The Modern Mann

CHRISTMAS Spectacular 2025!!!

What are the perfect ingredients for a stress-free Christmas? How do you render the Arctic in song? And what does it sound like when we drink from each other’s teats?  … Just three of the hot topics being debated in our annual festive knees-up! Joining Olly Mann, Alix Fox and Ollie Peart this year, we welcome back family mediator Nick Coffer [https://www.modernmann.co.uk/new/divorce] - who confronts the strains of a post-divorce Christmas with compassionate advice - and we enjoy extraordinary live music from cellist and poet Sarah Smout [https://www.sarahsmoutmusic.co.uk/].  Plus, fresh updates from some of our favourite guests of 2026: Rebecca Dowdeswell [https://www.modernmann.co.uk/new/rebecca], the woman who took on L’Oreal; Armin Samii [https://www.modernmann.co.uk/new/ubercheats], who created distance-monitoring app UberCheats; and wildland firefighter Nathan Bell [https://www.modernmann.co.uk/new/wildfires].    Until our next episode on January 10th, have a fantastic Christmas, a very Happy New Year, and - if you can afford to - remember to support our independent podcast [https://modernmann.co.uk/beer] to fund another great year of the show. x Olly, Alix, Ollie and Producer Matt P.S. Alix is running the London Marathon for Positive East. Support her here [https://2026tcslondonmarathon.enthuse.com/pf/alix-fox].  Presenter: Olly Mann. Contributors: Ollie Peart, Alix Fox, Nick Coffer, Sarah Smout, Nathan Bell, Rebecca Dowdeswell, Armin Samii. Producer: Matt Hill. Theme Music: 'Skies Over Cairo' by Django Django. Artwork: Podcast Discovery. Copyright: Olly Mann / Rethink Audio 2025. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Playback: Don't Google Me

Guy Babcock is not paedophile. He is not a sociopath, or a racist, or a ‘deadbeat’. He has not served time in prison. And yet, if you search his name online [https://www.bing.com/images/search?first=1&form=HDRSC2&q=guy%20babcock&tsc=ImageBasicHover], you get a very different impression: hundreds of posts, smearing his reputation, all over the internet. In this interview with Olly, Guy explains why - despite a court ruling [https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/beyond-defamation-ontario-court-6683304/] against the person ruining his reputation - these posts live on. He recalls the terrifying day he realised his name was being dragged through the mud, and explains how he came to understand that a vengeful ex-employee was behind the damaging slurs… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Did I Kill The British Sitcom?

Jimmy Donny Cosgrove co-wrote one of the decade’s biggest comedy flops: BBC 1 sitcom ‘Warren’, starring Martin Clunes. Lambasted on social media and derided by critics, the Daily Telegraph claimed it was ‘the final nail in the coffin for British sitcom’.   Jimmy’s agent dumped him. He received death threats. And he hasn’t had a show on TV since. In this frank and funny conversation with Olly, Jimmy recounts how he blagged his way on to a comedy course at University; how his heart sank when his show was scheduled in a double-bill with the long-anticipated return of Alan Partridge; and explains why his experiences of the TV sausage-factory, with its endless rewrites and creative compromises, left him bruised and disillusioned… Nowadays, Jimmy hosts a live game show experience. Find out more at showtimelondon.co.uk [http://showtimelondon.co.uk]. _____________ Meanwhile, in the Zeitgeist, Ollie Peart, freshly delighted to furnish the world with a Captain Spronk playlist, learns the latest trends in First Aid.  What’s the current advice for performing CPR?  How do you apply for a free defibrillator? And how many heart attacks per year happen outside a hospital environment? Equipped with a ‘mini-Ann’ and the Revivr app from the British Heart Foundation, Ollie has the answers… _____________ Elsewhere, down the Foxhole, Alix Fox assists a listener who wants to know how to help his other half as she prepares for the menopause. Explaining how the menopause’s three stages (perimenopause, menopause, and post-menopause) comprise a profound physical and emotional transition, Alix reveals the hormonal shifts that can cause brain fog, anxiety, mood swings, sleep disruption, and changes in libido.  Along the way, Alix speaks to clinical sexologist Dr Angela Wright, and recommends the books Burning Up, Frozen Out by Joe Warner and Rob Kemp; The Little Book of HRT by Dr Ellie Cannon and Menowars by Fiona Clark. _____________ Finally, our record of the month is ‘Dead and Gone’,  the new single from Leigh-Anne’s debut album, Because My Ego Told Me To. _____________ Olly, Alix, Ollie and special musical guests will return with our annual, chaotic Christmas special on 10th December.  In the meantime, you can help support the show into 2026 by donating beer money [https://www.modernmann.co.uk/beer] and/or leaving us a review [https://www.modernmann.co.uk/follow]. Thanks! Presenter: Olly Mann. Contributors: Jimmy Donny Cosgrove, Alix Fox, Ollie Peart, Leigh-Anne. Producer: Matt Hill. Theme Music: ‘Skies Over Cairo’ by Django Django. Artwork: Podcast Discovery. Copyright: Olly Mann / Rethink Audio 2025 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

Playback: The Unlucky Ones

To celebrate our tenth anniversary, we're replaying Producer Matt's favourite interview from our extensive back catalogue. Jo and Steve Peck suffered not one, not two, but recurrent miscarriages over the course of four years, before seeking private treatment. In this searingly honest, compelling interview with Olly, they reveal the toll this took on their marriage, their work and their mental health - as they watched their friends begin families - gradually realising it may never happen for them. If you’ve been affected by miscarriage, ectopic pregnancy or molar pregnancy, the Miscarriage Association offers support and a pregnancy loss helpline: miscarriageassociation.org.uk [http://miscarriageassociation.org.uk/] This episode first aired in July 2018. Now remastered and with an update from Steve and Jo in 2025, we're replaying this interview as part of our tenth birthday celebrations. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]

The Confession That Went Viral - Matthew Cordle

Drink-driving one night, Matthew Cordle caused a head-on collision that killed 61-year-old Vincent Canzani.  His confession on YouTube - ‘I Killed A Man [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MmpK_EshSL4]’ - became one of the most controversial viral videos of its era, amassing millions of views and sparking debate about accountability, remorse, and the nature of public confession. Twelve years later, Cordle tells Olly his story, in unflinching detail that goes far beyond the sensational three-minute video. From his descent into alcoholism from the age of eleven, to his complex relationship with the attention his actions brought him, and the journey of accountability he undertook during his six-year prison sentence, this is a tale of remorse, notoriety, and what it means to take responsibility. Matthew works with the charities Save Your Victim [https://www.facebook.com/saveyourvictim/] and Because I Said I Would [https://becauseisaidiwould.org/].  --------------------- Meanwhile, in the Zeitgeist, Ollie Peart is on-hand to organise a tenth birthday party for our podcast 🥳 With a sprinkling of superb magic from The Magician’s Table [https://www.magicianstablelive.com/], he suggests a potent mix of immersive theatre, bespoke cocktails from Holy Water [https://www.drinksbyholywater.com/], and, of course, VR. There is also a celebratory song [https://soundcloud.com/ollie-peart/modern-mainn] from his musical alter-ego Captain Spronk, because why wouldn’t there be?  --------------------- Elsewhere, down the Foxhole, Alix Fox has been rummaging for antiques at her local car boot sale, and looking into the UK government’s new controls on digital pornography. Has the implementation of age verification helped prevent minors from accessing online porn? Are the likes of Quittr effective at assisting users to ‘quit porn forever’? And, if they are, is that healthy? Alix, as always, has a view… Love the Foxhole? Then you may enjoy How To Get Wet When You’re Dry [https://podfollow.com/wetwhendrypod] - a new show about sex and sobriety, produced by Ollie Peart.   --------------------- Finally, our record of the month comes from Art School Girlfriend, and her track L.Y.A.T.T. (Love You All The Time) ❤️ --------------------- A 10TH BIRTHDAY NOTE FROM OLLY Mann-Fans, thanks so much for listening to and supporting our podcast! It is because of you that we continue making the show. If you can afford to, please please send us beer money [https://modernmann.co.uk/beer] - every penny helps fund our journalism.  If you can’t spare any cash, then why not leave us a review on Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-modern-mann/id1050102620] or Spotify [https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-modern-mann/id1050102620]. Or just tell your friends. That’s free.  Here’s to the next ten years!  … and we’ll see you with something new on 10th November. x   Presenter: Olly Mann. Contributors: Matthew Cordle, Alix Fox, Ollie Peart, Art School Girlfriend, Captain Spronk. Producer: Matt Hill. Theme Music: ‘Skies Over Cairo’ by Django Django. Artwork: Podcast Discovery. Copyright: Olly Mann / Rethink Audio 2025 (01:34) Your Letters (06:33) The Zeitgeist: How To Have A Very Modern Party (29:23) Interview: Matthew Cordle (75:51) The Foxhole: Porn Ban Aftermath Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices [https://megaphone.fm/adchoices]