Welcome to our monthly guide of the best websites, apps, podcasts, workouts, You Tube videos and other recommendations to help you unwind and escape from the madness for a while. 

Eating out: Eat Out to Help Out
Don’t forget that throughout August you can get a 50% discount when you eat in at restaurants that are registered with the Government’s Eat Out to Help Out Scheme. The scheme is running every Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday in August and you can take advantage of the offer as many times as you like. You don’t need a voucher and there is no minimum spend. Over 72,000 businesses have registered to take part across the UK so there are plenty of restaurants to choose from.

Listen: James Dean Bradfield – Even in Exile
Manic Street Preachers frontman James Dean Bradfield releases his new solo album on 14 August. Titled Even In Exile, it’s Bradfield’s first solo studio album since 2006’s The Great Western. The album’s songs are set loosely to the story of the life and death of Chilean poet-singer-activist Victor Jara, and take in words written specifically for the album by poet/playwright Patrick Jones. You can hear lead track ‘The Boy From The Plantation’ below.

Podcast: Sleep With Me
The Sleep With Me podcast does exactly what it says on the tin: it puts you to sleep. Drawing on elements of the Autonomous Sensory Meridian Response subculture, presenter Drew Ackerman basically just… rambles, looking to distract people who can’t get to sleep and lull them into a soporific mental cocoon. It’s proving effective with 860 episodes already in the can!

Fitness App: HIIT Workouts and Timers by 7M
This is the number one rated app for high intensity home workouts. The app boasts fast results and claims just four minutes of high intensity tabata intervals will make you sweat and get your heart pumping! There’s no equipment required so you can workout anywhere, anytime. No excuses!

Podcast: Fake Doctors, Real Friends
TV stars Zach Braff and Donald Faison have launched a podcast recapping the show that made them famous, the 2000s medical sitcom Scrubs. Their rapport as podcast hosts is highly entertaining and each episode gives listeners a window into a showbiz friendship, as well as behind-the-scenes anecdotes about the show.

Audiobook: Lana Del Rey – Violet Bent Backwards over the Grass
This is the debut book by US singer Lana Del Rey and is a poetry collection featuring over 30 original poems and photography. The audiobook is available now and a hardback version will be published in late September. Half of the proceeds will go to benefit the Navajo Water Project.

Help and Support: The HR Team
As we continue to deal with the effects of the ongoing pandemic, it is more important than ever that we take care of ourselves and each other.

The COVID-19 outbreak is an enormous change to all our lives and our sense of certainty, so it’s perfectly natural to go through a wide range of emotions and there is no right way to feel. The health and wellbeing of our teams will always be a priority and we are here to support one another. With that in mind, if you are struggling or feel you need to talk, please email the HR team ([email protected]) and someone will give you a call back.

As a reminder, the below helpline is also available to all staff, working or furloughed. The helpline offers telephone counselling, health advice covering a wide range of medical and wellbeing issues, personal legal and financial information with an online portal system loaded with further information and templates for your use.

EMPLOYEE ASSISTANCE PROGRAMME
Call 0800 107 6147 or visit the online portal  www.colleaguesupport.co.uk (enter code 72135 as your username and password)