THE SCRIPTURES // Podcast Recommendations

SOME PODS YOU DIP IN AND OUT OF, OTHERS YOU LISTEN TO RELIGIOUSLY. HERE’S OUR LATEST SELECTION OF PODCASTS THAT ARE WELL WORTH YOUR SUBSCRIPTION.

A proper classic, Song Exploder was one of a tranche of podcasts which really started to expand the idea of podcasts beyond a couple of guys talking about movies for three hours. Each time one song is broken down into its original multitracks, and the musicians who made it share the story of how all the components came together. Whether it’s New Order talking about Blue Monday or Madonna on Hung Up, it always makes the creation of music feel miraculous.

This true crime podcast is several cuts above your run of the mill Wikipedia rundowns. Husband and wife Benjamin and Rosanna Fitton have been the best British exponents of the craft since 2016, digging far beyond the kinds of real life narratives which you’ve heard before and it’s particularly strong when it locates the terror hiding behind the begonias under the rockeries of the suburbs. Always rigorously researched and compellingly told, this is the true crime standard.

It’s a bit much to say that historians Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland walked so The Rest is Politics’ Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart could run, but they certainly sat down to chat about stuff so their Goalhanger podcast stablemates could also sit down and chat about stuff. Using their deep knowledge of the past (Sandbrook specialises in the 20th century, Holland in antiquity) to illuminate the present, they’re also just very avuncular company.

A documentary series from the BBC that follows ex England international Jermaine Defoe as he looks to establish himself in the world of football management. It's impossible not to warm to Jermaine as he visits old clubs, speaks to former managers and explores the avenues open to him. Will the fact that it's traditionally harder for black footballers to make it in management make him question his dream? Or will it make him even more determined...

When Jeff Leigh-Jones found himself at a crossroads in his life back in 2019, he decided to find a life coach who could help him find direction. He joined an organisation called Lighthouse which welcomed him. Three years later, he had handed over more than £100,000 to Lighthouse and its bullish leader Paul Waugh, losing his house and alienating his family in the process. Catrin Nye leads the winding investigation, winding up to a face-to-face confrontation with Waugh.

Connor Ratcliff could almost taste his big breakthrough. He was in the final stages of casting for Band of Brothers, Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg’s soon-to-be-gigantic World War Two TV series. But right at the last second, he’s sacked. The reason? Apparently Hanks thought he had “dead eyes”. As he tries to work out what really happened, other creatives talk about times they snatched defeat from the jaws of victory. And, finally, he gets answers from Hanks himself.

Kaitlin Prest’s five-part series is an inventive study of the many thousands of ways in which siblings can wind you up, cramp your style and ruin your life, while at the same time being the people you love and understand best. She and her little sister Natalie remember growing up – when Natalie took up swimming because she wanted to be like Kaitlin and promptly ruined swimming by being far better, for instance – in a nuanced, heartfelt portrait of family life.

If you’re into TV thrillers then you need Shrine Podcasts in your life: Big Little Lies, Line of Duty and Vigil have all been the subjects of this listen-along podcast. Rebecca Shekleton and Brendan O’Loughlin from Dublin's 98FM’s breakfast show are joined by podcaster Hannah Connolly to break down every episode at length, without ever outstaying their welcome. There’s a healthy irreverence to the gang’s vibe, and they’re always ready with a wild theory too.