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It Burns cover art

It Burns

By: Marc Fennell
Narrated by: Marc Fennell
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  • Summary

  • Winner of the Best Audio Program at the 2019 James Beard Awards

    Silver winner of the Best Documentary Podcast Trophy at the 2020 New York Festivals Radio Awards

    Nominated for the 2019 Rose D'Or award for Audio Entertainment

    Please note: contains mature themes and graphic imagery.

    Written and hosted by Marc Fennell, It Burns is the story of a 10-year scandal-plagued international competition that will take listeners from the Australian Coast to South Carolina (via an Indian Research Facility).

    It's a war filled with larger than life characters. There will be sledging, accusations of cheating, theft and performance enhancing drugs. And allegations that Australia was cheated out of a Guinness World Record. In the process of charting the scandal-plagued race to breed the world's hottest chilli, the audio documentary lifts the lid on the subculture of "˜Chilli-heads', hardcore chilli fans spread across the globe who compete in chilli eating and breeding competitions.

    The internet is filled with videos of grown men being reduced to tears by a square millimetre of chilli. The docu-series asks: what motivates someone to breed and eat a demonic nugget that is so hot it no longer has flavour? At what point does this stop being cuisine and start being an endurance sport?

    This humorous series shows that all this has never really been about chilli. It's been about how people use pain to shape themselves, define themselves and make themselves feel alive.

    This is an Audible Original Podcast. Free for members.

    ©2019 Audible Australia Pty Ltd. (P)2019 Audible Australia Pty Ltd.
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Episodes
  • Ep. 1: Some Like it Hot

    Ep. 1: Some Like it Hot
    May 9 2019

    Marc Fennell’s quest to find the world’s hottest chilli begins in the middle of a tropical storm in Arizona while grown men and women weep before him. Which seems normal, right? In this episode Marc finds himself drawn into an international dispute and has a euphoric chilli-fuelled epiphany on a New South Wales freeway.
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    33 mins
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  • Ep. 2: Sgt. Pepper

    Ep. 2: Sgt. Pepper
    May 9 2019

    In this chapter Marc travels to the Mexico border to meet the man who accidentally kick started a race to breed super-hot peppers. But does the Carolina Reaper - the world’s current record holder - really deserve it’s title? Has someone cheated?
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    30 mins
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  • Ep. 3: Bad Seeds

    Ep. 3: Bad Seeds
    May 9 2019

    No other mammal on Earth is dumb enough to eat chillies - except humans. The internet is filled with astonishing videos of grown men being reduced to tears by a square millimetre of a chilli. It’s a global gastro-masochist obsession. In this chapter one of the world’s leading chillheads exposes a life turned inside out by tragedy.
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    32 mins
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Con Artists, Hoaxes & Deceptions Cooking Gastronomy
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What listeners say about It Burns

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Profile Image for Mr Tony Cordon

Absolutely brilliant

Brilliantly wacky, weird and wonderful. Listeners digression is advised as it is very saucy, but utterly entertaining.

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Profile Image for Mr Reynolds

Unreal

What a crazy world... Couldn't stop listening until the very end. Great storytelling of the hunt for the world's hottest chilli and the characters that surround it.

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Profile Image for Kindle Customer 007

Hot stuff

light and illuminating investigation. Really explored the amount of passion driven by one food and in it's influence.

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Profile Image for Alicia Weston

The psychology of pain

This is less about chilies than people who are trying to numb one pain with another. Quite interesting.

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Profile Image for Anonymous User

Genius!

Marc Fennel does an incredible job, making a story that swirl’s around around so much! This podcast makes you dive in thoughts about trauma, life, history, and so much more. And all this, learning about chilli!! I am mesmerised! Thank you!

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Profile Image for Amazon Customer

I dare you to listen

A fascinating adventure into one of the worlds most potent ingredients. Brilliantly presented and at times too hot to hear.

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Profile Image for Karen Bull

Too hot to handle?

this is funny. I love spicy food so I'm finding it very interesting hearing about the hottest jalapeños .

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Profile Image for Crazy Cat Lady

Sizzling entertainment

Absolutely loved this series. Despite knowing nothing about chillihead subculture, I was immediately gripped by this fascinating journey not just into the history of chilli but also the darker side of human nature. Never mind the spicy sauce, this story has it all - intrigue and backstabbing, sex and scandal. Marc Fennell is a wonderful presenter, engaging, endearing and very very funny; and his cast of chillihead characters are equally fascinating. A rightful winner at the 2020 New York Festival.

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Profile Image for Derek Johns

A fun listen, unexpected adult content.

Well worth a listen. Made me think. Enjoyed whole series while painting my living room.

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Profile Image for HollowSpy

random and wonderful aspects of humanity

It's about chillies, but it's about people so much more. J
ust listen and enjoy the fascinating story

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