1/9 - Being Santa Claus

It's beginning to sound a lot like Christmas.

What's it like being Santa Claus? In our Christmas Spectacular episode, Olly meets actor Nigel Harvey, who makes a living playing Father Christmas all year round - and hears about the highs and lows of life inside the iconic red-and-white outfit.

Meanwhile, at the invitation of listener Paul from delicious ice cream cafe Cloud 9, the rest of the team have decamped to Brighton, where Ollie Peart considers Tim Peake's Christmas in space, and Alix Fox presents us with her Christmas-wrapped selection of the year's best sex toys*. Ding dong!

Olly meets Nigel Harvey, aka Celebrity Santa

The Modern Mann team decamp to Brighton. It's Winter, you know. Mum always says to bring your scarf, and your vibrator.

Alix, OIlie, and Ollie sample a delicious Cloud 9 cake with our ACTUAL FACES on it!

That Cloud 9 Manncake in all its glory. #Manncake

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* In case you're keen to try them out, Alix's 2015 pick of the sex toys (SPOILER ALERT!) were: The Womaniser 'sucking' clitoral stimulator from Sh! emporium; The Lester heat-up vibrator by Svakom; The Motorhead Ace of Spades vibrator from Lovehoney, and fizzy cola-flavoured condoms by Pasante.

It's a hell of a show, but we've still got one more episode left in us before this series is done - we'll see you for the 'season finale' - when else, but next Tuesday.

Have a very, very happy Christmas. And, if Santa ends up giving you loads of money and you don't know what to do with it, do consider buying us a beer, won't you? Thanks.

Posted on December 22, 2015 by Olly Mann and filed under Season One and tagged quiz xmas santa christmas.

1/8 - Gambling Nearly Killed Me

'I lost £2,500 in one afternoon'

What was your first bet? £1 on the National Lottery? A tenner on the Grand National? Matt Zarb-Cousin remembers his - because it lead to a cycle of addiction that saw him flutter away over £10,000 in the bookies before his 20th birthday.

In this episode, he joins OIly to tell his story, frankly confronting the nature of addiction, the changing face of the British high street and how a life can fall apart when the stakes are raised.

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If you agree with Matt that fixed odds betting terminals should be limited to £2 a spin, you can find out more about his Stop The FOBTs campaign at The Campaign For Fairer Gambling.

Meanwhile, Ollie Peart is, like everyone else, contemplating the return of Serial. Can the new season possibly compete with the first; the most successful podcast of all time? Also in The Zeitgeist this week, the Disneyfication of The BFG, the 'science' of full stops, and the ever-decreasing age of the computer hacker.

And, in our weekly trip down The Foxhole, Alix Fox investigates the world of 'forniture' (that's furniture you can sleep with, folks), and assists a listener who wants to climax at the same time as his partner, with the aid of a new masturbator for men who suffer from premature ejaculation. If you've got a question of sex for Alix, or anything you'd like to say about the show, just fill in our feedback form.

Thanks so much to everyone who has contributed beer money to help support the show - we really, really appreciate it. Even if you can't afford to send us cold hard cash, please take the time to write us a review on iTunes or tell your friends on Twitter using the hashtag #modernmann. Thanks.

Our musical pick this week is 'Europe Is Lost' by Kate Tempest, out now:

Next week: our Christmas Spectacular!

See You Next Tuesday.

Posted on December 15, 2015 by Olly Mann and filed under Season One and tagged kweku Stu.

1/7 - Picking Up A Partner

'Attraction is Reaction'.

Dating. In this age of Tinder, Grindr, no-strings sex and fourth-wave feminism, it's all got rather complicated.

How do you find someone you want to be with, what do you say to them once you meet them, and where do you take them for a drink?

Dating guru Hayley Quin, of podcast series Attraction HQ, joins Olly to share her five principles of approaching a partner, and her thoughts on the industry of 'pick-up artists' she joined as a ghostwriter for Wayne Elise, Ross Jeffries and others.

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To find out more about Hayley, visit HayleyQuinn.com

Also this week, Ollie Peart delves into The Zeitgeist to consider Mark Zuckerberg's financial planning, Bill Murray's Netflix special, and whether you'd buy your granddad a PornHub giftcard for Christmas. And, down The Foxhole, Alix Fox brings us news of a testicular beauty pageant (really), and has advice for a listener who gets a kick out of looking at ladies' feet - especially in nylon stockings. If you've got a question of sex for Alix, just fill out our Feedback form - you can choose to remain anonymous if you wish.

Finally, a reminder that The Modern Mann Christmas Spectacular is only a fortnight away! If you run a cafe, bar, restaurant, pub or hotel and think you could accomodate the four of us for Christmas lunch on Wednesday 16th December whilst we record our Xmas special in your gaff, drop us a line and tell us why we should come to you. In the meantime, thanks to everyone who has been supporting the show with your beer money - we couldn't make the show without you.

Our musical pick this week is this fine track, 'Sneakers' by Franky Flowers, out now on Turnstile Records. See You Next Tuesday!

Posted on December 8, 2015 by Olly Mann and filed under Season One and tagged sperm seb.

1/6 - Confessions of a Film Extra

Getting paid for killing time with Britney Spears

Olly has Mann-flu, but the show must go on, thanks to the healing powers of Lemsip.

This week he meets Dr Chay Allen - an art historian who paid his way through his phD by working as an extra on shows including 24 and Downton Abbey, and films including The Dark Shadows and Skyfall.

He also, for a brief period, had 10m people convinced he was Britney Spears' beau...

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Chay Allen as companion to Britney Spears in the 'Criminal' video - an image she tweeted out to over 10m of her Followers

Meanwhile, thanks to Producer Matt's ingenuity, the rest of the podcast is recorded in a Ford Mondeo on St Martin's Lane.

In The Zeitgeist, Ollie Peart - himself struck down with S.A.D - applauds a novel approach to Black Friday, loses yet more of his hard-earned cash in Bux, and gets COMPLETELY SUCKED IN by Amazon's drone PR campaign.

Meanwhile, down The Foxhole, our resident love guru Alix Fox has some advice for a horny young dude who is boning so frequently he's resorted to faking his own orgasms. Poor love...

If you'd like to send in a question of sex for Alix, just click on the Feedback form - you can choose to remain completely anonymous if you wish.

Olly's song of the week is 'Let Me Hold You' by Plaitum, out 4th Dec on Wolf Tone.

See you next Tuesday!

Posted on December 1, 2015 by Olly Mann and filed under Season One and tagged Gareth quiz.

1/5 - How To Be A Dad, part 1

Scratch mittens, strained relationships and GP-sanctioned fingering

This week, comedians Stuart Goldsmith and Tom Price join Olly to discuss their impending fatherhood.

What impact will it have on their respective relationships? Why does society appear to offer such a lack of support to men embarking upon their first baby? Do men need to know about the mucus plug?

They discuss all this, plus some bad taste jokes.

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Stuart Goldsmith, Olly Mann and Tom Price. NO IDEA WHAT'S ABOUT TO HIT 'EM.

If you'd like to hear more from Tom and Stu, that's good news because they both do excellent podcasts: in The Comedian's Comedian, Stu interviews a headline comic about their career and creative process; and, in The Leak, Tom and guests look back over a week of topical comedy. Both shows are well worth checking out. Stuart is also on tour next year: dates here.

Elsewhere in this week's show Ollie Peart suggests some inventive new names for David Cameron's plane, reflects upon the death of FHM, and challenges Olly to spend big bucks (well, fifty quid) on Bux. If you've got a future trend for The Zeitgeist, be sure to tweet it to Ollie.

And, down The Foxhole, our resident love guru Alix Fox showcases the work of bi-curious adventurers Skirt Club, and advises a listener who'd like his wife to stick it to him, ever so gently, but a bit more deeply. You'll never think of your bumhole in the same way again. If you'd like to send in a question for Alix, just fill in the Feedback form - you can remain completely anonymous if you wish.

Our song of the week is 'Agape' by Bear's Den, out 10th December on Communion Records:

Presenter: Olly Mann. Contributors: Ollie Peart, Alix Fox. Producer: Matt Hill. Theme Music: 'Skies Over Cairo' by Django Django. Graphic Design: Jenny Robertshaw. Copyright: Olly Mann 2015.