My guest this week is the musician Damon Minchella – legendary bassist, founding member of Ocean Colour Scene, and a man who lived through the wildest years of Britpop and beyond. In his new book, You’d Look Good on a Donkey: Brit Pop, Bass Lines and Bad Decisions, Damon tells the story of going from being broke and on the dole to sudden wealth, fame, and full‑tilt rock and roll excess.We talk about what that does to your head: the pressure, the burnout, the drugs, the insanity of being recognised everywhere, and the challenge of coming back to normal life. Damon is brutally honest about his own bad decisions, the perils of rock and roll, and how he’s managed to find a healthier balance along the way.Buy his new book here This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe

This week on The Reset, I’m joined by Peter Hooton – frontman of The Farm, co‑founder of legendary Liverpool fanzine The End, writer, activist and lifelong Red. It’s a conversation about how music, football and humour can keep you afloat when the world’s trying to drag you under.We get into The Farm’s rise as a proper ‘street band,’ the snobbery they faced from the music press, the madness of early 90s fame and how close he came to burning out. Peter also opens up about being at Hillsborough, the guilt he carried for years and the long fight for justice.It’s funny, political, emotional and full of heart.The Farm are on tour in 2026 - dates and tickets here This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe

This week I’m chatting to Professor Paul Eastwick, one of the world's top thinkers on love, attraction, and relationships, and the author of “Bonded by Evolution: What We’ve Got Wrong About Love and Connection.”We get into loads of stuff: why your “type” probably isn’t real, how dating apps can fry your brain, why chemistry matters more than tick-box lists, and how the whole Tate-adjacent manosphere view of women and relationships is nonsense once you look at the actual science.We also talk about vulnerability, anxiety, being liked, and how relationship chaos bangs up against our mental health – whether you’re single, married, divorced or just confused.If you enjoy this, there’s an archive of over 140 other interviews, plus hundreds of my essays and articles, at samdelaney.substack.com. Go and have a look. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe

New year, new series. My first guest on The Reset POD FOR 2026 is Jason Williamson from Sleaford Mods. Known for his furious, funny and brutally honest lyrics about post-austerity Britain, masculinity, class, love and more, Jason has helped build one of the most passionate fanbases in British music over the past decade. We met at his label’s London offices just before Christmas for a wide-ranging, unfiltered conversation covering everything from Andrew Tate to Amazon shopping, family estrangement and getting sober. The sound’s a little raw in places (sorry about that), but Jason is thoughtful, open and completely compelling. I loved the chat — I hope you enjoy it too. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe

Josh Connolly had a chaotic childhood. By the time he hit his twenties, he was contemplating suicide. Now, he is one of the country’s most influential voices on mental health, using his own experiences to help others. I chatted with him about why men struggle to share emotions, growing up around alcohol and how he wants to de-stigmatise conversations about suicide.For more on Josh’s work, click here This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe

Elliot Sweeney has been a psychiatric nurse for over two decades. Now he has written a book about his experiences: ‘We Don't Use Words Like Crazy - A Life On The Frontline Of Mental Health.’ His moving, and often funny, memoir pulls back the curtain on what the job’s really like, showing why we need more compassion for people who are struggling and the professionals who try to help them every day.To donate to my fundraiser for CALM’s Stay Tuned Campaign, please click this link.Suicide is the biggest killer of men under 50 in the UK. Sparing a few quid for CALM helps them fund their essential service to help bring that rate down. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe

Ziyad Marar draws on psychology, philosophy, literature and even the films of Quentin Tarantino to demonstrate the strange business of noticing things. His new book (Noticing - How We Attend To the World And Each Other) contends that our enjoyment of life is shaped by what we choose to notice in the world around us. **********Please donate here to my fundraiser for CALM. CALM is an outspoken, innovative suicide prevention charity offering life-saving services and smashing the stigma around mental health. With STAY Tuned 2025, I’m using my podcasts to raise money for CALM. Together we can help people end their misery, not their lives. If you can, sling a few quid their way. Cheers. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe

The Reset is back after a hiatus! Thank you for your patience; it’s been a busy year.Throughout September, I will be backing the Stay Tuned 2025 campaign by the brilliant mental health charity, CALM.Stay Tuned is all about raising awareness about mental health and raising money to pay for CALM’s life-saving support services.You can donate to my fundraiser page here. Every penny counts (but for anyone who can spare a larger amount, there are some special incentives and rewards on offer).To help me kick off the campaign, I am joined on this week’s pod by Callum Goodall from CALM. He told me more about the amazing work they are doing to save lives - and shared his own moving experience of coping with a suicide attempt in his family.There will be more episodes coming throughout the month, so stay in touch. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe

The Reset meets Betamax Baylon in a podcast crossover we call The Trudge Report.Once or twice a year, my cousin Bruce and I head off to the country for the weekend for a long walk and a long chat. Because nature and talking to a mate are good for your mind and your soul.This time, we visited Camber Sands in East Sussex and walked to the charming town of Rye. Along the way, we met a rude cyclist, a lovely cyclist, some beautiful lambs and a Morris dancer.As usual, we talked a whole lot of bollocks, ate curry and watched some films in a caravan.I hope you enjoy listening to our adventures. And I encourage you to head out into the countryside for a walk and a chat whenever you get the chance. It does your mood the world of good.PS - I have now released the previous episodes of The Trudge Report from behind the paywall, should you like to go back and listen to our past adventuresEpisode 1Episode 2 This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe

Hi gang. My new book ‘Stop Shitting Yourself - 15 Life Lessons That Might Help You Calm The F**k Down’ is out today.I want to say thanks to you all for subscribing to this newsletter. It effectively gave birth to the book - without you lot showing an interest, I wouldn’t have been able to make this happen.So cheers. Now go and buy a copy! You can get it as an audiobook (read by me) or Kindle version here.If you want a signed copy of the hardback with a personal message from me, drop Barnes Bookshop a line and quote the code Delaney 25 for a 10% discount. We will have it out to you straight away - I’ll nip round the shop to sign it later today.BTW, here are some articles I’ve written in the papers recently to promote the book…“I was Working Too Hard And Having Seizures” - The Mirror“5 Quick Stress Busting Techniques That Brought Me Back After Being Cancelled” The Telegraph“At 49 my male mates put me down” - The i Paper This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit samdelaney.substack.com/subscribe