Advertise on podcast: The Clearing with Katherine May

We have something completely different and really special for our subscribers this week as Katherine records a daily audio diary over five days while attending her first ever stand-up comedy course in London. Thrown together with a group of strangers and testing her social battery to the full, the course forces her to reflect on her own writing. Perhaps in ways she wasn’t expecting. As the week goes on Katherine finds herself asking: what constitutes truth in memoir? She comes to realise comedians are more like novelists than memoirists, with an unspoken license to fabricate and play with the truth in ways she had not fully realised. By the end of the week she is starting to grapple with both the constraints of her chosen medium and self-inflicted constraints around what she sees as ‘truth’. An audio diary full of insight into Katherine’s writing practice along with some surprising revelations about how things could change going forwards. Best of all, she managed not to fall over on stage. Always a win. Links from the episode: Katherine attended the Angel Comedy Club beginner’s course in London, run by Dec Munro (@decmunro_comedy). You can find full details here… https://shorturl.at/QjZbs Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here https://katherine-may.co.uk/tending Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd

Barbara Carrellas believes we can find the truest rest in moments of awe. The author of ‘The Book of Ecstasy’ says even in life’s darkest moments, ecstasy is possible. It’s something seeded in her practice of ‘Urban Tantra’ - a non-touch sexual practice rooted in her experience of working with the people and communities affected by New York’s AIDS crisis in the 1980s. As Katherine and Barbara delve more deeply into this concept of ecstasy, they marvel at the capacity of human lives for surprise and why sometimes we just need to step out of our own way. Barbara also explains why Tantra isn’t what we think it is and we get to hear the most beautifully unique vision of rest as Barbara transports us to a flamboyant theatre, replete with horses, Hollywood legends and an ever-changing array of favourite theatrical shows. A deeply joyous and uplifting episode where Barbara’s bottomless well of compassion, love and yes, ecstasy, is deeply present. Links from the episode: Barbara’s book The Book of Ecstasy Barbara’s website https://barbaracarrellas.com/ Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here https://katherine-may.co.uk/tending Visit The Clearing website www.theclearingpod.com for a full transcript, to discover how to enjoy our bonus episodes, our ad free episodes and if you subscribe, how to submit your own idea for a dream retreat. Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd Music - The Leaf Library @theleaflibrary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Comedian, podcaster, radio presenter and bona fide history nerd Pierre Novellie joins Katherine in The Clearing for this week’s episode.  A geekfest of language and ideas, they launch straight into the etymology of the word ‘dork’, why you can’t choose your own clown as a stand-up, and the politics around the changing language of autism. Like Katherine, Pierre received a late neurodivergence diagnosis. Unlike Katherine, his came after a heckler suggested he might be autistic during a live stand-up show.   A lovely, chewy episode for the brain, with Katherine bidding for them to be the hosts of ‘The Rest is Neurodivergence’ and Pierre sprinkling his imagined getaway with some Orkney magic.  Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here https://katherine-may.co.uk/tending Links from the episode: Pierre’s website https://www.pierrenovellie.com/  Pierre’s book Why Can't I Just Enjoy Things  Pierre’s BBC Radio 4 show https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002pfbr  Pierre’s gaming podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/button-boys/id1827054353  Baldur’s Gate 3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baldur%27s_Gate_3  Kingdom Come: Deliverance II https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_Come:_Deliverance_II  Portugese writer Antonio Lobo Antunes  Night Watch by Rembrandt at the Rijksmuseum  Visit The Clearing website www.theclearingpod.com for a full transcript, to discover how to enjoy our bonus episodes, our ad free episodes and if you subscribe, how to submit your own idea for a dream retreat. Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd Music - The Leaf Library @theleaflibrary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do you remember the library you visited as a child? The teak furniture? The smell of the polish? The location of your favourite section? Our exclusive episode for the Clearlings this week involves some heavy library nostalgia as Katherine runs through the special libraries in her life, from the mobile van that visited her village to Haddon Library in Cambridge where she would study as a student. Katherine also brings us her idea for one small, transportative thing to do this week and we hear from Clearling Cat Salt with her wonderful vision of getting away from it all. Links from the episode: Sweet Death by Claude Tardat Haddon Library https://www.haddon.lib.cam.ac.uk/ Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here https://katherine-may.co.uk/tending Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd

Caitlin Moran is somewhat of an icon in the UK. Growing up as the eldest of eight kids in a three bed council flat, home-educated from the age of 11, she became a published author at just 16 and a TV presenter not long after that. A long-time columnist for The Times, she has a well-deserved reputation for being one of the UK’s funniest writers. She is also a massive fan of Wintering - so much so her new book contains an entire chapter devoted to it.  Caitlin joins Katherine for a conversation that was never going to be anything but brilliantly bonkers. They discuss her plan to rid the world of evil billionaires that basically involves being a madam, why she would pay a thousand pounds to hear the sound of a blackbird from Wolverhampton in the 1980s and ask; grottos - the Temu of caves?  Her unique vision of splendour for her escape to the Clearing, involving ‘the greatest building that humans have ever come up with’, provokes a particularly visceral reaction from Katherine.  Just to warn you, this being Caitlin, the episode contains a spot of swearing.  Links from the episode: Caitlin’s new book How to Be Hopeful  Outsiding Podcast https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/outsiding/id6782845808  Caitlin’s Instagram Visit The Clearing website www.theclearingpod.com for a full transcript, to discover how to enjoy our bonus episodes, our ad free episodes and if you subscribe, how to submit your own idea for a dream retreat. Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here https://katherine-may.co.uk/tending Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd Music - The Leaf Library @theleaflibrary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the season turns, the air chills and the Devon bracken starts to bronze, Katherine returns home from a summer of maxi-breaking. We hear some wetsuit controversy, Katherine shares her ‘relaxing and deeply geeky’ Mini-break suggestion and listener Shari reveals her perfect getaway. Between a beach and an artsy town in the summer and a castle in a European city in the winter, with lots of chat, art, wine and the hint of a whirlwind romance, this break has it all in the most delicious way. Links from the episode: The Riverford Field Kitchen https://fieldkitchen.riverford.co.uk/ GeoGuessr https://www.geoguessr.com/ Saturday Night Live UK https://www.instagram.com/snluk/?hl=en The Landmark Trust https://www.landmarktrust.org.uk/ Angela Carter https://www.angelacarter.co.uk/ Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd

Step forward our first OBE on the show; former Children’s Laureate, winner of the Carnegie Medal for Writing, poet and prolific children’s author, Joseph Coelho.   Having both grown up on housing estates where you definitely weren’t pre-conditioned for a life in the creative arts, Joseph and Katherine marvel at the way teachers can shape children’s futures, wonder at the power of brutalist public art and relish the joy of watching people rummage through abandoned homes in post-apocalyptic films.  A wonderful, and deeply thoughtful, conversation with one of the UK’s most inspiring literary figures.  Links from the episode:  Joseph’s website https://www.thepoetryofjosephcoelho.com/ Joseph’s Instagram Munya Chawawa’s Black Boys Theatre Club  Joseph’s estate he grew up on https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alton_Estate  Lynn Chadwick’s The Watchers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Watchers_(sculpture) Visit The Clearing website www.theclearingpod.com for a full transcript, to discover how to enjoy our bonus episodes, our ad free episodes and if you subscribe, how to submit your own idea for a dream retreat. Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here  Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd Music - The Leaf Library @theleaflibrary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Katherine brings us this week’s mini-break from an actual break, as she records looking out over the Atlantic Ocean, fog rolling in and seals bobbing about in the waves. Absolute bliss. There is some witchy chat and a wonderful tribute by Katherine to actor Tim Curry and one of her favourite films of all time - a celebration of outsiders everywhere. And we hear from listener Melody, who brings minimal modifications, unobstructed views of the sunrise and some wonderfully specific stationery needs to her imagined getaway, much to Katherine’s delight. Links from the episode. The Witches of New York by Ami McKay https://terrypratchett.com/ His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy The Rocky Horror Picture Show ‘Improvisation. Dreamy’ by Kandinsky https://www.wassilykandinsky.net/work-33.php Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd

Katherine kicks off Season Three of The Clearing in wild style by chatting to former magazine editor, podcast host and US author Elise Loehnen.  Menopausal Love Island, lumberjack witches, the potential joy of losing female reproductive organs and animal totems are just some tiny tasters of a brilliant, hilarious, radical conversation that plays with the boundaries of possibility for women everywhere.  Despite it being her first podcast interview since discovering she had ‘dumb and slow cancer’ (the good kind) and undergoing a double mastectomy, Elise brings unfathomable, infinite amounts of energy and laughter, plus just the right amount of woo, to a joyous episode.  Links from the episode:  Elise’s website and podcast Pulling the Thread https://www.eliseloehnen.com/ Elise’s Instagram Mark Rothko, artist page https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/mark-rothko-1875 Anne Truitt, sculptor https://www.annetruitt.org/ Hilma af Klint, artist page https://hilmaafklint.se/ Ithell Colquhoun, artist page https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/ithell-colquhoun-931  Fulgur press https://www.fulgur.co.uk/ Visit The Clearing website www.theclearingpod.com for a full transcript, to discover how to enjoy our bonus episodes, our ad free episodes and if you subscribe, how to submit your own idea for a dream retreat. Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here  Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd Music - The Leaf Library @theleaflibrary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

New season, new bonus episode! Katherine finds out what The Clearlings have been up to over the long, hot summer, including unexpected sock chat. She reveals her ‘Mini-break’ for this week, including a spot of rain tourism. And we hear about the perfect getaway from subscriber Elizabeth - a corrugated, Icelandic cottage in a mossy, lava landscape, knitting circular jumpers and listening to music with unpronounceable album titles. Unless you speak Icelandic of course. Links from the episode: Edinburgh fringe festival https://www.edfringe.com/ Ania Magliano https://aniamagliano.com/ David O’ Doherty’s podcast What Did You Do Yesterday Pierre Novellie https://www.pierrenovellie.com/ Bog Witch by Bryony Kimmings - https://sohotheatre.com/events/bog-witch/ Corpse by Kirsty Mann https://sohotheatre.com/events/corpse/ Italo Calvino's Invisible Cities: A Toy Theater Atlas Ahir Shah https://www.ahirshah.com/ Read about Lopapeysa Icelandic sweaters here “Dýrð í dauðaþögn” by Ásgeir https://asgeirtrausti.bandcamp.com/album/d-r-dau-a-gn

We’re excited to announce Season Three of The Clearing coming very soon. Katherine has curated a spectacular line-up of guests and we can’t wait for you to hear some of the brilliantly creative fantasies of rest they have dreamt up.  Plus don’t forget our subscribers also get bonus episodes in the form of our ‘Mini-Breaks’. They’re stuffed with listener chat, one small, achievable idea to rest and restore from Katherine and a lucky subscriber gets their perfect vision of getting away from it all selected for the episode. If yours is picked you’ll receive a highly coveted Clearing mug!  Visit The Clearing website www.theclearingpod.com for a full transcript, to discover how to enjoy our bonus and ad free episodes and if you subscribe, how to submit your own idea for a dream retreat. Katherine’s new book, Tending: How Care Binds the World is out in March and you can pre-order it here  Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Not too warm, not too cool, the kind of evening where you’re still in shorts but have pulled on a sweater, is where we find ourselves this week with the wonderful writer and papercut artist Anna Brones.  It’s the Pacific North-West but imbued with Anna’s Swedish heritage as she brings comfort and nostalgia - cold water swimming, her grandmother’s woollen blanket - to a cosy spot on a blustery shore. Together, Katherine and Anna explore ideas of home, desire for the place you are not, ‘the curse of the creatives’ and share fascinating insights into both of their creative processes.  Links from the episode:   Anna’s book Fika: The Art of the Swedish Coffee Break  Anna’s newsletter Creative Fuel Anna’s website https://www.annabrones.com/ Anna’s Instagram  Visit The Clearing website www.theclearingpod.com for a full transcript, to discover how to enjoy our bonus episodes, our ad free episodes and if you subscribe, how to submit your own idea for a dream retreat. Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd Music - The Leaf Library @theleaflibrary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Katherine is back home, ‘on chair’, Fraggle the dog by her side and delving straight into the controversy around what constitutes a ‘comfort read’. Should that phrase even be allowed to exist? We also get an entirely unexpected choice of Mini-Break from Katherine this week. Prepare to have your assumptions tested. And Amy from Bristol in the UK is our chosen listener, whose vision of a dream retreat features flickers of water and the most excellent choice of TV Show to keep her company. Books mentioned in the episode (and there were many): The Hitch-hiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams Rivers of London series in audiobook by Ben Aaronovitch Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery Little Women by Louisa May Alcott Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons Birds Art Life Death by Kyo Maclear The Moomin Novels by Tove Jansson The Summer Book by Tove Jansson Brambly Hedge Collection by Jill Barklem The Living Mountain by Nan Shepherd https://maryoliver.com/ The Scent of Water by Elizabeth Goudge The Gastronomical Me by M.F.K. Fisher Famesick by Lena Dunham

‘Revel’ is the recurring theme of this episode as writer Alice Vincent brings visceral, carnival-esque Glastonbury vibes to The Clearing this week.  A self-confessed extrovert, her dream retreat includes bundling up all the sounds and experiences of the people and places she loves; the chaotic joy of a house party, the blissful comfort of chatty gatherings with friends and family, the daily buzz of a busy household. But after the noise comes the calm. That liminal space of watching the sun rise after being up all night with friends at a house party, morning dew on the grass, where your body glows with the memory of the night before and you savour the quiet stillness.   A lovely, messy, joyful gathering of sound, happiness and the coming together of humans.  Links from episode: Alice’s website where you can find her books including Hark https://www.alicevincent.co.uk/  Alice’s Substack https://savour.substack.com/  Alice’s Instagram Visit The Clearing website www.theclearingpod.com for a full transcript, to discover how to enjoy our bonus episodes, our ad free episodes and if you subscribe, how to submit your own idea for a dream retreat Buy Katherine’s books: Enchantment | Wintering | The Electricity of Every Living Thing: UK / US Follow Katherine on Instagram Visit Katherine’s Website Production Credits Guest Booker and Admin Support - Meghan Hutchins Substack Manager - Rebecca Armstrong Producer - Alice Lloyd Music - The Leaf Library @theleaflibrary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Katherine welcomes the return of the swifts to her street, we hear which single cookbook our listeners would take with them on an imagined getaway and the Moomins make another unexpected appearance. Plus of course Katherine brings you her own little tip for a ‘Mini-break’ - something delicious you can do each week to escape momentarily, no matter where you are. Audiobook fans take heed. And listener Annabel transports us to a magical landscape of Swiss bliss. Links Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald Ben Aaronovitch’s Rivers of London series in audiobook Jan Michalski literary foundation in Switzerland https://fondation-janmichalski.com/en/fondation