European Martial Arts (HEMA) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=763THsqZ_ng Nature immersion https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/insight-therapy/202606/seeing-green-nature-immersion-has-its-benefits This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
August 2 · 28 min
Matt Hill
Matt Hill discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Matt Hill is the Philip K. Dick Award-nominated author of Lamb, The Breach, Zero Bomb, Graft, and The Folded Man. He lives in Glossop, on the edge of the Peak District. His new novel is Wrecks, which is available at https://deadinkbooks.com/products/wrecks-matt-hill. You have to rinse the suds off your dishes when you’ve washed them. Sounds trite, even silly, but it’s true, and there’s a deeper point around my wife gently challenging me re mental load of managing childcare and housework Phil Collins was a phenomenal drummer. Before his 80s ballads, Phil was writing wildly inventive drum parts. Brand X, early Genesis, mad time signatures, technically brilliant. We are surrounded by free food – some of it weeds! Family walks now involve stopping every ten seconds to pick at leaves or berries. Foraging used to be common and now, obviously, isn’t. Nettles factoid, hawthorn ketchup, pig nuts, pineapple weed tea... The moors of the Peak District are dotted with WW2 aircraft wreckage you can just walk up to. During and after the Second World War, dozens of planes crashed on the hills of the Peak District. Many of those wrecks are still there, including the Bleaklow Bomber. Amazing, raw history – feels rare for it not to be sanitised or in a museum It takes a scarily long time to stop when you’re doing 80mph. A recent speed awareness course changed my perception of driving, especially residual speeds. By the time a car going at 70mph has stopped, a car braking from 80mph is still doing 40mph – eek In England, we only have legal access to a tiny amount of land. Free access to the countryside was fought for, and often won, by mass trespass Yet we still only have access to something like 10% of land and 3% of waterways; the rest is enclosed, bounded away, or requires us to pay. This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
July 26 · 30 min
Joel Christensen on The Odyssey
Joel Christensen discusses with Ivan six things about The Odyssey which should be better known. Joel P. Christensen is Professor of Classics at the CUNY Graduate Center where he also serves as Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs. Joel has previously taught at UT San Antonio and Brandeis University. His research interests include early Greek poetry, myth, and literary theory. With Elton Barker, Joel has published Homer: A Beginner’s Guide (2013) and Homer’s Thebes (Harvard University Press 2020). Joel has also authored The Many-Minded Man: The Odyssey, Psychology, and the Therapy of Epic (2020) with Cornell University Press, Storylife: On Epic, Language, and Living Things with Yale in 2025, and Why Odysseus? With Palgrave/Macmillan (2026). He is also editor of the Oxford Critical Guide to the Odyssey (2026) and author of numerous articles on Homer, myth, Greek poetry, and its reception in the modern world. Ancient Audiences rarely ever read the Odyssey in its entirety The Odyssey was sung and performed for generations before it was written down We don't know how The Odyssey was written down The Homeric Odyssey isn't the only version of the story that used to exist Odysseus was disliked by many early Greek audiences The ending of the Odyssey is extremely strange and most people ignore it! This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
July 19 · 29 min
Jessica Fellowes
Jessica Fellowes discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Jessica Fellowes is an author, journalist and public speaker. The Mitford Murders is her debut series as a novelist and has been nominated for awards in Britain, France, Germany and Italy, and sold into eighteen territories. Jessica is also the author of five official companion books to ‘Downton Abbey,’ various of which hit the New York Times and Sunday Times bestseller lists. Former columnist for the Mail on Sunday and deputy editor of Country Life, she has written business books with Sophie Cornish MBE, 'The Devil You Know' with forensic psychologist Kerry Daynes and short stories for Vogue Italia and L’Uomo Vogue. Jessica makes frequent appearances on radio, podcasts and television, has a Substack – ‘Your Fellowes Reader’ – and lives in Oxfordshire with her family. The work of school governors https://boardsforeducation.org.uk/ Hitster https://hitstergame.com/en-gb/ The advantages of hearing aids https://www.outsideclinic.co.uk/blog/impact-of-hearing-aids Jessica Fellowes https://substack.com/@jessicafellowes The Sale Room https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb Singled Out by Virginia Nicholson https://www.virginianicholson.co.uk/singled-out This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
July 12 · 29 min
Sarah Wilson
Sarah Wilson discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Sarah Wilson is a multi-New York Times bestselling author, journalist, social philosopher, international keynote speaker and philanthropist. Sarah leads dynamic, global conversations about modern philosophy, creativity, existential risk, and climate change via her keynote speaking, Wild podcast, and her Substack and social communities. She lives nomadically, but is based between Paris and Sydney, and is a compulsive hiker and adventurer. Her new book is I Eat the Stars, which is available at https://www.waterstones.com/book/i-eat-the-stars/sarah-wilson/9781837827213. Fractal flourishing https://accidentalgods.life/fractal-flourishing/ Maison de Balzac https://sarahwilson.substack.com/p/how-balzac-made-me-feel-joyous-about Sufficiency https://sarahwilson.substack.com/p/sufficiency-as-a-way-of-living-a Vanessa Andreotti https://decolonialfutures.net/hospicingmodernity/ Ikaria https://www.bluezones.com/explorations/ikaria-greece/ Mug cakes https://uk.pinterest.com/meganusafwife/muggin-recipes/ This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
July 5 · 30 min
Ian Proud
Ian Proud discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Ian Proud is an expert in strategic thinking, politico-economic analysis and diplomatic tradecraft. He was a member of His Majesty's Diplomatic Service from 1999 to 2023. During that time, he was one of the Foreign Office's most accomplished crisis experts and was Chair of the Crisis Committee at the British Embassy in Moscow when the Salisbury nerve agent attack happened in March 2018. He posts international relations articles and podcasts from his Substack page, The Peacemonger. His first novel, Searching, is now available at https://www.amazon.co.uk/Searching-love-story-Ian-Proud-ebook/dp/B0GFYC25YZ/ Curiosity –One reason we see so much racism and intolerance is a lack of curiosity in society. Boat 813 – for me the most vivid symbol of the destructive power of the 2004 tsunami is the 60-ton Royal Thai Navy patrol boat that was dragged 2 kilometres inland. I saw it for the first time just a few days after that tragic event beside the road as I drove towards Takua Pa. Stink beans – the first time you eat stink beans, or sataw as they are known in Thai, the taste is bitter and overpowering. The second time you eat them you might be addicted, like me. A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute’s 1950 book explores our human ability to endure terrible suffering and yet survive, potentially find true love and live happily ever after. This is a theme I explore in Searching. King Charles Street – the façade of the Foreign Office, directly adjacent to Downing Street, is grand and intimidating, which doesn’t help the perception that British diplomats are out of touch elitists. And yet the vast majority are not. Sleep – in a crisis, I can work for forty hours without sleep, although I wouldn’t recommend it. A healthy pattern of sleep is the foundation for our physical and mental wellbeing. This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
June 28 · 27 min
Sahar Hashemi
Sahar Hashemi discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Sahar Hashemi OBE has enjoyed a successful career as an entrepreneur, bestselling author and business thought leader. Initially forging her success as the Co-Founder and former CEO of Coffee Republic, the UK’s first American-style coffee bar chain, Sahar has since built great authority as a business leader and earned an appointment of OBE for her services to the UK economy and charity. Now the Co-Founder of Buy Women Built and hired as a leading keynote speaker, Sahar is commended for her ability to build more creative, customer-centric and resilient workplaces in which a “can do” spirit is paramount. The invisible economy of women-built brands www.buywomenbuilt.com Cluelessness as a competitive advantage https://aicomo.com/advantages-of-being-clueless/ Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl https://julias-books.com/2020/03/12/book-review-mans-search-for-meaning-by-viktor-e-frankl/ Why telling people to dream big is so misguided https://www.reddit.com/r/DecidingToBeBetter/comments/3fmaay/why_telling_kids_to_dream_big_is_a_big_con_our/ The benefit of ice cold showers every morning https://www.hollandandbarrett.com/the-health-hub/conditions/alternative-health/are-cold-showers-good-for-you/ Amichien bonding https://janfennellthedoglistener.com/about-jan/ This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
June 21 · 30 min
Eleanor Anstruther
Eleanor Anstruther discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Eleanor Anstruther was educated at Westminster School but dropped out of university to travel the world where she was lost and found for twelve years. When she inherited a farm in southern England she set up a commune and began to write. Her debut, A Perfect Explanation (Salt Books) was a finalist for the Desmond Eliot Prize & Not The Booker. She now lives not quietly at all between London, Surrey and the south of France. Her latest novel, Fallout (Empress Editions) is out now at https://www.eleanoranstruther.com/fallout. Find her on Substack at The Literary Obsessive at https://eleanoranstruther.substack.com/ and at https://www.eleanoranstruther.com/. Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp https://phm.org.uk/blogposts/greenham-common-peace-camp/ The Tommy Tiernan Show https://www.judecollins.com/2021/01/tv-reviewthe-tommy-tiernan-show-rte/ Cold Baths https://www.bupa.co.uk/newsroom/ourviews/cold-water-therapy Menopause is the best thing that can happen to you https://www.drcoppaobgyn.com/blog/its-not-all-bad-5-positive-parts-of-menopause Nick Cave's The Red Hand Files https://www.theredhandfiles.com/ You can talk to trees https://jane-cobbald.medium.com/how-to-talk-to-trees-839f247df239 This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
June 14 · 29 min
Mark Leonard
Mark Leonard discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Mark Leonard is Co-Founder and Director of the European Council on Foreign Relations, the first pan-European think-tank. His new book is Surviving Chaos: Geopolitics When The Rules Fail, which is available at https://www.politybooks.com/bookdetail?book_slug=surviving-chaos-geopolitics-when-the-rules-fail--9781509575220. Xi Jinping’s “Great Changes Unseen in a Century”, an understanding that the next few years will be characterized by the need to survive chaos rather than preserving or building order. Bicycling through big cities - London, New York, Paris, Berlin Zaho de Sagazan - a brilliant singer-songwriter and performer who is bringing French chanson into the electronic age George Soros’s philosophy - the billionaire investor and philanthropist is best known for making money but just as important is his understanding of how to live in a world that is out of balance Drummond Street in North London, the home of the best South Indian restaurants in Europe Neil Kinnock - the greatest political orator of my life-time who reinvented the Labour Party and is now campaigning for Britain to join the EU. This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
June 7 · 29 min
Tahmima Anam
Tahmima Anam discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Tahmima Anam is the author of the Bengal trilogy and a recipient of the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for Best First Book and the O. Henry Award. Her short story ‘Garments’ was shortlisted for the BBC National Short Story Award. She is a Granta Best of Young British Novelist and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. Born in Dhaka, Bangladesh, she trained as an anthropologist at Harvard University and now lives in London. Her new novel is Uprising, which is a Political Fiction Book Prize Finalist for the Orwell Prize and is available at https://www.waterstones.com/book/9781837265817. The Dirty Protest in Ireland https://theconversation.com/dirty-protests-why-irish-republican-prisoners-smeared-their-cells-with-faeces-to-make-a-political-statement-during-the-troubles-160306 Lysistrata https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2020/aug/03/lysistrata-review-ancient-theatre-of-epidaurus-aristophanes-national-theatre-greece South Korea's 4B movement https://afsee.atlanticfellows.lse.ac.uk/en-gb/blogs/how-the-4b-feminist-rebellion-is-taking-on-patriarchy Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain's Sultana's Dream https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sultana%27s_Dream Coffee Ice cream https://thechalkboardmag.com/sugar-free-coffee-ice-cream-for-energy-euphoria/ How to be less useful by Priyanka Mattoo https://primattoo.substack.com/ This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
May 31 · 29 min
Séamas O'Reilly
Séamas O'Reilly discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Séamas O'Reilly is a writer and author who has worked as a columnist for the Observer, the Irish Times and the Irish Examiner. He is Features Editor of London satirical magazine, The Fence and his writing has appeared in The Guardian, the New Statesman and the New York Times. His memoir Did Ye Hear Mammy Died topped the Irish Times Bestseller List for seven weeks, and won Best Biography at the 2021 Irish Book Awards. Séamas currently lives in Walthamstow, London with his family. His new novel is Prestige Drama, which is available at https://www.hachette.co.uk/titles/seamas-oreilly/prestige-drama/9780349727899/. The book "On Bloody Sunday" by Julieann Campbell https://www.theguardian.com/books/2022/jan/30/on-bloody-sunday-by-julieann-campbell-review-the-most-powerful-account-of-a-brutal-day The writer Flann O'Brien/Myles na Gopaleen https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v41/n07/clair-wills/anti-writer The Dyatlov Pass Incident https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/05/17/has-an-old-soviet-mystery-at-last-been-solved AI Is A Scam https://www.gardenofmemory.net/historian-vs-ai-the-technology-sucks-and-is-basically-a-scam/ Alan Moore's Top Ten comics series https://pagechewing.com/comic-commentary-top-10-by-alan-moore/ John Carpenter's The Thing Is Probably The Best Film Of All Time https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/thing-2-review/ This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
May 24 · 27 min
Ed Maklouf
Ed Maklouf discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Ed Maklouf attended school in England before moving to the USA to study at Stanford University, where he conducted specialized research into group communication and how people make decisions together. After graduating, he went on to found several start-up companies in the emerging field of “democracy technology,” building tools designed to improve participation, representation, and large-scale deliberation. His work eventually led him to Barcelona, where he began a sustained research project on voting systems. During this period, he came to know and collaborate with leaders of the Arhuaco tribe in Colombia, whose sophisticated traditions of consensus and guardianship of the Sierra Nevada deeply influenced his thinking. Maklouf now serves as ambassador for the Arhuaco Sen Foundation, helping to connect Indigenous perspectives on agreement with contemporary debates about democracy and governance. The Majority Myth grows out of several years of research into Collective Agreement: a framework that combines formal voting theory and Indigenous knowledge systems to ask when a decision can truly claim to speak for ‘the people’. It is available at https://bit.ly/MajorityMyth. The truth about Voting and its origins https://www.ft.com/content/4df5c927-00d1-43dc-9731-b1fac4980dca 2. The Arhuaco Indigenous Tribe https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20190329-the-ancient-guardians-of-the-earth 3. Friendship https://www.townandcountrymag.com/education-college/a38866811/boarding-school-friends-memoir-admissions-kendra-james/ My Mum's Paintings My dad is a well known sculptor, Raphael Maklouf, who sculpted the portrait of the Queen on UK coins, but my mum never shows her work. Trees Roots https://www.trees.org.uk/Trees.org.uk/files/61/6181f2b7-e35d-4075-832f-5e230d16aa9e.pdf Etymology https://www.youtube.com/RobWords This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
May 17 · 29 min
Emer McLysaght and Sarah Breen
Emer McLysaght and Sarah Breen discuss with Ivan six things which they think should be better known. Emer McLysaght & Sarah Breen are co-authors of the Aisling series. Oh My God, What a Complete Aisling was the bestselling fiction title of 2017 in Ireland and its sequel, The Importance of Being Aisling, won the award for best popular fiction book at the 2018 Irish Book Awards. The third book in the series, Once, Twice, Three Times an Aisling, won the same award the following year and the fourth book in the series, Aisling and the City, won again in 2021. The final book in the series, Aisling Ever After, was published in Autumn 2023 and was an instant number one bestseller. Combined, the Aisling books have sold more than 400,000 copies to date. Their new novel is Our Deadly Summer, which is available at https://www.waterstones.com/book/our-deadly-summer/emer-mclysaght/sarah-breen/9781526692153. In 2015 Ireland legalised a number of Class A drugs for 24 hours because of a loophole in legislation. An Irishman invented cheese and onion crisps at his kitchen table in 1954 The Irish language Nearly all the world’s Viagra is made in a small Irish town Ireland is the only country in the world to have had a female, democratically elected head of state be succeeded by another female, democratically elected head of state, and both were called Mary Republic of Loose This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
May 10 · 29 min
Charles Moore
Charles Moore discusses with Ivan six things which he thinks should be better known. Charles Moore was editor of the Daily Telegraph from 1995 to 2003, editor of the Sunday Telegraph from 1992 to 1995 and editor of the Spectator magazine from 1984 to 1990. He is now the Chairman of The Spectator. He became a non-affiliated peer in July 2020. He wrote the authorised biography of Margaret Thatcher, which is available at https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/458867/margaret-thatcher-by-moore-charles/9780241687673. The 18th century https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1997-oct-26-bk-46704-story.html East Sussex https://www.thekeep.info/places/eastsussex/ The Psalms https://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2025/12-september/features/features/finding-inspiration-in-the-psalms-food-for-the-christian-journey Ordet https://www.bfi.org.uk/film/d06c8e31-324e-5886-bfb3-200802199b37/ordet Auckland Castle https://aucklandproject.org/attraction/auckland-palace/ Hedges https://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/expert-advice/garden-management/wildlife-gardening/plant-a-hedge This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
May 3 · 30 min
Sean Murphy
Sean Murphy discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Sean Murphy is founder of the non-profit 1455 Lit Arts and directs the Center for Story at Shenandoah University. He has been publishing fiction, poetry, reviews (of music, movie, book, food), and essays on the technology industry for over twenty years. His latest book is red, white, and blues, his fourth poetry collection, which is available at https://www.seanmurphy.net/rwb/. America learned all the wrong lessons from popular 80s movies America is a myth-making machine Atlantic City's disintegration tells us everything we need to know about Trump Howard Dean's scream The Assault on the Arts & Humanities Explain the Deeper Motivation of Late-Stage Capitalism AI Can't and Won't Replace Art This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
April 26 · 29 min
Steven Seidenberg
Steven Seidenberg discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Steven Seidenberg is the author of Anon (Omnidawn, 2022), plain sight (Roof Books, 2020), Situ (Black Sun Lit, 2018) Null Set (Spooky Action Books) and Itch (RAW ArT Press, 2015). His books have been published in Italian, Portuguese and Swedish translation, and his collections of photographs include The Architecture of Silence: Abandoned Lives of the Italian South (Contrasto, 2023) and Pipevalve: Berlin (Lodima Press, 2017). Coda is his latest published work and the cover features one of Steven’s photographs. It is available at https://www.amazon.co.uk/Coda-Steven-Seidenberg/dp/1632431734 Steven lives in Boston, America, and frequently travels with his work, particularly in Europe. Philosopher Vilem Flusser https://www.frieze.com/article/without-firm-ground-%E2%80%93-vil%C3%A9m-flusser-and-arts Composer Julius Eastman https://www.npr.org/sections/deceptivecadence/2021/06/21/1007150496/julius-eastman-a-misunderstood-composer-returns-to-the-light Photographer Lynne Cohen https://www.frieze.com/article/lynne-cohen Painter Morris Ben Newman https://www.tfaoi.org/aa/9aa/9aa5.htm Poet Lorine Niedecker https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/lorine-niedecker Museum of Otherness and Elsewhere https://www.blocal-travel.com/street-art/maam-museum-rome/ This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
April 19 · 28 min
Daniel Hahn
Daniel Hahn discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Daniel Hahn is an award-winning translator, author and editor of numerous fiction and non-fiction works. He is one of the editors of The Ultimate Book Guide, the first volume of which won the Blue Peter Book Award. Other titles include children’s works such as Happiness Is a Watermelon on Your Head (a picture-book for children) and a new edition of The Oxford Companion to Children's Literature. He has been a chair for prestigious international prizes including the International Booker Prize, the IMPAC Dublin Award and the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize. He was previously chair for the Society of Authors and currently serves on the board of trustees for English PEN. His new book If This Be Magic is available at https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/if-this-be-magic-the-unlikely-art-of-shakespeare-in-translation-daniel-hahn/75a20e19805e32b5. Outside Over There by Maurice Sendak https://www.drttmk.com/books/outside-over-there Appalachian Waltz by Mark O’Connell https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ajkgNEO_Yeg&list=RDajkgNEO_Yeg&start_radio=1 Machado de Assis https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2020/12/17/machado-de-assis-well-ventilated-conscience/ Semicolons https://www.sussex.ac.uk/informatics/punctuation/colonandsemi/semi Asterix in English translation https://auntymuriel.com/2012/12/23/asterix-in-translation-the-genius-of-anthea-bell-and-derek-hockridge/ Hamlet Goes Business https://www.newyorker.com/goings-on-about-town/movies/hamlet-goes-business This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm
April 12 · 29 min
Joanna Jensen
Joanna Jensen discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known. Joanna Jensen is the founder of the British multi-award-winning baby and child personal care brand, Childs Farm which she created in 2010 as a result of her own daughters’ sensitive and eczema prone skin. A former Investment Banker in both London and Hong Kong, Jensen transformed an emotional need into a commercial brand from day one. Her brand was launched into mainstream retailers Boots and Waitrose in 2014 and became the number one brand in the baby and child toiletries category in 2019 disrupting the more established legacy brands with its natural, sustainable and fruity formulas, and seeing Johnson Baby’s market share tumble from 32% to 13% in just 5 years. In March 2022, Jensen sold 92% of Childs Farm for £36.8m to PZ Cussons Plc, the branded consumer goods business and owner of well-known brands such as St.Tropez, Imperial Leather, and Carex selling the final 8% in January 2025. Jensen is an active keen supporter of female founded businesses. She is an Angel Investor in 11 female founded brands and a leading advocate in supporting female founded businesses. She sits on the Angel Investment Committee for the Invest in Women Task Force. Jensen’s first book Making Business Child’s Play: How to build a winning brand was published in September 2025. From idea to launch, she details everything entrepreneurs don’t know they don’t know to endeavour to learn what took her six months to learn in 6 minutes. Small, consistent actions beat sporadic big ones Your brain treats uncertainty as a threat A ‘mast' year occurs every 3-5 years Relationships are the real currency in business Bees are infrastructure for our food system Strong social connection is a biological need This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

Showing 1–20 of 22 episodes