Heading 1

‍A second round of the articles, podcasts, books and videos that have sparked something in us and might do the same for you.

Curated to inspire fresh thinking, fuel creativity, and keep you moving forward.

Dive in and learn something new.

‍

On sportswashing and football as a geopolitical weapon 

• A fascinating listen about how the geopolitics of modern football and how the term sportswashing is maybe not strong enough for the hard global power that some states want to buy with football sponsorship. 
• Listen to Miguel Delaney talk about how football has become a geopolitical weapon [link]‍

On curiosity and a drive for true innovation 

• From Newcastle Polytechnic to creating the iMac. This episode of Desert Island Discs with Jony Ive is remarkable for how understated he is, how considered his opinions are and the drive needed for true innovation. 
• Listen to what Jony Ive would take to a Desert Island [link] 

On how failing is part of the journey to creative success 

• Stanley Donwood went to university with Thom Yorke and ended up making most of the artwork for Radiohead’s albums. 
• Read about the creative process [link] 

 On how mosquitos might save lives 

• Some estimates say that of the 100 billion people who have ever lived on earth, half have been killed by diseases carried by mosquitos. But what if they carried something else? This fascinating episode from a new podcast series from the Wellcome Collection which explores a programme in Colombia that is using mosquitos to carry natural bacteria as part of a disease prevention programme for humans. 
• Listen to this podcast with Professor Scott O’Neill [link] 

 On when you need to take that big scary leap 

• Within 42 days of writing the first poem in this collection, the author left a man who wanted to marry her, sold her house, quit her job, packed her two cats and all her books and drove west until she hit Oregon. She puts this down to the power of writing and of taking a big scary leap. 
• Read some extracts from Joy Sullivan’s Instructions for Traveling West [link] 

 On using AI to reconnect with people you never knew 

• Read and watch how AI tools can change how you conceive the people you never knew. [link] 

 On if TV is dead 

• The discussion at the start of this episode has so much resonance for creative agencies and anybody looking to reach people with their messaging – on the future of TV and how the move to other platforms might be quicker than we think. 
• Watch the whole episode [link] 

 On making people smile 

• For a more positive view on the future of TV, this Thinkbox TV Trends event is worth rewatching. Not least for the observation that really advertising is often just trying to make people smile. 
• Watch the event [link] 

 On how AI is still dumb now (but won’t be in the future) 

• François Chollet argues that AI currently has a much better memory than a human, and that Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) will be a huge step on from this. 
• Read how François Chollet sees the development of AI, but also the value of cognitive diversity that humans can bring. [link] 

 On vulnerability and how we show up 

• Vulnerability can be seen as a weakness, but when you have the power to show up and be seen when you have no control over the outcome, it can change for the better how others see you. 
• Watch Brené Brown on the power of vulnerability [link] 

 On controversial ideas 

• An academic journal that welcomes controversial opinions, but holds them to the same rigorous standards as peer reviewed articles. We form our opinions best when we are exposed to a range of views - this is definitely worth your time. 
• Read a back catalogue of controversial opinions [link] 

 Finally, four things to enjoy, from TV to museums: 

‍

 On TV 

• Amandaland on the BBC is definitely worth your time. A brilliant cast, hilarious, and proves that the sequel can be as good as the original. 
• Watch on BBC iPlayer [link] 

 At the Cinema 

• It’s a police procedural and a complex murder case. But it’s more about Hindu-Muslim tensions, caste discrimination and entrenched misogyny. 
• Watch Santosh if you can catch it in the cinema [link] 

 At the theatre 

• The play for everybody who’s ever spent too long debating punctuation the night before a pitch. But arguably in a context that matters much more – the future of the planet. 
• Kyoto is at Sohoplace until 3 May [link] 

 At the museum 

• This exhibition at Tate Britain captures the social changes, economic changes, and political changes in the 80s.
• See the exhibition at Tate Britain until 5 May [link]