9/6 - The Face Detectives

Don’t you hate it when you forget a face?

Spare a thought for the 1.5 million people in the UK suffering from developmental prosopagnosia - facial blindness. In its most acute form, they’re unable to recognise their friends, their family… even their own reflection.

Dr Rachel Bennetts, psychology lecturer at Brunel University, specialises in researching facial processing disorders. In this fascinating interview with Olly, she explains what life is like for those who can’t follow the narrative of TV shows or recognise their colleagues - and why their brain is letting them down.

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The Modern Mann team as painted by our artist-in-residence, Danny Mooney, who has prosopagnosia

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Elsewhere this week, Ollie Peart tests out the latest home fitness trends in the Zeitgeist, including yoga-training app Asana Rebel, and on-demand fitness class Fiit. Plus, he updates us on his attempt to reach Christmas No.1. Can he get a record label to release ‘The Sounds Of Christmas’ in time for the festive charts?

Meanwhile, down the Foxhole, Alix Fox - fresh from handcuffing herself to a shower in the interests of bodily pleasure - considers a question of self-exhibitionism from a Mannfan who loves to share nudie pics. What are the risks he exposes himself to when he, um, exposes himself? And is there a safer way to get a thrill than using sites like Tumblr and Temporarily Exposed?

Finally, our record of the week comes from new girlband 303, and their track Whisper:

Enjoy the show? Support us! We’re an independent production and need your help to keep cranking out new content. Please consider donating via PayPal, writing us a review, or buying us a beer. And, speaking of beer - remember to get your free case of eight delicious beers from our sponsors Beer52 - just visit beer52.com/mann.

If you’d like to share YOUR story on the show, if you have a challenge for Ollie, a question of sex for Alix, or anything else - just fill out our Feedback form.

See You Next Tuesday!

7/8 - Cloudspotting

‘I just feel like there’s lots of spaces where I don’t belong, and I’m not welcome’

Professional dancer Raquel Meseguer had back surgery at the age of thirty, to treat chronic neuropathic pain. But, it didn’t alleviate her symptoms.

In this insightful interview with Olly, she explains how this bombshell has impacted upon the daily practicalities of her life, why she doesn’t feel welcome in our ‘vertical culture’, and how well-meaning members of the public have repeatedly shamed her for committing the cardinal sin of... lying down.

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* NEW: You can now also listen to the show via our new Alexa Skill on your Alexa-enabled device. Get it here.

If you’d like to find out more about Raquel’s quest to establish a network of public resting spaces, visit uncharteredcollective.com

In this week’s Zeitgeist, Ollie Peart ponders the emergence of trendy ‘microbrands’ on Instagram, reveals a surprising sensitivity to salt, and undertakes a challenge to test the best recipe boxes on the market. (On the list: Hello Fresh, Gousto, Mindful Chef, Born And Bred and Bakedin)

Meanwhile, down the Foxhole, Alix Fox is back on Bumble but avoiding ‘The Tinder Trance’, and ready to advise a listener keen to explore the world of tantric sex.

The Foxhole, as ever, is sponsored by our friends at MyCondom.com - visit their store to get your mitts on an astonishing range of condoms, lubes and toys; and remember to use our code ‘FOXHOLE’ to get 15% OFF.

In this week’s Lifehack, Jenni Gwiazdowski of the London Bike Kitchen offers up her Top 3 tips on keeping your bike happy - pump your tyres, clean your chain, and take your bike into the shower (really). To hear more from Jenni, check out her podcast ‘Wheel Suckers’.

Finally, our record of the week is ‘Glue’, by Toronto-based band Bernice:

If you’d like to offer your services as a sponsor or Mannbassador, or you'd like to propose a trend challenge for Ollie, a question of sex for Alix, or a guest suggestion for Olly, just fill in our feedback form. 

This week’s show is supported by Harrys. Alix Fox uses their razors on her muff. To get started shaving with Harry’s today, claim your Trial Set for £3.95. It includes a razor handle, 5-blade cartridge, foaming shave gel and travel blade cover – all delivered to your door.

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3/2 - How to Cure Insomnia

Time to turn those sleepless nights around.

Dr Guy Meadows, founder of The Sleep School, is a man on a mission. He wants you to sleep better. Not just if you're one of the 30% of Brits who will, at some point, experience insomnia - but also if you're one of the remaining 70%,  who will, inevitably, spend some nights struggling to get some shut-eye, staring at the ceiling and wishing you were somewhere else.

In this interview with Olly, Guy reveals his tips for changing your mind-set when your brain is racing around and keeping you awake. He advises how to effectively use your smartphone and other light-emitting devices in the bedroom; how to nap effectively; and how to reprogram your master clock to adjust to levels of sleep actually available to you in your busy life.

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Elsewhere in this episode, Ollie Peart tells the strange story of CJ de Mooi, considers the future of the pay-per-minute cafe, and predicts that the demise of Vine may herald a new wave of social network failures.

Meanwhile, in The Foxhole, resident love-guru Alix Fox considers how a listener who gets nauseous near cigarette-smoke can continue satisfying their partner - who has a smoking fetish... 

If you have a question of sex for Alix, remember to send it in here - you can remain totally anonymous if you want. The Foxhole is sponsored by our lovely friends at MyCondom.com, who are offering Mann-Fans a staggering 15% OFF if you use the code FOXHOLE at Checkout.

We end the episode with a cracking new track from Dan Croll. It's called Swim and it's out now on Communion Records:

Remember, if you enjoy the show, you can help keep us going - our ambition is to create a weekly, year-round show - by buying us a beer. If all our listeners committed to buying us just one beer a month, we could do this as our full-time jobs! Imagine! 

But, if you've got no money, but you've got a lot of Mann-love, you could always leave us a review on iTunes.

See You Next Tuesday.