Previous guests include Tom Allen, Raye, Hannah Waddingham, Craig Doyle, HRH Princess Eugenie, Jam es Acaster & Ed Gamble and loads more. Kate  consistently brings her warm, thoughtful and deeply researched questions to every guest, from all corners of the entertainment industry, whether that be food, sport, music, or comedy. Every conversation allows listeners to connect with the guest and the intimacies of their story. “The show has given me a chance to share in pivotal moments in a guest’s life, like when we had Hannah Waddingham on just as Ted Lasso was gaining momentum. Hannah had been a friend of mine for some years by then and we recorded her episode at my house over a curry just as the world was waking up to her talents. It was really special to help tell her story over a couple of glasses of wine as she came into full bloom professionally.”

Even the most famous guests bring plenty of stories you’ll have never heard before. “I’ve been lucky enough to carry on working as a journalist and interviewer for 30 years now and the format of the show gives me a chance to really dive into all I’ve learnt across those years. If a guest says “that’s a really hard question” or “I’ve never been asked that before” it feels like a win – it means we’re exploring new territory!”. It’s like settling in for a chat with an old friend – the show is charming, ferociously funny and often deeply heartfelt. “The general rule of thumb we apply is if a guest is booked onto the show then it’s because they’ve done enough extraordinary things in their life to warrant you lending us your ears for an hour. They are all “best in class” from whatever field they’re in, be it acting, singing, food, sport, politics or entertainment” says Kate.

Every Friday, listeners can hear brand new interviews with various well-known names, as well as a deep dive into the show’s cellar every Tuesday, where Kate will take us back down memory lane with some of the most interesting guests from previous episodes. “We have
some gems lined up over the next few months – there’s a real life living legend in the form of the first British astronaut to ever walk in space and a member of probably the most famous family on the planet…but I can’t say any more on that for now!”

Listen and subscribe to White Wine Question Time wherever you get your podcasts with new episodes releasing every Tuesday & Friday.

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This column was created with Stak. Stak produces podcasts that entertain and inform, including some of the UK’s biggest and most popular shows – boasting a combined 4 million monthly listen and over 45 years of podcasting experience. Whether recording remotely or in our broadcast-grade London  studio, we special in every stage of the podcasting process. To find out more or get in touch, visit our website at stak.london.

The post White Wine Question Time: Kate Thornton is back! appeared first on POD BIBLE.

Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

I’m Maria Passingham, a producer/editor for editaudio by day and… also an indie podcaster by night! I’m based in Manchester in the UK. Equal Parts is a series of true love stories told by the people that lived them. It’s about how couples meet and fall in love, usually covering their very first interaction, first date, and a little about how their relationship has progressed since. Both people are interviewed separately and then my questions are cut and their answers entwined in the edit. It can lead to some hilarious mismatched memories, or very sweet mirrored responses. It also makes the listening experience more intimate as there’s no interruptions from the interviewer or other partner.

What was the first podcast you ever listened to?

Wow! In the very early days I listened to a lot of BBC radio podcasts which were actually more like on-demand shows, barely edited except for the music and news cut out. The first real podcast I listened to was Answer Me This!, which I actually still listen to (even though they stopped publishing in 2021). I know it so well that it helps me to sleep if my brain is too busy. I love that it was British because I probably listen to 75% American podcasts now, but it’s nice that my introduction was closer to home. I do think broadly that the two scenes produce different styles of content.

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

Basically to get a job! I had done lots of unpaid internships (don’t get me started) and a few bits of paid freelance work here and there but I wanted to prove what I could do. So I decided to stop waiting for someone to ask me and just get on with it. I started with Library of Things Podcast with stories from a social enterprise in South London. They were in their early days and I wanted to experiment with production, so we collaborated – they gave me access to the community and stories and I showcased the innovations and connections that were coming out of the space. I’m still very proud of that project, although if I listen now it makes me cringe – which I think is a good sign? I can see how far my skills have come.

Where there any podcasts you took inspiration from before starting?

Definitely. Song Exploder gave me the idea to cut my questions out of the podcast. I loved the way it seemed that the artists on that show just spoke effortlessly and continuously about their work. It made the narrative stronger, and the listening experience more intense and intimate. It also seemed like a nice way to not have to listen to my own voice too much!

Criminal was the inspiration behind unique artwork to accompany each episode. But I believe they have one consistent illustrator for every story, and I like to commission someone new each time. I send them a rough cut of the audio and almost no information about how the couple look, and they create an artist’s impression. I love the variety of styles and perspectives that come out of it!

You have a great range of voices on the show – how did you find your guests?

This is honestly the hardest part of production for me. The first season was a bit of an experiment so I just used the people around me, but that definitely reflected poorly on the diversity of my friendship groups. So, I made a concerted effort to find more guests that were Black or Asian for the second and third seasons. There’s definitely still room for improvement but I’m glad I recognised the issue and made an effort to course-correct.

For those later seasons I went online – where else?! – searching endless hashtags on Instagram #firstdatestory #meetcute #howwemet etc, and key phrases like “met my partner” on Twitter. It’s a lot of trawling and deep diving on strangers’ profiles. There’s also some bias there – it takes a certain type of person to share their relationship details online! But it was fun to expand the search world-wide.

My biggest regret with this show is not having at least one elderly couple. Sadly I found it hard to find couples in their 80s+ that are both still here, have strong memories, and computer-savvy, or geographically close to me to record. I did enquire at a few care homes but most of the reasons residents are there also would make it hard for them to take part on the podcast. If anyone has grandparents with a brilliant story and could help set up a computer to record, please get in touch!

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt as an indy podcaster?

Things always take way longer than you expect. I thought I was killing it in season 1 when I had most episodes in the can, ready to roll, ahead of the launch date. But I had forgotten about making a press pack, writing shownotes, making sure the RSS feed was accepted in time, writing social posts… there’s a million little jobs that go along with every episode. Now I have an (evolving!) checklist for all stages of production and distribution.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt as a professional audio producer?

It’s probably less of a technical, more of an emotional lesson. No matter how nervous you are – to lead an interview, to set up gear, to direct a voiceover session – you’re almost definitely the most qualified person in the room. So if you need a list of things to cover in your introduction, or a big post it saying ‘hit record!’ that’s absolutely fine, but believe in yourself, you’re the authority here. If it’s you, a client, and a guest on a video call, chances are the client will be in their head about asking the right questions, and the guest will be hoping they don’t make a fool of themself, or they get to touch on their talking points… they definitely aren’t second-guessing why you asked them to change input to the USB mic or turn off the fan. So work out what you need to do, or need them to do, and ask for it with confidence.

Oh and technically, really make sure your backup system is set up and reliable. Auto-save has rescued me a number of times, and I always keep on top of my storage.

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

Oh my goodness, so hard to choose! But because I heard a friend recommend it the other day – ‘Graham and Jules’ S2 E2, it’s a proper story of chance and coincidences. There’s love letters, special songs, and wedding crashers! Or, the episode released on Valentines’ Day – ‘Andy & Evin’! It’s the first of the third and final season.

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

Twitter is the best bet @mariapassingham – I mainly post about podcasts, TV, and football, but sometimes interesting things as well.

Listen to Equal Parts on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other popular podcast apps >>

The post Equal Parts: True love stories by the people that lived them appeared first on POD BIBLE.

With the new series starting today, we caught up with the three Spoken Nerds to ask them for the nitty-gritty on their podcast journey.

Who are you and what’s your podcast about?

MATT: We are three comedians, two physicists and a mathematician, who do two of those things each under the name Festival of the Spoken Nerd.

HELEN: Every episode we pick a topic and each bring something sciencey or mathsy that we think gets better and better the more details you go into.

What was the first podcast you ever listened to?

STEVE: The first podcast I ever listened to was Professor Blastoff. I was looking for science podcasts. Professor Blastoff isn’t a science podcast, so false advertising there, but it is brilliant. They don’t make it anymore

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

MATT: We do a lot of live comedy shows where we talk about interesting bits of science and technology in unnecessary levels of detail. But sometimes it’s nice to have an audience who can’t talk back: so we decided to take the idea to podcast form! Plus making a podcast gives us a chance to dive into even deeper levels of detail. Partly because the format lends itself to deeper and more involved explorations than you can usually achieve when you’re standing on a stage in a comedy club, and partly because (and I cannot stress this enough) the audience can’t talk back.

HELEN: Also I currently have two kids under 5 in the tail end of a pandemic, so I am all about working from home rather than spending most of my weeks and weekends driving up and down various UK motorways in a tour van. For now, anyway…

Image credit: credit Rosemary Rance / Adam Robinson

Which podcasts do you take inspiration from?

MATT: We’re long time friends with the No Such Thing As A Fish folks and we think there should be no such thing as a monopoly on nerds banging on about stuff. So we’ve decided to out-detail them.

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

HELEN: That it’s not radio! We’ve made a few series of “Domestic Science” for BBC Radio 4 and it’s a very different style of audio. For radio, everything has to be much more scripted, faster paced and we recorded everything for those shows in front of a live audience.

MATT: Who, sometimes, try to talk back.

HELEN: Whereas making a podcast is more relaxed and conversational.

MATT: Obviously we still script it word for word, but we script it to sound relaxed and conversational.

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

HELEN: In the Series 2 episode “To Infinity And Beyond” Matt gives a very comprehensive history of the HP 9100A desktop scientific calculator. That’s a fairly typical level of detail to expect.

MATT: Yes, it was the first scientific calculator ever made and birthed the phrase “personal computer”. When an early model was shown to the engineers at NASA they literally gave it a standing ovation and that calculator went on to directly impact the exploration of our solar system. Later in the episode Helen and Steve also go on about some space stuff but it doesn’t involve any calculators.

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

HELEN: If you want the best possible introduction, we have some live shows coming up at the Bloomsbury Theatre in London on the 7 and 8 of April called “An Evening of Unnecessary Detail”.

STEVE: There’s our first series still knocking around on whatever podcast app or platform you listen on, so that’s there if you can’t wait for Series 2 to start.

MATT: If you can’t successfully google either of those things or find our website, that’s probably for the best as it’s unlikely they’re going to be your bag after all.

Main image credit: Idil Sukan/Draw HQ .
Inline image credit: credit Rosemary Rance / Adam Robinson

You can listen to the new series of A Podcast of Unnecessary Detail on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and other podcast providers. Find out more about Festival of the Spoken Nerd on their website festivalofthespokennerd.com/podcast.

The post INTERVIEW // Matt, Helen and Steve from A Podcast of Unnecessary Detail appeared first on POD BIBLE.

With the latest series starting today, we asked Off Menu superfan and meme supremo  @nocontxtoffmenu, to tell us where they think new listeners should start… 

Like a genie waiter bursting out of a lamp, Off Menu exploded onto the podcast scene in late 2018 and since the first episode has consistently brought listeners a delectable mix of humour and food chat through a hugely diverse selection of brilliant guests. Each week, comedians Ed Gamble and James Acaster invite a guest into the “Dream Restaurant” where they choose their dream meal consisting of a Starter, Main Course, Side Dish, Dessert and Drink. It’s a simple premise that never fails to deliver some very big laughs from all the cuisine quizzing.

I’ve been a huge fan since the beginning and one rainy day, whilst listening on my commute home, I had an idea to set up a “No Context” Twitter account – where I could post out-of-context quotes from the podcast that were laden with double-entendre, bizarrely confusing or just outright hilarious. In two years, the account has grown to almost 30,000 followers, occasionally gets mentioned on the podcast and even has its own official merch made in collaboration with the Off Menu boys themselves! With the fifth series set to kick off on Wednesday 27 January, the good people at Pod Bible got in touch to ask which episodes I would recommend that best showcase the podcast. There are just so many to choose from, but here are my picks of what to delve into if you’re new to Off Menu…

Episode 15 – Sindhu Vee

Filled to the brim with huge laughs and incredible food choices that will surely have your tummy rumbling, Sindhu Vee’s visit to the Dream Restaurant stands out as one of the finest episodes simply because it strikes the perfect balance of side-splitting humour and good, honest food chat. Vee is a wildly entertaining and funny storyteller who deftly holds court as she dispenses tale after tale from her fascinating life. With stories of stolen wedding ceviche and eating four slices of pizza a day for 42 days to impress a guy, it’s a perfectly rounded episode with everyone on their top form and is a testament to how well the format of Off Menu worked from its early days.

“To the hungry person, even the doorway looks like crisps”– Sindhu Vee

Find out the context and listen to Sindhu Vee on Off Menu episode 15

Episode 50 – Joe Thomas

In this fan favourite episode, Joe Thomas (forever to be known as Simon from The Inbetweeners) visits the Dream Restaurant and gives us the most frantic, scatter-brained menu yet! There are more tangents here than a geometry textbook, as he skips and stutters back and forth through what is frankly an indecipherable and maddening collection of inexplicably hilarious yarns. His anecdotes (“Whatever happened to the Spaghetti Bolognese Boys?”) and his general thoughts (“Why is the 90’s four decades ago?”) are so bewildering that James “The Genie” Acaster has to take a back seat and play the straight man for once. “Never met you before, Joe… You are an absolute mess”, Acaster comments as the chat twists and turns and takes you to the most unexpected of places, climaxing with the infamous, epic tale of a lamb being buried in a garden. Truly an emotional rollercoaster that gets paid off beautifully in a follow-up surprise episode that dropped on Christmas Day 2020.

“Did it smell? Yes. What did it smell of? Blood.” – Joe Thomas

Find out the context and listen to Joe Thomas on Off Menu Episode 50

Episode 82 – Thomasina Miers

One of the joys of Off Menu is how rich the guest list can be and being a food podcast, it opens up the opportunities to have some brilliant chefs on board who really know their stuff. Famous chefs such as Tom Kerridge and Marcus Samuelson have made very memorable appearances in the past but recently ‘Masterchef’ winner and Wahaca co-founder, Thomasina Miers, was an absolute delight. There’s some excellent culinary conversation in here, even a whole recipe for some delicious Crushed Potatoes intricately and beautifully described by Miers. But it’s not all gabble about grub; there’s a whole lot of silliness in there too: a highlight being an extended conversation about things you can put up your butt that leaves the guest incapacitated with laughter.

“Butt plug” – Thomasina Miers

Find out the context and listen to Thomasina Miers on Off Menu Episode 82

This article was written by the mysterious entity known as No Context Off Menu. Follow @nocontxtoffmenu on Twitter or Instagram for more fan favourites and no context Off Menu fun.

You can listen to Off Menu on Acast, Spotify and all other podcast apps.  You can also hear Ed and James discuss the show on Episode #012 of the Pod Bible Podcast before hearing Ed Gamble recommend one of his favourite shows on Episode #018 of the Pod Bible podcast, and James Acaster giving his recommendation on Episode #022 of the Pod Bible podcast.

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