Better Known

Kelly Link discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Kelly Link is the author of White Cat, Black Dog; Get in Trouble, a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in Fiction; Magic for Beginners; Stranger Things Happen; and Pretty Monsters. Her short stories have been published in The Best American Short Stories and Prize Stories: The O. Henry Awards. She is a MacArthur “Genius Grant” fellow and has received a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. She is the co-founder of Small Beer Press and co-edits the occasional zine Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet. She is also the co-owner of Book Moon, an independent bookstore in Easthampton, Massachusetts. The Book of Love is her debut novel.

Bloomsbury: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/book-of-love-9781804548431/

Kathryn Davis https://artsci.wustl.edu/faculty-staff/kathryn-davis

Dorothy https://dorothyproject.com/

Winterpills https://www.winterpills.com/

Kiva www.kiva.org

CCATE www.ccate.org

Street Books www.streetbooks.org

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Alice Kinsella discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Alice Kinsella is a poet from Mayo, on the west coast of Ireland. She is the author of Sexy Fruit (Broken Sleep, 2018) and editor of Empty House: poetry and prose on the climate crisis (Doire Press, 2021). Milk (Picador, 2023) is her debut book of prose. She is an Arts Council of Ireland Next Generation Artist.

The Loneliest Whale in the World

Happy Tummy Company https://www.thehappytummyco.com/

Mosab Abu Toha https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/01/01/a-palestinian-poets-perilous-journey-out-of-gaza

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/polycystic-ovary-syndrome

County Mayo's Whaling past https://iwdg.ie/end-of-our-whaling-era/

Being wrong https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jan/24/french-parliament-passes-law-giving-citizens-the-right-to-make-mistakes

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Robert McCrum discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Robert McCrum is a writer and editor whose most recent book, Shakespearean was published to great acclaim in 2021. Formerly the editor-in-chief of Faber & Faber, and literary editor of the Observer, he is also the author of Wodehouse: A Life (2004), and a classic memoir, My Year Off (1998).

From 1980 to 1996, McCrum was editor-in-chief of Faber & Faber, where he published Kazuo Ishiguro, Hanif Kureishi, Milan Kundera, Peter Carey, Danilo Kis, Paul Auster, Marilynne Robinson, Lorrie Moore, Adam Phillips, Mario Vargas Llosa, Jayne Anne Phillips, Orhan Pamuk, and Adam Mars-Jones. At the same time, he wrote seven novels, and co-authored the BBC TV series, The Story Of English, for which he was awarded an Emmy in 1986, followed by a Peabody Prize in 1987.

In July 1995, McCrum suffered a serious stroke, a personal crisis he described in My Year Off, a book now regarded as an essential study in the understanding of the condition.

He was literary editor of the Observer from 1996 to 2010. Globish (2010) was an international bestseller. In 2024, he will publish The Penalty Kick: The Story of A Game-changer with Notting Hill Editions.

The Lost Art of Silence by Sarah Anderson https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/animal-emotions/202312/the-art-and-power-of-connecting-to-the-sounds-of-silence

The River Granta https://www.wildlifebcn.org/news/river-granta-gets-wiggle

The invention of the penalty kick in football https://epicchq.com/story/william-mccrum-the-irish-inventor-of-the-penalty-kick/

Alfred the Great https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v40/n09/tom-shippey/what-did-he-think-he-was

Kindness https://www.spectator.co.uk/article/how-the-unbearable-lightness-of-being-enthralled-a-generation/

Rossini’s Petite Messe Solonelle https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CqrzmdevQSI

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Ivan looks back at previous discussions with a variety of guests and picks out the things which they think should be less well known. Foregoing the normal positivity, guests rant, complain and moan about famous people, books, television shows, sports, ideas and 90s dances which they find deeply tiresome. The guests and topics are:

James Runcie on Lord of the Rings

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Matthew Rice discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Matthew Rice paints, writes and runs courses in the summer which utilise his garden, which is the focus of the rest of his time. Over his career he has published 11 books on architecture, designed many millions of mugs for the business he ran with his then wife Emma Bridgewater, and illustrated for Country Life magazine. His interests in architecture have led to a series of charity roles in that area. Matthew grew up in a household of designers and now lives in Oxfordshire where he paints and writes.

Matthew Rice, educated at Bedales, studied painting and theatre design at Chelsea and Central Schools of Art, is an honorary doctor of Keele and Staffordshire Universities and is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries. Matthew has four children and one grandson.

His books include Village Buildings of Britain, Building Norfolk, Rice’s Architectural Primer, The Lost City of Stoke-on-Trent, Rice’s Church Primer, Oxford, Pat Albeck Queen of the Tea Towel, Rice’s Language of Buildings, Venice A Sketchbook Guide and Rome A Sketchbook Guide.

During the summer, Matthew runs a variety of painting and gardening courses in addition to opening his garden at his home in west Oxfordshire. Further details are available at www.matthewricewatercolours.co.uk.

His 2024 courses include:

His 2024 Open Garden dates are: Sunday 2nd June, Sunday 21st July an Sunday 8th September.

Poundbury https://poundbury.co.uk/

Landmark trust https://www.landmarktrust.org.uk/

Choral evensong https://www.choralevensong.org/uk/

The Grant Museum https://www.ucl.ac.uk/culture/grant-museum-zoology

Zinnias https://www.gardenersworld.com/how-to/grow-plants/how-to-grow-zinnias/

Silver Birch https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/british-trees/a-z-of-british-trees/silver-birch/

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Richard Mills discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Dr Richard Mills is Associate Professor in English Literature and Popular Culture at St Mary’s University, London. He has been programme director for the Film and Popular Culture, Cultural Studies and Irish Studies degrees. He has published extensively on popular music, Irish literature and culture, film, fashion and British television. Mills is the author of The Beatles and Fandom: Sex, Death and Progressive Nostalgia (Bloomsbury 2019). He is co-editor of Mad Dogs and Englishness (Bloomsbury 2017) and The Beatles and Humour (Bloomsbury 2023). He is author of the forthcoming The Beatles and Black Music: Post-colonial Theory, Musicology and Remix Culture (Bloomsbury 2024) Richard is a regular contributor to BBC4’s Last Word, Sky News, RTE, Portobello Radio and BBC Live and serves on the editorial board of The Journal of Beatles Studies.

Bedazzled https://www.bfi.org.uk/film/32e4e509-795e-5e0d-b70b-681f67bde3c8/bedazzled

The black artists who influenced the Beatles' music https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uqp2h65BAs8 & https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BGLGzRXY5Bw

Deep End https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deep_End_(film)

Disturbing the Peace by Richard Yates https://www.amazon.co.uk/Disturbing-Peace-Vintage-Classics-Richard/dp/0099518554

Dining at the Dunbar by Maurice Leitch https://www.theguardian.com/books/2023/oct/13/maurice-leitch-obituary

Claire Keegan's stories and novels https://www.curtisbrown.co.uk/client/claire-keegan

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Noreen Masud discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Noreen Masud is a Lecturer in Twentieth Century Literature at the University of Bristol, and an AHRC/BBC New Generation Thinker 2020. Her first book for non-academic audiences is A Flat Place (2023): a memoir-travelogue about the beauty of flat places, and how they might help us relate to each other.

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Bob Cryer discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Bob Cryer is an actor and writer best known for Coronation Street and Hollyoaks. He is the youngest child of Barry Cryer. He collaborated with his father on Barry's book of anecdotes, Butterfly Brain, in 2010. Shortly afterwards, they created the book series Mrs Hudson's Diaries, which was adapted into a play for Wilton's Music Hall. Mrs Hudson's Radio Show soon followed for Radio 4 in 2018. Their joint podcast, Now Where Were We?, launched just before Barry's death in January 2022. Bob's new book is Barry Cryer: Same Time Tomorrow?: The Life and Laughs of a Comedy Legend.

Black filter coffee https://majestycoffee.com/blogs/posts/americano-vs-drip-coffee

Phyllis Pearsall https://www.peterberthoud.co.uk/post/the-real-story-of-a-z-maps-by-phyllis-pearsall

Barry Cryer https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-34041501

Raymond Carver https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2007/12/24/rough-crossings

The Felice Brothers https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jun/23/the-felice-brothers-life-in-the-dark-new-album

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/kiss-kiss-bang-bang-review/

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Martin Knight discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Martin Knight is a British author. He has written autobiographies with footballers George Best, Dave Mackay, Peter Osgood and Charlie Cooke also Alan Longmuir founder member of the Bay City Rollers.

In addition he has authored true crime titles and novels. His latest book Justice Killer is released in November 2023. His collaboration with ex-criminal Ronnie Field Nefarious will be published by Harper Collins in 2024.

Bird identification apps https://birda.org/best-birdwatching-apps-uk/

Letter writing https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/nov/26/from-me-with-love-lost-art-letter-writing

Non-league and lower league football https://www.echo-news.co.uk/sport/23260993.support-non-league-football/

The Small Faces https://medium.com/the-riff/the-tragic-story-of-the-small-faces-8830946625b9

The Footage Detectives https://www.tptvencore.co.uk/Playlist/Footage-Detectives?id=1ce12be2-3de3-4c50-a784-a8ceb1083fb0

Hastings https://www.ellieandco.co.uk/2022/02/7-secret-highlights-of-a-weekend-in-hastings-east-sussex.html

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To mark the 300th episode of Better Known, actor Henry Lewis discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

Henry Lewis is a power house creative: writer, actor, director and puzzle genius. He is the Artistic Director of Mischief and writes, produces and performs for the company. His work with Mischief includes: The Play that Goes Wrong (Broadway, West End, UK & International Tours), Peter Pan Goes Wrong (BBC1, West End & UK Tours), The Comedy About A Bank Robbery (West End & UK Tour), The Goes Wrong Show (BBC1 & Amazon), Magic Goes Wrong (created with magicians Penn & Teller, West End), Groan Ups (West End), Mischief Movie Night (West End & UK Tour). Henry's work has earned him five Olivier Nominations including a win for Best New Comedy for The Play that Goes Wrong, and his writing has been performed in over thirty countries worldwide. His new book is The Museum Heist, available at https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-museum-heist/henry-lewis/9781408728499.

Royal Institution www.rigb.org

I am Mother https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-capsule-genre-string-20190620-story.html

Paxos https://www.greektravel.com/greekislands/paxos/

John Duffin https://www.johnduffin.co.uk/

Tony’s Chocolate https://tonyschocolonely.com/uk/en

The Mystery Agency https://themysteryagency.com/

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