The Brighton Babbler
Picking up on the everyday social and political issues – and historic ones too – that impact on lives across Brighton and Hove, the Babbler aims to generate greater awareness of those issues, at a time when existing news coverage in the city sometimes seems to be in retreat. The podcast name may hint at whimsy, but the intent is unashamedly serious.
Episodes
14 episodes
On George Street: the record shop owner
In the second of our series on George Street's independent traders, The Babbler talks to 80-year-old Julian Pelling (pictured, proudly holding some rare Primal Scream vinyl), the proprietor of Fine Records for the past four decades. Sharp-eared...
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Season 1
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Episode 14
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14:15
On George Street: the tattooist
AI looks set to finish off many high streets across the UK, but for now George Street in Hove remains a refreshing 'blast fom the past', attracting shoppers from Brighton and beyond. In (hopefully) the first of a series on the thoroughfare's tr...
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Season 1
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Episode 13
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11:20
Once a biker, always a biker
Feeding a worrying fascination for all things motorcycle-related, this week the Babbler talks to fellow Brighton biker Paul about unhappy Harley riders, law-breaking escapades to Paris, and whether it's really necessary to have more than one bi...
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Season 1
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Episode 12
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26:15
Oh! Darling... next stop London?
The Babbler returns after a short break to quiz budding theatrical impresario and Brighton resident Tommaso di Vincenzo – a contortionist, circus performer and occasional stuntman – on the development of his new stage show ‘Oh! Darling’. But fi...
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Season 1
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Episode 11
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7:41
A very Brighton musical
Opening next month (3-4 May) during the Fringe festival is 'Joan the Musical', a new stage production written and produced by Hannah Doyle and Melanie Bell, and directed by Summer Tewkesbury. In an exclusive interview, writer Hannah talks us th...
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Season 1
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Episode 10
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20:51
Gaza protesters vow to fight on
The story of the BN Three – arrested and fined for a graffiti protest marking the ongoing genocide in Gaza – highlights how fragile established norms of political access and media coverage have become. Maggie Clifford and Mary Stuart, two of th...
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Season 1
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Episode 9
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37:59
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On mods, rockers and knocker boys
Born-and-bred Brightonian Linda Morley, now 84, has led a fascinating life, hard to do justice to in a single podcast, so this episode we're focusing mostly on her abiding passion – riding motorbikes – and her first-hand account of a mods vs ro...
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Season 1
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Episode 8
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29:20
A Victorian tragedy
It was a shocking case of double infanticide, but one that was all too common in the Victorian era, and the defendant's costs were met by public subscription, such was the level of sympathy generated by the trial. Here Liza George talks to Jame...
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Season 1
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Episode 7
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23:46
Why here in Brighton?/3
Two Europeans (not the denizens in the attached photo!) tell the Babbler what living in Brighton means to them, each touching on its indefinable 'vibe'. We chat briefly to Beatrice – originally from the Burgundy region in France, and now thinki...
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Season 1
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Episode 6
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14:31
Alastair Hignell: on sport, memory and city life
We catch up with Alastair Hignell, the former England rugby player, county cricketer and BBC commentator. He shares some Brighton-based highlights from his past career, tells us about his current involvement with the Sporting Memories and Walki...
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Season 1
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Episode 5
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19:10
Side-stand down - a biker's tale
As part of a narrow but select demographic – ageing, male, motorbike-riding petrol-heads living in Hove – the Babbler is heartened to share a garage with French anglophile Bea, a much younger, braver person who delights in going fast. Late last...
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Season 1
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Episode 4
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15:18
A life backstage
In this episode, we hear from Graeme Taylor, whose career in stage management at the Theatre Royal in Brighton lasted more than four decades. In conversation with historian James Gardner, Graeme – now retired – talks about life backstage and th...
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Season 1
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Episode 3
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22:17
Why here in Brighton?/2
In the second episode of our vox pop on life in Brighton, we hear from residents whose observations about 'London-by-the-Sea' stretch back as far as the late 1950s.
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Season 1
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Episode 2
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24:27
Why here in Brighton?/1
Is Brighton genuinely diverse? Has property become too expensive, forcing those who've grown up here to move away? And where do people go to find local news? Is there a Brighton accent? For answers to these and other questions about life in the...
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Season 1
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Episode 1
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32:33
