POD BIBLE POLL WINNERS 2022 – WINNERS ANNOUNCED!

WELCOME TO 2023 PODCAST FANS! As is our tradition, we ended our 2022 with the Pod Bible Polls, and now it’s time to start the new year with a celebration of the winners!

This was the fourth annual Pod Bible Polls, where we ask listeners to vote for their favourite podcasts of the year. All of the nominees featured in the Pod Bible Magazine, on the Pod Bible Podcast, on the website or newsletter over the last twelve months – except the final Independent Podcast category, which was open to all.

2022 also saw a slight change in the categories – we’re celebrating fiction podcasts for the first time in the ‘Audio Drama’ category, and a ‘News & Investigation’ poll highlights some of the big productions that came out of the UK last year.

The polls were open for the whole of December and closed at midnight on the 31st of December. Once again we received a record number of votes, but our team have now counted and verified them. We’re happy to see there’s a good mix of classic podcasts, indy shows and new productions amongst the winners and runners-up.

Pod disciples, these are your Pod Bible Poll Winners for 2022!

COMEDY

WINNER: OFF MENU

2nd – MY THERAPIST GHOSTED ME

3rd – HELP I SEXTED MY BOSS

After being pipped to the post last year, the Off Menu lads are back to prove they are the kings of the comedy podcast genre! Ed Gamble and James Acaster’s chats with celebrities about their dream menus continues to make us laugh and salivate in equal measure. It has been a massive year for Off Menu, with more merch and live shows – including their first trip over the Atlantic. So it’s no surprise their fanbase has grown and once again rallied behind them to make it to the number one spot.

My Therapist Ghosted Me and Help I Sexted My Boss have come in the second and third slots. Clearly listeners are still craving good chat between good friends!

INTERVIEW & CONVERSATION

WINNER: THE ADAM BUXTON PODCAST

2nd – THE DIARY OF A CEO

3rd – HAPPY PLACE WITH FEARNE COTTON

Another return for a previous Pod Bible Polls winner, this marks the third win for The Adam Buxton Podcast. The podcast recently celebrated it’s 200th episode with old friend and regular podcast guest, film director Joe Cornish. It’s that familiarity that’s a part of keeping fans returning to Adam’s show. It’s no secret that we are fans of Adam’s and have enjoyed our own conversations with him over the years, and this poll position goes to show that he’s lost none of his flare after all these years.

Given how high it often sits in the charts, we’re not surprised to see The Diary of a CEO has polled for the first time, and previous magazine cover star Fearne Cotton has placed 3rd for the second time, having done the same in our 2020 poll.

LIFESTYLE & CULTURE

WINNER: BROWN GIRLS DO IT TOO

2nd – THE GUILTY FEMINIST

3rd – EFFIN HORMONES

Brown Girls Do It Too have done it! They’ve toppled Deborah Frances-White and The Guilty Feminist off the top of the best Lifestyle & Culture category for the first time since our polls began. Poppy Jay and Rubina Pabani’s show explores the messy realities, fantasies, sexpectations and navigating life and relationships as British Asian women. It’s another show that has had an astronomical year, including a tour of their live show. They also appeared at the London Podcast Festival in September and hosted the Audio Production Awards in November.

The Guilty Feminist drops to 2nd place, but the Indy podcast Effin’ Hormones builds on its success at the British Podcast Awards this year – and with fans such as Idris Elba cheering them it’s no wonder.

FILM & TV

WINNER: KERMODE & MAYO’S TAKE

2nd – FILMS TO BE BURIED WITH

3rd – CLASH OF THE TITLES

It’s a new WINNER, and a new show, but an old pairing that have been reliably among the most-downloaded podcast hosts of them all in the UK. When Mark Kermode and Simon Mayo left the BBC earlier this year, we didn’t have to wait long for Kermode & Mayo’s Take to fill the gap. The show is reassuringly familiar but the fresh format brought their takes on film and television to new listeners. Those listeners certainly voted in their masses this year! Read more about Kermode and Mayo’s move from radio to podcasting here >>

Brett Goldstein’s Film’s to be Buried With drops to second place, but considering how busy he’s been (staring in Marvel films, gracing the cover of our magazine) it’s understandable. Clash Of The Titles holds steady in third place for the second year in a row, proving there’s still plenty of films ready to do combat.

MUSIC

WINNER: NOTHING IS REAL

2nd – FOLK ON FOOT

3rd – ROCKONTEURS

Our list of the best Beatles Podcasts has been one of our most popular articles on the website this year, so it’s not that surprising to see the Beatles showing up on top here. But Nothing Is Real is a popular podcast on its own merit, even outside of the Beatles fame. Jason Carty and Steven Cockroft have enough Beatles knowledge to win the Beatles Brains of Ireland quiz, but they share stories in an accessible way for listeners.

Folk On Foot comes in second, a show that serves the folk community music with conversations and sounds of nature through plein air interviews. In a year of celebrity podcasts, we have Spandau Ballet’s Gary Kemp coming in to third place with Rockonteurs, the show he hosts with bass player to the stars Guy Pratt. And after several years of a BBC Sounds show topping this category, it’s somewhat nice to see the independent shows dominate this year.

SPORT & LEISURE

WINNER: BEEF’S GOLF CLUB

2nd – THAT PETER CROUCH PODCAST

3rd – FOOTBALL RAMBLE

Even though it’s new, Beef’s Golf Club has already grown a big community who have helped it top this year’s polls. One of the things that may have led to its success is that this show so universal in who can listen. It is very welcoming to beginners and teaches the basics, rather than serving commentary to people who are already golf fans.

Despite the epic summer of football, football podcasts didn’t quite hit the target this year despite their ongoing popularity. That Peter Crouch Podcast drops to 2nd place after winning last year, and Football Ramble drops to third after its 2021 runner-up position.

NEWS & INVESTIGATION

WINNER: CAN I TELL YOU A SECRET?

2nd – THE REST IS POLITICS

3rd – THINGS FELL APART

In the first new category, the big publishers are using their platform to bring cutting-edge journalism to UK podcasts. The Guardian’s Can I Tell You A Secret? takes a sensitive look at the subject of stalking. Produced by an award-winning team, it features moving sound design from the fantastic Axel Kacoutie (a contender for the hardest-working-person-in-podcasting at the moment). We named this as a possible Podcast of the Year in our last magazine, and the voters seem to agree.

The Rest Is Politics comes in second with its unlikely double act of Alastair Campbell and Rory Stewart, and Things Fell Apart was a short series from BBC Sounds, hosted by Jon Ronson, that helped us make sense of the culture wars.

AUDIO DRAMA

WINNER: THE MAGNUS ARCHIVES

2nd – ELIZA: A ROBOT STORY

3rd – JACKIE THE RIPPER

This is our first year for highlighting fiction podcasts in their own category, and The Magnus Archives has proved it’s still a classic of the genre. A horror fiction podcast examining what lurks in the archives of the Magnus Institute, the show ran for nearly 6 years before coming to end this year. If you’re new to fiction podcasts, this is a great place to start.

Crowd Network’s Eliza: A Robot Story proves popular even though it came out later in the year, and shows that a sci-fi audio drama can reach a wide audience. And the gory story of Jackie The Ripper from Stak made its way to third place.

OH. MY. POD.

INDEPENDENT PODCAST

WINNER: PROPER MENTAL PODCAST

2nd – PICTURE THE SCENE

3rd – ECONOMICS IN TEN

The ‘Oh My Pod’ Independent Podcast poll is open to literally every independent podcast. Shows that win this category are hitting the all the right marks with their listeners and creating communities that can’t stop talking about their show. It is fiercely contested each year and seeing a podcast that focuses on mental health get to top of this list is testament to the way it resonates with listeners. We featured Tom’s show way back in June last year, and would like to think that helped its growth!

Once again, HUNDREDS of podcasts were put forward for this category to a massive thank you and congratulations to every podcast mentioned!

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Congratulations to all our winners, runners up and nominees and thank you to everyone who took the time to vote for their favourite shows. We’re sure 2023 will be another incredible year for podcasting and look forward to celebrating it with another set of Pod Bible Poll’s at the end of the year!