Loading...

PODCAST

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science & much more.

Undercurrent Stories Podcast

Discovering the hidden depths of the people and world around us.Documentary interview show with an eclectic mix of people and subjects including: history, music, philosophy, the outdoors, wildlife, food and drink, sport, personal achievements, spirituality and many more.IG:https://www.instagram.com/undercurrentstories/ FB:https://www.facebook.com/undercurrentstories/ TW:https://mobile.twitter.com/undercurrentst1

society & culture documentary

All Episodes

29:46

The Beauty of the Ordinary. A Conversation with Kevin...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/10/07

What if getting older isn’t really about having fewer things to look forward to, but about learning to appreciate what’s already here? In this episode, I sit down with Irish author, teacher, poet, and former musician Kevin McManus to talk about his novel The Light of the Evening and some of the bigger questions that come with getting older. How do we make sense of grief and loss? What happens when illness changes the way we look at life and how do we learn to appreciate the ordinary...

en-gb

24:07

How to Make Your Best Public Speech Ever! with Paul...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/10/01

Want to become a more confident and compelling public speaker? Most of us at some point in our lives have to make a speech. Perhaps a wedding speech, a family celebration or you might be regularly making presentations at work. Whether you’re facing your first presentation or you’ve been speaking for years, this episode is packed with practical ideas to help you communicate with greater impact. Paul Sloane, keynote speaker and author of 160 Top Tips for Public Speakers, joins us and talk...

en-gb

59:47

The Real Odysseus: The Man Behind Nolan’s The...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/09/24

If you’re going to see Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey, or you’ve already seen it, there’s a much bigger story behind the film. In this conversation I talk to Dr. Joel Christensen, Professor of Classics at the City University of New York Graduate Center, and author of the book ' Why Odysseus?Survivor, Scoundrel, (Anti) Hero.' We talk about the ancient Odysseus, the brilliant strategist, liar, trickster, survivor and deeply complicated hero at the centre of Homer’s Odyssey. Nolan’s...

en-gb

33:21

The Untold Story of the Nazi Plan to Sterilise...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/09/17

Professor Edzard Ernst discusses 'The Leopard Lily Project ' and tells the disturbing story of a largely forgotten Nazi scheme to use a poisonous South American plant to carry out mass sterilisation. After taking power in 1933, the Nazis introduced compulsory sterilisation for people they deemed “unworthy” of reproduction, particularly those with hereditary illnesses. Seeking a less invasive method, an Austrian dermatologist proposed to Heinrich Himmler that the plant Leopard Lily (Dieffenbac...

en-gb

47:26

Super Adaptability: How to Stop Adapting to Cope and...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/09/10

In this episode, I'm joined by Dr. Max McKeown, author of Super Adaptability, to understand the difference between adapting just to survive a hard situation and adapting in a way that actually moves your life forward. Max explains the three-part "loop" at the heart of his book, a simple, repeatable process for noticing when you're stuck, understanding why, and taking deliberate action instead of falling back into old habits. Along the way, we cover: Why some people get trapped repeating...

en-gb

37:16

Only Girls Bleed: Elaine Lawless

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/09/02

“Only Girls Bleed: The Human Cost of Post-Roe America" - Dr. Elaine Lawless Overview Ethnographer and folklorist Dr. Elaine Lawless talks about her debut novel Only Girls Bleed, a gripping story inspired by real accounts of women navigating pregnancy, trauma, and the fractured abortion laws across the United States. Elaine explains why she turned to fiction after decades of academic work, how her field research shaped the book, and what she hopes readers, both men and women, take ...

en-gb

36:57

The Promoter Who Took on Live Nation: Tommy Dorfman

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/08/27

What happens when an independent music promoter takes on one of the biggest companies in the live entertainment industry? Tommy Dorfman, CEO of Juice Entertainment, discusses his extraordinary journey through the US music and nightlife scene, from throwing house parties as a teenager to running major EDM, (Electronic Dance Music), events and working with some of the biggest names in entertainment. Tommy shares his account of building a successful promotion business, securing a 10-year d...

en-gb

51:29

The Tree of Life: The Four Billion Year Journey to Us...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/08/20

What can the Tree of Life tell us about where we came from and how life became so diverse? Professor Max Telford, author of the book 'The Tree of Life: Solving Science's Greatest Puzzle' takes us on a journey through four billion years of evolution, from the earliest life on Earth to humans, worms and the extraordinary coelacanth. Max explains how scientists reconstruct the Tree of Life using fossils, anatomy, embryology and DNA and why evolution doesn't always mean becoming more complex. We ...

en-gb

54:42

How to Become an Everyday Genius: Nelson Dellis

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/08/12

We tend to think of genius as something you’re born with. A rare quality possessed by people with extraordinary memories, mathematical abilities, or problem-solving skills.But what if many of the abilities we associate with genius can actually be trained?In this episode, I'm joined by Nelson Dellis, a six-time USA Memory Champion, Guinness World Record holder, and author of Everyday Genius, about the practical skills we can all develop to make better use of our minds.Nelson explains how he went

en-gb

34:41

The River Detective: Jamie Woodward on Microplastics...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/08/06

Prof. Jamie Woodward (University of Manchester) on how microplastics get from your washing machine to local rivers and how his research on Manchester's waterways ended up shaping UK water policy. We cover the sewage scandal, water company spin, and what actually needs to change. In this episode: What actually counts as a "microplastic" (and why the name is misleading)How microplastics get from your washing machine to the riverThe science of sampling and identifying plastics in riverbe...

en-gb

47:02

The Best Thing That Ever Happened To Me (Was Losing...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/07/22

Have you ever felt like there is a dormant, creative part of you just waiting to get out? Something you buried years, or even decades ago because life got in the way? Careers, family commitments, the daily grind, all very important but it’s so easy to push our real passions to the back burner while we go about our everyday life. Sometimes, though, life makes the big decisions for us. My guest today spent decades in a demanding corporate career that had nothing to do with making music. He carr...

en-gb

51:20

Stuart Ward: The Brit Who Became a Swedish...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/07/15

Stuart Ward grew up on a council estate in Exeter, England, obsessed with pirate radio, chart positions, and — oddly — record labels. That obsession, plus a teenage belief that Sweden had cracked the code on a fairer society, eventually carried him across the North Sea, first as a chartered accountant, then as one of Swedish television and radio's most recognisable voices for decades. Stuart hosted Night Flight Scandinavia and Top Gear Nordic (a name he lifted straight from John Peel's old BB...

en-gb

30:17

The Untold Stories of British & American Film Stars...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/07/08

It's the early 1940s. The world's biggest movie stars could have sat the war out in comfort — instead, they walked off film sets, traded tuxedos and evening gowns for uniforms, and went to fight. This conversation features British Army veteran, Olympic discus thrower, and author Bill Tancred to explore the extraordinary true stories behind the actors who lived the wars they later portrayed on screen. From Jimmy Stewart flying 20 combat missions over Nazi Germany, to Audrey Hepburn's secret wo...

en-gb

47:03

Belmesthorpe: The English Village with a Thousand...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/07/02

What's really behind the stone walls of a sleepy English village? In this live walking-tour episode, I'm joined by local historian Adrian Gombault, author of the book 'Belmesthorpe: Then and Now' for a stroll through the English village of Belmesthorpe. We uncover Viking place names, a vanished railway, a rare 18th-century dovecote, a forgotten riot, and a surprising Cold War-era scandal, all within a village of barely 130 people. About Adrian: Adrian Gombault has spent the greater ...

en-gb

43:50

Vincent Doumeizel: Why Plankton Could Save the Planet

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/06/24

Trillions of invisible organisms produce every other breath you take — and almost no one talks about them. This week, that changes. Bob is joined once again by Vincent Doumeizel — UN food and ocean advisor, food innovation expert, and author of The Power of Plankton — for a deep dive into the most overlooked organisms on the planet. Vincent explains how plankton produce half the world's oxygen despite making up just 0.02% of Earth's biomass, why they've never once been mentioned at a COP...

en-gb

46:16

When Your Father Joins a Cult: Lily Dunn's...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/06/19

What happens when a parent leaves not just their family, but the entire world they once knew? In this episode, I talk with author and memoirist Lily Dunn about her powerful memoir Sins of My Father. When Lily was six years old, her father abandoned the family to join a spiritual movement that would shape the course of both his life and hers. We discuss the lasting effects of childhood abandonment, the allure of cults and alternative communities, the complicated nature of love and forgiveness,...

en-gb

43:39

How to be a Renaissance Man or Woman in the 21st...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/06/10

What do you do when life suddenly changes direction? In this episode I'm joined by author and former production editor David Hermakowski. David talks about resilience, reinvention, and finding purpose after unexpected challenges. Following a major health scare and brain surgery, David faced questions about identity, recovery, and what comes next. We explore major life changes as a new beginning, the importance of mindset and meaning, the power of creativity, and why life's greatest setbacks c...

en-gb

45:45

The Future Begins Today: Carolyn Dawn Flynn

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/06/04

What happens when the life you've built no longer fits? In this episode we hear from author, journalist, and book coach Carolyn Flynn to discuss her memoir Boundless and the unexpected opportunities that can emerge during life's biggest transitions. As a single mother preparing to send her twins off to college while facing uncertainty in her journalism career, Carolyn found herself confronting a question many people face but few discuss: Who are you when your core identities begin to change? ...

en-gb

45:24

The Hidden World of Animal Rescue and Welfare: Laura...

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/05/21

Animal welfare expert Laura Foster joins host Bob Wells to reveal the hidden realities behind dog rescue, rehoming and responsible pet ownership in the UK. If you've ever adopted a rescue dog, worried about your pet's behaviour, or wondered what really goes on inside animal welfare organisations like Dogs Trust and the RSPCA this episode is for you. Laura Foster is a senior animal welfare professional and behaviour specialist at Dogs Trust, the UK's largest dog rehoming charity. With a Master...

en-gb

43:02

The Woman Who Lived Among Wolves: Diane Boyd

Undercurrent Stories Podcast: History, Music, Science... ·

2026/05/14

In this episode we meet pioneering wolf biologist and author Diane Boyd who talks about her extraordinary four decades studying wolves in the remote wilderness of Montana near Glacier National Park. In the 1970s she was the only female biologist in the United States researching and radio-collaring wild wolves. With her two dogs for company she faced the rigours of the Montana winter in an isolated cabin without running water or electricity. In our conversation we discuss what wolv...

en-gb

214 results

Similar Podcasts

وجوه من الـظل

Medi1 Podcast

KnotWork Myth & Storytelling

Marisa Goudy

Q with Tom Power

CBC

Straight Shooter with Stephen A.

Stephen A. Smith & SiriusXM

Why Are You Like This? with Megan Rapinoe

Vox Media Podcast Network