The day I discovered podcasts, was the day my life changed forever (Ok I exaggerate a little there, but it’s no lie). It’s my favorite pastime and I can find them ranging from 10 minutes to three hours long. These talkshows speak directly to you and to many, have replaced radio talks and broadcasts. So much so that networks now have downloadable podcasts to fill that gap. I love the BBC but rarely listen in real time, so it’s great that they have a podcast for almost every segment the network covers. You can find podcasts just about anywhere and there are so many it’s easy to get overwhelmed.
To make it somewhat simpler for you, I have listed a few of my favorites. If these aren’t to your tastes, the internet has a plethora. Dig in and enjoy!
The Minimalists
One of my favorites. Simply because the presenters focus on a way of life I strive to achieve. In this podcast Joshua and Ryan examine how to be a minimalist in areas such as family, finances, things, stress, parenting and more. They also show that being a minimalist does not mean the same thing for everyone and why it’s important to never compare. They also have several books, a blog and a documentary. Pretty good stuff.
Sword and Scale
This Podcast is not for the faint of heart. These are based on true crime stories and go into finite detail of unthinkable acts perpetrated by the very people within our society. With episodes running for approximately 60 minutes, Sword and Scale does a disturbingly great job of showing that sometimes the worst monsters are real. And sometimes it’s us.
Stuff You Should Know
Can you die of a broken heart? Find out from Josh and Chuck. They explore every topic under the sun with refreshing wit and humour. Their podcast delves into the ins and outs of everyday things such as food, legislation, climate change, crime, travel etc focusing on how they work. If you’re up to some light casual listening, check in to Stuff You Should Know.
The Why Factor
This podcast falls within the realms of the BBC World Service broadcastings. It’s tagline – Why we do the things we do. It promises short clips every couple of days explaining the history, reasoning and science behind everyday things. The hands episode was pretty insightful.
Generation Why
Aaron and Justin visits the world’s most well known (such as the O.J Simpson and Casey Anthony trials) and sometimes deeply hidden conspiracy theories, crimes, mysteries, disappearances and many of the world’s anomalies. There are often guest hosts who brings a fresh feel to the podcast and they are refreshingly objective on their posts. They provide a holistic view and the episodes are very thorough and educational. Mental illness is often discussed with great understanding (I talked about my fear of mental illness here) and because I know so little about it, the information is invaluable. This is one such episode which shows the effects of mental illness on not only an individual, but an entire family and society as a whole.
Food Stuff
You can find the likes of Bloody Marys, yogurt and fried chicken inside these juicy stories. This podcast will introduce you to the culture, science and history of the food we eat and enjoy every day. You’d be surprised (and sometimes less enthused) at the bizarre treatments and fascinating processes our most coveted foods go through before they reach to our plates. Bon Appetit!
Criminal
Presenter Pheobe Judge gives a gripping episode which doesn’t focus on the blood and gore of crimes, but more so around crime and the people who commit, partake in or are victims of them. This podcast, although running for a short 30 minutes, uses exceptional reporting and expert interviews providing clarity on the effects of even one bad decision and why it’s so easy for all of us to make them. Money Tree was my first Criminal episode and it dealt with identity theft. You would be shocked out of your mind at what happens.
Death, Sex and Money
Here we listen to people from across the globe. These interviews discuss their experiences with love, sex, faith, money, success, hard times and more. We don’t often times see celebrities and billionaires as real people, but in this podcast you can peer through a small window of their lives. Mahershala Ali in this episode talks about faith, love and success. Loads of admiration here.
50 Things That Made Modern Economy
Do you know when the clock was invented and how it has affected our lives since then? Do you know what Cuneiform is? These things all relate to our economy, but how? This BBC podcast examines the inventions, technology and ideas which create the economic world we live in today. Tune in to these 10 minute episodes on your way to work or while doing the dishes for an endless supply of useful information.
Casefile
Another true crime podcast that showcases the many ways in which fact is scarier than fiction. If you are into details, this is the podcast for you. The episodes can run for more than two hours and sometimes takes me days to get through one of them, but they are so worth it. Australian presenter Brad, presents a new case with each episode (they sometimes have 2 and 3 part episodes like this one) exploring the conspiracy, unbelievable and strange. I love this one because they feature many Australian cases which you would hardly ever come across.
There are tons more out there so I’d keep updating this list as we go along. Enjoy!
Do you have any favorites? What are you listening to right now?
Thanks for stopping by!
P.S ~ Have you checked out my post on Minimalism yet?
(Top photo by Pexels)
