Season 4 of the Comfortably Hungry podcast will start in earnest later this autumn. This season I’ll be chatting to historians, food writers, and artists to reveal the importance of water in all its guises and how it was used by our ancestors.

To whet your appetite I had a chat with Janice Li, curator of a new exhibition at the Wellcome Collection in London called Thirst: In Search of Freshwater.

You’ve no doubt heard the statistic that around 70 percent of the earth’s surface is covered with water. What may come as a surprise, as it did for me, is that only three percent of that water is fresh. And it is that limited resource and how it has been harnessed in the past to produce and preserve our food and drink that is the focus of Season 4.

If you enjoyed the podcast you can become a paid subscriber to the Comfortably Hungry Substack (which means you’ll receive additional content) or show your appreciation by leaving a small, one off tip here.

Useful Links

* Thirst: In Search of Freshwater at the Wellcome Collection is open from 25 June 2025 to 1 February 2026.

* Thirst: In Search of Freshwater book

* Find out more about Janice Li’s work on her website or follow her on Instagram.

Don’t forget you can follow me on Instagram or Bluesky @mrssbilton or find out more about my work on sambilton.com.

A huge thank you to Thomas Ntinas of The Delicious Legacy for doing the sound mixing on this season of the podcast.

Comfortably Hungry is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Get full access to Comfortably Hungry at comfortablyhungry.substack.com/subscribe