Ever since Mel Gibson as William Wallace riled up his army of blue-faced Highlanders by shouting “freedom!”, the world has been infatuated with Scotland. It’s OK – you can admit that you liked the movie (even if it was mostly filmed in Ireland).

Since then – in what’s known as the ‘Braveheart Effect’ – the film has inspired people around the world to visit Scotland. And many others have joined its ranks – Outlander, The Outlaw King, Harry Potter and even Trainspotting to some extent.

Scotland is rife with stories, so it’s no surprise that there are plenty of podcasts about Scotland too. From shows that focus on Scottish history, to gruesome or legendary tales set in the landscape, and travel tips for planning a visit. Here are some of the best Scottish podcasts – you might even find some episodes about Outlander or Braveheart in there…

Whisky Sisters Podcast

Liquid gold, water of life, single malt whisky – there are many names for the Scottish national drink. In Whisky Sisters Podcast, hosts Inka Larissa and Jennifer Rose share a dram or two and dive into the fascinating world of whisky from Scotland and beyond. In each episode they discover new drams and distilleries, speak with expert guests and uncover the mysteries of distilling. If you’re not a whisky connoisseur already, you may want to ease yourself in with this episode about whisky cocktails. Listen now >>

Stories of Scotland

Learn about Scotland’s mythical creatures and gruesome history – but make it fun! Stories of Scotland is an award-winning podcast that explores the rich tapestry of Scottish culture, nature and heritage. Hosts Annie and Jenny come together to blether about the past, try their tongues at historical accents and tell often forgotten or misrepresented stories. A great one to start is their 3-part series ‘Queer as Folktales’. Listen now >>

Atlantic: A Scottish Story

Atlantic: A Scottish Story is a captivating 8-part drama about life on the edge of the world. We follow the story of Evie and Quinn, two young islanders from St Kilda whose lives are entwined even when an ocean comes between them. The cast includes Kirsty Findlay, Kate Dickie and Richard Rankin (of Outlander fame) and original music by Scott Gilmour and Claire McKenzie. Since this is an audio drama, you better start at the beginning – ‘Episode 1: A New Arrival’. Listen now >>

Wild for Scotland

Close your eyes while you listen and you could think you’re there. Wild for Scotland is an immersive storytelling podcast for anyone who dreams of being in Scotland or is looking for travel inspiration. The first-person narratives are enriched with captivating soundscapes and contextualised by interviews with locals to learn more about life in the landscapes featured. This is, in fact, my podcast! And you might not be surprised if I tell you that ‘The Key – An Outlander Road Trip from Edinburgh’ is a listener favourite. But if you love puffins as much as I do, you’ll love this episode from my trip to the Isle of Canna. Listen now >>

What We Do In The Winter

Have you ever wondered what life is like on Scottish isles during the winter? What We Do In The Winter is a community led show that answers just that question. Produced by Alasdair and Georgia Satchel it features conversations with locals from the isles of Mull, Iona, Ulva and Gometra and gives insights into the lives of locals out of season. Why not start with this episode featuring Catriona MacLeod, a singer, cabaret artist and Mull-native. Listen now >>

Creative Me Podcast

What makes an artist tick? And how do they get their creative juices flowing? These are just some of the questions posed by Ice Headlam on the Creative Me Podcast. Every episode Ica quizzes another creative from the north east of Scotland about their practice and process with the aim to foster creativity among others and amplify BIPOC voices in Scotland’s creative industries. A great episode to start with is this conversation about the Scottish music scene with Matt Hickman aka. Brown Bear. Listen now >>

Love Scotland

Love Scotland gives listeners an insight into the conservation work by the National Trust for Scotland. Hosted by former BBC Reporting Scotland anchor Jackie Bird, each episode dives into the history of another NTS location from grand castles and museums to some of Scotland’s most beautiful glens and mountains. Along the way, Jackie interviews researchers and conservation experts who shine a light on what happens behind the scenes. If you’re an Outlander fan, you may enjoy this episode about the beauty of Glencoe with Outlander’s Sam Heughan. Listen now >>

Kathi Kamleitner is a Glasgow-based author, podcaster and travel expert. Originally from Austria, she moved to Scotland for her studies, fell in love with the country and never looked back. She shares immersive travel stories on her podcast Wild for Scotland and practical travel guides and tips on her blog Watch Me See. Kathi’s first book “Glücksorte in Glasgow” was published by Droste Verlag (Germany) in March 2022. Photo by Roxanna Barry.

Did you listen to a podcast on this list? Have we missed your favourite Scottish podcast? Let us know in the comments below!

The post 7 of the best Scotland podcasts appeared first on POD BIBLE.

Before we worry about any of that however, it’s time to look back and celebrate our favourite podcasts from 2023. As is our tradition, we ended the year with the Pod Bible Listener Polls, a month long open vote 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.

The polls were open for the whole of December and closed at midnight on the 31st of December. Thank you so much to everyone who voted, we received a record number of submissions, up 30% on our previous best which is huge! Our team have now counted and verified all submissions and we’re very happy to see a good mix of classic podcasts, indy shows and new productions as well as a bunch of brand new winners and an unprecedented tie for third place in one of the categories…

Pod disciples, we present to you your Pod Bible Listener Poll Winners for 2023!

COMEDY

WINNER: WHERE THERE’S A WILL THERE’S A WAKE

2nd – FRENCH AND SAUNDERS: TITTING ABOUT

3rd – OFF MENU

Congratulations to Kathy Burke and the amazing team at Sony Music and Somethin’ Else for creating a runaway hit last year. Where There’s A Will There’s A Wake has taken the most morbid of subjects and turned it into a deeply entertaining and thought provoking listen, with an incredible line up of guests. Everyone knew Kathy would make the perfect podcast host when the time was right and boy has she delivered.

Kathy’s long term British comedy peers French & Saunders come second with perennial winners Off Menu dropping down to third place in what’s been yet another huge year for the dream restaurant based show.

INTERVIEW & CONVERSATION

WINNER: THE ADAM BUXTON PODCAST

2nd – OFF AIR… WITH JANE & FI

3rd – CHANGES WITH ANNIE MACMANUS

What else can be said about The Adam Buxton Podcast and it’s place within the UK podcasting scene since it’s inception in 2015? The quintessential interview podcast for us and the listener votes have yet again backed us up. The fact that Adam can go on lengthy hiatus’s then reappear with no warning with another run of wonderous conversations makes it feel all the more special.

Legendary broadcasters (and fellow former Pod Bible cover stars) Jane Garvey and Fi Glover take second place with DJ Annie Macmanus making the podium in third.

LIFESTYLE & CULTURE

WINNER: TALK ART

2nd – CLOSET CONFESSIONS

3rd – WHERE ARE YOU GOING? / POP OFF

We’re delighted to see Talk Art take the gold in this year’s Lifestyle & Culture category! Robert and Russell have been long term supporters of Pod Bible and it’s been a joy to witness their show going from strength to strength over recent years.

Pod Bible cover stars Closet Confessions take second and for the first time ever we have a tie for third place (quite the feat considering we had thousands of votes in this category!). Where Are You Going? and Pop Off share third place, two very different shows that are equally worth your time.

FILM & TV

WINNER: SHRINK THE BOX

2nd – THE DREAM FACTORY

3rd – STICKY BUN BOYS

Three brand new entries onto the Film & TV podium this year, which is no mean feat in a category with both Kermode & Mayo and Films To Be Buried With! Congratulations to Shrink The Box, the show where Ben Baily Smith and Sasha Bates take their favourite fictional characters and analyse why their behaviour causes them so much drama.

It’s wonderful to see that both second and third places are taken by two independent shows this year. User generated movie creation podcast The Dream Factory takes second with Great British Bake Off re-watch podcast Sticky Bun Boys in third.

MUSIC

WINNER: THAT’S NOT METAL

2nd – BEFORE THEY KNEW BETTER

3rd – ROCKONTEURS

Huge congratulations to That’s Not Metal, a truly independent and fan made podcast that has taken first place in this year’s music category! TNM brings you news, opinions and honest reviews from the world of Metal music every week and finished 2023 with their very own awards show.

DIY Magazine’s Before They Knew Better takes second with last year’s bronze medal winners Rockonteurs returning to third place again!

SPORT & LEISURE

WINNER: REMINDING YOU WHY YOU LOVE FOOTBALL

2nd – THE TENNIS PODCAST

3rd – FOOTBALL RAMBLE

Need a reminder as to why you love football? Look no further than this years winner in Sport & Leisure, Reminding You Why You Love Football! The perfect show for those who are not necesarily looking for up to the minute analysis on the latest round of fixtures. You can check out our chat with Seb and Owen from the show here!

The Tennis Podcast takes second place with stalwarts the Football Ramble in third.

NEWS & INVESTIGATION

WINNER: POD SAVE THE UK

2nd – THE NEWS AGENTS

3rd – A VERY BRITISH CULT

A wonderful debut year for Pod Save The UK is capped off by topping the polls for News & Investigation. Nish Kumar and Coco Khan’s weekly politics show is funny, informative and most importantly, accessible.

Similar in subject matter, The News Agents comes in at second with BBC Radio 4 investigative series A Very British Cult taking third place.

AUDIO DRAMA

WINNER: SHERLOCK & CO.

2nd – THE WITCH FARM

3rd – SPRINGLEAF

Sherlock & Co flew onto the scene in October last year and immediately topped the Audio Fiction charts with it’s superbly written scripts and hilarious performances. Our chat with Sherlock & Watson resulted in one of our favourite interviews of the year so we are delighted to see them pick up first place.

Second place goes to the BBC’s The Witch Farm with James Acaster’s Springleaf, only released in November, taking third.

OH. MY. POD.

INDEPENDENT PODCAST

WINNER: PICTURE THE SCENE

2nd – ECONOMICS IN TEN

3rd – 101 PART TIME JOBS

After finishing second last year, true crime podcast Picture The Scene have come back strong to take first place and let us tell you, they got a LOT of votes.

Ever present Economics in Ten take second place with new entrant 101 Part Time Jobs taking the bronze!

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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 2024 will be another incredible year for podcasting and look forward to celebrating it with another set of Pod Bible Listener Polls at the end of the year!

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Over the next six months I listened to loads of different sleep podcasts, discarding also-rans and adding contenders to my nightly rotations. There are a few different types, and you’ll probably have to shuffle through a few to see which works best for you. The most common style are story readings, either classics or new, specially written low-stakes scenes that aim to lead you gently into dreams – though there are a fair few that deploy mindfulness techniques and immersive soundscapes too

It’s a tricky balance to strike. They have to be interesting enough that you want to melt into the sound-world they create, but they have to be dull enough not to rev you up so much you can’t drop off. They need to be welcoming, but not overfamiliar. Almost by default, they’re oddly sensual experiences – someone is whispering in your ear as you lie in bed, after all – but they must be in absolutely no way alluring. Having said that, Audible got Matthew McConaughey for theirs and that didn’t do them any harm. Anyway: here are seven of the best.

The Sleeping Forecast

The Shipping Forecast is a widely prescribed sedative, but if you’re listening to Radio 4 at 00.47 you’ve got to be conked out pretty quickly before ‘God Save the Queen’ comes thundering in at 1am. Fortunately, BBC Sounds married extracts of it with neoclassical piano pieces in its hour-long piece, part of its Mindful Mix strand.

The smooth, lilting baritone of British-Jamaican announcer Neil Nunes is the perfect voice to hear gently reciting the liturgy of mythic places around the British Isles’ coastline: Fitzroy, Cromarty, German Bight. Producer Freddie Botham told me that Nunes was always his first choice. “There’s something about lower frequencies and Neil Nunes’s voice,” he said. “They are naturally comforting – there’s a womb-like aspect.” Listen now on your podcast app >>

Get Sleepy

From a slightly pokey walk-in wardrobe somewhere in Buckinghamshire, 27-year-old Thomas Jones reads specially written sleep stories in an even, soothing tone. Get Sleepy’s stories come in a few flavours. Some take you to different places around the world, like the Costa Brava or Nova Scotia; others take you to different places in time, perhaps Roman Colchester or Ancient Athens. There are new spins on folk tales and comforting retellings of how crayons or love heart sweets or the Pony Express came into being. It’s just added a new strand, too – The Sleepy Bookshelf, which features readings of classic stories and started with Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Listen now on your podcast app >>

Phoebe Reads a Mystery

The title’s a tiny little bit misleading here. What started with a reading of Agatha Christie’s The Mysterious Affair at Styles became an anthology of full readings of classic novels including Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, Sense and Sensibility and, amazingly, over 44 episodes, Jane Eyre. There’s been a year’s hiatus but the show is back, and also boasts a big back-catalogue to dig into. You’d never think that Dracula could make for a good bedtime story, but it really works. Listen now on your podcast app >>

Nothing Much Happens

Yoga and meditation teacher Kathryn Nicolai narrates little tales of perfectly formed mundanity. You’ll pop to the bakery, wander around a village looking for a gift for a friend’s housewarming, and revisit the first few months of a lifelong friendship. This is a great big cuddle of a podcast, and Nicolai’s whispered delivery is as calming as they come. Listen now on your podcast app >>

The Audible Sleep Collection

This was one of Audible’s biggest sellers in 2020, and it encompasses two strands: stories and meditations. The selling point here, that the stories are read by well known voices, seems a little bit self-defeating. How, you might ask, am I meant to sleep when Matthew McConaughey is reading to me? Me! Matthew McConaughey! A bedtime story! The meditations are more amorphous and rambling, and feature the likes of Diddy giving you affirmations and Nick Jonas rhapsodising about the perfect baseball swing. It is, however, undeniably effective. Listen now on your podcast app >>

Sleep Cove

Another podcast that mixes voyages into the past with factoids and meditative breathing exercises which encourage you to find sleep through mindfulness, this one also adds guided sleep hypnosis episodes into the mix. The idea is that narrator Christopher Fitton leads you gently into a state of readiness for sleep. It’s somewhere between mindfulness and general wellness, a more active experience than whacking on a story and waiting until you drop off. Listen now on your podcast app >>

Send Me To Sleep

Now, this one comes with a warning: narrator and pro voice actor Andrew’s reading style is a bit of an acquired taste. His slightly halting delivery can take a little getting used to, but it clearly works for a lot of people. He reads stories ranging from Ancient Greek fables and Shakespearean adaptations to The Phantom of the Opera and The Time Machine. Listen now on your podcast app >>

Boring Books for Bedtime

Dropping off while someone with a calming voice reads to you from a book that’s just interesting enough to hold your brain’s attention, but not so interesting you want to hear any more than you absolutely have to. Maybe it’s just me, but not all of the out-of-copyright books read here sound boring – PT Barnum’s autobiography? A history of the art of firework making? Oscar Wilde on English art? Sign me up! – but presenter Sharon’s semi-whispered style render everything she reads deeply soothing. Listen now on your podcast app >>

Podcast to Fall Asleep To

This is about as Ronseal a podcast name as you’re ever likely to find, and much like that celebrated wood stain it gets the job done with minimal fuss. Host Jimmy Jo softly and patiently talks about different topics which are, by his own admission, “both unimportant and uninteresting”. Most recently it was pets – specifically his cats, who have become producers on the show. Jimmy Jo’s murmurings have been less frequent over the last year, but there’s a back catalogue of 161 episodes to curl up with. Listen now on your podcast app >>

—

Looking for a podcast for children struggling to sleep? Check out our interview with Kerry Keenan, who created Your Floating Bed >>

This article was first published in August 2021 and updated August 2023.

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Sure, you might have to sit through a couple of ads halfway through a podcast episode but generally you don’t have to pay a penny to listen (paywalled platforms like Luminary excluded, of course). So, you might be wondering why I think you should pay for your favourite podcast (if you can afford it).

I’m not referring to the main feed – keep that free – I’m talking about tantalising bonus content that’s one paywall away.

I (John) have a subscription to @empiremagazine, @PilotTVPod, @WeeklyPlanetPod, @cine_verse & Probably True. In my opinion, for bigger shows the appeal has to be the extra audio I'm getting for my money, for smaller shows it's more about supporting creators I like.

— The Dream Factory (@DreamFactoryPod) July 14, 2023

Bonus content builds on the free episodes that you love, so you get to immerse yourself further into that world. Plus, you get access to a community of people with similar interests giving you the chance to make IRL friends. So, it’s great for you but it’s also important for the creator.

That being said, I see a lot of meagre subscription offerings that I personally wouldn’t pay for – ad-free early access and a t-shirt that’s clearly going to shrink the first time that you wash it. Great subscriptions require effort, let me walk you through some of the things on the market.

The Basement Yard has a pretty basic Patreon offering and it’s hugely successful. They make at least £104 526 a month on Patreon (assuming all 23,749 subscribers are paying for the cheapest subscription). Across all three Patreon tiers, they offer early ad-free episodes, merch discounts, and a weekly bonus episode. But that doesn’t seem like very much considering a standard Netflix subscription is £10.99 a month whilst The Basement Yard’s most popular tier costs £8.50.

I am very faithful to my subscriptions as it stands. I would say additional audio and supporting smaller creators are the only two factors for me personally. I'm not fussed about video versions or any community benefits like early tickets to live shows or merch etc.

— The Dream Factory (@DreamFactoryPod) July 17, 2023

A lot of podcasts offer the same benefits as The Basement Yard and whilst some subscribers are just paying to support their favourite creators and aren’t fussed about the extras, let’s explore some of the more generous Patreon subscriptions out there.

The podcast industry is a turbulent place, in part because a handful of companies control most of the wealth. Extremely popular podcasts have been axed by big companies with little notice, such as NPR’s Invisibilia, leaving listeners shocked. Subscriptions allow your favourite podcasters to maintain control of their show and provide an income for themselves independently (instead of selling their soul and their IP to a company who can cut the cash flow whenever they want to). Case in point: RedHanded has 9,779 paying members, makes $47,810 a month, and they’re upfront about how this money helps fund their lives and creation. Their cheapest subscription offers the bog standard early ad-free episodes plus weekly bonus ‘after party’ episodes. Their more expensive subscriptions include a full-length monthly bonus episode, monthly video content, access to presale tickets for live events, merch discounts, free digital products and shoutouts on the podcast.

I’m a believer that bonus material should be of the same quality, if not better, than the main podcast but obviously that requires a lot of work for creators. That’s why I like RedHanded’s free digital products, e.g. themed lockscreen backgrounds. They are an easier lift for the creators but it’s great value for their community who want to rep the show in real life. Realistically, there are only so many bonus episodes that someone can watch (and that creators have time to edit) so I appreciate the creative alternatives that some podcasts have come up with. RadioLab, for example, ships you a magnet collection and offers annual trivia nights.

All of these offerings worldbuild and deepen the show’s sense of community. This Tweet highlights how fun that can be:

Timesuck does this really well, in my opinion. Weekly bonus episodes that are extremely interactive with fans and discounts for merch. There's even a secret handshake!

— JOSH (@joshtayloraudio) July 14, 2023

This is especially crucial for creators from underrepresented backgrounds, who are often neglected by podcast charts, which tend to be dominated by similar shows created by people from similar backgrounds. These shows rely on their communities heavily. Subscriptions keep their diverse storytelling alive and prevent shows/creators that don’t look like those ‘top shows’ from being wiped out because they don’t get the same algorithm boost or have access to the same funding. As one of very few British Indian women in the podcasting industry, I know that it’s harder for certain groups of people and certain types of shows to get sponsorship. If your favourite podcast is lucky enough to secure ad revenue, it’s often not sufficient to cover all production costs and ensure the creator’s livelihood. If those advertisers don’t have the budget next year, then that might be the tipping point for the show.

These creators often take the time to interact with their communities through bonus content – whether that’s through a Discord server, allowing listeners to vote for what the next episode will cover, or a monthly livestream where you can ask questions and paint figurines along with a NADDPOD host.

A huge chunk of each bonus episode consists of the host reacting to & and answering listener voice messages and emails.

— JOSH (@joshtayloraudio) July 17, 2023

By busting through that one paywall, you’re not only supporting your favourite creators and getting some great exclusive benefits, but you’re also helping shape the future of storytelling by ensuring that the loudest voices on the podcasting battlefield don’t all sound the same.

Meera’s Podcast Subscription Recommendations:

The Amelia Project is a comedy fiction podcast about an agency that help people fake their deaths.  Check out their Patreon >>

Radiolab’s membership programme offers exclusive access to behind the scenes perks and more. Read more >>

Not Another D&D Podcast is an actual-play D&D podcast. They offer bonus content, livestreams and other free stuff. Check out their Patreon >>

Redhanded podcast started as a passion project between friends. Their Patreon has nearly 10,000 supporters >>

And this article from the New Statesman argues that it’s the corporate age of storytelling and many stories aren’t being funded.

And if you want to support the only independent podcast magazine in the UK, Pod Bible has a Patreon too! >>

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Whenever I hear someone claim “I am so obsessed with this podcast and I want everyone to know about it!” I have to add it to my queue, but even more so when it’s a independent show. Subterraneans was Suchandrika Chakrabarti’s Podcast of 2022, and her description of the eerie monologues about London, combined with the social and political issues that surround housing in the UK, intrigued me. I recently got around to listening to the new series, and immediately contacted the creator, James Thompson, to find out more…

What’s your podcast elevator pitch?

The first words I wrote in my design document were “NPR-style overproduced podcast about cryptids”, but it’s evolved a little since then. Subterraneans is a show about the strange creatures and forgotten stories that live underneath the bloody, violent heart of capitalism. It’s a mix of history and folklore, scored to nightmarish synths and haunting echoes, which drags you under the earth with it. It is not for the faint of heart, but it finds moments of hope in this dark place; in stories of resistance, of joy, and of solidarity. Let’s join hands and warm ourselves amongst the dirt.

Why did you decide to start podcasting in the first place?

I am a writer and a musician, so podcasting is a natural fit for my style of storytelling. It also lets me play audio games with the listener; since everything you hear on the show comes from me one way or another, I can completely control the experience, dropping strange and unsettling sounds in and out in a way that’s hard to avoid. I want to frighten people on the bus.

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

As per the original design document, I wanted to do a version of This American Life or S-Town that takes folklore and horror seriously, in order to pull the rug out from under you. I’m always trying to borrow legitimacy from the scripted podcast medium, from serious journalism and embedded writing, and every time I get an email from someone asking for more details about some aspect of a story or my research then it makes my entire week. My biggest inspiration, in that way, is actually found footage horror; Occult (2009) has a direct line to my interests with the show.

Where do you find the inspiration for your stories?

Dreams, nightmares, and long walks. Truthfully, many of the subjects come to me when I see an interesting building or architectural feature and start walking down the garden path in my mind. I also have a close-knit and wonderful group of friends & loved ones who keep me grounded and send me strange happenings from around the city; without them, I simply couldn’t do it. My other major cultural influences would include Junji Ito, Mark Fisher, Karl Marx, Judith Butler, Rei Kawakubo, Jordan Peele, Park Chan-wook, and Kim Ki-young.

Why podcasting? What is it about the medium that you like?

Musically speaking, I’m a textural thinker; it’s the reason why I love harsh noise music. There’s something about thick, swirling, woozy textures washing over a listener that just feels so satisfying and evocative to me. Podcasting lets me explore this type of feeling while giving listeners an entry point and an anchor in my voice, in a way that I think mirrors the type of layered and complicated stories I want to tell. Gradually layering in complexity on top of complexity, leaving doors open, and disrupting the flow of sound with the unexpected or uncomfortable; that’s something you can really achieve very powerfully through an audio medium.

Also, it’s cheap and I can do it entirely by myself. That’s important.

Can you give our readers a point of entry? Is it best to start at S1 E1, or can they dive in at any point?

I normally link to S1E4 for new listeners. It’s about super basements in Kensington and Hampstead, and the strange sounds you can hear from beneath when exploring the dilapidated properties on Billionaires Row. That said, almost every episode is self-contained, so you can run them in order or jump around depending on your personal interests!

Listen to Subterraneans now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular podcast apps >>

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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!

The post POD BIBLE POLL WINNERS 2022 – WINNERS ANNOUNCED! appeared first on POD BIBLE.

The popularity of podcasting has skyrocketed in recent years. Whether it’s true crime or just a good old natter, more and more people are taking to the airwaves to express themselves, tell a story and discuss the important issues facing society today.

Thankfully, it’s easier than ever to start your own podcast, especially with a smart computer literally fitting in the palm of your hands… But how hard is it to actually create a professional-sounding podcast?

Why is the answer more complex than you think…

With issues like audio pops, background noise and low-level humming plaguing many, the answer to ‘great audio’ is a difficult one to crack. This is because it largely depends on a whole range of often contradictory and competing factors, including: your budget, the acoustics of the room in which you record, your knowledge of recording techniques and post production, the limitations of your equipment and so on.

Walking a tricky tightrope, content creators often feel bamboozled as debates around dynamic vs condenser mics, XLR vs USB outputs and what brand beats another begin to fog up their choices. With no clear answer, that initial enthusiasm to start a podcast can fade, only to be replaced by an alienating mix of doubt, fear and imposter-syndrome – but please, don’t despair…

How can I improve my audio immediately?

There are many ways that you can improve your audio quickly and effectively. There’s noise cancelling foam panels, free editing software and a whole host of easy tips and tricks out there. However, most importantly of all, there are a range of affordable and effective microphones on the market – the most sure-fire way to bump up your audio fidelity.

Arguably the most important element in any recording set up, your microphone dictates the limits of the audio quality you can achieve, and represents something that no budding podcast host should take lightly.

If you’re using an unsuitable microphone, an in-built phone mic for example or your favourite pair of earbuds, your audio will always be missing that certain Je ne sais quoi. Whether it’s muddy clarity, a lack of depth or a sea of nasty and unwanted noise artefacts, you’ll be forever discontent with the sound of your flashy new show. We can’t stress this enough: the better the microphone, the better the sound. Simple.

What microphone should I choose?

Recognising that more and more content creators are turning to podcasting, audio-technology brands are beginning to produce microphones designed to help new users master the art of audio.

With simple, easy-to-use equipment available at entry-level prices many are beginning to feel the benefits of achievable, professional-grade recording quality. Brands like JOBY for example – who were behind the famous GorillaPod – are one of many beginning to tailor to a wider range of content creators.

Recently, the brand released their new WAVO line of audio accessories, designed to cater to audio streamers, podcasters and video creators alike. Including a whole host of market-leading products, the line is designed to help achieve premium audio quality with ease. And, one product in particular, the WAVO POD, is perfect for podcasters looking to find the most suitable microphone for their setup.

JOBY Wavo POD

A large-diaphragm USB condenser mic, the JOBY Wavo POD features the versatility of both cardioid and omnidirectional pickup patterns and features impressive 24bit/48kHz high-res sampling rates. With an eye-catching black and red design to boot, and a handy pop filter included, the WAVO POD comes with a zero-latency headphone monitoring jack and USB Type-C connection for simple plug-in and play operation.

Easily customizable and versatile thanks to its unique mounting system, the Wavo POD stand can be detached to fit a tripod or GorillaPod for better stability. The microphone body is compatible with both ⅜” and ⅝” threads, using the included adapter, enabling you to connect it to a boom arm as needed. The rig can also be further tailored to suit your setup thanks to the ¼” side mounts – the perfect match for the JOBY range of accessories such as the GorillaPod arms.

The multifunction knob uses an intuitive system of colours for perfect control of all audio levels so you are in control of your sound at all times, and priced at £89.95, this is a great all-round mic for people looking for an effective but affordable option.

What’s the JOBY Wavo range?

The Wavo POD is just one of a new audio range from JOBY – the renowned content creator accessory brand – that will take all your mobile and camera creations to the next level. Carrying on in the brand’s reputation for easy-to-use and high quality products, the wavo range is expertly engineered to help you achieve superb audio – whatever or wherever you record.

Alongside the POD, the Wavo range includes the Wavo PRO and PRO DS on-camera microphones, the Wavo Air – a wireless lav kit – and the Wavo Lav PRO. The range perfectly complements JOBY’s iconic GorillaPod, and includes everything you need to produce professional-grade recordings.

For more information please head to www.joby.com/uk-en/microphones/

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This article was produced as part of a paid advertising package. To enquire about advertising with Pod Bible email info@podbiblemag.com.

The post Why do mics matter in podcasting? appeared first on POD BIBLE.

“Most people cannot remember who they are beyond parenthood”

– Leesh, Black Menopause and Beyond

Black Menopause and Beyond is a podcast hosted by Anita Powel who explores what it is like dealing with perimenopause and questions this media-quiet milestone that affects most women. In one of Anita’s latest episodes she speaks to her friend Leesh. Leesh presumed that one day she would have a child. After years of wanting to fall pregnant, she was diagnosed with a non-cancerous tumour and told that her pregnancy that ended in a miscarriage in 1998 had triggered her brain into a phantom pregnancy.

In 2011, after being in a state of Phantom Pregnancy for 11 years, she was finally put on medication to resolve the issue. Now, she is childless and postmenopause. In the podcast Leesh talks about these past emotional decades, how she has coped with her childlessness and society’s devaluing of childless women. It is an emotional listen and I would recommend anyone who is in the same position to check it out.

Listen to episode twelve of the Black Menopause and Beyond podcast, where you can find out more about menopause from the perspective of a black woman.

“Drag performers have reported seeing ghostly figures and shadows in their dressing rooms”

– Tatum Swithenbank, Honey and the Hex

Honey and the Hex is a sister duo exploring the origins, traditions and intersections of folklore and where they lie today. Through a progressive lens, they delve into myths, magick and mystery in English and Scottish folklore. In their Black Cap episode, Honey and the Hex take you back to a 17th Century rural Camden Town where they explore the ghosts who still inhabit the iconic venues. Think haunted Drag shows, teapots full of deadly drugs, and a witch so dangerous several of her boyfriends ended up in the oven. The Black Cap was an extremely important LGBTQIA+ venue from around mid 1960 until 2015 when it very sadly closed. Thanks to incredible community campaigning from ‘We are the Black Cap’ the reopening is finally looking like a possibility.

Listen to Season two, episode three of Honey and the Hex ‘The Black Cap’ where you can also find more wonderful mystical episodes to check out.

“This is my handy Scream-o-Meter 3000! These bad-boys are sanctioned by the government, so if there’s a child in peril on this island, I’ll be the first to hear about it.”

– The Health Inspector, Epic Fun Land

Epic Fun Land is a comedy-fiction podcast from the team who were nominated for the Imison Audio Drama Award in 2021 for their previous drama, Scoop McDoolie. Epic Fun land is a proof-of-concept pilot written by Isaac Fisher, Dan H and Nala Vanslembrouck. The show was produced with funding support from Content is Queen. Epic Funland is about a miserable gourmet chef called Clive, who is exiled to a grotty theme park island in the North Sea. The chef must learn to love his new home by going on a series of whimsical adventures with its dim-witted but good-natured heir, Sebastian. It is hilariously funny and one for those who loved silly shows like SpongeBob growing up. I would love to see this turned into a cartoon one day.

Listen to Episode one of Epic Fun Land ‘You must be this tall to die’

“The worst thing that ever happened to me was when I got everything I thought I wanted.”

– Lewis Jenkins, 20 NOT Something

20 NOT Something is the podcast for 20 somethings who haven’t quite figured out what their ‘something’ is yet! Host Emma Tindall interviews people in the public eye who are aged 30 and above about their messy twenties decade – from olympians and CEOs to authors and comedians, it’s a fun, reflective and nostalgic conversation to reassure those who might feel a bit lost in their twenties!

The latest episode featured was a 2021 round-up episode incorporating all the best bits of the year. You’ll hear from celebrity dating guru Paul Brunson on getting married in his early twenties and the freedom and power that comes from finding ‘the one’ so early. Comedian Fern Brady also compares her experience of working in strip clubs with being a stand up comic in her twenties, and author and journalist Elizabeth Day weighs in on why she thinks that ageing is actually where all her strength and power has come from.

Listen to the series now, where you can check out some more brilliant interviews of Emma’s guests’ turbulent twenties.

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Imriel Morgan is the Founder and CEO of the podcast club and agency Content is Queen. She is a Marketing Maven and cultural innovator in the podcasting industry. Imriel’s mission is to make podcasts inclusive, affordable and accessible.

The post OVERHEARD IN THE STUDIO // Menopause, ghostly figures, children in peril and the worst thing to happen… appeared first on POD BIBLE.

Welcome to 2022 podcast disciples and welcome to the first New This Month article of the year. This is the longest list I’ve done so far – I was betting on January being a slow month for podcast releases, but I was very wrong. The last two months have brought us BBC projects galore, the latest narrative podcast from QCODE, and several new true crime shows – including the newest project from one of the most popular podcasts of all time…

Enjoy!

New Pods

Shattering Gleam

Lots of the best music podcasts take a close look at songs and albums from different viewpoints – whether that is the personal preference of a celebrity, (Soul Music) or the specific nuts and bolts of putting a song together (Song Exploder). Shattering Gleam is slightly different, and perhaps is best described as a culture podcast. Host and music critic Sasha Geffen explores how pop stars have re-shaped gender through music: from Prince’s falsetto to Beyoncé and Britney’s robotic tuning. I like the idea of a playlist of the songs spoken about, but it’s a shame it’s on US-only app Pandora. Listen now >>

The Trojan Horse Affair

This is a big one: this 8-part investigative podcast series jokingly describes itself as an “elaborate student podcast”, but it’s actually the latest project from the team that brought us Serial and S-Town. One night in Birmingham, Brian Reed (the host of S-Town) was approached by ex-doctor and journalism student, Hamza Syed, who wanted help with a story for his Masters degree. He wanted to uncover the truth about the ‘Trojan Horse letter’ that caused the UK government to launch investigations into the supposed ‘radical Islamisation’ of schools in Birmingham in 2014. Despite the fact that this letter was unsigned, undated, incomplete, throughout all the official inquiries and heated speeches in Parliament, no one has ever bothered to answer the basic questions: Where did the letter come from? Who wrote the letter? And why? Brian and Hamza team up to investigate. As might be expected from this production team, this is a gripping and fascinating listen. Listen now >> 

Last Known Position

The latest fiction podcast from production company QCODE  follows a privately funded team of experts as they try to find a flight that suddenly vanished over the Pacific Ocean. Last Known Position stars Gina Rodriguez (Jane The Virgin) as submersible pilot Mikaela Soto and James Purefoy (A Discovery of Witches, Rome) as a grieving billionaire. It describes itself as “the next revolution of suspense and terror” and from the trailer voice to the music score, it really feels like a Hollywood production. The sound design is uncannily realistic and this is definitely worth listening to on headphones for the full effect. As somebody that can get jumpy over sounds I’m not expecting, I did appreciate the content warning that “it may seem like sounds are coming from the sides or behind you” – and it still made me jump! Listen now >>

Fake Psychic

Another new investigative podcast, this time from the BBC. Vicky Baker looks at the ‘stranger-than-fiction’ story of Lamar Keene, a renowned psychic in America during the 1960s who became known as the Prince of Spiritualists. Then one day, he turned his back on spiritualism, and wrote a memoir where he confessed to being part of an underground network he called the “psychic mafia”. He wanted to blow the whistle on the whole industry. But how much can we trust the revelations of a self-confessed conman? Similar to other recent BBC shows, this mixes documentary with drama – although the drama plays quite like the radio classic The Archers in style.  Listen now >> 

Learning From Genocide

Learning From Genocide is a podcast from the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust that comes with a content warning of ‘upsetting stories of genocide and violence’. We hear a number of first-hand accounts from people directly affected by recent genocides. The show starts by looking at the Holocaust and Nazi persecution, and moves onto the more recent genocides in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia, and Darfur. All seven episodes of the show were released in January to coincide with Holocaust Memorial Day, but I would recommend spreading out your listening so you can fully appreciate each story. Listen now >> 

Fairy Meadow

Another new investigation from the BBC, this one looks at a personal tragedy and the repercussions. In 1970, three-year-old Cheryl Grimmer disappeared from Fairy Meadow beach in New South Wales, Australia. This is mostly the story of her older brother, Ricki, who was the one looking after her when she went missing. We hear Ricki talking through his decades-long search for answers, and the emotional impact it had on him. BBC News Correspondent Jon Kay has been investigating the case since 2016, and over eight episodes we get a really exclusive and in-depth podcast. Listen now >> 

The Stitch Up, Lonel(i)ness, and In Touch with Ruby Rare…

This is like three podcasts for the price of one! As part of Broccoli Productions’ Documentaries stream, they’ve released some one-off episodes and a new show, each looking at different topics: In The Stitch Up, Bea Duncan looks at the fashion industry and how it prioritises profits over people and planet; Lonel(i)ness has Jaja Muhammad ask what we mean by loneliness, what causes it, and how we can at least tackle the stigma of ‘lonely’ if we’ll never fully be rid of it; and In Touch with Ruby Rare is a new short series drawing on sex educator Ruby’s own personal and professional experience. Listen now >> 

Wild Things: Siegfried & Roy

This has been showing up in many newsletters, and is perhaps already as popular as its subjects. Okay, that’s a slight exaggeration, but Wild Things is one of the new podcast offerings from Apple TV, and is making a splash. It looks at the lives and hidden truths of the illusionists Seigfried & Roy, who performed 30,000 shows for 50 million people and generated well over $1 billion in ticket sales with their animal magic shows, until Roy was attacked on stage by a tiger in 2003. Listen now >>

Other new podcasts for your list:

The Way They Were – Gráinne Maguire and Chantal Feduchin-Pate love discussing their own odd ex’s, but they love remembering weird celebrity couples even more. Each week, they’re joined by a celebrity guest to discuss the celebrity romance they never got over, from Brangelina, to Bennifer, and Mick and Marianne. Listen now >> 

Reclaimed & Rewritten – Produced by award-winning publication gal-dem,  this six-part podcast seeks to unearth the mysteries and the stories behind the devastating Tulsa Massacre of 1921. February is Black History Month in the USA, and this is a great way to learn about the state-sponsored massacre, and what actually happened to the community of Deep Greenwood. Listen now >> 

Getting My Dad to Say I Love You – Chris Martin (not Coldplay Chris Martin, by comedian Chris Martin) has been inspired by his own relationship with his father to interview guests, including Romesh Ranganathan and Roisin Conaty, to find out what type of relationship they have with their parents. Perhaps it might help Chris to convince his dad to say those three words, “I Love You” too! Listen now >> 

Go Love Yourself – Star of the Great British Bake Off Laura Adlington has launched a show that aims to empower people to feel good about themselves and their bodies. Laura and best friend Lauren Smith talk about body image, confidence, and growing up in the age of low-rise jeans, diet culture and Bridget Jones. As well as exploring their own journeys to self-acceptance, the pair give practical advice on caring a lot less about what other people think. Listen now >> 

Room 5 – Another BBC production: One afternoon changed everything for Helena Merriman as she was given a shock diagnosis. Now she’s speaking to other people who were changed by a diagnosis. This is an intimate series that uses immersive sound design to help shines a light on misunderstood conditions, and asks how we cope when our bodies and our minds no longer behave as we want them to. Listen now >> 

This Is Dating – “Come for the cringe, stay for the connection.” This show from PRX lets you listen in on first dates. What saves this from being really awkward – even exploitative – is the input from a behavioural scientist pre and post-date. Listen now >>

Ghosthoney’s Dream Machine – Social media trailblazer Ghosthoney, aka Tyler Gaca, has made a podcast with a difference. These short narratives describe the magical worlds that occupy Tyler’s dreams. Tyler is also taking listener’s suggestions for stories! Listen now >> 

New Seasons:

CHAMELEON – Season 3

CHAMELEON: Hollywood Con Queen took us through the story of one of the weirdest and wildest scams in history – a supposed major film project, in Indonesia that never existed. Season two, High Rollers, looked at an FBI agent and a group of businesspeople in Las Vegas who all pretended to be money launderers. Now, the con-themed podcast is looking at a story from 2003, when two half-starved young men turned up in a small Canadian town, saying they’d be living in the woods. Listen now >> 

Deep Cover – Season 2

Deep Cover is a podcast from Puskin Industries that has a simple premise – it focuses on people who lead double lives. Season two, Mob Land, is back with a brand new podcast cover. It’s 1986, and a high-rolling lawyer named Bob Cooley walks into a federal prosecutor’s office and says that he has information that could bring down the mob… Listen now >> 

Human Resources – Season 2

If you’ve heard me on the Pod Bible Podcast,  you’ll know that Human Resources is one of my favourite podcasts. It explores the British involvement in the transatlantic slave trade and how it permeates our society and culture today. Season 2 starts off with a focus on the most British thing imaginable – the Royal Family – and the profits they made from enslaved people. Listen now >> 

Asylum Speakers – Season 6

The podcast that used to be called The Worldwide Tribe is back with a new name for the sixth season. In Asylum Speakers, Jaz O’Hara speaks to people with lived experience of displacement, as well as the people working on the front line supporting them. In the first episode of this series we hear from Hassan Akkad, a BAFTA award winning filmmaker, activist and writer from Syria, who chose to work as an NHS hospital cleaner during the worst days of COVID. The two chat after a family meal and the conversation is a really nice insight into his life. I also love the theme music of this podcast! Listen now >> 

Out There – ‘Things I Thought I Knew’

Another of my often recommended podcasts, Out There shares stories that explore big ideas through our relationship with the outdoors. Up until now, the podcast has worked on a rolling basis, but they’ve done something of a re-launch with this themed series. ‘Things I Thought I Knew’ looks at harnessing the power of nature to uncover truths about our humanity and our world. In the first episode, Sarah Dealy tells us about her time in ‘wilderness therapy’. Listen now >> 

Other new seasons for your list:

Conflicted – Season 3

This podcast from Message Heard has an ex-Al Qaeda jihadi turned MI6 spy (Aimen Dean) and a former monk turned filmmaker (Thomas Small) looking in depth at some of the most nuanced and complicated aspects of war in the Middle East. The long-awaited third season starts with the continuation of their bonus episode on Afghanistan. Listen now >> 

Marvel’s Wastelanders – Season 3

A fictional ‘audio epic’, Wastelanders is the official tie-in podcast that builds on the Marvel universe through audio stories. Season 3 focuses on Black Widow, and is set in New York “almost thirty years after The Day the Villains Won (aka V-Day)”.  Listen now >> 

dot com – Season 2

Dot com is the podcast documentary series about the people of the web. After looking at Wikipedia in the first season, dot com: Redditland takes a close look at the social media website that has been called the front page of the internet. Listen now >> 

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If you listen to these podcasts, please tell us what you think! Tag us on social media @PodBible. Read more of our New This Month editorials for the newest podcasts to listen to.

Do you have a show for our new podcast list? Email  info@podbiblemag.com with the show description, release date and artwork. We will share as many launches as we can.

The post 23 New podcasts you must listen to this February appeared first on POD BIBLE.

At the start of December we asked listeners to vote for their favourite podcasts of the year within a number of categories. All nominees had featured in Pod Bible Magazine, on the Pod Bible Podcast or on this very website in 2021, but the final Independent Podcast category was open to all. 2021 also saw the introduction of the ‘Informative’ category, which allowed us to celebrate the podcasts that have educated us the most over the past year.

The polls were open for the whole of December and we received a record number of votes. The independent podcast category received the widest range of suggestions yet and we’re excited to check out a number of shows we hadn’t been aware of!

Voting in the polls closed at midnight on the 31st of December and all votes have now been counted and verified.

Pod disciples, we present to you, your Pod Bible Poll Winners for 2021!

COMEDY

WINNER: HAVE A WORD

2nd – OFF MENU

3rd – ROB BECKETT AND JOSH WIDDICOMBE’S PARENTING HELL

After back to back wins in 2019 and 2020,  Off Menu have been knocked off the top spot and there’s a new Comedy Poll Winner in town! Congratulations to Adam Rowe and Dan Nightingale, the two men behind the wildly popular Have A Word.

Each week Adam and Dan, alongside a plethora of special guests, chat about anything and everything, and they have a bloody good laugh while doing it. Check out their YouTube channel for full episodes and highlight clips (and to instantly become jealous of their lovely studio set up).

Visit the Have A Word website for the best ways to listen.

INTERVIEW & CONVERSATION

WINNER: JAACKMAATES HAPPY HOUR

2nd – THE ADAM BUXTON PODCAST

3rd – RICHARD HERRING’S LEICESTER SQUARE THEATRE PODCAST

Like Have A Word, JaackMaate’s Happy Hour is the second podcast to win their category after their first nomination and let us tell you, they received A LOT of votes. On each episode Jaack and co-ost Stevie are joined by an array of the internet’s best celebrities for full and frank conversations about the lives they lead and how they found themselves where they are today.

Listen to JaackMaates Happy Hour exclusively on Spotify.

LIFESTYLE & CULTURE

WINNER: THE GUILTY FEMINIST

2nd – TAN FRANCE’S QUEER ICONS

3rd – TALK ART

The first podcast to bag a hat trick of wins in the Pod Bible Poll Winners, Deborah Frances-White and The Guilty Feminist have won best Lifestyle & Culture podcast in 2019, 2020 and now 2021! In each episode Deborah and her guests discuss topics ‘all 21st century feminists agree on’ whilst confessing the insecurities, hypocrisies and fears that underlie their principles. Can they make it four in a row next year….?

Deborah was our cover star for Issue #013 of Pod Bible Magazine which you can read here.

Listen to The Guilty Feminist on Acast or visit the show’s website.

FILM & TV

WINNER: FILMS TO BE BURIED WITH

2nd – OBSESSED WITH…

3rd – CLASH OF THE TITLES

What’s better, winning an Emmy or securing top spot in the Film & TV Category of the Pod Bible Polls for the second year in a row? We’ll let Brett Goldstein be the judge of that, but what a year he’s had! With award winning TV shows, guest appearances on American chat shows and a return to live stand up, Brett has been a busy man over the past 12 months, so keeping up a consistent release schedule on Films To Be Buried With has been a real achievement. On each episode Brett asks his guests to discuss their lives via the films that mean most to them with his 2021 lineup including an amazing variety of film fanatics including Jimmy Carr, Teri Hatcher, Barry Jenkins and Brene Brown.

You can listen to Brett discuss the show on episode #033 of Pod Bible Podcast before checking out his extensive back catalogue on Acast. 

MUSIC

WINNER: JAMES ACASTER’S PERFECT SOUNDS

2nd – YOUR OWN PERSONAL BEATLES

3rd – THE LINE-UP WITH SHAUN KEAVENY

Is it time we all agreed that 2016 is the greatest year for music, ever? James Acaster certainly thinks so and given the popularity of his BBC Sounds show it may just be time to join him. Perfect Sounds launched last year and features James trying to convince comedians that 2016 is the greatest year is musical history. Each episode gives the opportunity to discover a new artist to add to your playlist and James does a fantastic job of getting across why he loves each one.

Listen to James Acaster’s Perfect Sounds on Acast or wherever you get your podcasts.

SOCIAL CONSCIENCE

WINNER: RUSSELL KANE’S MAN BAGGAGE

2nd – GRIEFCAST

3rd – THE F WORD

On Man Baggage, Russell Kane and his celebrity panel unpack the emotional baggage that men spend their lives avoiding. With no topic off the table, Russell and his guests explore all the uncomfortable and anxiety inducing conversations that usually make men run for the door by doing what blokes do best – make daft jokes about them. You can read our chat with Russell in Issue #016 of Pod Bible magazine.

Congratulations also to Cariad Lloyd’s Griefcast on finishing in the top 3 for the third year running and continuing to make such an important and sensitively produced show!

Listen to Russell Kane’s Man Baggage on Acast or wherever you listen to podcasts.

SPORT & LEISURE

WINNER: WRIGHTY’S HOUSE

2nd – FOOTBALL RAMBLE

3rd – TAILENDERS

A trophy in your debut season isn’t a bad way to start is it? But what else would you expect from Ian Wright, ex footballer and one of the nations favourite pundits who’s enthusiasm and passion for the game shines in every episode. Each week on Wrighty’s House, Ian is joined by a rotating cast to dissect the latest results and news stories from both the men’s and women’s game. Already a fan? Keep a close eye on Pod Bible this year…

Listen to Wrighty’s House on Spotify.

INFORMATIVE

WINNER: NO SUCH THING AS A FISH

2nd – DAN SNOW’S HISTORY HIT

3rd – DERREN BROWN’S BOOT CAMP FOR THE BRAIN

As recent Pod Bible cover stars it feels fitting that No Such Thing As A Fish have topped the first ever Informative poll, a new category created to celebrate the many podcasts that educated us throughout 2021. Each week the gang discuss a new set of facts and although largely comedy based, you never finish an episode without learning something new to keep in your back pocket for the next family meal / trip to the pub / zoom catchup.

You can watch a conversation with Dan, James, Andrew and Anna here or listen to the podcast now on Acast, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.

OH. MY. POD.

INDEPENDENT PODCAST

WINNER: THE CINEMILE

2nd – ECONOMICS IN 10

3rd – PICTURE THE SCENE: A TRUE CRIME PODCAST

The ‘Oh My Pod’ Independent Podcast poll is fiercely contested each year and is arguably the hardest to win. It’s open to literally every independent podcast out there so to top the charts you not only need to be a good show, you also need your listeners to mobilise and get their votes in! This years winner is The Cinemile, a podcast married couple Dave and Cathy podcast their walk home from the movies. Simple huh? Over the years the show has built a loyal following and their back catalogue is ready and waiting for you to get stuck in. So go listen to The Cinemile on Acast, or listen to their appearance on the Pod Bible Podcast back in March 2020.

You voted for over 500 different podcasts in this category so 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 2022 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!

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1.) You already have a head start

You won’t be starting from scratch like other debut authors. You will have existing content that can be adapted into a different format and an established platform from which to market your book. While you may still have a considerable amount of work to complete, you’ll have a good understanding of what your listeners want from you, which will help you to plan and write a book that you know will be of value to them. And it’s not necessarily a numbers game when it comes to audience size. Having dedicated fans who repeatedly engage and truly back your work gives you so much more selling power than mere likes and follows, and the podcasting format lends itself well to that.

2.) To create something with staying power

While podcasts most often feature content and commentary that is timely and topical, books sit proudly on bookshelves for years to come, where they are revisited, shared around and gifted. As with any form of content, not all books are created equal. Publishing a book that is timeless and of exceptional quality requires specialist support from the right editors and designers for your genre. But done correctly you will be creating something that’s here to stay. From Dale Carnegie’s How to Win Friends and Influence People to Tara Westover’s memoir Educated and Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, books have the power to stand the test of time. The world may be developing into a mostly digital space, but nothing beats holding a book in your hands, especially if it’s your very own.

3.) To cement your authority & generate publicity

Launching a book gives you a fresh talking point that can open doors to more opportunities as you promote your work and build your profile as an author. Publishing garners respect and can cement your authority in your subject, presenting with it relevant media coverage, influencer engagement and speaking slots that may not have previously been accessible. Regardless of physical sales, a book can get your name and brand out into the world, giving audiences a reason to connect with you in the first place while offering them something they can take away.

4.) A physical product = additional revenue

As a tangible product, a book is the perfect complement to other ventures like a podcast, generating an additional stream of revenue that will last for years to come. Book revenues vary significantly depending on your chosen publishing route, the marketing commitment to the project, and, to put it bluntly, the quality of the work. But authors have never had more power than they do today when it comes to monetisation options, and ‘massive change’ isn’t nearly adequate enough to describe the seismic shifts in publishing and bookselling in the last two decades. Thanks to the digital revolution, an audience can be built and spoken to directly, and today’s authors no longer need to rely on the traditional route or bricks-and-mortar retailers for their books to attract sales. This opens up multiple viable options for those who have an existing platform.

5.) To strengthen your fanbase & reach new listeners

Sometimes it’s less about having something to sell than about having something to strengthen. A book can be a wonderful marketing tool. For your existing listener-base the aim may be to build a more powerful connection. A book, then, is a special object that they can own and use to explore your themes in greater detail. By making your content available in a format that can appear on additional platforms, such as Amazon or Waterstones, you are also making yourself discoverable to new audiences who may never have heard about your podcast otherwise. So not only are you giving back to your loyal listeners, you’ll be gaining a fair few too.

If you’re a podcaster with an idea for a great book but aren’t sure where to start, creative publishing agency whitefox have a FREE in-depth guide filled with expert tips, insightful interviews and all your possible publishing routes explained. Download it HERE now.

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The ever-evolving landscape of gaming is still in its infancy with new teams popping up like weeds in the garden fighting over new and undiscovered talent. Where will the road lead with new introductions into the gaming space such as Virtual reality? Will you physically be able to take part? There are so many questions, here are 7 of the best gaming podcasts to help satisfying that insatiable desire:

Gamertag Radio

Releasing episodes since February 2005, there is nobody more clued in to gaming news and reviews than Gamertag Radio.  The learned podcasting trio, Danny Peña, Peter Toledo and Parris Lilly bring you everything new and exclusive happening in the industry.  If you want to stay informed, this is where you want to be. Listen now on Acast >>>

Retronauts

Ever been intrigued by the history of games? Retronauts has you covered exploring more than 40 years of vintage gaming excellence.  From pixelated Pokemon battles to high resolution Call of Duty wars, they will explain how these games came to fruition. A truly in depth insight that never gets boring! Listen now on Acast >>>

Podcast Unlocked

The battle of the gaming consoles has been fought more fiercely than the Cold War. If your heart happens to be green and you side with the Xbox army, then you have found your clan from Halo to Gears of War, this podcast is for you. Hosted by the IGN Network, weekly episodes are released giving you everything Xbox. Listen now on Acast >>>

What’s Good Games

With over 30 years of video game industry experience Andrea Rene, Brittany Brombacher and Kristine Steimer break down the week’s news, exclusives and gossip in a passionately humorous manner. A very smart and intelligent take on the industry, these 3 women have me both laughing and informed. Listen now >>>

Sacred Symbols

If PlayStation is your weapon of choice, then industry past masters, Colin Moriarty, Chris Maldonado and Dustin Furman further conspire to indoctrinate you in the ways of Sony. Weekly episodes are  humorously packaged to include news, recommendations and audience Q & A’s. The trio are so amicable that you feel part of the conversation! Listen now on Acast >>>

The Psychology of Video Games

Jamie Madigan explores the convergence  between video games and psychology. Each episode features an expert specialising in different aspects of gaming psychology.  For example, episode 29 deals with morality and moral choices in video games.  With a warm and intellectual interview style, the information conveyed is extremely clear and concise. I could not recommend this podcast more highly! Listen now >>>

Rebel FM

If you are more interested in the intersection between video games and everyday life then this podcast is for you. Industry experts discuss the influences of video game culture, movies, and books on their personal lives.  Each episode is a nostalgic trip to distant memories or discovering new future favourites! Listen now on Acast >>>

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Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

We are Eva Martínez and Linda Talve, the initiators of This is Europe, the Interreg podcast. This is Europe tells a different story about the EU, a story that is closer to our daily lives than to the corridors of the big buildings in Brussels. The protagonists are the Europeans whose lives have been transformed by Interreg, an EU initiative that supports cooperation across borders and is funded by the European Regional Development Fund. In the second series of This is Europe you’ll hear how the Interreg community works with everyone from refugees to reuse pioneers, musicians to doctors, forging stronger bonds across borders, tackling pressing issues such as food sustainability and green mobility.

Why did you decide to start podcasting?

The stories around the EU often involved people in suits making big decisions. We wanted to show a different angle. There is a very real, very tangible EU that is built daily by millions of anonymous citizens across the continent. We wanted them to tell us how they cooperate with other professionals in different countries to solve issues of our daily life that know no borders (climate change, food security, health…). This cooperation makes us Europeans. It nourishes the very foundations of the Union and we thought people should know more about it.

What was the first podcast you ever listened to?

This American Life – It shows how compelling audio stories can be.

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

Also This American Life. I love how they manage to plunge you in the stories.

Who’s your dream guest for the podcast?

It would be great to speak with David Sassoli, the president of the European Parliament, about the importance of cooperation for the EU project.

Which episode would you say is the perfect introduction to your podcast?

‘Culture in crisis’ is a great one to start with. It tells how cooperation across borders has helped artists and workers throughout the cultural sector following the devastation of the COVID-19 pandemic.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far as a podcaster?

Make sure you have a good reason to podcast. The world is already a pretty noisy place, so before you start podcasting, be sure to have something special to add.

Where can the Pod Bible readers find out more about you?

You can find out more on our website, interreg.eu/podcast/

Listen to This Is Europe on SPOTIFY or your podcast app.

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Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

I’m Christopher Fitton, a clinical hypnotherapist who is the host of Sleep Cove. Sleep Cove is a podcast designed to help people Sleep with specially designed content including relaxing meditations, hypnosis and stories.

The episodes are generally aimed at relaxing the listener and getting them ready for sleep but there are more specific episodes to help people with anxiety and confidence issues for example.

So the idea is to plug in your headphones and relax to my voice as I help you drift off to sleep.

What was the first podcast you ever listened to?

It’s a little hard to remember, as I think I’ve been listening to podcasts for more than fourteen years. I think it would be either be The Left Lion, Pat Flynn and Kermode and Mayo’s Film Review

Why podcasting? What is it about the format that appeals to you?

I love everything about podcasting. It’s audio style and completely free nature means that I can reach millions of people across the world helping people with their mental health and their sleep issues.

Which episode of your podcast means the most to you?

I would say getting my first episode live, as if I hadn’t taken action and got the first one out there, then I would have never gone on this podcasting journey and helped so many people. I had zero expectations for the podcast, so when it became one of the largest health and wellness podcasts within a few months I was blown away.

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

The first podcast I heard that helped people sleep was called, “Sleep with me”, where the host helps people sleep by telling them boring stories. Hearing this was a massively successful podcast, and knowing that hypnosis and meditations help people relax, I thought why not give podcasting a go with my skills.

Where can the Pod Bible readers find out more about you?

Sleep Cove can be found on Youtube, Apple, Spotify, and all major podcast platforms. You can also keep up to date with all the latest Sleep Cove news on, Instagram @sleep_cove, Facebook @sleepcove and sleepcove.com

Finally, what is your current favourite podcast to recommend to readers?

I really love catching up with the Adam Buxton podcast. I’ve been listening to Adam for years on the radio so enjoying his podcast show where he interviews interesting and similarly other funny people.

Listen Sleep Cove on the Sleep Cove website, ACAST, SPOTIFY or your podcast app.

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Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

Behavioral Grooves is the podcast that satisfies your curiosity about why you do what you do. Each episode is packed with ground-breaking insights into human behavior, at least two bad jokes that will make you laugh, some personal stories, and a set of tips on how to improve your life, relationships, and wellbeing.

Hosts Kurt Nelson, PhD and Tim Houlihan are two guys whose mutual love of behavioral science and a desire to understand people (including themselves) sparked their idea for the podcast. They want to help listeners “find their groove,” acknowledging the importance of good habits and routines as well as how music is a universal form of communication. It was even the impetus for the name: Behavioral Grooves!

Kurt and Tim have discussions with the world’s brightest thought-leaders in psychology, sociology, behavioral economics, neuroscience, and a cadre of other social sciences to help you explore your curiosities about human behavior. Most importantly, they talk about what those insights can do for you in their unique and often irreverent after-interview banter, appropriately called the “grooving session.” Kurt and Tim focus the podcast on how you can improve your decision-making, your habits and routines, your goals, and your communication, as well as the ethics behind such powerful, and oftentimes unconscious, interventions.

What was the first podcast you ever listened to?

Hidden Brain. Shankar Vedantam was our hero from very early on, who we were excited to finally interview for the podcast back in May this year. We also love Tim Ferris. Both do a great job of preparing, asking good questions, and following conversations down unanticipated paths. We love their styles and find that our podcast interviews often go down some unique rabbit holes, too!

Why did you decide to start podcasting in the first place?

It was a fluke. We’d launched a meetup in Minneapolis, where we live, and our second meetup featured a guest speaker who’s done some ground-breaking work in behavioral science. We couldn’t believe that there were only 25 people signed up for his presentation and Kurt suggested we record the presentation and turn it into a podcast. He knew that Tim had recording equipment from his work as a musician, so the conversation was completely naïve. We had no idea what we were doing. That was September 2017 four months later, we’d decided that a weekly format was the only way to satisfy our desires to talk with all of the cool people we wanted to.

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

Dozens. There are so many that do good work. We’re fans of Hidden Brain (as we mentioned earlier), Tim Ferris, Opinion Science, Deeply Human, The Happiness Lab, Rationally Speaking, Big Brains, You Are Not So Smart, Choiceology, The Psychology Podcast…the list goes on!

Who’s your dream guest for the podcast?

Alan Alda. He is a pioneer in the arena of science communications with his institute at the State University of New York at Stoney Brook. He demonstrates a tremendous passion for the scholarly work that is being done by great researchers and feels compelled to help improve the ways in which their work, especially their findings, are communicated to the general public. We would love to speak with him about this passion.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far as a podcaster?

From our guests, we’ve heard over and over again that context matters. Yes, our genes and DNA play very important roles in who we are, but at any given moment, context is king!

As podcasters, we learn something new from every conversation, every production, every publication…it’s a terrifically rewarding life for someone who likes to learn! Our biggest lessons as podcasters include:

• Be yourself.
• Be prepared.
• Stuff happens.

Which episode would you say is the perfect introduction to your podcast?

With a back catalogue of over 250 episodes, it’s tough to decide…let’s start with this one: Episode 222 “How Delusions Can Actually Be Useful” with Shankar Vedantam, the creator and host of Hidden Brain.  The first 1:45 is a pretty good intro and Shankar is not only a terrific host, but he’s a terrific guest, as well.

Another good way to get started with Behavioral Grooves is to listen to our brief conversation with George Loewenstein and Linda Babcock – in a very, very rare interview – about George’s musings on boredom and how, for some, it can be a painful experience. This is part of our Carnegie Mellon Series and this conversation appears in Episode 67.

Lastly, one of our favorite guests is Annie Duke, who we first interviewed in Episode 31. We were discussing her “Thinking in Bets” book and found ourselves forming a meaningful friendship with her because of this conversation.

Where can the Pod Bible readers find out more about you?

Check out our website: www.behavioralgrooves.com. You can also listen to the Behavioral Grooves podcast on any podcast player such as Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Podbean, Stitcher or Castbox. And thank you for having us!

Listen to Behavioral Grooves now on ACAST, SPOTIFY, and your favourite podcast app.

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This article was produced as part of a paid advertising package. To enquire about advertising with Pod Bible email info@podbiblemag.com.

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