Novara Media

From fecal transplants to the yoghurt-industrial complex, we’ve never been more absorbed in the workings of our gut. But can we trust it?

Nadia, Jem and Keir investigate the mysterious connections between mind and body, reason and instinct. How did capitalism separate our minds from our bodies? Is a belief in intuition filling the gap left by religion? And will reclaiming our biomes be a win for anti-capitalism?

They digest their thinking with music from Björk and Olivia Rodrigo and ideas from Max Weber and Daniel Kahneman.

Find our ever-expanding playlist on Spotify by searching “ACFM”.

Books and films: Jeanette Winterson – 12 Bytes / 
Chinatown
 / Eve Chiapello and Luc Boltanski – The New Spirit of Capitalism / Daniel Kahneman – Thinking Fast and Slow / Jeremy Gilbert and Alex Williams – Hegemony Now / The Last of Us

Tracklist:
 Devo – Gut Feeling / FSOL – Stomach Acid / FSOL – Papua New Guinea / Frenzy – Fire in my Gut / Guts – Voyaging Bird / John Cale – Guts / Björk – Sweet Intuition / Olivia Rodrigo – Love is Embarrassing

Produced and edited by Matt Huxley and Chal Ravens. PRS licence number: LE-0016481

*

Help us build people-powered media: https://novara.media/support

Researching Black British history “often feels like a rescue effort, a race against time,” writes Jason Okundaye. In his first book, he narrates the mingled histories of seven astonishing lives in the Black gay community of South London during the 1980s. The narrative he pieces together from oral history, archival research and even gossip (a vital historical record in its own right, he argues) is a fresh depiction of Black gay life on its own terms: from politics and activism to Aids, music, fashion, sex, love and grief.

He talks to Moya Lothian-McLean about undoing stereotypes of Black Britishness, working with a disappearing archive, and the creative art of non-fiction. Revolutionary Acts: Love and Brotherhood in Black Gay Britain is the first book from Okundaye, whose essays on politics and culture have appeared in the Guardian, GQ and the London Review of Books.

Help us build people-powered media: https://novara.media/support

Major General Charlie Herbert has stood out in recent months for his vociferous condemnation of Israel’s war on Palestinians. His media appearances have proven vital in synthesising a moral and strategic critique of war in which civilians are treated in a manner he characterises as unprecedented.

He sat down with Ash to talk about serving in Northern Ireland in the 80s, conscription and why Israel’s plan for Gaza will not work.

Less than 20% of the promised levelling-up projects for England have been completed. The problem lies not only with the current government, but with the whole way the UK’s political system is set up, with its whips and Lords and not a constitution in sight.

So say Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram, the mayors of Manchester and Liverpool. In a new book, they propose sweeping changes to fix this problem, from a Basic Law that guarantees equal living standards across the country to a transformed upper chamber.

Craig Gent, Novara’s new North of England Editor, speaks to them about their vision for the North and when we might see an Andy Burnham premiership. ‘Head North: A Rallying Cry for a More Equal Britain’ is out now.

Help us build people-powered media: https://novara.media/support

Gary Stevenson went from being Citibank’s most profitable trader to one of the world’s most incisive critics of the financial system. Gary sat down with Aaron to discuss the lightbulb moment that led him away from trading, why economists can’t predict anything and why the UK middle class is doomed.

As the war in Ukraine enters its third year, the question of what Russia is really thinking remains as crucial, and mysterious, as ever. To paint a picture of the current political climate, Richard Hames talks to Tony Wood, author of Russia Without Putin and an assistant professor of history at the University of Colorado Boulder, to follow up on his New Left Review article from 2022, ‘Matrix of War’.

They discuss the death of Alexei Navalny and the prospects for Putin’s opposition, the impact of Nato expansion on Russian nationalism, and the demise of Wagner PMC chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, whose ill-fated rebellion strikes Wood as “one of the craziest things ever to happen.”

Apologies for the uneven sound quality in this episode.

Help us build people-powered media: https://novara.media/support

Yanis Varoufakis is an economist and author who served as Greek Finance Minister in the aftermath of the 2008 global financial crash. Since then, he has become one of the most sought after public speakers on the left. He joined Aaron Bastani for an IRL edition of Downstream at EartH in Hackney, North-East London to talk about China, Gaza and the new cold war being waged in ‘the cloud’. Set decoration was provided by After Noah.

Last time on ACFM, the gang explored the impact of UFOs on politics, from deep-state conspiracies to the Posadists.

But to really understand how aliens influence our thought – and what our belief in E.T. says about ourselves – we have to go to the movies.

In this Microdose, Keir, Jem and Nadia sweep through a century of aliens on screen, from Martian invaders to Mulder & Scully to talking heptapods.

Sign up to the ACFM newsletter: https://novaramedia.com/newsletters

Films, TV & Books: H. G. Wells – The War of the Worlds / The Day the Earth Stood Still / Invasion of the Body Snatchers / Quatermass / The Midwich Cuckoos / The Blob / Solaris / Close Encounters of the Third Kind / Alien / The Thing / E.T. / They Live / The X-Files / Men in Black / The Host / Godzilla / Cloverfield / District 9 / Sector Zero / The Expanse / Arrival / Nope

Produced by Matt Huxley.

The 2000s in Britain was a decade of education, regeneration, falling inequality and Dizzee Rascal.

But beneath the fleeting prosperity lurked a culture of cruelty. It was palpable in politicians’ disdain for single mothers, in the media’s vilification of chavs, and in TV producers’ obsession with pointing and laughing at just about everyone – but don’t worry, it’s only a joke.

Juliet Jacques is joined by cultural critic Owen Hatherley and Novara Media’s Ash Sarkar to talk about why the Noughties were so nasty, from TV and music to architecture and politics.

Help us build people-powered media: https://novara.media/support

Bernie Sanders needs no introduction. Ash caught up with the senator to talk about his new book ‘It’s OK To Be Angry About Capitalism’, the speed of political change and whether what is happening in Gaza constitutes a genocide.