Switch Off with Konnie Huq

Charlie Brooker

TV writer, producer, presenter and critic Charlie Brooker takes a seven-day break from social media and tells Konnie Huq – who also happens to be his wife – about the experience. Charlie (@charltonbrooker) was one of the first big names from the UK to be active on Twitter, back in the heady days of Stephen Fry live tweeting from a lift. In this episode, recorded at Charlie and Konnie’s West London home, he opens up about why he’s withdrawn from posting more recently, why he’s such a prolific lurker, and his extreme ideas for a social network of the future. Switch Off is produced by Tom Green and mixed by John Scott for Ear to Ear.

Adam Kay

Bestselling author Adam Kay goes cold turkey on social media for a week. Adam, who is also an accomplished comedian, screenwriter and qualified doctor, is known for his outspoken views on Twitter. Konnie Huq lays down the law to Adam – that he is to avoid all social media for a week – before meeting him to grill him on the experience. The three people Adam recommends following on Twitter are: Moose Allain (@MooseAllain); Helena Wilkinson (@BBCHelenaLee); James Farrell (@jamesgfarrell) Switch Off is produced by Tom Green and mixed by John Scott for Ear to Ear.

Deborah Frances-White

Guilty Feminist podcast host Deborah Frances-White tries to wean herself off social media for seven days. Speaking to Konnie Huq, she talks about why it’s not as easy as it sounds. In the discussion, she puts forward the argument that her generation use social media in the same way as people in the 1920s approached “motoring” – as a pastime in itself rather than a means to an end; and her hope that the next generation have found a more meaningful way to use it. Switch Off is produced by Tom Green and mixed by John Scott for Ear to Ear.

Scroobius Pip

Rapper, actor, and podcaster Scroobius Pip attempts to take a week off social media in the name of Switch Off. Talking to Konnie Huq, he talks through his initial withdrawal symptoms, why quitting social media meant he couldn’t get his beard trimmed, and the social media platform he’d launch: “Instagram Nights”. The people that Pip recommends during the podcast are: Theo Von (@thispastweekend_) Chris D’Elia (@chrisdelia) Mr London (@mrlondon_ncb) Switch Off is produced by Tom Green and mixed by John Scott for Ear to Ear.

Shappi Khorsandi

Comic and self-confessed Twitter addict Shappi Khorsandi attempts to go cold turkey on social media for a week. Speaking to Konnie Huq, she talks us through the experience, the ways it changed her perspective on the world and what she did instead. She also talks about getting embroiled in a Twitterstorm, why she doesn't get booked for Have I Got News For You any more and the time that her seven year old asked for “mummy to come off her phone for a day” for Christmas. Switch Off is produced by Tom Green and mixed by John Scott for Ear to Ear.