

Better Known
Ivan Wise
Each week, a guest makes a series of recommendations of things which they think should be better known. Our recommendations include interesting people, places, objects, stories, experiences and ideas which our guest feels haven't had the exposure that they deserve.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jun 6, 2021 • 30min
Meg Rosoff
Novelist Meg Rosoff discusses with Ivan six things which she thinks should be better known.
Meg Rosoff was born in Boston, educated at Harvard and St Martin’s College of Art, and has lived in London since 1989. Her first novel, How I Live Now, sold more than a million copies worldwide and was made into a feature film starring Saoirse Ronan. She has won or been shortlisted for 24 international book prizes, including the Orange Prize, the Whitbread and the National Book Award in America, and is a member of the Royal Society of Literature and an honorary Fellow of Homerton College, Cambridge University. She was awarded the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award in 2016. Her most recent novel is The Great Godden. Meg lives in London with her husband, the artist Paul Hamlyn.
Rembrandt’s House https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rembrandt_House_Museum
Woody Allen’s The Moose https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmnLRVWgnXU
Lurchers https://www.pets4homes.co.uk/pet-advice/is-a-lurcher-a-good-choice-of-pet.html
Galle to Kandy train https://thefamilyfreestylers.com/kandy-to-galle-train-sri-lanka/
Blue Red and Grey by The Who https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GCycKHeNnBQ
A High Wind in Jamaica by Richard Hughes https://www.npr.org/2009/07/07/103930835/a-delightfully-evil-tale-of-pirates-and-children
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May 30, 2021 • 30min
Rosie Wilby
Comedian Rosie Wilby discusses with Ivan six things which she thinks should be better known.
Rosie Wilby is an award-winning comedian who has appeared on BBC Radio 4 programmes including Woman's Hour and Four Thought. Her first book Is Monogamy Dead? was longlisted for the Polari First Book Prize 2018 and followed a trilogy of solo shows investigating the psychology of love and relationships. Rosie’s new book The Breakup Monologues (Bloomsbury) is based on her podcast of the same name, which was nominated for a British Podcast Award 2020.
You can order The Breakup Monologues book at https://linktr.ee/breakupmonologues and listen to the podcast at www.podfollow.com/breakupmonologues
The Czars https://www.westword.com/music/its-not-too-late-to-discover-the-czars-one-of-denvers-greatest-bands-6045038
The films of Alex Ross Perry https://harvardfilmarchive.org/programs/alex-ross-perry
A Girl Called Eddy https://www.popmatters.com/girl-called-eddy-been-around-2644860594.html
Home Time https://www.comedy.co.uk/tv/home_time/
Relationship anarchy https://www.thecut.com/2018/10/what-does-relationship-anarchy-mean.html
Katie Carr https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katy_Carr
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May 23, 2021 • 30min
Rosa Rankin-Gee
Novelist Rosa Rankin-Gee discusses six things which she thinks should be better known.
Rosa Rankin-Gee is the author of two novels: The Last Kings of Sark, which won Shakespeare & Company’s Paris Literary Prize, and Dreamland, set in a near-future Margate, which has just come out with Scribner. She once tried to stop Brexit with 600 croissants.
Insulated Mugs https://cheeki.com/blogs/news/8-reasons-to-buy-an-insulated-coffee-mug
The first signs of anaphylaxis https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/anaphylaxis/
Public Lending Right https://www.plr.uk.com/
The long history of Councils relocating families outside of London https://blog.shelter.org.uk/2017/01/exporting-homeless-families-is-it-legal-and-is-it-right/
Why rollerblading disappeared for 20 years https://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/what-the-heck-happened-rollerblading.htm
Electric blankets https://utterlyhome.com/benefits-of-using-an-electric-blanket/
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May 16, 2021 • 30min
Alexandra Shulman
Former Vogue editor Alexandra Shulman discusses with Ivan six things which she thinks should be better known.
Alexandra Shulman was editor in chief of British Vogue, the longest serving editor in the history of the magazine. Her new book is Clothes and other things that matter. https://www.waterstones.com/book/clothes-and-other-things-that-matter/alexandra-shulman/9781788401999
Passion Flower capsules or tincture https://www.healthline.com/health/anxiety/calming-effects-of-passionflower
Delayed Gratification https://www.slow-journalism.com/
The London Library https://www.londonlibrary.co.uk/
Microwaveable rice https://steamykitchen.com/22048-how-to-cook-rice-microwave.html
Kiev https://www.ryanair.com/try-somewhere-new/gb/en/travel-guides/kiev-hidden-gems/
Where Stands a Winged Sentry by Margaret Kennedy https://www.handheldpress.co.uk/shop/womens-lives/margaret-kennedy-where-stands-a-winged-sentry/
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May 9, 2021 • 30min
David Runciman
David Runciman discusses with Ivan six things which he thinks should be better known. This episode was recorded the day before the local elections.
Professor David Runciman was Head of the University of Cambridge's Department of Politics and International Studies (POLIS) from 2014 to 2018. His research interests are in twentieth century political thought, particularly ideas of democracy and crisis, and the role of technology in contemporary politics. David's new book is How Democracy Ends, published by Profile. David also writes regularly about politics for the London Review of Books. He presents the Talking Politics podcast.
The World As I Found It by Bruce Duffy https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B005UF5NJI/
Darwin Among the Machines http://nzetc.victoria.ac.nz/tm/scholarly/tei-ButFir-t1-g1-t1-g1-t4-body.html
New Yorker Fiction podcast https://www.newyorker.com/podcast/fiction
Joni Mitchell singing Coyote in the Last Waltz https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7MbmXklj3Q
Andy Bush's Indie Disco https://planetradio.co.uk/absolute-radio/shows/andy-bush-s-indie-disco/
Democracy https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v42/n07/david-runciman/too-early-or-too-late
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May 5, 2021 • 27min
One in a Thousand
To celebrate 1000 Better Known choices, Ivan invites past guests to discuss their One in a Thousand, the choice which above all deserves to be better known.
People: Caroline Eden discusses Sanmao
Places: Eleanor Fitzsimons discusses the Sheep’s Head Peninsula and Barbara Scully discusses Southern Spain
Objects: Lindsay Johns discusses the books of Alex LaGuma
Stories: Christopher Fowler discusses
Experiences: Alexis Sotiropoulos discusses the National Fruit Museum
Ideas: Tarik O’Regan discusses originals of cover versions
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May 2, 2021 • 28min
Tracey Follows
Tracey Follows discusses with Ivan six things which she thinks should be better known.
Tracey Follows is a futurist and author of The Future of You: Can Your Identity Survive 21st-Century Technology? She is the CEO of Futuremade, a futures consultancy advising global brands and specialising in the application of foresight to boost business.
Charles Wareing Bardsley's Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1901) https://www.gutenberg.org/files/59959/59959-h/59959-h.htm
The Otaku https://www.we-heart.com/2020/05/27/why-otaku-culture-is-thriving-in-the-uk/
Seasteading https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/jun/24/seasteading-a-vanity-project-for-the-rich-or-the-future-of-humanity
Digital Afterlife https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/07/what-a-digital-afterlife-would-be-like/491105/
Advantageous https://www.wired.com/2015/06/sci-fi-film-advantageous/
Audrey Tang https://china.usc.edu/audrey-tang-taiwans-digital-minister-harnessing-technology-social-good
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Apr 25, 2021 • 29min
Felicity Hayes-McCoy
Felicity Hayes-McCoy discusses with Ivan six things which she thinks should be better known.
Felicity Hayes-McCoy, bestselling author of The Library at the Edge of The World, was born in Dublin, Ireland. She studied literature at UCD before training as an actress in London. Her work as a writer ranges from TV, radio drama and documentary, to screenplays, memoir, journalism and children's books. Her "Finfarran" novels, set in Ireland and featuring local librarian Hanna Casey, are widely read internationally, and have been translated into seven languages. She and her husband, opera director Wilf Judd, live in Bermondsey, London, and on Ireland's west coast. She is on Twitter @fhayesmccoy and on Facebook as Felicity Hayes-McCoy Author
Niche literary genres https://www.theguardian.com/books/booksblog/2012/nov/19/literary-genres-robert-mccrum
Soda bread https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/irishsodabread_67445
Bratislava Castle https://www.slovakia.com/castles/bratislava-castle/
Judy Garland's performance of Gershwin's Bidin' My Time in the film Girl Crazy https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQdIwjbW6es
Irish vernacular furniture https://www.victormeeauctions.ie/irish-country-furniture-vernacular-furinture/
Paddington Bear https://www.thecurb.com.au/paddington-2-review-if-youre-kind-and-polite-the-world-will-be-right/
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Apr 18, 2021 • 30min
Dawood Gustave
Dawood Gustave discusses with Ivan six things which he thinks should be better known.
Dawood Gustave is the founder of Reluctantly Brave and a global leader in bringing gamechanging imaginative thinking into the heart of businesses. He grew up on a council estate in Peckham in south London. Aged sixteen, he left school and home, spending the next 16 years finding a range of ways to survive and make a living. At 31, a series of disturbing personal events sparked a desire to change the course of his life. He enrolled in an adult education course and went on to study history at Oxford. He has been included on The Independent’s Happy List of 100 people who make Britain a happier place and on The Evening Standard’s list of the most influential people in London.
Ibn Khaldun’s influence on Machiavelli https://thearabweekly.com/rediscovering-ibn-khaldun-pioneering-arab-medieval-mind
Benedict Anderson’s Imagined Communities https://ecotalker.wordpress.com/2019/10/05/a-review-of-imagined-communities-by-benedict-anderson/
Le Grand Voyage https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2005/oct/14/3
Cymande https://thevinylfactory.com/features/cymande-cult-funk-debut-golden-age-hip-hop/
Erno Goldfinger https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/features/who-was-ern-goldfinger
King Tubby https://www.factmag.com/2015/05/19/king-tubby-beginners-guide-dub-reggae/
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Apr 11, 2021 • 29min
Armand D'Angour
Armand D’Angour discusses with Ivan six things which he thinks should be better known.
Armand D’Angour is a Professor of Classics at the University of Oxford, and Fellow and Tutor at Jesus College, Oxford. He is the author of numerous articles and chapters on the literature and culture of ancient Greece, and (as a former professional cellist) has conducted innovative research into reconstructing ancient Greek music. His books include The Greeks and the New (Cambridge: CUP, 2011) and Socrates in Love: The Making of a Philosopher (Bloomsbury 2019).
Aspasia of Miletus https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b040hjy4
Schubert Arpeggione Sonata with cellist Miklos Perenyi and pianist Andras Schiff https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NNcQuY1isEI
Pienza in the Val d'Orcia https://www.marthasitaly.com/articles/16/pienza-tuscany
Odi et Amo by Catullus https://www.rattle.com/odi-et-amo-hate-and-love-and-the-poets-soup-by-art-beck/
Projection https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychological_projection
Halva https://www.sbs.com.au/food/article/2019/08/15/here-are-all-amazing-ways-you-can-enjoy-halva
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