The Grand Thunk

After reading Water by John Boyne, Rhiannon and Alex get into the meat of this question, talking about Boyne's recent comments about trans people, despite loving his books. How can we find nuance within cancel culture and does cancel culture have a powerful and useful role to play in our society? Alex has been reading the potently poetic Maud Martha by the astonishing writer Gwendolyn Brooks, whilst Rhiannon has been watching and loving Season Four of The Bear. Alex has also been reading the heat-mad story of five eighteenth century sisters plagued by rumours in The Hounding.

Show notes

Friends

Water by John Boyne

My Brother's Name is Jessica by John Boyne

https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/jul/17/john-boyne-people-were-criticising-my-book-when-they-hadnt-read-it

What We Don't Talk About: Sex And the Mess of Life by JoAnn Wypijewski

Maud Martha by Gwendolyn Brooks

The Bear, Season Four

The Hounding by Xenobe Purvis

The Lamb by Lucy Rose

Rhiannon has been fully immersed in the nudity at Wilderness, listening to Dan Wye’s brilliant comedy, whilst Alex has been bobbing on the sea, reading Zadie Smith’s On Beauty. What a book, exploring the mysteries of academic language, affirmative action and destructive middle aged men. Meanwhile, Rhiannon has been reading about the conflict between freedom on the internet and yet limited physical freedoms that modern children experience. Are they more anxious than ever and why? Alex has followed John Green down his turberculosis tunnel, exploring the history - from Keats to Cowboys, why it connects to everything, and why it is a disease that reveals injustice wherever it goes. An exciting, sun-filled episode!

Show notes

Dan Wye Am I Sam Smith? at Wilderness Festival

Late to the Party, Grace Campbell

Football, Feminism and Everything In Between

On Beauty by Zadie Smith

Intimations by Zadie Smith

North-West by Zadie Smith

The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

Everything is Turberculosis by John Green

The Happiness Lab podcast

Traitors, Destination X, Race Across the World

Made in Chelsea

Great Company - Jamie Laing’s podcast

Rhiannon and Alex begin this episode by eating their words and swapping a couple of TV recommendations for retractions (such grown ups). Alex has been absorbed in the moving world of Opera, thanks to Dorset’s Opera Festival, with stunning set design from her husband Rufus. Things turn medical as Rhiannon has been hooked and horrified by the second season of hit podcast The Retrievals, which leads to a discussion on the gender gap in healthcare, complimented by recommendations of Unwell Women and Unheard from Alex.

Shownotes

The White Lotus, Apple TV/Amazon Prime/Sky

Clarkson’s Farm, Amazon Prime

Rigoletto by Giuseppe Verdi at Dorset Opera Festival

Cavalleria rusticana by Pietro Mascagni & Suor Angelica by Giacomo Puccini at Dorset Opera Festival

Everything is Tuberculosis by John Green

The Retrievals by The New York Times and Serial Productions

The Food Medic podcast, Dr Hazel Wallace

The Female Actor by Dr Hazel Wallace

Not Just a Period by Dr Hazel Wallace

Unwell Women by Elinor Cleghorn

Unheard by Rageshri Dhairyawan

Maternal mortality 2020-2022 statistic - https://www.npeu.ox.ac.uk/mbrrace-uk/data-brief/maternal-mortality-2020-2022

Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Built for Men by Caroline Criado Perez

Frozen on stage, Disney+

On the pod this week, Rhiannon has been dressing as a dragonfly, meeting with Big Cats and going on a space adventure with Bridie Squire’s riveting radio drama. Alex is getting horny for the fleshy and carnal desire displayed in Lucy Rose’s cannibalistic book, The Lamb while Rhiannon is dissatisfied with The White Lotus. Alex and Rhiannon conclude this episode with shiny eyes, agreeing that they both take great pride and satisfaction with their ‘day jobs’, similarly agreeing that justice is too black and white. Self-satisfied handshakes all round.

Shownotes

Terry Pratchett audiobooks

New Creatives Dramas BBC Radio 4 - Self-Checkout by Bridie Squires

The Lamb by Lucy Rose

Perfume by Patrick Süskind

Death In Her Hands by Ottessa Moshfegh

The White Lotus

Romesh Ranganathan on Desert Island Discs

During our break, Rhiannon has been totally immersed in Taylor Jenkins Reid's Atmosphere and Alex has been enjoying summer, and yet quoting Winter and Wintering. Rhiannon has been watching Code of Silence, a TV show about Alison, a deaf civilian whose lip reading skills aid the police with their investigations and Alex has been captivated by the absurdity of Terry Pratchett and his Discworld novels. Plus many more glorious nuggets of enjoyed pop culture, sponsored by Marmite Crumpets.

Show notes 

Wintering by by Katherine May

Skipshock by Caroline O’Donoghue

The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents by Terry Pratchett 

A Hat Full of Sky by Terry Pratchett
Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid (book and TV adaptation) 

When Harry Met Sally 

Off Menu - Carey Mulligan

The Ballad of Wallis Island 

The Bear, Season 4 

Code of Silence, ITV

Yellowstone, Netflix

Tess of the d'Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy 

1883, Netflix

1923, Netflix

His Dark Materials by Phillip Pullman

La Belle Sauvage, The Book of Dust trilogy by Phillip Pullman

The Secret Commonwealth, The Book of Dust trilogy by Phillip Pullman

The Golden Compass

Alex and Rhiannon are very moved in today’s episode, stuffed with Glastonbury, the meaning of life, the universe and everything. Rhiannon explores the hidden role of women in warfare, specifically the Vietnam War in Kristin Hannah’s The Women. Alex dives into folklore and sapphic relationships in Song of the Huntress. Rhiannon is thinking about the abuse and use of psychedelics in treating trauma in Nine Perfect Strangers and Alex is crying about Hunter Gatherers. A great episode!

Show Notes

Self Esteem at Glastonbury and Truck Fest

Self Esteem on Off Menu Podcast

The Falmouth Bookseller

Rubicund Books

Song of the Huntress by Lucy Holland

Breaking the Glass Slipper

The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro

The Women by Kristin Hannah

This Is Us

The Carrier Bag Theory of Fiction by Ursula Le Guin

Nine Perfect Strangers by Liane Moriarty

The Goop Lab

Douglas Adam’s The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

If like us, you've overdone it in the sun, come and hide in the shade and dive into this week's recommendations.

Alex has been swept away in several dystopian worlds, and is suitably intrigued and enamoured by Torrey Peters' Stag

Dance and Jacqueline Harpman's I Who Have Never Known Men.

Rhiannon adds to this week's stack of sexy covers with Sarah Wynn-Williams' Careless People, a memoir detailing her experience of the murky leadership at Facebook. Luckily, Jacinda Ardern's episode on Parenting Hell reinstated Rhiannon's belief in empathetic leaders and she's now super keen to read A Different Kind of Power. Join the conversation in our Thunkers WhatsApp Group, just comment or slide into our DMs to join.

Show Notes

Stag Dance by Torrey Peters 

Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams

Parenting Hell with Jacinda Ardern 

A Different Kind of Power by Jacinda Ardera

I Who Have Never Known Men by  Jacqueline Harpman

We Live in Time starring Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield

Rhiannon and Alex are setting up a WhatsApp group for listeners who want to share their thoughts and add nuance; we’re creating a community of Thunkers! Rhiannon tells Alex about a brilliant Radio 4 programme, mixing comedy with the brutal world of caring, in Mary Bourke: Who Cares? Alex has been exploring the murky world of postpartum psychosis in Catherine Cho’s Inferno. Rhiannon smooths things back down with two TV recommendations, The Bear and Clarkson’s Farm, while Alex shares her thoughts on the film Queer, starring Daniel Craig.

Show notes

Mary Bourke: Who Cares? Radio 4 (BBC Sounds)

Joy Chose You by Donna Ashworth 

Doing It Right with Pandora Sykes

Inferno: A Memoir of Motherhood and Madness by Catherine Cho

The Missing, Pandora Sykes 

How Do We Know We're Doing It Right: & Other Essays on Modern Life by Pandora Sykes

Clarkson’s Farm 

The Bear 

Queer directed by Luca Guadagnino

Call me By Your Name directed by Luca Guadagnino

Queer by William S Boroughs 

Stephanie Case, ultrarunning whilst breast feeding champion - https://run.outsideonline.com/trail/stephanie-case-wins-ultra-trail-snowdonia-while-breastfeeding/ 

Alex and Rhiannon dive into memory tricks before discussing the impact of being told your death, inspired by Liane Moriarty’s book Here One Moment. Alex is hooked, as ever, to the IV of Caroline O’ Donoghue’s words in her most recent mini-series, Magical Garbage, starting with an episode on Lord of the Rings. Rhiannon has been testing her knowledge with the Pub Quiz podcast and Alex has some word based Who’d a Thunks? for you!

Show Notes

Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty

Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman

Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus 

Room, starring Brie Larson and Jacob Tremblay

Magic Garbage (limited series within Sentimental Garbage) hosted by Caroline O'Donoghue

Promising Young Women by Caroline O'Donoghue

Scenes of a Graphic Nature by Caroline O'Donoghue

All Our Hidden Gifts Trilogy by Caroline O'Donoghue

The Rachel Incident by by Caroline O'Donoghue

Skipshock by Caroline O'Donoghue - out now!

Wild Card by Jen Cownie and Fiona Lensvelt

Jake Bhardwaj

SquidVids

Pub Quiz Podcast  

Down the Drain by Julia Fox

The Phrontistery: The Dictionary of Obscure Words - https://phrontistery.info/

Rhiannon and Alex delve into the poetry in dictionary definitions and the silences in films as Alex has been watching the yet-to-be-released adaption of Deborah Levy’s book Hot Milk. Rhiannon shares a beautiful poem that gives space for calm and organisation without imposing it. We discuss resolving conflict as demonstrated in the glorious and informative storytelling and debates of The Rest is History podcast. And finally we explore the labour of motherhood through Emma Barnett’s fantastic book Maternity Service.

Show Notes

The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows by John Koenig

Hot Milk by Deborah Levy

Her Naked Skin by Rebecca Lenkiewicz

Hot Milk Film Directed and screenplay by Rebecca Lenkiewicz

The Banshees of Inisherin by Martin McDonagh

The Cost of Living by Deborah Levy

Things I Don’t want to Know by Deborah Levy

Real Estate by Deborah Levy

Ducks in a Row by Donna Ashworth

The Rest is History Podcast with Tom Holland & Dominic Sandbrook

Maternity Service: A Love Letter to Mothers from the Front Line of Maternity Leave by Emma Barnett

Neuroscientist, TJ Power's tips on calming your anxiety https://www.instagram.com/p/DIg4rI5I2wh/?img_index=1