The Anti-Tourist

Chris Moss has travelled the world. From Vancouver to El Salvador, Indonesia to Spitsbergen. But now… he wants you to visit Wolverhampton. Or Harwich. Or Gillingham. Britain’s bypassed towns that perhaps you’ve passed on the train, but never once got off at. In this entertaining chat with Olly, he explains why - after 37 years exploring Argentina and Patagonia - he now finds joy in a canal walk that ends under the M5, and a ham roll in a Victorian pub. How, if we look beyond the ‘crap towns’ stigma and dayglo shopfronts, up at our historic buildings and down at our cobbled streets, the UK’s second-tier conurbations have just as much to offer visitors as their tourist-swamped counterparts. *Chris’s books, Where Tourists Seldom Tread: Postcards from Bypassed Britain, and Lancashire: Exploring the Historic County that Made the Modern World, are out now.*  \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\__ Meanwhile, in the Zeitgeist, the world is ending, and Ollie Peart is READY. Following this Summer's droughts and wildfires, the government wants us all to have a plan. But what kit does a sensible, mid-level prepper actually need? Which foodstuffs can actually survive an apocalypse? And how much loo roll is too much? Our team try out a £30 emergency shelter from Highlander, a wind-up solar radio from Roberts, and a bag of 25-year-shelf-life survival food from Readywise. Yum! *Check out Ollie’s ultimate prep list* HERE*.* \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\__ Elsewhere, down the Foxhole, Alix Fox is exploring ‘Locktober’, the annual challenge in which the nation’s kinksters lock up their knobs in chastity cages and hand over the keys to willing partners. Why is this fetish booming? Is there a safe way to imprison your genitals? And, if the thrill depends on a physical feeling of restriction, is it really ‘chastity’ at all? *The Foxhole is sponsored by Huxi, who offer a 60 day, no questions asked money back guarantee on their delightful range of toys.* *Take a look at* huxi.global *and use our code MANN for 20% Off* \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\__ Finally, our record of the month is a welcome return from Johnny Marr (yes! THE Johnny Marr!), and his defiant single, It’s Time, from his new album The Age of Everything. \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\__ *If you’ve got a letter for Olly, a relationships question for Alix, or a challenge for Ollie, please head to our website (where you can also SUPPORT THE SHOW with donations):* https://modernmann.co.uk *And/or join our Discord* here*.* \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_\__ Thanks for listening - and we’ll see you on November 10th. Presenter: Olly Mann. Contributors: Chris Moss, Alix Fox, Ollie Peart, Johnny Marr. Producer: Matt Hill. Theme Music: ‘Skies Over Cairo’ by Django Django. Artwork: Podcast Discovery. Copyright: Olly Mann / Rethink Audio 2026. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices