The Modern Mann

Imagine delegating your decisions to a group of people online, some of whom are total strangers. Imagine sharing the most intimate parts of your life in order to get their approval. Imagine answering your personal problems in the same way a bank asks its shareholders to vote on corporate outcomes.

This is the life chosen by Mike Merrill. Since 2008 - when he created 100,000 shares of himself and sold them at $1 each through his website, KMikeyM - he has asked his ‘investors’ for advice on his choice of romantic partner, diet and body art. This is not for a TV show. It’s not for a book deal. It’s for real.

In this conversation with Olly, Mike traces back his unconventional lifestyle to the DIY art scene in Portland,Oregon; his brush with corporate share-prices whilst seated at the front desk of a trucking company; and the anti-corporate activism with which he spices up his dates…

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Meanwhile, Ollie Peart has decamped to Camberwell for this month’s Zeitgeist, in an attempt to approximate the trend for ‘immersive’ exhibitions. With a budget totalling £50.

Armed with an Oculus headset, a projector and a hacksaw, can Ollie convince Olly of the merits of experiential art? And are interactive super-exhibits the future for museums and galleries?

Warning: includes the return of Captain Spronk.

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Elsewhere, we revisit a classic edition of the Foxhole, where Alix Fox advises a horny student on his three-times-per-night escapades. From the comfort of a Vauxhall Corsa. 

Finally, music this month comes from ethereal groovster Eliza Rose, and her ace new track, ‘Better Love’.

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Thanks for listening. We’ll see you on May 10th!

Presenter: Olly Mann. Contributors: Ollie Peart, Alix Fox, Mike Merrill, Eliza Rose. Producer: Matt Hill. Feature Producer: Annalise Freimarck. Theme Music: ‘Skies Over Cairo’ by Django Django. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Copyright: Olly Mann / Rethink Audio 2023.

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