The Modern Mann

Olivia hardly knew her father. Her parents divorced when she was two, and she was brought up by her Mum. Sent to boarding school at the age of eight, she was estranged from her Dad for a decade. Struggling financially, and weakened by bulimia, she got a call from out of the blue: it was her father, wanting to rekindle their relationship. But - as her health deteriorated, and the UK went into lockd...

Sun, sea and €1 drinks lure thousands of backpackers to Andrew’s hostel in a typical year. But 2020 was not a typical year. Confronting a doomed Summer season and 45 empty bedrooms, Andrew’s family turned their accommodation over to a diverse group of refugees, drug addicts, career criminals and victims of domestic abuse - converting their hostel, in the Cote d’Azur, in to a homeless shelter durin...

Ho ho ho! In this bumper Christmas special, our three households unite (at an appropriate social distance, of course) for a festive mix of songs, reminiscences and parlour games - and, of course, the legendary XXXmas Foxhole Christmas Quiz. In the Zeitgeist, our one-man matchmaker Ollie Peart explores the unsettling uptick in loneliness wrought by the events of 2020 - and decides to turn the tide...

After a sudden and violent death, the Metropolitan Police will dispatch a member of their ‘Family Liaison' team to the deceased person’s relatives, to ensure their needs are met.  But this wasn’t always the case... As retired officer Tom Simmons explains to Olly in this episode, the role of the ‘family liaison’ was only professionalised in the 90s, after the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry - a process in...

Seeking a secure investment, newlyweds Sara and Ali sank their savings into a dependable, government-backed business - a branch of the Post Office. That decision led them to lose their income, their home - and even their liberty. In this intense interview with Olly, they explain how an unacknowledged software glitch put unbearable strain on their marriage, their family and their livelihoods - and...

What’s the reality of male-to-female transitioning on the NHS? Listener Lexi Perry-Weston says the online resources she found didn’t relate to her experiences at all. In this interview with Olly, she explains how she’s been supported in her trans journey by her family, her workplace and the medical establishment - but also harassed by the public, fetishised by partners and discriminated against by...

The British Army is recruiting gamers, 'phone zombies', and 'selfie addicts' as it broadens its skills for modern military ops. But who are the young men getting these jobs, and what impact does it have on their lives?  Former Grenadier Guardsman Julian Perreira served as a J-TAC (Joint Terminal Attack Controller) in Afghanistan. As he monitored a 60-inch TV screen relaying live feeds from surveil...

Four years before Facebook, long before anyone knew what ‘social networking’ was, Julie Pankhurst had an idea... What if, without trawling through message-boards or working your way through The Phone Book, you could reconnect with all your old school friends, via one simple database? Friends Reunited rapidly became one of Britain’s biggest ever start-ups, attracting 23m users at its peak, and a re...

Lottie Woods was in her early twenties when she was sent, alone, to meet a powerful buyer for a high street fashion brand in Guangzhou, China. They went out for a drink. The next morning, they had a meeting. In this interview with Olly, she recounts what happened in between. Along the way, she reveals the pressures of designing garments for the ‘fast fashion’ sector, the challenges of raising ethi...

Comedians Tom Price and Stuart Goldsmith reunite with Olly Mann to compare parenting notes - this time, in lockdown...Can they turn mundane household tasks into games? What kids’ TV shows are best avoided? And how DO you explain the pandemic to a four year-old? In this laugh-out-loud, typically honest encounter, our trio of Dads share stories and support each other through a uniquely challenging m...

Blaine Harrison, lead singer of Mystery Jets, is also a ‘property guardian’, who lives and works in the capital’s empty commercial premises. For a while the entire floor of an office block on London’s Strand was his home. Each weekend he had a front-row seat as NHS marches, Brexit protests, Extinction Rebellion demos and Tommy Robinson rallies made their way past his window.  In this thoughtful in...

Scammers took £160,000 from Nick’s father in just eighteen months.  He believed, in return, they’d send him gold, or stocks and shares, or even come to his home in Cyprus and begin a relationship with him. Instead, they just kept the cash. In a reflective, revelatory conversation with Olly, Nick recounts how he confronted his Dad, to prevent him burning through his pension - and the moment he real...

Layla Moran MP is fighting to keep her seat. There are trolls, there are threats, there are hostile journalists. And throughout the journey, as she campaigns in the 2019 general election... we are at her side. In this Modern Mann exclusive, host Olly Mann and producer Matt Hill accompany the Liberal Democrats’ rising star as she pounds the streets, battles her opponents, and goes public about her...

Clare Pooley gave up a booze-fuelled job in advertising - complete with a bar in the office and a massive expenses budget - when she became a full-time Mum to her three kids. But as she left the ladette lifestyle behind, she didn’t find herself drinking any less. In fact, she was polishing off ten bottles of wine per week, as she tells Olly in this confessional, compelling conversation... Clare’s...

Slade. Wizzard. Wham! When it comes to Christmas songs, we know what we like, and we like what we know. But is there a magical formula to writing a festive hit? Can a novice, armed with the right chords, instruments and lyrical motifs, unlock the secret and crack the Christmas charts?  Last year, our very own Ollie Peart attempted to give it a go. This is his story. Including footage never previou...

The legendary Foxhole XXXMas Quiz is the high-voltage highlight of our 2019 festive special, as Olly, Alix and Ollie gather round the Yuletide fire with special guest JC Stewart, some VR headsets and a crate of beer.  Alix has outdone herself this year, with cheeky games involving gin and tonic lubricant, a haunted Fleshlight, and a harrowing round of ‘Squirtual Reality’. Meanwhile, in the Zeitgei...

Can martial arts save your life? Self defence instructor Kriss Pyke says they can - not just because the moves themselves offer protection in a skirmish, but because the physical confidence you gain deters opponents in the first place. Kriss’ views and teaching style are shaped by his own experiences at the sharp end of a vicious street attack, as he recounts to Olly in this month’s middle feature...

Adrenalin, stress and composure is in the job description for a trauma surgeon. But how do doctors cope with routinely operating on patients with devastating injuries? Does it ever get easy to deliver difficult news? In this intimate conversation, Olly meets Dr. Allan Philp, chief trauma surgeon of Allegheny Health Network, Pennsylvania, and Mr Shehan Hettiaratchy, trauma lead surgeon for Imperial...

Sebastian Schub was 19 when he first experienced erectile dysfunction. But he wasn’t a big drinker. There was no clear medical cause, such as heart disease. However - like most men his age - he was an avid user of porn tube sites. Googling his symptoms, he discovered the Reddit ‘no-fap’ community, and diagnosed himself with PIED (‘porn-induced erectile dysfunction’). Spurning masturbation, he atte...

With zero experience of beer-making, Tommy Barnes quit his safe, corporate London job to start his own beer business. As if that weren’t precarious enough, he located it in the Loire Valley - the heart of French ‘wine country’.  In this entertaining conversation with Olly, Tommy recounts how he followed his business dreams, balanced the books and perfected his beer recipe - even in the face of en...

Private Investigator Bob Nygaard specialises in bringing psychics to justice. Fortune-tellers, who offer palm-reading for as little as ten dollars, are a common sight in New York City. But when they swindle their clients out of six-figure sums, it’s ex-NYPD officer Bob who’s on their case. In this sensational interview with Olly, Bob reveals how the criminals he pursues prey on vulnerable victims,...

Jen Bricker was abandoned at birth by her biological parents. Due to a genetic defect, she had been born without legs. Her adoptive family showered her with love and self-belief. Inspired by her idol, Olympic gold-medalist Dominique Moceanu, she pursued gymnastics. She competed against able-bodied entrants at the Junior Olympics. She won a state championship. But an astonishing family secret was a...

Ben used to be a secondary school teacher. He isn’t anymore. In a brutally honest feature interview, he tells Olly his compelling story. Trigger warnings: see end of show notes Meanwhile, in this month's Zeitgeist, Ollie Peart takes Olly - and Milo, his faithful Jack Russell/Chihuahua - for a walk round Regent’s Park, to test out the trend for dog subscription boxes Tails and Buster, and training...

Tom Price and Stuart Goldsmith join Olly Mann once again to discuss the dilemmas faced by the modern Dad. How can you control a toddler who has no concept of time? Why aren’t Dads as good as Mums at making friends? When does your role as educator impinge on their imaginations? In this fifth instalment of our ‘How To Be A Dad’ series, our trio - whose sons are now three years old - swap stories abo...

It’s Christmasssss!... well, nearly: so time is running out for our charity single, ‘The Sounds of Christmas’, to crack the UK festive Top 40. In this week’s Zeitgeist, Ollie Peart reveals the surprise celebrity friends who’ve added their weight to the campaign, whilst a generous Mann-fan blows our fundraising target out of the water. Meanwhile, Olly heads to St Andrew’s Church, Islington, to meet...