Explore every episode of the podcast North v South

Hello. Welcome to our first episode of 2023! We're the Didi and Gogo of podcasting. So while we wait for Godot come and rummage with us through the dustbin of design and pop culture detritus.

Rob has written to his MP and Ministers about AI art and the rights of illustrators. Jon remains wracked with self doubt and incertitude. Yes, it's another cheery episode of the podcast that is and isn't about design!

This week Rob's been preparing for his first ever exhibition while droning on about his new toy. Jon's been avoiding any work by trimming hedges in the snow. Catch up with the latest brouhaha over Rob's controversial Cornish pasty made by Swiss bakers.

Episode thirteen, the unluckiest podcast yet from North V South, explores good fortune in careers. This week we look at a sinister machine that turns itself off, Jon goes a bit cuckoo and tries to explain post digital, while Rob coos at mating pigeons and miniature houses. We discuss whether you make your own luck by just working hard or if the hands of the gods are upon us like that film with the mechanical owl in it. We then present a synchronised pie review for the first time.

An episode in which we talk about design quite a lot for a podcast that is and isn’t about design. We chat about Dyson going viral, revisit Japan’s Olympics logo and we look at some pictures that could be straight off the set of Blade Runner 2. But they’re not. Jon gets all hot under the collar about fake marketing campaigns and flimsy pseudo lifestyle businesses. Perhaps he picked up a virus from the hand dryer? Our tenacious duo then tackle and try to solve the free pitch dilemma. Did they do it? Did they heck. Pies are then partaken of and farewells made.

This week’s episode contains reviews of two mediocre pies and a startling revelation about Michael Bentine. Our rambling discourse takes a stroll through Victorian space exploration, vastly overpaid executives and the origins of the word Bovril. We talk about music in office culture and the various stereotypes one might meet when working in a studio. Then Jon drops the Potty bomb. Listen on, reader-listeners. With your eye-ears.

This week our intrepid heroes talk about getting paid. The chaps talk about The Guardian’s experimental design layouts, Erik Spiekermann’s print shop, British Steel logo redux, a grundie exhibition at the V&A and the new, very silly, Kindle.

This week in the podcast that might or might not be very good, we don't sound like we're having a chat in a dustbin. Which might or might not be a good thing. We talk about the ephemeral nature of the internet of things, one pound coins, HP's new old logo, personal projects and, of course, pies.

Today's episode is a week late due to eggs and weddings. We talk about the ageing Intercity 125 and its role in the British sandwich revolution(role, roll, geddit? Aah never mind). We then ruminate over cheap design services and why designers get their knickers in such a twist over them. That discussion leads us neatly on to the book of the month, Design is a Job by Mike Monteiro, which basically tell us to be professional, pull our trousers up and stop blaming the client. We then review one authentic pie and a quiche that is masquerading as a pie. The hunt for a vegetable-based pie continues…

Today's episode is brought to you by pickle-powered pies. We talk about news that revolves around artificial intelligence, 360° videos and Bagpuss. But possibly not all at the same time. Our intrepid duo then talk about design convergence, and whether that's a good thing. Answer: It probably isn't. Both Rob(democratically)and Jon(autocratically) ended up with pickle-infused pies. And we can honestly say that this is not a good thing either.

In this episode we discuss design awards from the unique perspective of never having won any design awards. Although Jon once got a certificate from a Lego building competition in 1978. The chaps discuss the pros and cons of design awards. Listen to find out whether con is the pejorative. Rob's pie this week has its own helipad. Jon has two pies. They fail to mention the fact that it's National Pie Week, mainly because there's no such thing as National Pie Week.

In this episode of everyone’s favourite podcast with pies and regional accents, we are furkling around in binary middens. Rob talks about a daily newspaper launch in the UK. Jon reveals his ignorance of world news. Jon wonders about what will happen to our digital stuff. He discusses whether anything we create online has any value and whether archaeologists in the future will think people from our time are vacuous consumers of emptiness. Rob eats a pie.

A new episode of the only podcast guaranteed free of electrical interference thanks to factory-grade unicorn dust. We talk about the brouhaha around a couple of recent rebrands. We sad face Facebook's new response icons. We chat about our book of the month, The City and the City by China Mieville. Rob navigates the conversation around why he didn't do a drawing for the show, while Jon says the words "erm" and "brouhaha" an alarming number of times. Pies are then eaten and judged as they should be.

Too old to code. Hands up who thinks this should be on a t-shirt? Hands down who's too old to wear t-shirts? No one left? Oh well; on with the show…

We delve into the important things in life: Pies, as ever, gravitational waves (whatever they are) and post-it notes. In this episode Rob tries to teach Jon about new scientific discoveries and almost succeeds. Jon blethers on about how he deals with procrastination. The chaps then masticate as quietly as they can and compare pies.

We've improved the sound quality and added a jingle. What larks. Next time we might add a website. In this episode Rob questions Jon about his dubious qualifications as a designer and how he got to what he does today. Jon then drivels on inexorably until Rob breaks off the interview to eat a ham hock and pea pie, while Jon continues his trawl through the lower echelons of pies.

The inaugural episode of our new podcast about but not about design. We have no idea how or what we are doing. There's no jingle yet. Join the confusion! In this episode Rob tells Jon how he got into design and how he kicked off his illustration career. Jon then makes Rob jealous by talking about his new iPad Pro and Apple Pencil. Then he eats a pork pie and drinks some beer just to rub it in.

Is it ever a good idea to tunnel under avolcano? In a world where this sounds like a good idea to many of our leaders, we discuss following narrative and finding truth. Rob's been watching pottery porn. Jon's been up a volcano taking photos of pin badges. Why, oh why do we need Client Day? Why do we need another version of The Ipcress File? Why do we need free microfibre cloths with everything? Why do we eat so many pies? Answers inside. Possibly.

Yes, it's that thing that nobody wanted in the first place. No, not NFTs. Not the Metaverse. Yes, It's us! NORTH V SOUTH IS BACK! And this time it's not only DISRUPTIVE and TRANSFORMATIVE. It literally MAKES NO SENSE!

If you can't polish a turd then can you polish a saveloy? Here at North V South we give it a bloody good attempt. This week in the podcast that is, but isn't, recorded very often we discuss (among other things): Black Library novels; applying immediacy filters and other unwanted tips; a new boardgame magazine Senet ; War of the Worlds; The creator of Minifigs; Darth Maul and Fighting Fantasy, Ellie Sampson paper art, notable bookcover designs of 2019, and, to cap it off, pies. Although pies with lids are just stews with hats on.

Episode 98 is piping hot and cooling on the window sill. We take a peek under the crisp pastry lid of the zeitgeist and find cyber trucks, Chris Ware comics, lovely stationery shops, board games a go-go, cartoon nihilism, and the inner gubbins of pies. With just under a month until Christmas and a Tory junta, join North V South in a societal meltdown as we dance naked through the streets, waving our willies at our clients as we go.

North v South – less regular than a bran-intolerate heroin addict. We ask the questions that the Conservative and Labour parties are too afraid to ask: How are your biorhythms this morning? Will there be baby woodpeckers in Rob's garden this winter? What is a brand guru and is it strictly legal? And, finally, what kind of casserole would Darth Vader eat?

Get ready to shed 96 tears. We're back. We talk Wim Crouwel, Somerset House, Nokia, rival podcasts, paper aeroplanes, Lego adverts, ketchup and the imminent end of civilisation.

You want eclectic. We deliver. Our Deeply Unintelligent™ AI units have digested the internet and spend an hour talking about a whole load of utter nonsense: Camping, depression, 3D resin printers, Blender, Bocage, Lemmie, Mindhunter, Creative constipation, Inktober, District 9, Alan Moore, Vanta black cars, Boots, John Harris, Dieter Rams, London Design Festival. And pies.

A ruined building stands alone, wreathed in vines, wrapped in mystery. Its cracked portico reveals a dark and brooding entrance, occasionally brightened by a pulsing red dot of light. Inside lurks Episode 94 of the podcast that is, and isn't, about design. Lost in time. Forgotten by civilisation. Waiting. Just for you… In this episode we look at a new Akira, online criticism, linocuts, LEGO Space, single line typefaces, meander maps and Apollo XI in realtime.

I'm sure that there have been more Prime Ministers this year than North v South episodes and it's all Rob's fault. But here we are again; talking about the state of Twitter and what the alternatives are, as well as the usual design news and things on our desks.

Hello. It's us again. We continue to creep towards a hundred much like Geoff Boycott in his pomp. This week we talk about, in no particular order: model robots, LEGO Space, Worzel Gummidge, notebooks, touch typing, Mac Pro, sweet wrappers, knots, the evils of social media, and, biensûr, pies.

Roll up, roll up. Listen to a dog drinking beer. From Belgium. The beer, that is. The dog's from England, mate. In other news: Panic's Playdate, BT's new look, Manga at the British something or other, Microsoft browsers, Shanghai bookshops, and, naturellement, pies.

This week's podcast focuses on things we make that have no real worth. Many would say that covers this podcast and they're probably right. We look at recent news items that follow this trend; such as re-edits of 42-year-old children's films, speculative architectural visualisations, and self-digitising notebooks. "Why, why, why, why, why?", asks one of our hosts. But without making things that seemingly have no worth, would we end up with beauties like x6udpngx (https://x6ud.github.io/#/)?

Welcome to the first episode in a new series of North V South: the podcast that is, and isn't, about design. We're talking taking breaks, blue plaques, iMacs, Kellog's, Capcom and Hellboy, among many other bits and bobs of design-related ephemera. Give us a whirl. You never know, you might like it. Also, please leave a review for us in iTunes. We'll love you for ever if you do.

In the final episode of season 3, Jon kicks proceedings off with a potentially career-ending rant. The subsequent conversation with Rob takes an unexpected turn courtesy of Jodorowsky's Dune, a Breville Sandwich Maker, wordless novels, giant spiders, martinis and, of course, pies. News is fleeting.

In this week's podcast that's got more Fanny than Craddock, Jon's been playing with his tentacles, while Rob's been gawping at old chaps. We take a gander at the new ultra-post-rationalised Netflix ident, a risable Walkers crisp packet redesign, a Linea Sketch review, and Phillip Sulke's superb tanker photography. Something's in the freezer and it might be alive. Don't worry, it's just Rob's pie.

In the podcast that no one talks about, we talk moles. Not the unpronounceable notebooks. Not the gloopy green stuff you double dip into (don't deny it). That's right, those little spelunking furry dudes. We also talk Comics / Tabletop Games / Slack Attacks / Elastic Brand Podcast / Dieter Rams / Pies and more…

It's Hallowe'en and the portal has opened between the now and the never never. But enough about Rob's bowel movements… This week in the podcast that is and isn't about human sacrifice, our Agents of Filth are rifling through Uncle Ted's VHS collection. Not that one. Rob and Jon talk about their favourite moments in horror films. News includes the End of the World, Slasher Art, A Sleep Tracker for Vampires and Boris Johnson's Underpants. Quelle Horreur! Pies are fresh from Sweeny Todd's… Wait, is that a fingernail. Yum. Wait a minute what's that? It can't be, it can't be. I-i-i-it's a VEGETABLE. Arrrrghhhhh…

This week's episode brings you forgettable fonts, silly phones, easter eggs, Inktober, and an adieu to Carlos Esquerra.

You know that dusty old shop that's always closed? You know the one, slumped between CoffeeKings and Harvey's Estate Agents on the high street. That's where episode 84 is being recorded right now. We sent you a text on your Punkt phone. Didn't you get it? Following on from Creative Review's recent flurry of articles on the matter, Rob and Jon ask if design can save retail? Can design save anything at all? They do their best to obfuscate the entire debate. News includes Apple (briefly, you'll be relieved to hear), a new map of Antarctica, Fontsmith's new catalogue, kitbashed spaceships, octogenarian fashion models, Incompuito buildings and a new New Adventures Conference. Pies are consumed like the greedy capitalist pigs we are.

In which we bid farewell to a truly great illustrator Kim Jung Gi. We talk about how much daily graft do we put into our creative lives and are we satisfied by the output? Other news includes LEGO and D&D, Lucian Freud at the National, Bonnier Books logo, GDPR nightmare, Andy Budd's world of wisdom, followed by the ying and yang of pies.

This week our very special guest is Dan Berry: host of the wonderful podcast Make It Then Tell Everybody. Dan is also a comic artist, teacher, pen whittler, desk collector, and log cabin dweller.

We're back again, with a hiatus haiku. You are most welcome. The podcast that is, and isn't, but was, on holiday is back. Has the hot summer exposed any hidden secrets in your back garden? We catch up with news and remind ourselves which end of the microphone to hold. Rob looks at orange Lego spaceships, papermakers and Studio Ghibli. Jon takes a look at The Design Museum's events arm(s), a comic in the Booker Prize longlist, and a celebration of the BBC Micro. Switching to Mode 0… Pies are from Aldi and St Margarets. A clear dichotomy of pies, if ever there was one.

We're delighted to have another special guest on the show. This time it's Mark Phoenix, web developer and co-host of the excellent Relative Paths podcast (https://relativepaths.uk). He talks to us from underneath his secret blanket den in Cheltenham about his career in code. Chat meanders across diverse subjects such as grapefruit curses, Baby robins, Extremity comic (https://imagecomics.com/comics/series/extremity), Imaginary Worlds (https://www.imaginaryworldspodcast.org) podcast, Yoda's house (https://shop.lego.com/en-GB/Yoda-s-Hut-75208), Mike Sienkiewicz (https://youtu.be/4G1XAti0NX0) , Brian Eno, the resurgent Microsoft (https://daverupert.com/2015/08/dave-is-going-windows/), imposter syndrome, and, of course, pies. Special Guest: Mark Phoenix.

In the podcast that is and isn't about GDPR we discuss anything that doesn't involve mailing lists, sign up forms and panicky marketing teams. Jon is at a crossroads and Rob is generally cross with anything to do with crossing London. What time is love? No one knows, now we're all wearing Nuncs. Also with Roger Dean, Atari and Bill Gold, it's like the Seventies never went away. Now they've gone, it's pie-time! Two of them. Both encased. In case you have forgotten what a pie is.

This week we are joined by special guest and master of the Bézier curve, Ben the Illustrator. News includes an Oliver Postgate exhibition, in-game art in Codemasters' Onrush, Microsoft's adaptive controller for disabled gamers, Monde's bookend models, and the curious case of the European Museum of the year. We talk to Ben about his career in illustration, his creative process, his plans for the future, and why social media should be a two-way conversation. Pies are a Pieminister Kate and Sidney pie (Jon – 7), a Minced Beef pie from Turner's Pies in Chichester (Rob – 8.96), and a John Thorner's Steak and London Pride pie (Ben – 8). Special Guest: Ben the Illustrator.

Our hosts take a listen to a couple of new podcasts and the new sound effect library from the BBC. They ponder the task that faces Flickr's new owners and moot a possible visit to Thought Bubble in Leeds later this year. Rob and Jon discuss tools they use everyday to help them do their work more efficiently. Find out who will survive when the grid shuts down. Jon's pie gets more points than Rob's. The world is in turmoil.

Daniel Benneworth-Gray — book designer, writer, Twitter noise, and all round nice chap — joins us on the podcast that is, and isn't, about design. We talk about his career in design, as well as gravy carbonisation, and telephone chairs. News includes a new freelance rate calculator, Birmingham Design Festival, Record Store Day, and Rob updates us with Martin Sorrell’s latest movements. This week’s pies are from Marks and Spencer, Pieminister and Yorkshire Baker. One of the pies is called Kevin. Special Guest: Daniel Benneworth-Gray.

We're back for series three! Like a run down syphilitic bus. What's happened in our absence? Not a whole lot. Creative Review has gone to the paywall, Charlie Higson got stuck in a twisty maze of passageways, all alike, Fonts got all, like, look at us, we're fonts, we're so academic. And Hellboy is coming to a tabletop near you. This week we talk digital tipping jars: Patreon, Kofi and the like. Rob's considering throwing his flat cap onto the cobbles and asking for donations. Jon works his monocle into his mean little eye and turns his snooty nose skywards. Pies are tested as usual, but no LOTR this week. Old Man Willow stole our books.

In the final episode of a rather intermittent season 2, our emissaries of ephemera discuss whether social media has levelled the playing field for both Davids and Goliaths. News includes Wacom’s artist profile films, how Michael Bierut chooses typefaces, t shirts as design, academicism, The Culture, Dr Who’s rebrand, and Oxford Commas (see what I did there). One pie is disqualified for being a stew with a lid. LOTR Chapter 5: A Conspiracy Unmasked is discussed in the extra bits.

This week our podcasting curators visit the British Museum, taking in snarky mugs, cuneiform receipts, Roman curses, walrus chess pieces, Portuguese custard tarts, and a very noisy pub. NB – This episode was recorded in an insanely busy British Museum by a decidedly amateur sound recordist. You have been warned! Also, the podcast now has chapters so you can skip to the bits you want to hear, rather than listen to us waffle. Oh wait, we waffle all the way through every show. Scratch that.

In which Rob drinks beer and gets rather angry about tech boys. Jon, meanwhile, is worried about his dog.

Baaaaad Design: Not bad design in terms of taste, but design for evil. Have you ever designed the packaging for a death ray gun? Or designed the branding for the new build lair of an evil genius. Or maybe you've designed a mailing list signup checkbox that defaults to checked on a form. Our ministers of gloom discuss what makes bad design. News takes the form of a wingéd serpent and spews forth its foul breath of portent – in which you'll find an all-female line up for 2000AD, why a low value of art equals theft, and an Anthony Burrill book from new imprint Volume. LOTR: Chapter 3 – Three is company

We say goodbye to Mark E. Smith with a new jingle that doesn’t break copyright law.