I enjoy reading about what other people like, so I’ve put a few of my own favourite things here to share. They are interspersed with images of places by the sea that I find restorative.
Books
Maenporth Beach, near Falmouth
Stoner by John Williams, Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga, Before She Met Me by Julian Barnes, The Age of Innocence by Edith Wharton, Everything Must Change by Grahame Davies (also available in Welsh as Rhaid I Bopeth Newid), In Gratitude by Jenny Diski.
I read a lot of campus novels, and I am interested in self-help books, both practically and as a springboard for thinking about the notion of the self, people, different values and worldviews.
For study, work and pleasure I read novels, academic books, theory/non-fiction, journalism, poetry, autobiography, and short stories – those listed here are a few that are special to me.
Poets
Barmouth beach, north Wales
My favourite poets include Adrian Mitchell, Kate Baer, Salena Godden, Linton Kwesi Johnson and Rachel Long.
Movies and Television
Harlech Beach in north Wales, where I grew up
My most memorable and enjoyable movies include Faces Places, Starred Up, North by Northwest (one I like to watch with my dad), Arrival, Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, Parasite, Local Hero (another I watch with my dad), Legally Blonde, Appropriate Behaviour and Twin Town. Television series I adore include Please Like Me, Atlanta, Succession, How to Get Away With Murder, Top of the Lake, The Good Wife, Deadloch, Queer as Folk, The Good Fight, Ray Donovan, Ted Lasso, Bosch, Community, Ballers, Insecure, Veep, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Baby, and, always, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
Sounds
This photo was taken in the centre of Falmouth, the town I now call home
I often like the quiet or the company of the BBC World Service. Musicians I love include Sea Wolf, Kendrick Lamar, Young Fathers, Leon Bridges, Somebody Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin, Jidenna (especially to run to), The National, Villagers, Sufjan Stevens, M.I.A., Waxahatchee and Aidan Moffat. In my younger years I was a contender for world’s greatest Placebo fan. I still adore them.
My favourite podcasts include Dissect, unladylike, and Climate Crisis Conversations, as well as The Squiggly Careers Podcast. I enjoy Wiser Than Me and Intermittent Fasting Stories for their focus on individual people’s lives. I get so much parenting and life advice from these podcasts and they have informed my approach to co-hosting The Death Studies Podcast, which focuses on individual scholars and practitioners and their knowledge and experiences.