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Monstrosities Mon Amour

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by John Grindrod

19 episodes
Updated Bi-weekly
Accepts GuestsHas SponsorsLocation 🇬🇧
19

Podcast Authority

Beta
PoorBased on show quality, social media presence, reviews, charts, and more
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Quality19
Social91
YouTube0
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Podcast Overview

Monstrosities Mon Amour celebrates places and things that have been unfairly dismissed. Host John Grindrod (author of Tales of the Suburbs and Concretopia) is your excitable guide to a world beyond the lazy stereotypes of crap towns and guilty pleasures. He meets people who share their enthusiasm for monsters major and minor, places that get a bad press and cultural artefacts that need to be rescued from the bin. ‘Warmly, welcomingly geeky.’ Observer ‘A genuine celebration of places and culture it’s all too easy to dismiss.’ Radio Times Theme tune by Lorna Rees and Rufus Rees Coshan. Logo by Richard de Pesando. You can support the podcast by subscribing through Substack or https://ko-fi.com/grindrod. Thank you for listening. <br/><br/><a href="https://johngrindrod.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast">johngrindrod.substack.com</a>

Language

🇺🇲

Publishing Since

12/26/2024

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19

Podcast Authority

Beta
PoorBased on show quality, social media presence, reviews, charts, and more
Pod Engine
Quality19
Social91
YouTube0
Engagement0
Learn more
5
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2
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12
Growth Opportunities
excellent
Episode Length
30 minutes
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good
Show Notes Quality
3.0/5

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Recent Episodes

Episode thumbnail for Monstrosities Mon Amour: The Great Wall of Kidderminster with Mike Parker

July 8, 2026

Monstrosities Mon Amour: The Great Wall of Kidderminster with Mike Parker

<p><strong>Kidnapped once more in an Austin Maxi, I find myself in the Land of Mid – Kidderminster, to be precise, admiring its largely unheralded William Mitchell artwork, the Great Wall.</strong></p><p>Travel writer Mike Parker hails from Kidderminster, and has always loved this vast concrete mural along a retaining wall beside the town’s ring road. Created in 1973 by concrete wizard William Mitchell, the Great Wall of Kidderminster is a third of a kilometre long and features his trademark abstract geometeries and rugged, Aztec-inspired designs. These days it’s aged into an ancient-looking monument, overgrown in parts. But now, after decades of being derided and ignored, is the Great Wall of Kidderminster finally having its moment in the sun?</p><p>Mike’s minor monster is another Midlands icon, The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady, written as nature notes in 1906 by Birmingham art teacher Edith Holden and not published until 1977, at which point it became an enormous publishing phenomenon. Would Edith have recognised the way she was portrayed, or the things the Diary would go on to inspire? And why is Mike so obsessed with such a contrasting work of art?</p><p><strong>Mike Parker is a much-loved travel writer and historian. Author of books including </strong><a target="_blank" href="https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/map-addict-the-bestselling-tale-of-an-obsession-mike-parker/f539097be449da51?ean=9780007351572&#38;bkshp-astro=t"><strong>Map Addict: A Tale of Obsession, Fudge & the Ordnance Survey</strong></a><strong>, </strong><a target="_blank" href="https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/on-the-red-hill-where-four-lives-fell-into-place-mike-parker/d0617e47cd685c3d?ean=9781786090492&#38;bkshp-astro=t"><strong>On the Red Hill: Where Four Lives Fell Into Place</strong></a><strong>, </strong><a target="_blank" href="https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/all-the-wide-border-wales-england-and-the-places-between-mike-parker/1ddd1b7ee1c4c9fc?ean=9780008499211&#38;bkshp-astro=t"><strong>All the Wide Border: Wales, England and the Places Between</strong></a><strong> as well as the forthcoming </strong><a target="_blank" href="https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/mid-land-a-journey-into-england-s-heart-mike-parker/7cc678c1242e15fa?ean=9780008758455&#38;bkshp-astro=t"><strong>Mid Land: A Journey into England’s Heart.</strong></a><strong> </strong><strong>Jan Morris said ‘What a true wanderer he is, and how wonderfully well-read.’</strong> <strong>Find out more about his work at</strong><strong> </strong><a target="_blank" href="https://mikeparker.uk/"><strong>https://mikeparker.uk/</strong></a></p><p>Theme tune by <a target="_blank" href="https://www.gobbledegooktheatre.com/">Lorna Rees</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.instagram.com/rufusrusic/">Rufus Rees Coshan</a>. You can support Monstrosities Mon Amour by subscribing through Substack or through Ko-fi at https://ko-fi.com/grindrod</p><p><p>Monstrosities Mon Amour is a listener-supported podcast. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.</p></p><p></p> <br/><br/>Get full access to Grindrodia at <a href="https://johngrindrod.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_4">johngrindrod.substack.com/subscribe</a>

Episode thumbnail for Monstrosities Mon Amour LIVE: Bradwell Nuclear Power Station with Gillian Darley

June 12, 2026

Monstrosities Mon Amour LIVE: Bradwell Nuclear Power Station with Gillian Darley

<p><strong>This episode was recorded live at the Horse Hospital in London on 10 May 2026 as part of Concrete Atlantis.</strong></p><p>In this special episode, historian and biographer Gillian Darley kidnaps not just me but a whole audience at the Horse Hospital and takes us on a trip to the Essex coast, site of the long decommissioned Magnox nuclear power station at Bradwell-on-Sea. She admires it for its sublime impact on the landscape, and its ancient neighbour St Peters Chapel, built for St Cedd, for its picturesque beauty.</p><p>Hear the extraordinary story of how the power station was blithey waved through in the 1950s, and of the strange landscape in which it sits, and the graveyard of boats just off the coast. </p><p>After the big theme of nuclear power, Gillian’s minor monster is as contrasting as could be – the shoe horn, an object she cannot get by without…</p><p><strong>Gillian Darley is an acclaimed writer and broadcaster focussed on, as she says, ‘inspiring people, intriguing buildings and beguiling landscapes’. Her many books include </strong><strong>Villages of Vision: A Study of Strange Utopias</strong><strong> (1975), a biography of Ian Nairn (co-authored with David McKie (2013) and </strong><strong>Excellent Essex: In Praise of England’s most Misunderstood County</strong><strong> (2019). Find out more about her and her incredible work at </strong><a target="_blank" href="https://gilliandarley.com"><strong>https://gilliandarley.com</strong></a></p><p><a target="_blank" href="https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/121253783349?_gl=1*yarjyo*_up*MQ..*_ga*MTk2NzM0Mjc0Ny4xNzgxMjc2NzE0*_ga_TQVES5V6SH*czE3ODEyNzY3MTIkbzEkZzAkdDE3ODEyNzY3MTIkajYwJGwwJGgw"><strong>Concrete Atlantis</strong></a><strong> is a series of events curated by former Monstrosities guest </strong><a target="_blank" href="https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/traviselborough"><strong>Travis Elborough</strong></a><strong> and held at the Horse Hospital in London. Thanks so much to him, and the team who recorded the episode and made the whole event possible. </strong></p><p>Theme tune by <a target="_blank" href="https://www.gobbledegooktheatre.com/">Lorna Rees</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.instagram.com/rufusrusic/">Rufus Rees Coshan</a>. You can support Monstrosities Mon Amour by subscribing through Substack or through Ko-fi at https://ko-fi.com/grindrod</p> <br/><br/>Get full access to Grindrodia at <a href="https://johngrindrod.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_4">johngrindrod.substack.com/subscribe</a>

Episode thumbnail for Monstrosities Mon Amour: Stevenage with Gareth Edwards

May 12, 2026

Monstrosities Mon Amour: Stevenage with Gareth Edwards

<p><strong>Let’s ditch the Austin Maxi for a gentler way to travel: cycling round the 1950s bike lanes of Stevenage, discovering the joys of a well planned town, with Stevenage-born historian Gareth Edwards. </strong></p><p>Stevenage in Hertfordshire was Britain’s first post-war new town, designated in 1946. Initially overseen by Clough Williams-Ellis (founder of Portmeirion) and his communist deputy Dr Monica Felton, they were soon replaced by other ambitious planners and builders, not least engineer Eric Claxton, who designed the town’s elegant road network and invented – yes invented – the cycle lane. </p><p>Discover why the development corporation had to translate the town guide into dutch, the splendour of its traffic-free shopping precinct, and how the town was robbed of its dignity once the local authority took over maintaining it. </p><p>After all of that excitement, we take a break with a corned beef sandwich – a food from simpler times – and discuss its military value, its US name of bully beef, and its baffling key.</p><p>So enjoy an episode of post-war optimism, Festival of Britain-era design, and absolute stodge, as we potter about pointing at things and attempt to stop Gareth’s cats stealing the show.</p><p><strong>Gareth Edwards hosts </strong><a target="_blank" href="https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-untitled-history-podcast/id1878396733"><strong>The Untitled History Podcast</strong></a><strong>. You can follow him on Bluesky at @garius.bsky.social or game with him on Twitch https://www.twitch.tv/gariusthebrit or YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@GariusTheBrit</strong></p><p><p>Monstrosities Mon Amour is a listener-supported podcast. To receive new episodes and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.</p></p><p>Theme tune by <a target="_blank" href="https://www.gobbledegooktheatre.com/">Lorna Rees</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.instagram.com/rufusrusic/">Rufus Rees Coshan</a>. Logo by <a target="_blank" href="https://depesando.com/">Richard de Pesando</a>. You can support Monstrosities Mon Amour by subscribing through Substack or through Ko-fi at https://ko-fi.com/grindrod</p> <br/><br/>Get full access to Grindrodia at <a href="https://johngrindrod.substack.com/subscribe?utm_medium=podcast&#38;utm_campaign=CTA_4">johngrindrod.substack.com/subscribe</a>

19 total episodes available

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What is Monstrosities Mon Amour?

Monstrosities Mon Amour celebrates places and things that have been unfairly dismissed. Host John Grindrod (author of Tales of the Suburbs and Concretopia) is your excitable guide to a world beyond the lazy stereotypes of crap towns and guilty pleasures. He meets people who share their enthusiasm for monsters major and minor, places that get a bad press and cultural artefacts that need to be rescued from the bin.

‘Warmly, welcomingly geeky.’ Observer ‘A genuine celebration of places and culture it’s all too easy to dismiss.’ Radio Times

Theme tune by Lorna Rees and Rufus Rees Coshan. Logo by Richard de Pesando.

You can support the podcast by subscribing through Substack or https://ko-fi.com/grindrod.

Thank you for listening. <br/><br/><a href="https://johngrindrod.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast">johngrindrod.substack.com</a>

How often does this podcast release new episodes?

This podcast updates bi-weekly.

Where can I listen to this podcast?

This podcast is available on 6 platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and more. You can also use the RSS feed directly.

Does this podcast accept guests?

No, this podcast does not typically feature guests.

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