The Cultural Crunch

Tim Allen
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Welcome to The Cultural Crunch - I'm Tim Allen and this is my new podcast. It's a place for conversations with interesting people from the world of arts and entertainment - writers, musicians, directors, artists and curators- creative souls all with fascinating stories to share. If you love a varied diet of cultural delights then this is your new favourite podcast - so listen, enjoy and tell all your friends. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episodes

  1. Nov 1

    Mark Gatiss

    It's Halloween so join me for a round-up of some of the spookiest theatrical experiences I've had this year. My quest for scares began at The Hampstead Theatre. In A Ghost in Your Ear Jamie Armitage uses binaural technology to create a terrifying soundscape, transporting the headphone-wearing audience to a studio for the audiobook recording of a particularly chilling tale. As the evening progresses, the horrors start to escape the pages and haunt the studio itself. I've been immersed in a fire-ravaged locked chamber at The Battersea Arts Centre to experience the terrors inside Room 13 - devised by Tom Maller and his team at Immersive Octopus. The Highgate Vampire from Bag of Beard Theatre Company is based on reports of supernatural events at a cemetery that spooked North London in the 1970s. It Walks Around The House At Night is Tom Foley's unsettlingly dark comic creation. What can possibly go wrong when an out of work actor takes a job playing a ghost in an old countryside manor? Quite a lot it turns out and obviously not in a good way! When the play opened at The Southwark Theatre earlier this year I caught up with horror aficionado and master of ghost stories on stage and screen, Mark Gatiss, who told me more about the genre he loves. Photo: Mark Gatiss and Tim Allen at The Southwark Theatre Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Mark Gatiss

  2. Oct 19

    The Authors' Collective

    In this episode, I have a real literary treat for you. First, we’re heading to a rather special location in West London: a lovely, sunny writer’s shed at the bottom of James Dunford Wood’s garden. It’s an intimate setting for a fascinating conversation with four experienced authors who have joined forces to meet the challenges of today’s increasingly competitive publishing world. They’ve formed a new venture, The Authors' Collective, with a shared ambition: to ensure their writing continues to reach readers and find its place in an ever-changing book market. I sat down with all four to talk about their latest books, their writing lives and what it means to work together in pursuit of a common goal. Melissa Jones introduces us to her new book, Gone for a Soldier, Conrad Williams talks about Say You Love Me, while Candida Crewe discusses Disapproval and James Dunford Wood brings us into the world of his latest work, The Big Little War. Four writers, four very different books, and one shared determination to keep good writing alive and in front of a book-buying public. It’s a conversation about creativity, collaboration and the realities of being an author today. And there’s a bonus for you, too. I’ll be speaking with Francis Spufford, chair of the judges for the second Tadeusz Bradecki Prize, following its recent award ceremony at the Polish Hearth Club in Kensington. We’ll hear about the prize, its celebration of imaginative writing across genres and cultures, and the winning book by Julian Brave NoiseCat, We Survived the Night, praised by the judges as “astonishing and meritorious”. Photo: Candida Crewe, Conrad Williams, Tim Allen, James Dunford, Melissa Jones. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    The Authors' Collective

  3. Oct 2

    Matilda Ziegler and Agni Scott

    Matilda Ziegler and Agni Scott are old friends, both actresses whose stage and screen work spans decades. In the late eighties Mattie was known to millions as Donna in Eastenders and more recently she played Rowan Atkinson's love interest, Mr Bean's girlfriend Pearl. Agni starred alongside Harry Connick Jr. in the Netfilx hit romantic comedy Find Me Falling, set in Cyprus where where she grew up. You may have seen her in Bridget Jones' Baby as Colin Firth's ex-wife. Now they are working together on stage in a brilliant revival of a play written in 1937- Judgement Day by Ödön von Horváth. It's somewhat of a full circle moment for Mattie who starred in Stephen Daldry's 1989 staging of the play, translated by Christopher Hampton at the same theatre -The Old Red Lion Theatre in Islington. She's directing this time, with her daughter Faye in the role she herself played thirtyseven years ago. Judgement Day is on at The Old Red Lion Theatre in Islington until October10th Photo: Matilda Ziegler, Tim Allen and Agni Scott. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Matilda Ziegler and Agni Scott

  4. Aug 25 ·  Bonus

    Edinburgh Festival Part 1

    This is the first of two special editions of The Cultural Crunch from Edinburgh Festival. There really is no better place to be in August, when the city become a vibrant beating hub of creativity. The Fringe has more than three thousand shows across hundreds of venues, including for the first time this year - a sauna. Before the madness commenced, I caught up with six writers, directors and performers as they prepared to take their shows to Edinburgh. And what a talented bunch they are! Will Usherwood-Bliss of NewsReview, the topical sketch comedy show celebrating almost half a century at Fringe; Kitty Falcon whose moving tribute to her late father Sitting (In Silence) is set in a silent retreat; Conor Dye writer of Tap Out (or I'll hit you again), a comic play about a man who starts picking fights with strangers- just to feel something; James Watterson who plays a library inspector in The Librarians: A Very Serious Comedy!; Electra Kolb, a Fringe veteran at just eighteen, who is returning to Edinburgh with her one woman show Father, Away She Goes and finally one half circus duo Ockam's Razor Alex Harvey, who is taking to the trapeze with his wife in a new show called Collaborator. Photo:Tim Allen and Kitty Falcon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Edinburgh Festival Part 1

  5. Aug 23

    The Odyssey

    It has undeniably been the summer of The Odyssey. Homer's epic poem is almost 3000 years old and has finally been given the big screen treatment it deserves. Christopher Nolan's blockbusting film adaptation has been well worth the wait and is without doubt the cinematic highlight of the year. You will be familiar with the plot, Greek hero Odysseus uses his wits to survive a perilous journey home from The Trojan War to reclaim his family and kingdom, despite the best efforts of sirens, sorcerers and a cyclops. Through readings and thought-provoking discussions, this bonus episode of The Cultural Crunch serves as both an excellent introduction and a scholarly appreciation of one of the greatest stories ever told. This episode is a recording of a live event with Toby Brothers, Jane Wymark and Alexis Cambanis of The London Literary Salon at Theatro Technis in London. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    The Odyssey

  6. Jun 27

    Glastonbury The Movie

    Robin Mahoney has spent a lifetime working in film and television and has an infectious enthusiasm for his craft. We first met in the summer of 1993 when he was gathering a crew of fresh young creatives to make a film about a music festival on a farm in the Somerset village of Pilton. Glastonbury The Movie went on to become the definitive document of the festival before it became the internationally famous cultural phenomenon that it is today. It also captures British youth culture at the end of the analogue age, free from camera phones and corporate hype. It's a fallow year on the farm so while the festival is taking a break Robin decided to mark the 30th anniversary of his film with a UK- wide cinema release. We met up again to reminisce and celebrate this very special film. Photo: Tim Allen and Robin Mahoney in his Hackney home-studio. https://glastomovie30th.netlify.app/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Glastonbury The Movie

  7. Jun 1

    Chelsea Flower Show

    In this special edition of The Cultural Crunch I took my roving microphone for a day out at one of the most glorious events of the English summer season - The Chelsea Flower Show. There I met designers and creative teams behind some of the gold medal-winning gardens. I discovered that ancient woodlands are making a much needed comeback and how a charity that aims to end food poverty has collaborated with a green-fingered genius to create a haven of tranquility. I began by taking a behind the scenes tour of one of the most talked about gardens at the show, a beautiful fusion of art and nature that will soon find a permanent home outside Tate Britain. Photo: Tim Allen and Honor Reekie in the The Tate Britain Garden Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Chelsea Flower Show

  8. May 13

    Carol Decker

    Carol Decker became internationally famous in the late eighties as the singer with the big hair and even bigger voice in T'Pau. Along with her song-writing partner and then boyfriend Ronnie Rogers, she was responsible for a string of hits including Heart and Soul and Valentine, but it was China In Your Hand that went on to define the band. It spent five weeks at the top of the charts in 1987 and remains one of the best loved songs of that era. Carol and Ronnie's relationship didn't last and the original line up imploded as the the eighties gave way to the nineties, with T'pau struggling to find their place in the new musical landscape. But this is a tale with a happy ending. Now happily married to other people, Carol and Ronnie have reunited in song. They have a new album out Be Wonderful and are currently touring the country once again. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Carol Decker

  9. May 5

    Zeb Soanes

    Zeb Soanes has one of the most recognisable voices in the country. He trained as an actor, then went on to have a twenty five year career at the BBC as a continuity announcer and newsreader. He was one of the very few broadcasters trusted to deliver the shipping forecast, as much a part of the bedtime routine for millions of night-owls and insomniacs as it is a lifeline for seafarers and fishermen - public service broadcasting in its purest form. Now he's a presenter at Classic FM where his soothing tones are being put to good use in Relaxing Evenings each week night from seven. Zeb's found time to return to his theatrical roots and has been treading the boards in a touring production of Mark Burgess' play Two Halves of Guinness. It's a one man love-letter to the great Alec Guinness in which Zeb plays more than thirty characters including Herbert Pocket in Great Expectations, all eight members of the unfortunate D'Ascoyne family in Kind Hearts and Coronets, George Smiley and of course Obi-Wan Kenobi. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Zeb Soanes

  10. Apr 28

    Nick Heyward

    Nick Heyward found fame as the singer and songwriter with Haircut 100 - a band who shone brightly but all to briefly in the early eighties. They scored four hit singes; Favourite Shirts, Love Plus One, Nobody's Fool and Fantastic Day, from one brilliant album Pelican West which reached number two in the charts in 1982. Nick's solo hits included Whistle Down The Wind, Take That Situation and Blue Hat for a Blue Day. In 2023 the band reformed to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Pelican West and have now been together longer than they were the first time around. In a candid conversation Nick tells me how three school friends from South London went on to form a chart-topping band, he reflects on the highs and lows of pop stardom and reveals how the pressures of fame took a toll on his mental health. With a new album Boxing The Compass and a UK tour in full swing, Haircut 100 look set to become your new favourite band all over again. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

    Nick Heyward
  • 10 Episodes

About

Welcome to The Cultural Crunch - I'm Tim Allen and this is my new podcast. It's a place for conversations with interesting people from the world of arts and entertainment - writers, musicians, directors, artists and curators- creative souls all with fascinating stories to share. If you love a varied diet of cultural delights then this is your new favourite podcast - so listen, enjoy and tell all your friends. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Information

  • Creator
    Tim Allen
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    10
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Tim Allen
  • Show Website
    The Cultural Crunch

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