Spanish Practices – Living in Spain: Real Life, Real Spain

John Metson
  • 4.9 (9)
  • Places & Travel
  • Updated weekly

This is our real life, in real Spain. Ten years of adventures since swapping our glorious Victorian House in leafy Essex for a tiny flat in a wild Andalusian village. I was once a Radio Producer in London, not a great one. I sacked Richard Hammond for not knowing enough about cars. Was rude to J.K. and binned her rubbish first edition new kiddies book. Told the man behind Amazon when it launched in the UK that nobody wanted to shop online for books. So I ran away to Spain with my other half and our big ginger cat. This Podcast is about that brash, colourful passionate country - Spain. Oh and the odd celebrity encounter from my radio days. Some real events have been fictionalised to protect the innocent.

  1. 1 day ago

    Want to Live in Spain? The Digital Nomad Visa Could Be Your Ticket

    Spain Wants Digital Nomads – But Is It Really That Simple? Imagine swapping the commute for a laptop overlooking the Mediterranean. Spain has become one of the world's most attractive destinations for remote workers — and its Digital Nomad Visa offers non-EU professionals a legal route to actually live here while working abroad. But before you pack the laptop and sunglasses, there's rather more to it than sunshine and fast broadband. In this episode of Spanish Practices, I look at how Spain's Digital Nomad Visa works, who can apply, the income requirements, bringing your family and the possible route from temporary residence to making Spain your permanent home. We also tackle the bit some glossy relocation websites don't put next to the photograph of somebody working beside a swimming pool: tax. When do you become Spanish tax resident? What is the so-called Beckham Law? What happens if you're self-employed? And why might the words Modelo 720, social security and Spanish bureaucracy eventually have you reaching for something stronger than café con leche? I'll also look at some of the best places to base yourself — from Málaga, Valencia, Barcelona and Madrid to the Canary Islands and Spain's smaller towns — and the realities of housing costs, paperwork and the language barrier. Spain offers sunshine, lifestyle, excellent connectivity and the possibility of building a completely different working life. But it's still Spain — gloriously attractive, occasionally bewildering and never quite as straightforward as the brochure suggests. Spanish Practices – Real Life, Real Spain. Visa and tax rules can change and individual circumstances vary, so always take current professional immigration and tax advice before making financial or residency decisions. Revised Repeat AI disclosure: final music is AI generated Envato/Shutterstock

  2. 1 day ago

    Goats, Romans & the Spanish Inquisition: Spain in 10 Minutes

    Three thousand years of Spanish history. Ten minutes. What could possibly go wrong? In this episode of Spanish Practices, I'm attempting the almost certainly foolish task of explaining the history of Spain without drowning you in kings, dates or men with impressive facial hair pointing at maps. Instead, we're following the ordinary people who didn't make history — they simply had to survive it. Meet Tarek, an Iberian farmer from a town unfortunately called Arse, worrying about his goats in 500 BC. There's Lucius, a Roman laundryman cleaning togas with urine; Aisha, cast out from the splendour of the Alhambra; a nervous merchant in Seville discovering that nobody really does expect the Spanish Inquisition; and a Republican woman learning to whisper after Franco's victory. Along the way we'll squeeze in Iberians, Romans, Visigoths, Al-Andalus, the Reconquista, Columbus, the Spanish Empire, Napoleon, Civil War, dictatorship and Spain's remarkable transition to democracy. Because Spain's history isn't really a neat procession of kings, conquerors and empires. It's a messy 3,000-year story of ordinary people adapting, enduring and surviving while somebody else changes the flag. And somehow, after invasions, empires, civil wars and dictators, Spain is still standing — and still finding an excuse for a fiesta. Spanish Practices – Real Life, Real Spain. Revised Repeat EU AI disclosure final music AI generated Envato/Shutterstock

  3. 5 days ago

    Carry on Abroad - The Return of the Package Holiday - Real Life, Real Spain

    OR - The Bikini That Changed Spain: How the Package Holiday Conquered the Costas! OR - Bikinis, Benidorm & Brits Abroad: How Tourism Changed Spain How did Spain go from a buttoned-up dictatorship suspicious of bikinis to one of the world's great holiday destinations — and have we now loved it a little too much? In this summer repeat of Spanish Practices, I travel back to the birth of the great British package holiday, when guaranteed sunshine, cheap sangria and a week on the Costa suddenly became affordable to ordinary British families. There's the extraordinary story of the Mayor of Benidorm, a Vespa and the bikini that helped change Spanish tourism; memories of those tantalising 1970s holiday brochures; my own childhood disappointment at swapping the promised glamour of Majorca for a trip to Maldon; and the unstoppable rise of the Brits-abroad package holiday. But then we come back to Spain today. More than 90 million visitors, packed cities and beaches, holiday rentals, housing shortages and increasingly vocal protests against overtourism. Has the industry that transformed modern Spain finally become too successful? From Franco to foreign tourists, Butlin's to Benidorm and the Costa del Bikini to "Tourists Go Home" — it's the extraordinary story of how the package holiday changed Spain, Britain and our relationship with the summer sun. Spanish Practices – Real Life, Real Spain. Revised repeat. AI disclosure - no AI used in this episode.

  4. 12 Aug

    Why Everyone in Spain Ends Up Loving Mercadona

    Ever wondered why Mercadona is often called one of the most profitable supermarkets in the world? In this light-hearted episode of Spanish Practices, we explore its fascinating history—from a humble family butcher's shop in Valencia to a retail powerhouse across Spain. We dive into how Mercadona has reinvented the supermarket experience with energy-efficient stores, hot takeaway food, and even places to sit and eat. Plus, we uncover the story behind the famously catchy Mercadona jingle (sí, that one stuck in your head) and the voice behind it. Expect humour, insights into Spanish shopping culture, and plenty of relatable moments if you've ever gone in for milk and come out with a full basket. Perfect for expats, Spain lovers, and anyone curious about everyday life in Spain. The Mercadona Jingle, composed by Lluís Miquel Campos, vocalist Mamen García, reproduced under UK Fair Dealing Law 1988 Sections 29/30 Revised repeat EU AI Disclosure the final long form music is AI generated by Envato/Shutterstock

  5. 8 Aug

    Thunderbirds over Franco's Spain – When British TV Invaded Spain - ExPat life in Andalusia

    What was it like watching television in Franco's Spain? In this episode of Spanish Practices – Real Life, Real Spain, John looks back at the early days of Spanish TV and the surprising influence of British favourites including Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet, The Avengers, The Prisoner and Doctor Who. Plus, a personal encounter with Thunderbirds creator Gerry Anderson — and the day Lady Penelope and Parker turned up in a London radio studio. A nostalgic and humorous journey through Spanish television, British TV in Spain and life in 1960s Spain.

  6. 5 Aug

    THE SHOCKING BEEHIVE - Episode 5 - A Bolt from the Blue, The Finale - The Marlborough Court Mysteries

    A glamorous London television presenter. A deadly accident. Or the perfect murder? Your holiday audiobook from Spanish Practices. When a visit to the exclusive Lady Dorothy Boutique Hair Salon ends with a daytime television star being electrocuted, private detectives Horace Finch and Violet Hart are drawn behind the bright lights of Metrovision, London's weekday television station. Ruled by the charming cigar smoking Lord Arthur, Metrovision is a world of soaring egos, ruthless ambition and carefully guarded secrets. As the suspects multiply, Finch and Hart discover that everyone is performing a role... and someone is prepared to kill to protect the biggest secret of all. The Shocking Beehive is a gripping 1960s British detective mystery packed with vintage television nostalgia, suspense, humour and unexpected twists. Perfect for fans of classic crime fiction, cosy mysteries, radio drama, Poirot and The Thursday Murder Club.

  7. 4 Aug

    THE SHOCKING BEEHIVE - Episode 4 - Short Back and Sides - The Marlborough Court Mysteries

    A glamorous London television presenter. A deadly accident. Or the perfect murder? Your holiday audiobook from Spanish Practices. When a visit to the exclusive Lady Dorothy Boutique Hair Salon ends with a daytime television star being electrocuted, private detectives Horace Finch and Violet Hart are drawn behind the bright lights of Metrovision, London's weekday television station. Ruled by the charming cigar smoking Lord Arthur, Metrovision is a world of soaring egos, ruthless ambition and carefully guarded secrets. As the suspects multiply, Finch and Hart discover that everyone is performing a role... and someone is prepared to kill to protect the biggest secret of all. The Shocking Beehive is a gripping 1960s British detective mystery packed with vintage television nostalgia, suspense, humour and unexpected twists. Perfect for fans of classic crime fiction, cosy mysteries, radio drama, Poirot and The Thursday Murder Club.

  8. 3 Aug

    THE SHOCKING BEEHIVE - Episode 3 - The Blue Nun - The Marlborough Court Mysteries

    A glamorous London television presenter. A deadly accident. Or the perfect murder? Your holiday audiobook from Spanish Practices. When a visit to the exclusive Lady Dorothy Boutique Hair Salon ends with a daytime television star being electrocuted, private detectives Horace Finch and Violet Hart are drawn behind the bright lights of Metrovision, London's weekday television station. Ruled by the charming cigar smoking Lord Arthur, Metrovision is a world of soaring egos, ruthless ambition and carefully guarded secrets. As the suspects multiply, Finch and Hart discover that everyone is performing a role... and someone is prepared to kill to protect the biggest secret of all. The Shocking Beehive is a gripping 1960s British detective mystery packed with vintage television nostalgia, suspense, humour and unexpected twists. Perfect for fans of classic crime fiction, cosy mysteries, radio drama, Poirot and The Thursday Murder Club.

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About

This is our real life, in real Spain. Ten years of adventures since swapping our glorious Victorian House in leafy Essex for a tiny flat in a wild Andalusian village. I was once a Radio Producer in London, not a great one. I sacked Richard Hammond for not knowing enough about cars. Was rude to J.K. and binned her rubbish first edition new kiddies book. Told the man behind Amazon when it launched in the UK that nobody wanted to shop online for books. So I ran away to Spain with my other half and our big ginger cat. This Podcast is about that brash, colourful passionate country - Spain. Oh and the odd celebrity encounter from my radio days. Some real events have been fictionalised to protect the innocent.

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