The Run of The Mill

In 2016, Caroline Dyer and Colette Burroughs-Rose shared frustrations with how the world was becoming more divided. They believed the political developments of the time — the election of Donald Trump and Brexit — had caused more friction in the world and there was a need for more nuanced conversations to help us reconnect. In the aftermath of this division, Heard Storytelling was born. It began with a series of live events in a pub in the Northern Quarter, where people were invited to share their personal stories in front of a live audience. Just last month, they launched their first podcast series, the Heard Storytelling podcast. They publish twice a week, with one long form episode on Monday which features a story and an interview with the storyteller, and on Fridays, they publish Briefly Heard, which offers behind-the-scenes insights into how a story was crafted.

In this special episode, Mollie sits down with Heard Storytelling's co-founder Caroline Dyer to discuss the inspirational Manchester stories that they discovered while making the podcast, the importance of being vulnerable with strangers and why storytelling matters.

Warning: this episode contains a mention of suicidal ideation.

Recommendations:

The Heard Storytelling Podcast

Sobriety's Wake-Up Call: Karl's Story

Follow Heard Storytelling on Instagram to keep up with their latest events, projects and announcements

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Earlier this week, our editor Joshi Herrmann sat down with US Senator Bernie Sanders to discuss the colossal decline of local news in the UK, how that impacts communities and how he imagines the crisis in local news might be resolved. "It is a disaster for democracy," Bernie Sanders told us, a powerful statement about something we all care about. In today's episode, Mollie and Joshi examine that interview and take a deep dive into the crisis in local news in the UK and why we're still optimistic about the future.

Many thanks to Manchester Museum for sponsoring this week's podcast episode. After its major reopening last year, Manchester Museum’s South Asia Gallery won headlines around the world. The New York Times noted that it was “the first permanent museum gallery in Britain to spotlight the South Asian diaspora,” in a new space that “focuses on the community’s lived experience: on what it means to be British and South Asian at the same time.” That gallery features everything from ancient Sri Lankan musical instruments to displays about the secret South Asian Daytimers raves of the 80s and 90s, as well as exploring garment manufacture and South Asian working lives in Manchester. Plan your visit now — and you can see the stunning Golden Mummies of Egypt show (ending in April) and Stan the Tyrannosaurus rex at the same time.

Recommendations:

Colossal decline of UK regional media since 2007 revealed, Press Gazette

Is this the future of local news?, Media Confidential

What Happens to Democracy When Local Journalism Dries Up?, The Washington Post

‘The Men Who Are Killing America’s Newspapers’, The Atlantic

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Last month, before Mr Bates vs The Post Office created a massive public outcry and elevated Fujitsu to nationwide notoriety as the company that allowed its software bugs to destroy the lives and reputations of hundreds of innocent subpostmasters, Andy Burnham and Manchester City Council leader Bev Craig were on a bullet train from Kyoto to Tokyo, on their way to pay Fujitsu a visit. 

The central achievement of the trip was secured at the global headquarters of Fujitsu in Tokyo, where a landmark deal was signed, a partnership that Burnham described as a “massive boost” for Greater Manchester. Now, Burnham faces questions about whether the partnership should go forward at all.

Many thanks to The Hallé for sponsoring this week's episode. Manchester is globally renowned for its bands and its football teams, but we also have — in the words of The Times — “one of the world's best orchestras”. The Hallé have been entertaining Mancunian audiences for 165 years and they have a sensational calendar of concerts ready for this year, including a three-day celebration of the music of Steve Reich, a living legend from the world of contemporary classical music, on 1 Feburary. It will feature world-class artists like “daring percussionist” Colin Currie and Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood. Reich himself says the festival “promises to be a magnetically attractive event.” Book your tickets now. 

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For the past year, we've been aware of a bizarre new trend where TikTok creators share videos of women wandering the streets on a night out in Manchester. The video creators claim to be documenting modern life in Manchester, but watch enough of these videos and you’ll start to see an extremely skewed version of the city, where beautiful, drunk women are on every street and there’s a nightclub on every corner. You’ll also notice something else: these women aren’t looking directly at the camera, and don’t appear to be aware that they’re being filmed. So who's behind it? And what's in it for them? That's what Mollie and Jack are discussing in this week's episode.

Many thanks to Pomona Partners for sponsoring this episode. Founded by a longtime Mill member, Pomona Partners is a new Manchester business representing the sharpest expert talent. People who bring events and campaigns to life with their knowledge, charisma and storytelling skills. Maybe you’re looking for someone to fire up your staff, get people talking at your conference or engage your prospects over dinner? Pomona has experts in everything from AI to activism, politics to productivity. To find the right person for your event or campaign, drop the Pomona team a line or check out their website. 

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It's nearly the end of 2023! What a year it's been. In our final episode of the year, Joshi, Mollie and Jack round up their favourite stories and take you behind-the-scenes of reporting some of our big investigations and feelgood features.

Many thanks to the Hallé for sponsoring this week's episode. Manchester is globally renowned for its bands and its football teams, but we also have — in the words of The Times — “one of the world's best orchestras”. The Hallé have been entertaining Mancunian audiences for 165 years and they have a sensational calendar of concerts ready for 2024, including a three-day celebration of the music of Steve Reich, a living legend from the world of contemporary classical music. It will feature world-class artists like “daring percussionist” Colin Currie and Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood. Reich himself says the festival “promises to be a magnetically attractive event.” Book your tickets now. 

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Some say the 'Manchester model' is a cautionary tale about what happens when a city hands over its keys to property investors. Others say it's an example of how the great cities of the UK should regenerate and rebuild their prosperity. Economist Mike Emmerich is closer to the second view and has been a key voice in the city for decades. He used to be an advisor in the Treasury and Downing Street before returning home to Manchester, where he helped to negotiate the first big devolution deal. In an in-depth interview with Joshi, he expresses frustration with "the cheap talk of a certain kind of radical politics that fails to give credit to the city's leaders for the unbelievable hard work that they did to bring this city back from the near dead".

In the episode, we refer to Mike's recent lecture at the University of Manchester and Daniel's long read for The Mill about whether the city's economic growth is benefiting Mancunians more broadly.

Thanks to our sponsors Glow, at the RHS Garden Bridgewater for supporting this episode and our journalism. Book your tickets now.

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In this week's episode, Mollie and Jack talk about Fallowfield, the south Manchester neighbourhood that has become a de facto student village for those studying at the University of Manchester and Manchester Metropolitan University. Local residents, many who have lived in the area for decades, feel like they are being forgotten, and that their local community has been remade to only cater to a transient student population who, ultimately, aren't invested in the area. As it happens, the students agree.

And thank you to our sponsor, Glow at RHS Bridgewater, you can find out more here.

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