Caitlin Moran Meets Alex James - Cocaine, Crash Diets and the Return of Blur (Summer Repeat)
One winter’s night, Alex James received an unexpected call. Blur had been invited to play their biggest gig ever: Wembley Stadium. The only trouble was, he and his bandmates hadn’t spoken to – or even shouted at – each other for years. And he now had five children, an out-of-control menagerie of cats, and a sprawling farm to run. This is the story of what happened next.
Taking us behind the scenes of a raucous, rollercoaster year, Alex tells Times journalist and bestselling author Caitlin Moran how the band made a surprise – and emotional – return, recording an acclaimed album and playing sold-out shows around the world, from Colchester to Colombia and beyond.
Plus: how he went on a crash diet to fit back into his ‘Britpop Trousers,’ a chastening encounter with the President of Columbia, and the magical story behind She's So High.
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Yuval Noah Harari – Humanity in the Age of AI (Summer Repeat)
Long gone are the days when pigeons relayed our messages; now we have a flood of information at all times, from social media to artificial intelligence, all weaving narratives that shape our lives. But the rise of these new modes of information technology has the power to spread misinformation, challenge independent thought, and even threaten democracy.
Bestselling author of Sapiens, Yuval Noah Harari joins Robin Ince to explore how humanity can navigate these new networks, and asks, in this constant deluge of information and misinformation, where can we find real knowledge and truth?
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Herman Pontzer – The Surprising Science of Human Diversity and Evolution
As an evolutionary anthropologist working with human populations around the globe, Herman Pontzer has conducted research that reveals the wonder of our species's evolution and our biological diversity, documenting the connections between lifestyle, landscape, local adaptations and health. He joins Robin Ince to reveal these intricacies and how the way we understand our biology and its interplay with our cultural environments is critical to how we understand our world and one another.
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Dexys' Kevin Rowland - A Life Story
One of the great mavericks of British music, Kevin Rowland, recounts his formative years and reveals a deeply personal account of his life. From trying to be 'good' at church and to make his mum proud, to thieving and fighting on the outside, from his early discovery of his love for music as a school boy, to his earliest gigs in his brother's band, Kevin reveals the roots of his musical journey, and the lessons they imparted to him through the years. With an unwavering passion for music and a highly tuned sense of fashion, Kevin rocketed down a path that led to his huge chart successes with Dexys Midnight Runners in the 1980s. Bringing us back to these years, he also reveals the burden of fame, the inner turmoil of stardom, and the propelling power of his musical vision.
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Lara Lewington – How Technology is Rewriting the Future of Our Health
Informed by over fifteen years covering the world’s most advanced innovations, Lewington joins journalist Hannah MacInnes to explore the transformative potential of AI and health tech—from early cancer detection and personalised diagnostics to wearable devices that track everything from sleep to blood sugar. Drawing on her new book Hacking Humanity, Lewington shares her own journey of self-experimentation, separates scientific promise from Silicon Valley hype, and asks what it truly means to live a longer, healthier life. With clarity, compassion and infectious curiosity, she shows how we can all take part in shaping a future where medicine is not just reactive but predictive, and where technology helps us stay well, not just treat us when we’re sick.
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How To Academy is London's home of big thinking. From Nobel laureates to Pulitzer Prize winners, we invite the world’s most influential voices to share new ideas for changing ourselves, our communities, and the world. Our biweekly podcast is your chance to hear in-depth from the most exciting thinkers in global culture.
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