Six Things Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

Six Things, Episode 1 – Jo Wyld

The Six Things podcast is the audio wing of the Six Things newsletter by Lev Parikian. In the first episode, I talk to writer, musician, composer, librettist and adiminstrator Jo Wyld.

4.20 Thing 1 – Carnyx

10.35 Thing 2 – Kohlosseum

14.15 Thing 3 – Midsomer Murders

19.25 Thing 4 – Post Office Tower

25.00 Thing 5 – Digesting Duck

29.25 Thing 6 – Small Local Museums

Find Jo on Bluesky or on her website

The podcast’s music was written and recorded by Oliver Parikian.

Read the Six Things Newsletter.

Watch the Digging for Britain episode featuring a carnyx.

Read about the carnyx (and other musical instruments) in Asterix.

Visit the Kohlosseum.

If you don’t know about Midsomer Murders, learn all about it here.

Matt Brown’s fact-filled guide to the Post Office Tower at Londonist.

The Digesting Duck Automaton.

Bach’s Musical Offering.

Thame Museum.

Petersfield Museum.

Six Things, Episode 2 – Chris Coates

The Six Things podcast is the audio wing of the Six Things newsletter by Lev Parikian. In the second episode, I talk to (in his words) full time social science writer in higher education, part-time idiot, and regular purveyor of niche drivel, Chris Coates.

4.30 Portsmouth Sinfonia

11.50 Japan’s Master of Restoration

18.30 Julian & Sandy

27.00 The Hunt for the Golden Mole

33.00 He Dances For His Cormorants

40.00 Nancy Banks-Smith

Chris is on Bluesky, Medium, Instagram and Substack.

The podcast’s music was written and recorded by Oliver Parikian.

Read the Six Things Newsletter.

The Portsmouth Sinfonia’s album is on YouTube. Listen to a Radio 4 documentary about them, and watch a short film.

Japan’s Master of Restoration is on iPlayer.

There’s an hour-long compilation of Julian and Sandy sketches on YouTube.

You can get The Hunt for the Golden Mole from Waterstones. And read a review here.

Watch He Dances For His Cormorants.

Read the Guardian's 2010 celebration of Nancy Banks-Smith. And here’s her 2001 piece about how she got into the job.

Six Things, Episode 3 – Matt Brown

The Six Things podcast is the audio wing of the Six Things newsletter by Lev Parikian. In the third episode, I talk to Matt Brown, London explorer and main contributor to Londonist’s excellent Time Machine newsletter, which provides a weekly look at London’s history from unusual angles.

3.50 Tube station smells

8.55 Parakeets

16.45 Wetherspoons carpets

21.50 Wazzbaffles

28.20 Diamond Geezer

31.10 International Space Station

Matt is here, and Londonist: Time Machine is here. Here are some of Matt’s books: The Boroughs of London, Atlas of Imagined Places, and Everything You Know About London Is Wrong.

The podcast’s music was written and recorded by Oliver Parikian.

Read the Six Things Newsletter.

This is the original tube station smells map.

Matt is 75% Matt and 25% parakeet. Track the spread of parakeets here.

You should visit Handel House if you’re in London.

There’s a site devoted to the joys of Wetherspoons carpets. The book is out of print, but there are plenty on eBay.

All you need to know about wazzbaffles.

Diamond Geezer, the Samuel Pepys of our age, blogs here.

Find out when the ISS passes over your head.

Six Things, Episode 4 – Isabel Rogers

The Six Things podcast is the audio wing of the Six Things newsletter by Lev Parikian. In the third episode, I talk to Isabel Rogers, poet, novelist, cake-baker, occasional cello-practiser, and nearly full-time coal-tit-whisperer.

2.50 Coal tits

10.10 Victoria Wood

17.35 Gardening

21.00 Theorbos

28.40 Loos In Space

33.25 ORGAN2/ASLSP (As SLow aS Possible)

Isabel’s website is here. Her Stockwell Park Orchestra books are here. Her poetry is here.

The podcast’s music was written and recorded by Oliver Parikian.

Read the Six Things Newsletter.

Learn all about coal tits here. See photos of Isabel’s tame coal tits here.

If for some reason you’re unfamiliar with the work of Victoria Wood, you could do worse than start with her legendary An Audience With Victoria Wood.

Learn all about the theorbo here.

Find out how many humans are in space. Find out how many toilets are in space.

Find out more about John Cage’s As SLow aS Possible here.

Six Things, Episode 5 – Mark Diacono

The Six Things podcast is the audio wing of the Six Things newsletter by Lev Parikian. In the fifth episode, I talk to Mark Diacono, award-winning food and gardening writer.

6.30 Woodpeckers

17.15 Balls

27.10 James Jamerson

37.20 Stem Ginger

43.15 The Jerk

49.30 Propelling Pencils

The podcast’s music was written and recorded by Oliver Parikian.

Read the Six Things Newsletter.

Mark’s Abundance: Eating and Living With The Seasons, is a delightful thing. The book is here. And here are some of his other books: Vegetables, Herb, Spice.

His piece about Glastonbury is here.

Otter Farm, for seeds and other foody things, is here.

Paolo Di Canio scored an amazing goal.

So did Dennis Bergkamp.

So, for that matter, did Luis Suarez.

As for Zlatan Ibrahimovic…

I Was Made To Love Her, with illustrated bass line, is here.

Likewise, Ain’t No Mountain High Enough.

Watch two nerdy bass players talk about James Jamerson.

Do please watch the excellent documentary, Standing In The Shadows of Motown.