Living on the Brink...
Meet the people who have made their lives on the edge - in politics and on the coastline
The Laudable Podcasts repertoire is incredibly varied, exploring so many subjects and issues.
From the coronavirus pandemic to true crime, politics to food and drink, the menopause to innovative entrepreneurs, Laudable fits all tastes, all demographics, and all points of view.
But the one common denominator in our podcasts is the wonderful characters we meet on the way.
This week’s newsletter is centred on the people who have made their lives on the edge - on the brink, if you will.
There’s the combative, colourful activists from the 1980s, who still divide a city today. Militant lived on the edge of mainstream politics, fighting against the establishment by putting their ideals into practice. You can meet one of the most controversial political groups in British politics in The Brink.
Or you can visit the people who are literally living on the edge, making their way on Britain’s windswept coastline. You can meet artists, dog lovers, fairground enthusiasts, footballers, birdwatchers, and many more in Liminal.
Dan McLaughlin, here, to guide you through the Laudable Podcasts weekly newsletter. Why don’t we take a stroll first?
Liminal: meet the people living their lives on the edge
The coastline often feels like one of the colourful characters you meet in Liminal. It offers a diverse and entertaining collection of stories to tell - funny, charming, eccentric, and with a twinkle in its eye.
It is, after all, the thing that unites the people that Laura Davis is joined by as she discovers a different stretch of landscape in the podcast.
She hears compelling stories on her walk along Britain’s windswept coastline, from a widower finding friendship through a dog walking club on a windy beach to the man who tells movie stars if they can film on the sands of Formby.
She meets the artists travelling hundreds of miles to paint the walls of a faded seaside town, and travels to the football club fighting to get back into the non league pyramid from its home on the banks of the River Mersey.
Laura visits fairgrounds, observatories, beauty spots, woodlands, beaches, and more. All of which you can visit from the comfort of your own home by listening to Liminal.
Talking of living life on the brink, here’s The Brink…
The Brink: when putting your ideals into practice goes “spectacularly wrong”
In the 1980s, Liverpool's fortunes plummeted. Docks shut, jobs vanished and neighbourhoods erupted into riots.
Into this fractious world stepped a group of hard-left politicians that would be celebrated and vilified in turn - Militant.
Three and a half decades on, Militant is still a loaded word in British politics. In Liverpool, many families will never forgive them. But for others, they were heroes.
Our podcast, The Brink, tells the story of how a secretive group of left-wingers captured power in one of Britain's great cities, and took on Margaret Thatcher.
Presented by the Liverpool Echo’s Julia Rampen, The Brink chronicles what happens when you try to put your ideals into practice - and how it can go spectacularly wrong. It involves skulduggery, taxis and a case of missing orchids.
This is the story of the most controversial group in British politics. It's the story of Militant in Liverpool.
And now, we have a quick update from Laudable podcast producer Morven McIntyre…
Uncovered: digging into hidden stories
Thanks, Dan. We’ve got an exciting announcement: the JPIMedia investigations team will launch the first episode of its new podcast series, Uncovered, next week.
The series, hosted by Harriet Clugston and Ethan Stone, will bring you original investigative reporting from our team of journalists across the UK.
We’ll dig into the hidden stories waiting to be uncovered on your doorstep.
In our first episode, we will be delving into the world of modern slavery and human trafficking in the UK.
Over the past three months, our team of eight reporters have been exploring what is happening to victims and criminals more than five years after the watershed 2015 Modern Slavery Act was passed by the UK parliament – and sister legislation in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
We’ve found evidence of modern slavery offences taking place on a vast scale in every corner of the UK. And the perpetrators are going largely unpunished.
The investigation uses a mix of open data analysis, freedom of information requests, and interviews to uncover shocking failings by the criminal justice system to hold perpetrators of these awful crimes to account and support victims to rebuild their lives.
The episode will be live on Entale next week so keep an eye out. You can also follow the JPI investigations team at @JPIMediaData.
Thanks, Morven. It sounds like incredible work from the JPI investigations team, uncovering important injustices.
I hope you have also enjoyed your stroll along the brink, but don’t forget there are many more places to explore in our podcast collection.
In the meantime, stay safe, stay positive, stay informed, and stay tuned.
- Dan McLaughlin