Where were you when.. (ROYAL EDITION)

Cursed Objects

#Society #cursedobjects #Arts #History

36:44

In this episode of the Innovators and Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Amar Bakshi, founder of Shared Studios and Noro, to explore how Amar’s visionary work is redefining human connection through immersive technology. Amar shares the evolution from his original art project, which connected strangers worldwide via life-size video portals installed in locations from New York to Tehran, refugee camps, and universities, to creating Noro’s cutting-edge video conferencing solutions that bridge the gap between virtual meetings and face-to-face interaction. They discuss the inspiration behind his projects, including his personal experiences as a journalist and his grandmother’s story of displacement, highlighting the emotional and cultural impact of authentic human connection. Amar explains the challenges of building a global network in complex political environments, the importance of community-led curation, and leveraging technology to enable deeper trust and collaboration beyond traditional video calls like Zoom. The conversation also covers insights into building company culture, navigating the transition from art to business, raising capital, and how AI and future tech innovations could enhance multilingual communication and intimacy in virtual settings. Amar closes by sharing lessons learned as a founder about balancing commitment with perspective and fostering inclusive, purpose-driven teams. This episode provides a thoughtful look at how technology can create meaningful, serendipitous human connections across borders and industries. Learn more about Amar's work at https://noro.co/ Connect with Amar on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/amarcbakshi/ Think you'd be a great guest on the show? Apply at https://finstratmgmt.com/innovators-investors-podcast/podcast-guest-application/ Want to learn more about Kristian Marquez's work? Check out his website at https://finstratmgmt.com…

2 years ago 52:02

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The desire to feel like you are 'part of history' can turn even the most ardent republican into a flag-waving monarchist shill. So why are we all so desperate to tell subsequent generations that we were 'there' and how does this urge corrode politics? Just in time for the King's Coronation, from our Patreon to main feed, we explore the period of national mourning we recorded in September 2022 following the Queen's death. 9 months have passed, but many of the themes explored in this episode are timeless..

FOR PART ONE OF THE EPISODE, SIGN UP FOR ONLY £4 A MONTH TO LISTEN AND SUPPORT YR FAV CULTURAL HISTORIANS: https://www.patreon.com/posts/73409944

Theme music and production: Mr Beatnick

Artwork: Archie Bashford

88 episodes

Where were you when.. (ROYAL EDITION)

Cursed Objects

17 subscribers

published 2 years ago

MP3•Episode home

FOR PART ONE OF THE EPISODE, SIGN UP FOR ONLY £4 A MONTH TO LISTEN AND SUPPORT YR FAV CULTURAL HISTORIANS: https://www.patreon.com/posts/73409944

Theme music and production: Mr Beatnick

Artwork: Archie Bashford

88 episodes

#Society #cursedobjects #Arts #History

All episodes

Cursed Objects

1
Millennium Tat: New Labour and the Neoliberal Gift-Shop 48:34

7 days ago48:34

48:34

Coming to you LIVE... we are joined by two very special friends of the pod – artist Darren Cullen (aka Spelling Mistakes Cost Lives ) and journalist and author Imogen West-Knights – as they explore the spirit of the millennium via the museum gift shop. New Labour were great proponents of the culture industries, and made admission to the UK’s national museums free in 2001. Did this and grand projects like the Millennium Dome change our relationship with museums? The podcast also explores how the contents of the museum gift shop have changed in the 21st century – and what this might tell us about the evolving nature of consumer capitalism. This event was recorded live as part of the event series connected to the Cursed Objects in Museum Shops exhibition at the Peltz Gallery. The exhibition is FREE and runs until 26th June, Mon-Fri 10am- 8pm. For more information, see here . (You've only got two weeks left to see it!!) About the speakers: Darren Cullen is a satirical artist, illustrator and writer, the creator of the ‘hell’ bus targeting oil companies’ greenwashing, and better known as Spelling Mistakes Costs Lives . In 2019 he co-curated the Museum of Neoliberalism, which was open until 2024. Imogen West-Knights is a freelance journalist and novelist, focusing on culture and politics for the Guardian, NY Times, FT, Slate and others. Her Guardian Long Read on the inside story of the Millennium Dome was published in 2020. With thanks to Jade Bailey for her help on the recording. This event was supported by the Centre for Museum Cultures, Birkbeck.…

Cursed Objects

1
Live show #2: Exhibitionary complex 54:07

5 weeks ago54:07

54:07

Back by popular demand, our second-ever live show!! Dr Kasia Tee and Dan Hancox take you behind the scenes of their recently opened exhibition ‘Cursed Objects in Museum Shops’ at the Peltz Gallery . What does the history of neon signs, Hokusai's The Great Wave off Kanagawa and Lewis Chessmen socks have in common? As ever, expect the answer to be how life under late capitalism is producing some highly questionable tat. Sound production by the amazing Jade Bailey. ——- If you missed this event, don't worry - we have two more coming up! Millennium Tat - Wed 28 May, 7-8.30pm Join Dan and Kasia and two special guests - artist Darren Cullen and writer Imogen West-Knights – as they explore the spirit of the millennium via the museum gift shop. Book your place here . War, Memory and Tat - Wed 11 June, 7-8.30pm Join Kasia, Dan and three special guests – historian Dr Charlotte Lydia Riley, author Luke Turner and curator Kate Clements – as they explore the presence of war in the museum shop. Book your place here . We hope to see some of you IRL in the next two months! And don't worry, the actual full podcasts are going to keep on coming - there will be recordings of the above on your feeds soon, and a new flurry of fresh episodes... For more Cursed Everything: https://www.patreon.com/c/cursedobjects…

Cursed Objects

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Cursed Objects in Museum Shops - live exhibition extravaganza 14:02

7 weeks ago14:02

14:02

To celebrate the launch of our first ever IRL exhibition, Cursed Objects in Museum Shops (2 May-26 June), we have several events coming in May and June. All of them are FREE, all are at Birkbeck Uni, 5 mins from Euston/King's Cross, but booking a place is essential - for full details, see our vibey new website, cursedobjects.co.uk Exhibition private view - Thu 1 May, 6-8pm Book your place here . Cursed Objects Live #2 - Thu 8 May, 7-8.30pm Back by popular demand, this is our second-ever live show, for Birkbeck's Arts Week! Book your place here . Millennium Tat - Wed 28 May, 7-8.30pm Join Dan and Kasia and two special guests - artist Darren Cullen and writer Imogen West-Knights – as they explore the spirit of the millennium via the museum gift shop. Book your place here . War, Memory and Tat - Wed 11 June, 7-8.30pm Join Kasia, Dan and three special guests – historian Dr Charlotte Lydia Riley, author Luke Turner and curator Kate Clements – as they explore the presence of war in the museum shop. Book your place here . We hope to see some of you IRL in the next two months! And don't worry, the actual full podcasts are going to keep on coming - there will be recordings of the above on your feeds soon, and a new flurry of fresh episodes... now that we have a moment to breathe, and the exhibition is finally in place. For more Cursed Everything: https://www.patreon.com/c/cursedobjects…

Cursed Objects

1
Big in Japan 50:09

10 weeks ago50:09

50:09

The Simpsons are going to (have just been to) Japan! And they’re here to tell you about what they did on their holidays – to discuss sustainable Japanese craft techniques, heated toilet seats, and a proliferation of cheap disposable plastic. Here are some of our key findings: Don’t mistreat the indigo vats. Japanese culture is trending. £4 bowls of ramen! (Four pounds Jeremy, that’s insane.) You can find William Morris paper cups in the 100Yen store. A good loquat is hard to find. Kasia wants to meet everyone’s siblings. HUGE NEWS: Cursed Objects in Museum Shops, our first ever IRL exhibition, opens VERY soon. 2 May - 26 June, the Peltz Gallery near Euston station; details here . CURSED OBJECTS LIVE: 8 May 2025, tickets are free, but you need to sign up via our Patreon - only £4 a month! And you get 30+ free bonus episodes - with a lot more new bonus episodes to come (just as soon as the exhibition is in place, and we get a chance to breathe). VISIT OUR NEW WEBSITE! https://cursedobjects.co.uk/ - designed by Sophie Monk.…

Cursed Objects

1
YESisode - Yoko Ono fridge magnet 50:34

17 weeks ago50:34

50:34

YES you can! SI se puede! Say YES to adventures. Say YES to life. Say YES to your boss (however dumb and awful their suggestion!). This week, Kasia and Dan are taking on 21st century positivity culture, YES men and women, Dice men, negative Nancies, toxic white-collar culture, wellness gurus, FOMO, JOMO, YOLO and YOKO (Ono). When did it become culturally hegemonic that you have to say yes to everything? Smile through the pain baby! ""“You miss 100% of the shots you don't take.” - Wayne Gretzky" - Michael Scott" - Dan and Kasia" Sign up to our Patreon NOW to get first ticket news about the live events around our upcoming Cursed Objects exhibition at the Peltz Gallery in May and June ! Theme music: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford…

Cursed Objects

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Straight off the Dome ft. Imogen West-Knights 59:35

21 weeks ago59:35

59:35

Roll-up, roll-up for the biggest tent of all! We’re launching into 2025 with a very special guest, Imogen West-Knights, and an absolutely vast cursed object, containing lots of smaller ones. That’s right, we’re turning the clock back a full quarter of a century to revisit the universal mockery, dodgy sponsors, New Labour hubris, sweet childhood memories, general hilarity, bomb threats and national self-loathing that all came messily, hilariously together to fill the Millennium Dome. At the time, it was viewed as the white elephant that would stomp over all other white elephants, the most embarrassing of political failures – but Imogen’s obsessive reporting on the Dome’s history has turned up a more interesting verdict altogether. Was this the ultimate symbol of the early Blair years, for better and worse? What was the Dome Minister’s deep connection to the 1951 Festival of Britain? What was it actually like to visit the Dome as a child in 2000? Should we all be a bit less cynical about massive projects like this? Just how tacky was it in the end? And what was the true spirit of the Willennium - sorry, millennium? Thanks so much to the brilliant Imogen West-Knights for sharing her worrying level of expertise on the Dome with us – you can read her 2020 Guardian Long Read on the Dome here . And buy her excellent debut novel Deep Down here . She is on BlueSky @ImogenWK . Big thanks to Cursed Objects listener Tilly Hawkins for also suggesting the 'Been there, DOME that' badge for our upcoming installation at the Peltz , and to H.O.M.E for providing a studio - check them out if you're a creative looking for a space to work in London. Theme music: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford…

Cursed Objects

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Cursed Objects on Location! At a Haunted Seaside Hotel 18:10

25 weeks ago18:10

18:10

It's a Spooky Christmas special! This week's Cursed Objects is a little bit less Stuart Hall, and a little bit more Derek Acorah, with an episode recorded on location in St Leonards, from the musty heart of a crumbling royal seaside hotel, ft. spluttering pipes, ancient heaters that smell of burning dust, random insects, rotting sash windows, damp everywhere and a fascinating history. Queen Victoria herself signed the visitors’ book, as Princess of Prussia, no less. Dan and Kasia lean into the weird muzak and faded 1920s glamour and ask, what the hell is going on on the 3rd floor? Could it be MURDER, or HAUNTING? What music do you imagine freemasons listening to? Will Kasia lick the Grade II listed staircase? Will Dan ride down the bannisters? What do Morrissey and Chris Rea have to do with all this? Theme music: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford…

Cursed Objects

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Happy Trad-mas ft. Mr Beatnick and Archie Bashford 1:14:02

26 weeks ago1:14:02

1:14:02

Back by popular demand, it's our annual Christmas party! And this year we’re wrestling with TRADITION. Are you making a list, and checking it twice – just as you always do? Have you demanded figgy pudding from your local landowner – and threatened violence if you don’t get some? Are you hanging up your stockings on the wall with Noddy Holder? What traditions define your Christmas? We’ve got Christmas tree gherkins, obscene Christmas jumpers, schmaltzy John Lewis adverts, and pop songs that make your ears bleed. It truly is the most cursed time of the year! Theme music: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford…

Cursed Objects

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UNLOCKED - Magna Darta dart board 1:02:33

29 weeks ago1:02:33

1:02:33

From Patreon to main feed: Welcome all free-born Englishmen, sovereign citizens, rebel barons and new patrons! We're talking about myths of Englishness, why the state has such a fragile ego, a Covid-denying soft play centre called Cirq-D-Play, and why everyone is obsessed with an 807-year-old legal document that had to be rewritten several times and was then scrapped anyway. Theme music and production: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford…

Cursed Objects

1
Subversive Coffee 14:39

31 weeks ago14:39

14:39

This week, it's a deep dive into a steaming mug of cawfee. Hot java. A cup of Joe. Black gold. This is an episode about "the abominable, heathen-ish liquor" they tried to ban (they really did), and the array of wild political, social, cultural and moral meanings that have been attached to it over the centuries. What is a "sober intoxicant", what do genuine psychonauts make of it, and in what ways is coffee ‘more than a drink’, from its colonial history, to 17th century coffee houses, to its social role today? And then there's this incredibly cursed 21st century mug: what is with this cringeworthy tendency to dress things which are quotidian and ultimately wholesome up as if they are illicit, counter-cultural, or subversive? Where does this ‘Brewdog-coded’ recuperation of transgressive words, behaviours and signs come from? Also: which famous writer swallowed handfuls of ground coffee beans, until it made him sick? Which awful magazines were founded in 18th-century coffee houses? Have you heard of London chain 'Fuckoffee', and do you think we can get it shut down for being the lamest place on earth? Theme music: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford…

Cursed Objects

1
Multitudes - Live From the Crowd! Ft. Hettie O’Brien 17:16

33 weeks ago17:16

17:16

As a Cursed Objects bonus, without an actual cursed object, we present a live recording of Dan in conversation about his brand new book Multitudes: How Crowds Made the Modern World , recorded with friend of the pod, the brilliant journalist Hettie O’Brien at Burley Fisher Books in London on 30 October 2024. Multitudes is out now, you can buy it here , or read various extracts and crowds-related articles on Dan’s substack here . Hettie’s book Diminishing Returns will be published in 2026, and until then, you can read her incredible long reads and other journalism here at The Guardian . **** To listen to the full-length episode, and 30-odd more exclusive episodes – please join our Patreon !! ** ONLY £4 A MONTH TO SUPPORT YOUR FAVOURITE CULTURAL HISTORIANS ** **** Theme music: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford…

Cursed Objects

1
Every Breath You Take ft. Dr Alice Bell 1:08:56

35 weeks ago1:08:56

1:08:56

Air isn't an object, right? Wrong. This week, climate comms expert and historian Dr Alice Bell makes Dan and Kasia think hard about ephemerality via a jam jar of polluted air, captured 'fresh' from the Euston Road in north London. In doing so they explore the history of the climate crisis – where it came from, who covered it up, and when people started noticing we were ruining the only planet we have. Alice leads us through fog, smog and fumes, answering questions like: why were London’s famous “pea-soupers” yellow-tinged (like yellow split-peas), rather than green-tinged? Why was coal dust understood to be a sign of thriving industry and progress? Why did unwell people go to seaside resorts to “take the air”? Which popular English meal was invented purely to give people a social activity indoors, away from the smog? Why have children always been at the forefront of the climate movement, from 1980s episodes of Blue Peter to the school strikes today? What do tobacco and fossil fuel lobbying have in common? Elsewhere, there is talk of Shell: The Musical , whaling ships, Captain Planet, Margaret Thatcher, and an answer to the biggest climate question of all, the one you've all been asking: what does Ludacris have to do with arctic drilling? Dr Alice Bell is Head of Policy for Climate and Health at the Wellcome. Her book ‘Our Biggest Experiment: A History of the Climate Crisis’ (Bloomsbury, 2021) is available now, and is captivating, enlightening stuff - get involved! **** For the full-length episode, and 30-odd more exclusive episodes – please join our Patreon !! ** ONLY £4 A MONTH TO SUPPORT YOUR FAVOURITE CULTURAL HISTORIANS ** **** Theme music: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford…

Cursed Objects

1
Kill the Boss in Your Head 14:30

37 weeks ago14:30

14:30

Is there actually any moral value to hard work? From the Dignity of Labour to CEO Mindset, Girlbossing and Instagram Hustle propaganda, our entire culture is full of messages that working hard and 'loving what you do' will make you a good person. Aspiring idlers Kasia and Dan are here to tell you why that's wrong. Prompted in part by the Wellcome Collection's new 'Hard Graft' exhibition, we discuss bullshit jobs, proper binmen, modern slavery, and the horrifying frequency with which people are injured, maimed and killed in their line of work, from children in 19th century cotton mills, to exploited migrant workers and climate-related heat deaths in the 21st century. More light-heartedly, we discuss our most hated teenage jobs, and what the ideal length for a working week would be - 2 days? 3 days? What happened when Pret told their workers they needed to show they "aren't just here for the money"? And why does Keir Starmer think that workers and their bosses are 'on the same side'? Some links, as promised: The Four Yorkshiremen sketch Who remembers Proper Binmen? David Graeber's Bullshit Jobs Sarah Jaffe's Work Won't Love You Back Paul Myerscough on Pret and affective labour Please watch the amazing film Office Space ! *** For the full-length episode, and 30-odd more exclusive episodes – please join our Patreon !! ** ONLY £4 A MONTH TO SUPPORT YOUR FAVOURITE CULTURAL HISTORIANS ** **** Theme music: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford…

Cursed Objects

1
Crap Towns and Caffs (not Cafes) ft. Isaac Rangaswami 46:42

39 weeks ago46:42

46:42

The early 2000s were a fever dream: why was pop culture so mean ? Specifically, why was it acceptable to write off entire cities - and the people within them - as crap? This is the question posed by our special guest Isaac Rangaswami, journalist, writer and brains behind Instagram sensation Caffs not Cafes . Isaac’s object is the wildly popular 2003 book Crap Towns , something about half of Britain received that year as a Christmas stocking filler. How did something so cursed - so unpleasant - end up as a national publishing sensation? Were our brains all fried by lads mags, New Labour and tabloid journalism? And how did the miserably classist, sexist pop culture of the 90s and early 2000s shape a new generation of writers and social media users, to reject negative stereotypes and embrace the beauty of everyday spaces... even when they are a bit rubbish? Follow Isaac's excellent new Substack Wooden City , and his Instagram account Caffs not cafes (if you haven't already). For first news and first dibs on tickets for the next live event – as well as the full-length episode! – please join our Patreon !! ** ONLY £4 A MONTH TO SUPPORT YOUR FAVOURITE CULTURAL HISTORIANS ** Theme music: Mr Beatnick Artwork: Archie Bashford Special thanks also to Alex Rees, for helping to face audio gremlins.…

Cursed Objects

1
Airbnb: Prints of Thieves 18:40

41 weeks ago18:40