In this first episode, you will learn who Doreen Massey was and get a sneak peek at her politics. We’ll hear from Massey’s former collaborators, friends and colleagues. And from Massey herself.

For nearly three decades, Massey was a professor at The Open University and “loved every minute of it”. The OU’s aim has been to literally open up access to higher education for a wider variety of people. Our approach with this podcast is similar: you don’t need to come prepared – and you certainly don’t need an academic degree to listen to it.

Knowledge and politics can be produced in a wide variety of places. What intellectual spaces have you encountered or actively created beyond the classroom? Please use this form to share your reflections with us.

Episode Credits
Host: Agata Lisiak
Guests: John Allen, Ash Amin, David Featherstone, Yasmin Gunaratnam, Tariq Jazeel, Linda McDowell, Tracey Skelton, Hilary Wainwright
Also Featured: Doreen Massey
Writer and Producer: Agata Lisiak
Senior Editor: Susan Stone
Sound Producer: Reece Cox
Production Assistant: Adèle Martin
Music: Studio R
Artwork: Bose Sarmiento
Special Thanks: The Open University, Michael Chanan 
In partnership with: The Sociological Review Foundation
Funded by: Volkswagen Foundation

Find more about Spatial Delight at The Sociological Review.

Doreen Massey’s essays and interviews quoted in this episode:

• Doreen Massey speaking about London, extract from Secret City, dir. Michael Chanan, 2012 
• “I feel as if I've been able to reinvent myself” – a biographical interview with Doreen Massey, by Tim Freytag and Michael Hoyler, Department of Geography, University of Heidelberg, 1998 
• Understanding cities – Doreen Massey interviewed by Bob Catterall, City, 2000 
• Space, Place, and Politics – opening remarks, The Open University, 2009 
• The Possibilities of a Politics of Place Beyond Place? A Conversation with Doreen Massey, Human Geography Research Group, Sophie Bond, David Featherstone, Scottish Geographical Journal, 2009 
• Liverpool's football activists are part of a wider social movement, The Guardian, 2010 

Selected tributes and obituaries:

• Hilary Wainwright, “How we will miss that chuckle”: my friend, Doreen Massey 
• Jeremy Gilbert and Jo Littler, The Doreen Massey we knew 
• Emma Jackson, Keeping one eye on the bus: A tribute to Doreen Massey
• David Featherstone, Doreen Massey obituary