325 episodes

Each week, a guest makes a series of recommendations of things which they think should be better known. Our recommendations include interesting people, places, objects, stories, experiences and ideas which our guest feels haven't had the exposure that they deserve.

Better Known Ivan Wise

    • Society & Culture
    • 4.8 • 8 Ratings

Each week, a guest makes a series of recommendations of things which they think should be better known. Our recommendations include interesting people, places, objects, stories, experiences and ideas which our guest feels haven't had the exposure that they deserve.

    Bill Weir

    Bill Weir

    Bill Weir discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

    Bill Weir is a veteran anchor, writer, producer, and host who came to CNN in 2013 after a decade of award-winning journalism at ABC News.

    In 2019, he was named the network’s first Chief Climate Correspondent, drawing on his experience creating and hosting the primetime CNN Original Series “The Wonder List with Bill Weir,” now streaming on Discovery+.

    His first book, Life As We Know It (Can Be) was published by Chronicle Prism in April 2024.



    The Goldilocks Earth https://www.thedailybeast.com/cnn-host-bill-weir-plans-to-hold-bidens-feet-to-the-fire-on-climate-change



    Humanity’s role models will be beavers, camels and gentoo penguins https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/16/climate/life-as-we-know-it-book-bill-weir/index.html



    We need thoughtful YIMBYs https://edition.cnn.com/2023/04/23/us/climate-crisis-earth-day-weir-letter/index.html



    The home of the future will come with much thicker walls https://www.builderonline.com/products/building-construction-materials/cnn-report-examines-alternative-way-to-build-homes



    The new industrial revolution https://edition.cnn.com/videos/tv/2024/02/05/clean-revolution-weir-pkg.cnn



    Veggie burgers can do more environmental harm than a steak https://edition.cnn.com/2023/07/03/us/climate-crisis-cattle-amp-grazing/index.html




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    • 30 min
    Chioma Okereke

    Chioma Okereke

    Chioma Okereke discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

    Born in Nigeria, Chioma Okereke grew up in London and studied law at UCL. She started her writing career as a performance poet before turning her hand to prose. Her debut novel, Bitter Leaf (Virago), was shortlisted for the Commonwealth Writers' Prize, and her short story, Trompette De La Mort, received First Runner Up in the Costa Short Story Award. Her new novel is Water Baby.



    Jamaica Kincaid https://www.theparisreview.org/blog/2022/04/07/jamaica-kincaids-rope-of-live-wires/



    Cadaqués https://www.lonelyplanet.com/spain/cadaques



    PRP (platelet rich plasma) https://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/platelet-rich-plasma-injections



    Raye https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-features/raye-escapism-21st-century-blues-interview-1234671381/



    Tiger nuts https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2772753X23003325



    Andre Brink https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/feb/08/andre-brink




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    • 29 min
    Ash Bhardwaj

    Ash Bhardwaj

    Ash Bhardwaj discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

    Ash Bhardwaj is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster and keynote speaker, whose work explores the intersection of travel, current affairs and human behaviour. He has reported from around the world for outlets including the BBC, Daily Telegraph, Sunday Times and Condé Nast Traveller. Before travel writing, Ash was a ski instructor, science teacher and wannabe cowboy. He is an officer in the British Army Reserve, and a lecturer in travel journalism at City, University of London. Why We Travel is his first book.



    Great Polynesian Migration https://nzhistory.govt.nz/culture/encounters/polynesian-voyaging



    The Jet Propulsion Laboratory https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/



    Ukraine (as a place, not just a site of war) https://theculturetrip.com/europe/ukraine/articles/the-top-20-attractions-in-ukraine



    Turning grief into hope https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/oceania/new-zealand/my-mother-died-of-cancer-new-zealand-turned-my-grief/



    How beliefs and behaviours work https://iulianionescu.com/blog/how-our-beliefs-and-values-shape-our-behavior/



    Psychogeography https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms/p/psychogeography




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    • 30 min
    Anthony Daniels

    Anthony Daniels

    Anthony Daniels discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

    Anthony Daniels was born in London in 1949. He retired from medical practice except for medico-legal work in 2005. He has written several books, including an account of a journey across Africa by public transport, and under his pseudonym, Theodore Dalrymple, has written many essays for publications such as City Journal, some of which were collected in Life at the Bottom (2001), which has been translated into several languages. His new book is Buried But Not Quite Dead: Forgotten Writers of Père Lachaise. He divides his time between England and France.



    The Fire Raisers by Max Frisch https://www.theguardian.com/stage/theatreblog/2007/nov/01/thearsonistsstillburnsbrig



    The Hospital Poems by WE Henley https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1931720414002025



    A Mother Peeling Apples by Pieter de Hooch https://artuk.org/discover/artworks/a-woman-peeling-apples-209233



    Eugène-Melchior de Vogüé https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eug%C3%A8ne-Melchior_de_Vog%C3%BC%C3%A9



    That Le Corbusier was a fascist https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-32546182



    That the poor are disproportionately the victims of crime https://www.theguardian.com/society/2006/apr/18/socialexclusion.crime




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    • 31 min
    Leah Redmond Chang

    Leah Redmond Chang

    Historian Leah Redmond Chang discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

    Leah Redmond Chang is a former Associate Professor of French and Director of the French Literature Programme at George Washington University, and was most recently a Senior Research Associate at University College London. She is the author of two previous books: Into Print: The Production of Female Authorship in Early Modern France and Portraits of the Queen Mother: Polemics, Panegyrics, Letters, winner of the Josephine Roberts Award from the International Society for the Study of Early Modern Women. She lives with her husband and three children, and divides her time between Washington, DC and London.



    Fake news goes back at least to the 16th century https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/12/fake-news-history-long-violent-214535/



    16th-century Europe was dominated by female leaders https://www.historytoday.com/archive/review/young-queens-leah-redmond-chang-review



    The Renaissance Italian painter Sofonisba Anguissola https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/history-and-civilisation/2022/03/this-italian-artist-became-the-first-female-superstar-of-the-renaissance



    The teenaged queen consort of Spain, Elisabeth de Valois https://flhwnotesandreviews.com/2018/06/11/book-review-elizabeth-de-valois-queen-of-spain-and-the-court-of-philip-ii-by-martha-walker-freer/



    The story of the 16th-century French peasant Martin Guerre and his wife Bertrande https://www.ancient-origins.net/history-famous-people/martin-guerre-0016613



    Letter-locking https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20210616-how-the-forgotten-tricks-of-letterlocking-shaped-history




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    • 30 min
    Alice Loxton

    Alice Loxton

    Historian Alice Loxton discusses with Ivan six things which should be better known.

    Alice Loxton is a 28 year old history broadcaster and writer with over two million followers on social media (@history_alice). She has appeared on many channels including Sky Arts, Channel 5, BBC News and History Hit, and has worked with a wide array of organisations to bring history to mainstream audiences, including Christie’s, Meta, The National Trust, 10 Downing Street, The Royal Collection Trust, The National Portrait Gallery and The National Gallery. UPROAR! Satire, Scandal and Printmaking in Georgian London is Alice’s first book. Her second book, Eighteen: A History of Britain in 18 Young Lives, comes out in August 2024.



    James Gillray https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v23/n12/peter-campbell/at-tate-britain



    The fact that Napoleon wasn’t short https://www.history.com/news/napoleon-complex-short



    Landmark Trust https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2023/may/12/how-a-derelict-scottish-tower-was-turned-into-a-sumptuous-retreat



    The French House, Soho https://www.timeout.com/london/bars-and-pubs/french-house



    Parish churches https://www.countryfile.com/go-outdoors/days-out/britains-most-beautiful-churches



    The London Library https://www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v13/n18/john-sutherland/sod-off-readers




    This podcast is powered by ZenCast.fm

    • 30 min

Customer Reviews

4.8 out of 5
8 Ratings

8 Ratings

Almond1 ,

Like a wonderful chocolate box

Terrific guests and intriguing topics. Ivan excels at drawing the best out of his diverse group of invitees with humor and aplomb. Show notes are a treasure trove of hidden gems.

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