Absolute Units

On 1 January 1951, on the same day that the first episode of iconic radio drama The Archers aired on the radio, academics at the University of Reading officially founded The Museum of English Rural Life.
What inspired these storied scholars to make a museum? What did establishing a museum involve? And why aren’t all our team dressed up in smocks?
On this episode, Joe and Ollie chat about The MERL’s earliest years.
Fair warning: there is a long intro where we ramble and catch up after not seeing each other in about 2 months. If you’d like to get right to the action, listen from 5:58. Enjoy the show!
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Absolute Units is the official podcast of The Museum of English Rural Life. This series is made possible through the generous support of Arts Council England and Museums Partnership Reading, a partnership of The MERL with Reading Museum. Themetune by Tai Dawson.
Co-hosts: Ollie Douglas and Joe Vaughan
Producer: Joe Vaughan
Shop MERL merch: https://merl-shop.co.uk/shop/absolute-unit.html
Support the pod: https://merl.reading.ac.uk/visit-us/donate/

Jane Austen’s novels are classic books of the English countryside. Yet they reveal so much more about English culture, industry and society than simply presenting prettified scenes of village life.
In this episode, we're back with Professor Paddy Bullard (University of Reading) and Isabel Hughes (The MERL) to talk about how Jane Austen’s novels explore space in rural and urban England: how it was used, developed, and destroyed. We also discuss Austen’s own experiences of living in rural and urban settings.
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Join the Fobney Marshians' Christmas stomp: https://whatsonreading.com/venues/reading/whats-on/massive-marshian-stomp-fobney-marsh
Read the latest blogpost by Reading's Fobney Marshians: https://ruralreading.com/2025/12/16/1906/
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Absolute Units is the official podcast of The Museum of English Rural Life. This series is made possible through the generous support of Arts Council England and Museums Partnership Reading, a partnership of The MERL with Reading Museum. Themetune by Tai Dawson.
Co-hosts: Ollie Douglas and Joe Vaughan
Producer: Joe Vaughan
Shop MERL merch: https://merl-shop.co.uk/shop/absolute-unit.html
Support the pod: https://merl.reading.ac.uk/visit-us/donate/

It is a truth universally acknowledged that every podcast about the history of the English countryside must do an episode on Jane Austen.
In the first of two conversations, Joe and Ollie are joined by Professor Paddy Bullard (University of Reading) and Isabel Hughes (MERL Associate Director) to explore Jane Austen's links to farming, as found in her personal biography and her literature.
We're back on Tuesday 16 Dec for a second episode on the Austen theme, marking the date of Austen's birthday.
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Absolute Units is the official podcast of The Museum of English Rural Life. This series is made possible through the generous support of Arts Council England and Museums Partnership Reading, a partnership of The MERL with Reading Museum. Themetune by Tai Dawson.
Co-hosts: Ollie Douglas and Joe Vaughan
Producer: Joe Vaughan
Shop MERL merch: https://merl-shop.co.uk/shop/absolute-unit.html
Support the pod: https://merl.reading.ac.uk/visit-us/donate/

How does the history of enclosure surface in England today and in Britain's former colonies? How can we de-enclose to create access for all?
In this episode, Joe and Ollie continue last time's conversation with the legendary author and activist George Monbiot, about how does the history of capitalism and colonialism interlink to England's urban and rural spaces.
Learn more about George Monbiot's work at https://www.monbiot.com/
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Absolute Units is the official podcast of The Museum of English Rural Life. This series is made possible through the generous support of Arts Council England and Museums Partnership Reading, a partnership of The MERL with Reading Museum. Themetune by Tai Dawson.
Co-hosts: Ollie Douglas and Joe Vaughan
Producer: Joe Vaughan
Shop MERL merch: https://merl-shop.co.uk/shop/absolute-unit.html
Support the pod: https://merl.reading.ac.uk/visit-us/donate/

Throughout history people have pitted life in the city against the countryside, comparing urban corruption with an innocent rural idyll.
Where does this comparison come from? What is its relevance today? And how do we resist these ideas to imagine a more equitable and sustainable future for town and country alike?
Joining Joe and Ollie today is the best-selling author, activist and journalist George Monbiot. In this first of two episodes, we discuss the significance of contrasting town and the country, challenges of farming and agriculture for our environment, and the significance of the rural to England's national identity. 
George Monbiot's website: https://www.monbiot.com/
The Bluesky thread we refer to: https://bsky.app/profile/georgemonbiot.bsky.social/post/3m4ulbf7hrs2g
We'll be back with the second part of this conversation in two weeks' time. See you then.
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Absolute Units is the official podcast of The Museum of English Rural Life. This series is made possible through the generous support of Arts Council England and Museums Partnership Reading, a partnership of The MERL with Reading Museum. Themetune by Tai Dawson.
Co-hosts: Ollie Douglas and Joe Vaughan
Producer: Joe Vaughan
Shop MERL merch: https://merl-shop.co.uk/shop/absolute-unit.html
Support the pod: https://merl.reading.ac.uk/visit-us/donate/