A timely new podcast, called Same Again?, is exploring the complex relationship between beer, pubs, and mental health.
Produced and presented by award-winning writer and audio maker Emma Inch, it is available on all major podcast platforms.
Same Again? is a documentary-style podcast. Episodes are themed around such topics as Anxiety, Stigma, and Men’s Mental Health.
It examines some of the challenges to our mental health brought about by excessive alcohol use. But it also highlights the proven benefits of pubs and socialising as a way of combating loneliness and doing good in the community.
Emma is known as a beer communicator — she is a former British beer writer of the year. But she also has a Masters degree in mental health and worked for more than 20 years as a frontline mental health worker.
“I used to think that my two careers were very different, opposite ends of the spectrum!” she said. “However, the more I work in and around the beer industry, the more I see that mental health is a very real issue that often goes unaddressed in the beer and pub world.”
Each episode of Same Again? features resident psychiatrist Dr Graham Campbell, alongside guests from both inside and outside the beer and pub industry. These include:
- John Robins (comedian and BBC Radio 5 Live presenter)
- Greg Bateman (former rugby union player & founder of People’s Captain)
- Ol Fozard (head brewer at Rooster’s Brewing Co)
- Keith Bott (president of PubAid)
- Emmie Harrison-West (journalist, beer writer, and metro.co.uk columnist)
- Luke Boase (founder of Lucky Saint)
- Laura Willoughby (founder of Club Soda)
Emma said: “Those of us that love pubs know the real value a pint with a mate can bring into our lives, but many of us are also aware of the way too much alcohol can affect our mood.”
“This podcast aims to pick apart all the contradictions and complexities — as well as some of the fun — involved in the relationship between beer, pubs, and our mental wellbeing.”
To coincide with the launch of the podcast, Emma was involved in a collaboration brew between Brighton’s UnBarred Brewery, hop supplier BarthHaas X, Joanne and Tori from A Woman’s Brew podcast, and Daniel from 1 Minute Beer Review. The beer is a 7.2% ABV IPA called Like & Subscribe.
• The Same Again? podcast is available to listen to now via Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, smart speakers, and other podcast sites. If you would like to support Emma and gain early access to Same Again?, visit patreon.com/emmainch.
