There’s not a lot of TV I want to watch at the moment, so I’ve got into the habit of putting YouTube on in the evening. It’s usually just background noise as I get on with my life, but sometimes I get absorbed in something fascinating.
So if you want to fall down some internet rabbit holes and watch something you might not have otherwise considered, check out the following vids that I’ve devoured this week.
I Investigated Ads On Illegal Websites by Quinten Hyde
I am a sucker for a geeky rabbit hole, and when it’s also roughly pointless, its appeal gets even stronger.
I couldn’t get enough of this pair investigating what the deal was with the strange ads they found on illegal websites. They focused on one ad that declared a random Wetherspoons in Edinburgh the best place to hook up, and followed a range of threads to try and work out what on earth was going on.
It was surprisingly compelling viewing!
Harry Styles & Thom Yorke | Musicians on Musicians by Rolling Stone
Two men, two wildly different musical phenomena, are put in a room and talk for an hour. The result is a fascinating and funny conversation with two musicians who clearly respect each other and are eloquent, funny and self-deprecating.
Gently teasing each other, we see a side of these men that we might otherwise overlook. I’m much more Radiohead than I am One Direction, but I adored Harry Styles in this conversation, and found him utterly charming.
I heard about this interview through a series of Instagram posts by Charlie Bowers that teased how wonderful the conversation might be. And it was.
Why Nudibranchs Are Impressively Good at Existing by Real Science
Nudibranchs are incredible, other-worldly creatures. They are exquisitely weird and beautiful, and this video looks into some of how they became the creatures they are, and the purpose of some of their particularly odd features.
Odd and wonderful and pretty and bizarre, and actually real. In the sea as I type. Mind blowing.
Why Successful Artists Start Painting Larger (Hint: It’s Not What You Think) by Contemporary Art Issue
If you’d asked me why artists often start painting larger and larger pieces of work as they gain in success, I’d have guessed that it was that they could afford bigger canvasses, and that they had grown in the confidence and skills needed to do so.
But, it turns out, it’s more complicated than that. Isn’t it always more complicated “than that”?!
I loved this insight into an artist’s process and progress, and it introduced me to new ideas and concepts.
Russell Brand: Trial By Podcast by The Rest Is Entertainment
There is a prominent criminal trial taking place in the UK, where Russell Brand is the accused. Many people, accustomed to lurid coverage of American trials, may be confused by the lack of speculation and intense discussion of Brand’s trial in the UK.
The fact is that Contempt of Court laws in the UK are incredibly strict and any speculation could result in criminal charges for those doing the speculating. The wrong thing said by the wrong person could even lead to the collapse of the trial, which would be onerous for all involved.
Marina Hyde is an experienced journalist and in this video she talks about the proliferation of (very, very carefully worded) UK podcasts that are now covering occasional criminal trials, the difficulties in doing so, and the decline of traditional court reporting.
It’s an interesting discussion for me as a journalist, but also for the public who may be wondering why nobody in the UK press is talking openly about what they think about this celebrity’s case.