Love & Hate: The Marmite Memo

It's possible that the title of this post is slightly misleading because while Marmite is famous for its 'you either love it or hate it' tag line, this is a list of things I either love very much, or hate with a passion. There is no ambivalence involved (unlike Marmite, actually, which I can take or leave).

So, just because it felt like a good idea at the time (and also, as has previously been established on this blog page, who doesn't like a list?), I felt the need to share some of the things which, over the course of 2025, I have either fully got behind or which have caused me a certain amount of angst.

Admittedly, some of these things I've loved before this year, and some of them have been a pain in the arse long before 2025 rolled around, but everything on this list - books, shows, tech or otherwise - have been a source of pleasure or pain over the previous nine months. There are, of course, many (many) more things which both annoy me, and which I love, but this is just a taster, because your time is precious, and I don't want to come across as a complete psycho!

LOVE IT

1. 90s Nostalgia

Who'd have thought that in 2025 we'd get a new, chart-topping album by Pulp, a triumphant return for Oasis, the resurgence of bucket hats, the remaking of the Harry Potter screen franchise for a new generation – the source material for which exploded onto the book scene in 1997 – and teens up and down the country sporting replica 90s Nirvana t-shirts?

I also read Miranda Sawyer's brilliant book about Britpop, Uncommon People, which I highly recommend.

At the risk of sounding old (I am) and out of touch (ditto), it was heartwarming to once again understand the place at which popular culture found itself. From constantly asking younger work colleagues to explain the reference they'd just made or who Blackpink are, I was suddenly transported to a place where I was not only comfortable, but knowledgable.

I went to one of the Oasis reunion gigs at Wembley and despite being, essentially, a 90,000 person karaoke event, it was also amazing. I also read Miranda Sawyer's brilliant book about Britpop, Uncommon People, which I highly recommend. Ah, the 90s... almost makes you feel young again. Almost.

Above: Yep, we really were that far back. To be honest, it could have been a tribute band on stage and we wouldn't have been able to tell from where we were sat.

2. Air Pods Pro 3

I toyed, for about three months, with the idea of getting a pair or Air Pod Max over ear headphones. I was given some vouchers for my birthday earlier this year and, as I was forced to swap from my trusty Samsung to an Apple phone (I won't bore you with the details. Something to do with 'family streamlining') I thought I may as well stick with the Apple brand. But they're £500! Can't justify that.

The new Air Pod Pro 3's came out recently though and, as they're less than half the price (and as birthday vouchers feel like free money), I jumped in and all I can say is, why hadn't anyone told me about noise cancellation before now?

3. AUthor events

Last week I went to an event organised by The Guardian at which Richard Osman and Mick Herron were interviewed on stage by the newspaper's Alex Clark. I hadn't been to an in-person author event like this for a long time and realised how great they are, and what I was missing. Both men were witty, interesting, revealing about their writing processes and how and why they do what they do, and the questions from the interviewer were insightful as well as playful.

Herron... "knows how, when, where and why Jackson Lamb dies"

As a writer who's not quite as successful as messers Herron and Osman, there's the potential risk of being deflated by how far there is to go, but the reality is that hearing from people who've honed their craft (for Herron, over some initial fallow periods) and who are brilliant at what they do, is much more inspiring than it is deflating, and the plan is to get to more of these in the coming months.

Oh, and the biggest moment of the evening was Herron revealing that he "knows how, when, where and why Jackson Lamb dies". Immediate, collective gasp from the audience!

Above: Alex Clark chats to Mick Herron and Richard Osman during last week's Guardian Live event at London's Cadogan Hall, in Chelsea.

4. AN infomercial about a sponge

Weird one this, I know. For a while I had TikTok on my phone. I needed it for work at first, but then became vaguely addicted to scrolling through (mainly) endless crap. Now, there're a lot of ads on TikTok, as there are on most social media platforms, but there was this video that was basically an ad. It was a guy at, I think, a motor show, that absolutely suckered me in.

I'm not even sure why I liked it. I suppose he's just good at his job and I'm a mindless idiot.

He was selling sponges; really, really absorbent sponges, the Miracle Shammy, to be precise. He's Australian and his sales patter was as good as his jokes were bad... but, man, every time it came on (which was more often that you might think... I guess the algorithm was doing its thing), I watched it again. I'm not even sure why I liked it. I suppose he's just good at his job and I'm a mindless idiot. Anyway, I eventually deleted TikTok so I could get some time back in my life. I now spend that time on Instagram.

5. Detectorists

This TV show is not new. The first series came out in 2017 and the most recent Christmas special aired in 2022. I watched it all at the time and loved it but, when it came to choosing a new show to watch among the many, many shows on the many, many streaming platforms, I went with a rewatch of Detectorists on BBC iPlayer and it reaffirmed that this is one of the best series to have aired on British TV over the last decade or more.

This is one of the best series to have aired on British TV over the last decade or more.

If you've not seen it yet, but decide to give it a try, I envy that first-time experience of seeing something that's full of brilliant, unique characters, is gentle, warm, emotional and funny (but also dramatic), sweet (but also acerbically funny). Like all great stories, it's not about the events that take place, but the people those events happen to, and spending time with Lance, Andy, Hugh and 'Simon and Garfunkel' is time well spent.

Above: Toby Jones and Mackenzie Crook feature as Lance and Andy in one of the best British TV shows from the last decade or more.

HATE It

1. 90s nostalgia

God! Move on! Me, I'm talking about. But not just me. Maybe you, too. And certainly all my friends, and half my work colleagues and most of the parents at my kids' football teams. Yes, it was great. We lived through great music, great films, an insane literary phenomenon... but why I am living in the past? Why are they remaking Harry Potter when it only came out, like, last year or something? Why the hell did I buy a bucket hat? Why am I turning into my dad, who only listens to a radio station if it has the suffix 'Gold', and who couldn't name a band that came to prominence after 1974?

Why am I turning into my dad, who only listens to a radio station if it has the suffix 'Gold'?

Harking back to 'the good old days' is a standard trope for everyone after about the age of thirty, but harking back isn't the same as not moving on. Why can't I get into, I don't know, Doechii? Or Dua Lipa? Or... actually, I can't think of a new band. Are there any new bands? Ah, sod it. Where's that Pearl Jam CD?

2. Page folders

Books are beautiful objects. Some are more beautiful than others, but all have their place. Sullying that beauty by folding over the corner of a page to mark your place is, in my opinion, sacrilegious... and I CAN'T GET ONE OF MY KIDS TO STOP DOING IT!

We seem to have more bookmarks than a standard desktop browser.

The even more annoying thing is that we seem to have more bookmarks than a standard desktop browser. Some were bought, others were given as gifts and many, many more were made at school (lots with beads and things stuck on them which makes for a terrible bookmark, but that's by-the-by).

'Just use a bookmark,' I gently encourage while trying to keep the annoyance out of my voice. 'This is easier,' comes the standard reply. 'I KNOW IT'S EASIER, BUT SO IS NOT HAVING KIDS. YOU JUST HAVE TO PUT THE EFFORT IN!' I think, but definitely don't yell, as I look at the crumpled and forlorn copy of Percy Jackson.

Above: We are not short of bookmarks, but one member of the household won't be swayed.

3. Aeroplane seats

I've been on a few flights this year. Some for work, some personal, and I understand that 'you get what you pay for'. I realise that not being able to afford a first class ticket means you don't get first class treatment, and I'm ok with that. I also understand that being in the cheap seats means you don't get as much leg room. Again, I get it. They want to get more people on the plane and space is a premium, but why can't those same cheap seats by a little bit taller?

I'm tall. Not hugely so, but 6'2" is taller than average, and cramming into economy class isn't fun. What's even less fun is not being able to put my head back on the headrest without feeling like my oesophagus is going to rupture. Making the seats just an inch or two higher won't restrict how many of us you can corral into economy, filing us past the more expensive seats as they taunt us; 'If only you'd been more successful, this comfort could have been yours!'

4. Lunch Ditherers

I'm lucky enough not to have to go onto the office every day, but one of the perks of schlepping into London once or twice a week is the expanded choice of lunch venues. More often than not my go-to is an Italian cafe near the office that does a wide selection of great sandwiches and paninis. The fact that it's very good also means it's very busy, with the queue of the small shop sometimes out the door. It's worth the wait, but it does eat into your lunch hour somewhat.

Do not waste that time with your dithering over the difference between prosciutto and Parma ham.

So, the five-to-ten-minute queue is the perfect opportunity to pick your sandwich or panini of choice, right? RIGHT? Don't stand gawping at your phone or nodding along to whatever music you're listening to and then, on reaching the front of the line, make surprised noises that someone's asked you what you'd like to eat! It's a cafe! We're all there to eat! It should not be a new phenomenon to you that you're requested to place an order to the nice lady behind the counter when you get to it. Lunchtimes are a precious period during which to read a book, chat to colleagues about things that aren't work, or check the internet to find out why your football team still can't win a match! Do not waste that time with your dithering over the difference between prosciutto and Parma ham, or whether you should have red or green pesto. Annoying. And, also, now I'm hungry.

Above: The secret of getting ahead, is getting started.

5. Procrastination

God, I hate it! But it's incredibly hard to not do it. Writing, more often than not, is a lonely endeavour that takes self-motivation and discipline. When you're in the flow, when you've got a great idea, or a brilliant scene it's like nothing could stop you from getting it down. But when inspiration is proving elusive, or something's not quite working, cleaning the fluff out from under the bed suddenly becomes a job that absolutely cannot wait.

Procrastination is not the sole preserve of writers, of course, though we do seem to be particularly good at it. It's like being a writer is brilliant, if only we didn't have to do the writing. I procrastinated about starting this website. About doing author interviews. About joining a writers' group. About writing a short story for a reader magnet. About writing this blog post...

If you're a published author and would like to be considered for one of the Bookmarked interviews, drop me a line at maxelwoodwrites@gmail.com