Talking about coffee shops on BBC Radio 4’s Thinking Allowed

Laurie Taylor. Copyright BBC Radio 4

Laurie Taylor. Copyright BBC Radio 4

History of Surfing; Coffee Shops and Idleness

Duration: 28 minutes
First broadcast: Wednesday 25 June 2014

Surfing – a political history. Laurie Taylor looks beyond the tanned bodies, crashing waves and carefree pleasure, talking to Scott Laderman, Associate Professor of History at the University of Minnesota. His study traces the rise of surfing in the context of the rise of imperialism and global capitalism. From its emergence in post annexation Hawaii and its use as a diplomatic weapon in America’s Cold War to the low wage labour of the surf industry today; he uncovers a hidden history involving as much blood and repression as beachside bliss. Also, Pelle Valentin Olsen, graduate student at the University of Oxford, explores the Baghdad coffee shop, idleness and the emergence of the bourgeoisie. He’s joined by Graham Scambler, Emiritus Professor of Sociology at University College, London.

Producer: Jayne Egerton.

Leave a Reply