Best Chris Wakefield Podcasts (2025)

1
698 Dante in Love (with Ellen Nerenberg and Anthony Valerio) [Ad-Free Archive Edition] 1:05:26

4d ago1:05:26

1:05:26

It's springtime! A great time to be in love - and if you're a poetic genius like Dante Alighieri, a great time to catch a glimpse of a girl named Beatrice on the streets of Florence, fall madly in love with her, and spend the rest of your life beatifying her in verse. In this episode, we present a conversation that first aired in February 2018, in …

1
Slowly bringing the NHS into the future – Jing Ouyang, co-founder, Patchwork Health 33:18

5d ago33:18

33:18

Jing Ouyang, co-founder and chief growth officer of Patchwork Health discusses the political pressure on health services to streamline operations, the difficulty in digitising NHS clinics and leaving a career as a medical doctor to launch a tech startup. Patchwork Health is a digital platform for clinics to manage day-to-day operations, organise wo…

1
697 Race in European Fairy Tales (with Kimberly Lau) | My Last Book with Rolf Hellebust 1:21:03

7d ago1:21:03

1:21:03

Anyone digging into fairy tales soon discovers that there's more to these stories of magic and wonder than meets the eye. Often thought of as stories for children, the narratives can be shockingly violent, and they sometimes deliver messages or "morals" at odds with modern sensibilities. In this episode, Jacke talks to Kimberly Lau about her book S…

1
696 John Ruskin (with Sara Atwood) | My Last Book with Collin Jennings 1:00:25

10d ago1:00:25

1:00:25

John Ruskin (1819-1900) was a powerhouse of a man: writer, lecturer, critic, social reformer - and much else besides. From his five-volume work Modern Painters through his late writings about literature in Fiction, Fair and Foul, he brought to his subjects an energy and integrity that few critical thinkers have matched. His wide-ranging influence r…

1
The long road ahead for British AI – Jonathan Berry, former AI minister 32:23

13d ago32:23

32:23

Jonathan Berry, Viscount Camrose and former Conservative AI minister, discusses how artificial intelligence policy has changed with the Labour government, why the work it must do is difficult but necessary and why clarity on AI regulation is vital for businesses. Berry is a hereditary peer in the House of Lords and served as the minister responsibl…

1
695 Ten Indian Classics (with Sharmila Sen) | My Last Book with Adam Smyth 1:03:57

14d ago1:03:57

1:03:57

For the past ten years, the Murty Classical Library of India (published by Harvard University Press) has sought to do for classic Indian works what the famous Loeb Classical Library has done for Ancient Greek and Roman texts. In this episode, Jacke talks to editorial director Sharmila Sen about the joys and challenges of sifting through thousands o…

1
694 Apocalyptic Literature (with Dorian Lynskey) | My Last Book with Charles Baxter 1:07:02

18d ago1:07:02

1:07:02

For some reason, human beings don't seem to be content just thinking about their own death: they insist on imagining the end of the entire world. In this episode, Jacke talks to author Dorian Lynskey (Everything Must Go: The Stories We Tell About the End of the World), who immersed himself in apocalyptic films and literature to discover exactly wha…

1
EMERGENCY SPECIAL New Universal Studios Theme Park For UK | E-Ticket Report 46:28

17d ago46:28

46:28

Welcome theme park fans! *WARNING: This podcast uses strong language. This is a Special EMERGENCY Report, breaking news as of yesterday Universal Destinations & Experiences announced plans to build and operate the first Universal theme park and resort in Europe. This is specifically located in Bedford. We get right to the meat, will this park be a …

1
Democratising access to youth mental health – Manjul Rathee, CEO, BfB Labs 32:19

20d ago32:19

32:19

Manjul Rathee, co-founder and CEO of BfB Labs, discusses the importance of providing broad access to mental health services to as many young people, the value of maintaining commitments to diversity, equity and inclusion and how the success of Adolescence has highlighted the anxieties families have around how children access the internet. BfB Labs …

1
E-Ticket Report Episode 97: Cruise Control 1:18:32

20d ago1:18:32

1:18:32

Welcome theme park fans! *WARNING: This podcast uses strong language. We start this episode with a discussion on this weekend's media previews of Universal Epic Universe and the controversy surrounding it. Chris has another cruise report from the Disney Magic, and goes on several rants regarding Disney's extra hurdles preventing you from enjoying y…

1
693 Understanding the Wonders of Nature (with Alan Lightman) | My Last Book with Alan Lightman 1:00:13

21d ago1:00:13

1:00:13

In today's world of specialization, Alan Lightman is that rare individual who has accomplished remarkable things in two very different realms. As a physicist with a Ph.D. from Cal Tech, he's taught at Harvard and MIT and advised the United Nations. As a novelist, he's written award-winning bestsellers like Einstein's Dreams and The Diagnosis. In th…

1
692 An Investigation in Chinatown (with Radha Vatsal) | The Five Books (with Tali Rosenblatt-Cohen) 1:02:57

25d ago1:02:57

1:02:57

It's a two-for-one special! First, Jacke talks to novelist Radha Vatsal about her new book, No. 10 Doyers Street, which tells the gripping story of an Indian woman journalist investigating a bloody shooting in New York's Chinatown circa 1907. Then podcaster Tali Rosenblatt-Cohen stops by to discuss her experience hosting The Five Books, which asks …

1
The crushing disappointment of the collapse of tech ideals – Chris Anderson, TED 30:53

27d ago30:53

30:53

Chris Anderson, head of TED, discusses why the collapse of the ideals of the tech industry over the last 15 years, embodied by the behaviour Elon Musk, represents a crushing disappointment. Anderson took over TED – which hosts viral talks at its conferences – from its founder Richard Saul Wurman in 2000. He turned the business into a non-profit and…

1
691 The Making of Sylvia Plath (with Carl Rollyson) | My Last Book with Cheryl Hopson 1:04:05

28d ago1:04:05

1:04:05

Since her death, poet and novelist Sylvia Plath (1932-1963) has been an endless source of fascination for fans of her and her work. But while much attention has been paid to her tumultuous relationship with fellow poet Ted Hughes, we often overlook the influences that formed her, long before she traveled to England and met Hughes. What movies did s…

1
690 Coleridge and the Person from Porlock [Ad-Free] 1:06:26

1M ago1:06:26

1:06:26

[This episode originally ran on July 18, 2016. It is presented here without commercial interruption.] In 1797, the poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge took two grains of opium and fell into a stupor. When he awoke, he had in his head the remnants of a marvelous dream, a vivid train of images of the Chinese emperor Kubla Khan and his summer palace, Xanadu.…

1
Managing a startup and a family – Louise Webster, Beyond the School Run, founder 30:56

1M ago30:56

30:56

Louise Webster, founder of Beyond the School Run, discusses the challenges of balancing parenthood with launching a business, why parents need to be given resources and support to ensure they can thrive as entrepreneurs and how Covid radically reshaped the world of work for the better. Beyond the School Run is a network for parent entrepreneurs off…

1
E-Ticket Report Episode 96: Universal Epic Universe Preview feat. Alicia Stella 1:52:11

1M ago1:52:11

1:52:11

Welcome theme park fans! *WARNING: This podcast uses strong language. *SPOILERS: We talk about specific details inside Universal Epic Universe you may not want to know until visiting yourself! We are joined by Alicia Stella of Theme Park Stop and author of the Unofficial Guide to Universal Orlando 2025, who went to Universal Epic Universe and she s…

1
689 Thomas Kyd (with Brian Vickers) | My Last Book with Jonathan D.S. Schroeder 47:28

1M ago47:28

47:28

For centuries, the playwright Thomas Kyd has been best known as the author of The Spanish Tragedy, a terrific story of revenge believed to have strongly influenced Shakespeare's Hamlet. And yet, a contemporary referred to Kyd as "industrious Kyd." What happened to the rest of his plays? In this episode, Jacke talks to scholar Brian Vickers about hi…

1
From ZERO to HERO With Roger Wakefield 53:27

1M ago53:27

53:27

On this episode of Profit Roadmap, plumbing industry expert and entrepreneur Roger Wakefield shares his incredible journey from a traditional plumber to a successful business owner leveraging YouTube and social media for marketing. He talks about the importance of organic SEO, consistency in content creation, and the mindset of abundance in busines…

1
688 Georges Simenon 1:05:36

1M ago1:05:36

1:05:36

The Belgian-born French writer Georges Simenon (1903-1989) was astonishing for his literary ambition and output. The author of something like 400 novels, which he wrote in 7-10 day bursts (after checking with his physician beforehand to ensure that he could handle the strain), he's perhaps best known for his creation of Chief Inspector Jules Maigre…

1
Catching UK tech up with the States – Tej Kohli, investor and philanthropist 30:38

1M ago30:38

30:38

Tej Kohli, billionaire investor and philanthropist, discusses why he's most excited by the future of esports, biotech and artificial general intelligence, how the UK lacks the collaborative culture between academia and business seen in the US and why Elon Musk should stick to tech and avoid unelected government work. Kohli is the founder of the inv…

1
687 Gatsby Turns 100 (with James West) 53:29

1M ago53:29

53:29

"I want to write something new," American author F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote in a letter to his editor, "something extraordinary and beautiful and simple and intricately patterned." Months later, he presented the results: the novel that would eventually be titled The Great Gatsby. Published in 1925 to middling success, the book has since become a can…

1
686 Russian Poetry After the Cold War (with Stephanie Sandler) 55:32

2M ago55:32

55:32

For decades, the Soviet Union was unfriendly territory for poets and writers. But what happened when the wall fell? Emerging from the underground, the poets reacted with a creative outpouring that responded to a brave new world. In this episode, Jacke talks to Russian poetry scholar Stephanie Sandler about her new book The Freest Speech in Russia: …

1
Open source in a capitalist world – Martin Woodward, VP, Github 30:59

2M ago30:59

30:59

Martin Woodward, vice president of developer relations at Github, discusses how the benefits of open source culture still exist in a hyper-capitalist society, but tech has moved away from the idealism of early open source, what the future of software development might look like and way coders don't necessarily have to be afraid that AI will take th…

1
685 Charles Chesnutt (with Tess Chakkalakal) | My Last Book with John Goodby 1:01:41

2M ago1:01:41

1:01:41

Complex and talented, Charles W. Chesnutt (1858-1932) was one of the first American authors to write for both Black and white readers. Born in Cleveland to "mixed race" parents, Chesnutt rejected the opportunity to "pass" as white, instead remaining in the Black community throughout his life. His life in the South during Reconstruction, and his kno…

1
684 The Minister's Black Veil by Nathaniel Hawthorne (with Mike Palindrome) 1:29:36

2M ago1:29:36

1:29:36

What happens when a respected church leader shows up one day wearing a mysterious veil that conceals his eyes, offering no explanation - and keeps wearing it for decades? How will the community respond? What conspiracy theories will they develop? And how will an author like Nathaniel Hawthorne, writing a hundred years later, spin a New England sin-…

1
Q1 2025 Field Services Industry News With Ryan Yelvington 11:08

2M ago11:08

11:08

Welcome to the Profit Roadmap, where we interview experts to help you grow your field service business. In this episode, our host, Ryan Yelvington, will be jumping into the latest field service industry news that’s been happening in the first quarter of 2025. Ryan will give you the latest rundown on the biggest key topics shaping the industry right…

1
Standardising artificial intelligence – Susan Taylor Martin, CEO, BSI 32:36

2M ago32:36

32:36

Susan Taylor Martin, CEO of the British Standards Institution, discusses the need to offer businesses meaningful standards of how to use AI ahead of any binding legislation and the unenviable challenge of coordinating AI regulation across international borders and changing administrations. The British Standards Institution (BSI) is a more than a ce…

1
683 Marianne Moore (with Cristanne Miller) 1:12:13

2M ago1:12:13

1:12:13

Marianne Moore (1887-1972) achieved something rare in American letters: a modernist poet who was popular with both critics and the public. Famous for her formal innovation, precise diction, and wit - as well as her black tri-corner hat and cloak, which she wore as she dashed around Manhattan - she was lauded by T.S. Eliot (and numerous prize commit…

1
682 The Profound Wisdom of Black Life and Literature (with Farah Jasmine Griffin) [Ad-Free Re-Release] 58:55

2M ago58:55

58:55

As America closes out this year's Black History Month, Jacke dives into the archives for one of his favorite episodes, which featured a conversation with Columbia University professor Farah Jasmine Griffin about her book Read Until You Understand: The Profound Wisdom of Black Life and Literature. PLUS friend of the show Scott Carter stops by to tal…

1
The time has come to modernise lending – Michelle He, Abound 29:48

2M ago29:48

29:48

Michelle He, co-founder and COO of London-based fintech Abound, discusses how companies like hers are modernising the lending industry, why the UK is the best place in the world for an Open Banking startup and why the future has room for fintechs and traditional finance. Abound provides credit products to underserved communities, those without stro…

1
681 The Jolly Corner by Henry James - Part 3 | My Last Book by Colm Tóibín 56:02

2M ago56:02

56:02

It's the conclusion to "The Jolly Corner"! Spencer Brydon lived in Europe for 33 years (as did his creator, Henry James) before returning to his childhood home in New York City. Europe has changed him - and he can't help thinking, as he observes a highly transformed New York, that he'd have been a very different person had he stayed in America duri…

1
680 The Jolly Corner by Henry James - Part 2 1:16:34

2M ago1:16:34

1:16:34

After spending decades in Europe, the American Henry James felt haunted by the idea that he'd given up something essential. Inspired by a trip home to New York City, the place of his birth, he wrote an astonishing story about a man who creeps through his childhood home late at night, searching for ghosts, and one in particular he's desperate to see…

1
The rise of the AI audit – Vidya Peters, CEO, DataSnipper 28:59

2M ago28:59

28:59

Vidya Peters, CEO of DataSnipper, discusses how artificial intelligence is changing the age-old profession of auditing, why it's good to be sceptical of grand government announcements, but there is genuine excitement around Labour's AI plans and why European founders should look beyond their borders when fundraising. DataSnipper provides audit and …

1
679 The Jolly Corner by Henry James - Part 1 1:15:52

2M ago1:15:52

1:15:52

Although the writer Henry James (1843-1916) was born in New York City's Washington Square, he spent most of his adulthood in Europe, where he wrote such masterpieces as The Portrait of a Lady, The Wings of the Dove, and The Golden Bowl. Late in life, he returned to New York after a thirty-three year absence to find the city much transformed, as sky…

1
Boosting Cash Flow With Heather Price and Jonathan Novoa-Miralles 50:52

2M ago50:52

50:52

Welcome to another episode of the Profit Roadmap, where we interview experts to help you grow your field service business. In this episode, we're diving into payment processing, growth strategies, and operational efficiency with Heather Price and Jonathan Novoa-Miralles from Xplor Pay (Clearent by Xplor). Also joining us in this episode is special …

1
678 Fernando Pessoa (with Bartholomew Ryan) | My Last Book with Robin Waterfield 1:09:28

2M ago1:09:28

1:09:28

Jacke's been trying to come to grips with Portuguese modernist poet Fernando Pessoa ever since Harold Bloom named him one of the 26 most influential writers in the entire Western canon. But it's not easy! As a young man, Pessoa wanted to be, in his words, "plural like the universe," and he carried this out in his poetry: writing verse in the style …

1
The critical future of Britain’s data centres - Dawn Childs, Pure Data Centres Group 29:42

3M ago29:42

29:42

Dame Dawn Childs, CEO of Pure Data Centres Group, discusses the significance of the government’s decision to designate data centres as critical national infrastructure, the potential for the green energy transition to be supported, not hindered, by the power demands of AI and why Britain needs more engineers. Pure Data Centres Group designs, builds…

1
677 Dylan Thomas (with John Goodby) | Emily Brontë and the Search for Hope 1:07:50

3M ago1:07:50

1:07:50

Dylan Thomas: brilliant poet or self-indulgent blowhard? In this episode, Jacke talks to John Goodby, co-author of the biography Dylan Thomas: A Critical Life, about the misconceptions swirling around the famous Welsh poet, and the approach that he and fellow author Chris Wigginton took in presenting a revealing and fresh introduction to Thomas's l…

1
676 "Mrs Spring Fragrance" by Sui Sin Far (with Mike Palindrome) 1:25:52

3M ago1:25:52

1:25:52

Mike Palindrome, the President of the Literature Supporters Club, joins Jacke for a reading and discussion of "Mrs. Spring Fragrance" by Sui Sin Far. The story, which takes place against a backdrop of waves of immigration to America in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries (and the racist anti-Asian laws that followed), depicts an enterprisi…

1
Do tech firms really need more masculinity? - Viv Paxinos, AllBright CEO 29:19

3M ago29:19

29:19

DEI is under attack. US President Donald Trump has begun a crusade to strip diversity policies from government institutions, while senior tech leaders like Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg have called for workplaces to become ‘more masculine’ despite the fact that the social media giant’s workforce is already male-dominated. Is now really the time to tear up…

1
675 Zora Neale Hurston (with Cheryl Hopson) | Jack Kerouac's Newly Discovered Writings 1:10:18

3M ago1:10:18

1:10:18

Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960) was the most published African American woman writer of the first half of the twentieth century; her signature novel Their Eyes Were Watching God is still read by students, scholars, and literature lovers everywhere. In this episode, Jacke talks to Hurston biographer Cheryl R. Hopson (Zora Neale Hurston: A Critical Li…

1
674 Nabokov vs Freud (with Joshua Ferris) [Ad-Free Re-Release] 51:13

3M ago51:13

51:13

“I admire Freud greatly,” the novelist Vladimir Nabokov once said, “as a comic writer.” For Nabokov, Sigmund Freud was “the Viennese witch-doctor,” objectionable for “the vulgar, shabby, fundamentally medieval world” of his ideas. Author Joshua Ferris (The Dinner Party, Then We Came to the End) joins Jacke for a discussion of the author of Lolita a…

1
Achieving Profitable Growth in Your Service Business With Jason Noel 50:53

3M ago50:53

50:53

Welcome to another episode of the Profit Roadmap, where we interview experts to help you grow your field service business. In this episode, we're diving into financial planning and business profitability with Jason Noel, a master advisor for CEO Warrior with over 20 years of leadership experience in the home service industry. Also joining us in thi…

1
Should the UK import AI from abroad? - Brian Mullins, CEO, Mind Foundry 27:28

3M ago27:28

27:28

Brian Mullins, CEO of AI firm Mind Foundry, looks at the ethics of using AI, from how the technology should be used with precision in high-risk scenarios, as well as the economic implications of the US dominance of the industry. Oxford-based Mind Foundry was setup to create AI responsibly from trusted scientific principles, aligning AI with human v…

1
673 Edna Ferber (with Julie Gilbert) | My Last Book with Jessica Kirzane 1:04:39

3M ago1:04:39

1:04:39

Novelist and playwright Edna Ferber (1885-1968) lived a wondrous life: residing in Manhattan as a member of the famed Algonquin Round Table, writing a Pulitzer Prize-winning novel (So Big), and producing works that Hollywood turned into twentieth-century classics, including the Kern & Hammerstein musical Show Boat and George Stevens's Giant, starri…

1
672 The Little Review (with Holly A. Baggett) | My Last Book with Phil Jones 58:43

3M ago58:43

58:43

Founded in Chicago in 1914, the avant-garde journal the Little Review became a giant in the cause of modernism, publishing literature and art by luminaries such as T.S. Eliot, Djuna Barnes, William Butler Yeats, James Joyce, Ezra Pound, Pablo Picasso, Max Ernst, Gertrude Stein, Jean Toomer, William Carlos Williams, H.D., Amy Lowell, Marcel Duchamp,…

1
Could the UK lead the world in quantum computing? - Dr Chris Ballance, founder, Oxford Ionics 27:50

3M ago27:50

27:50

Dr Chris Ballance, founder and CEO of Oxford Ionics, discusses how the UK has the chance to build a competitive edge in the development of quantum computing, and shares how his love of experimentation dates back to his early escapades as a pupil at school. Founded in 2019, Oxford Ionics raised £30m in a Series A funding round in 2023. In September,…

1
671 Shakespeare's Tragic Art (with Rhodri Lewis) | My Last Book with Joel Warner 1:00:06

3M ago1:00:06

1:00:06

It is a truth universally acknowledged that tragedy is one of the world's highest art forms, and that Shakespeare was one of the form's greatest practitioners. But how did he do it? What models did he have to draw upon, and where did he innovate? In this episode, Jacke talks to Shakespeare scholar Rhodri Lewis about his new book Shakespeare's Tragi…

1
670 The Parable 1:43:02

3M ago1:43:02

1:43:02

Inspired by an email (from a listener?) with mysterious origins, Jacke takes a look at the brief narrative form the parable. How did parables get their name? What are their key features? Why did Jesus rely on them so heavily to communicate to his listeners? And what meaning does "A Parable" have for us today? Additional listening: 634 The Bible: A …

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Chris Wakefield Podcasts

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