O
ver the past
decade,
podcasts
have been
increasingly
filling our
phones, ears and minds. They can
help you switch off, or switch you
on to new ideas and discussions.
From the bizarre (Sleep With
Me’s rambling but surprisingly
effective stories to help you get to
sleep, sleepwithmepodcast.com)
to the headline-making (BryonyGordon’s Mad Worldwas where
Prince Harry spoke about
counselling, bryonysmadworld.
telegraph.co.uk, andSerialgot
the world hooked on solving
crime, serialpodcast.org), you can
find shows about whatever you
fancy. No really, anything: “One of
the podcasts I enjoy the most is
Always There(alwaystherepod.
co.uk), an exploration of the
1980s period dramaHoward’s
Way,” says Daisy Buchanan,
presenter ofYou’re Booked
(acast.com/booked), devoted to
the books that have shaped
someone’s life. “Every episode
[of Always There], adifferent guest
talks to Julia Raeside about what
they’ve seen – some are familiar
withHoward’s Wayand some are
utterly baffled by it. It’s always
funny, charming and it helps me to
escape to a world full of big boats
and bigger hair. Whatever your
interest, there’s a podcast (and
a new world) for you. Here are
some of our favourites...Lives well lived
If the idea of a load of preposterously
successful people talking about their
“failures” makes your eyes roll, then I
beg you, think again. In How To
Fail, Elizabeth Day interviews big
names with such delicacy and care
that it feels like magic (howtofail.
podbean.com). There are offshoots
of The Moth storytelling nights
around the world, and this podcast
collects the best and most
jawdropping tales – all true (themoth.
org/podcast): if you never listen to
another podcast episode in your life,
promise me you’ll hunt down Dame
Wilburn’s ‘Pagan Fundraiser’ story
online. Desert Island Discs is a classic
for a reason, but the Radio 4 show
also works perfectly as a podcast. You
can choose almost any episode from
the past 76 years. Artist Molly Parkin
and surgeon David Nott are superb
places to start (bbc.in/2h7TCZ9).
And Cariad Lloyd’s Griefcast is an
intimate, funny and deeply moving
series about how we deal with death
(acast.com/griefcast).FANCY TREATING YOUR EARS TO SOMETHING NEW? PODCASTS
ARE LIKE TUNING IN TO A GOOD CONVERSATION. PODCAST HOSTAND EDITOR KAT BROWN INTRODUCES US TO SOME FAVOURITES
LIVING (^) | IDEAS