Distract me

If you’re anything like me you are fairly desperate for good podcasts to make you forget your own thoughts exist, so today let’s share.  Here are the podcasts that are my new best friends as I walk into the kitchen for the 80th time today to forget why I went in there.  Also, when I need real distractions I want dark, weird or funny and so I realize that my list is severely lacking in inspirational or educational or good-for-you stuff and there are a lot of great podcasts out there so in the comments will you tell me what is getting you through right now and then maybe between us all we’ll build a balanced diet of words to do laundry to?

Here’s my list of current faves:

Sidedoor of the Smithsonian

The Jungle Prince

Supernatural with Ashley Flowers

The Dating Game Killer

Strange Year

Lore

The Memory Palace

Radio Diaries

Rusty Hinges

Whatever Happened to Pizza at McDonald’s?

This is Love

This is Criminal

Beyond Bizarre True Crime

Wooden Overcoats

Lore

Pretend Radio

Love and Radio

Ear Hustle

Reply All

This American Life

My Favorite Murder

Okay.  Your turn.

But first….time for the weekly wrap-up:

********

Shit I made in my shop (Named “EIGHT POUNDS OF UNCUT COCAINE” so that your credit card bill will be more interesting.):

Shit-you-may-or-may-not-want-to-see:

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220 thoughts on “Distract me

Read comments below or add one.

  1. ‘13 Minutes to the Moon‘ from the BBC.

    Documentary about the Apollo 13 mission which took place fifty years ago featuring interviews with many of the original participants and with music by Hans Zimmer.

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w13xttx2

    Series 1 is also available describing the Apollo 11
    Mission.

  2. Hmm- I have never listened to a podcast. Is that something I should be embarrassed about? I keep busy having all 6 kids home ages 21-12. Pray for me.

    I am also selling masks, working on my online writing class in hopes of getting my memoir closer to actually being a memoir, and putting together photo albums.

    I am trying to wash my hair less because supposely that is good for my hair, but I am finding that I am not ready to hop out of the shower in record time. It is sometimes my only quiet time.

  3. You should get a small scale stuffed Rory for your shop. I’ll bet he’d sell out in no time flat. I know I’d buy one.

    I suck, I haven’t embraced the podcast revolution yet

  4. I like Russell Brand’s “Under the Skin” from Luminary media. He has a variety of guests and topics. He adds his specific brand of humor along with topics that enlighten and make one think…even if you may not agree with everything.

  5. Not trying to be anonymous in these lonely days when I so value blog comments. Visit me. . . Hmm- I have never listened to a podcast. Is that something I should be embarrassed about? I keep busy having all 6 kids home ages 21-12. Pray for me.

    I am also selling masks, working on my online writing class in hopes of getting my memoir closer to actually being a memoir, and putting together photo albums.

    I am trying to wash my hair less because supposely that is good for my hair, but I am finding that I am not ready to hop out of the shower in record time. It is sometimes my only quiet time.

  6. For historical fashion / sewing buffs:

    Dress Fancy podcast
    Dressed: The History of Fashion
    Sewing with Threads
    Fashion History with American Duchess
    Love to Sew

    For book/word nerds:

    Book Riot Podcasts (they have a bunch depending on genre and type!)
    Reading Glasses
    The Allusionist
    The Classic Tales Podcast (public domain stories/sometimes novels by a professional audiobook voice actor)

    For a chill/soft space:
    The Anthropocene Reviewed – John Green reviews various aspects of the human-centered planet on a five-star scale
    99% Invisible (i mean… if you haven’t already, this is the time)
    Reasonably Sound (Mike Rugnetta discusses sounds, music, and etc. very soothing voice)
    Song Exploder (see above, but with specific music with various amazing special guests)

  7. Mission to Zyxx (sci fi improv storytelling), Harry Potter and the Sacred Text (fun, thoughtful, rigorous HP analysis)

  8. I use a mix of healthy here’s tips on how to deal with this ridiculous time and then just pure escapism. I like learning new things but also I want it to be funny so here’s my list!
    1. No such thing as fish
    2. Jenna and Julien podcast
    3. The Happiness Lab
    4. The Naked Scientist (and all their associated podcasts)
    5. Decoder Ring

  9. I don’t listen to podcasts, but Randy Rainbow’s parody videos have helped me a lot.

  10. Have you listened to David Tennant Does a Podcast With…? Because it’s delightful!

  11. For a certain demographic (but aren’t all podcasts?) GilmoreballZ

  12. I forgot to add my favourite book/story teller ones!

    You can’t get it as a podcast anymore but go and track down The Vinyl Cafe with Stewart McLean. It is my purest comfort.

    For a good short story read aloud to you (who doesn’t want someone to read to them?) Check out Levar Burton Reads.

    I am super into podcasts and audiobooks (I actually first discovered your books through audiobook) so I am sure I’ll think of more.

    There’s always the classic Welcome to Nightvale for anyone new to podcasts that like things that are a little….odd? Creepy?

  13. NXIVM on Trial. This one tracks the trial of cult leader Keith Raniere, in upstate NY. My mom was a dental hygienist in an office where his harem got their teeth cleaned! So, I’ve been obsessing over the cult in the town next to my hometown for YEARS!
    Bardstown. Unsolved crimes in a small, cute Kentucky town. It’s one WTF moment after the next as you realize just how corrupt the police are.

  14. I think you would LOVE Welcome to Nightvale! It’s weird and odd and twisted in such a good way. It’s so gloriously dark at times. Start from the very beginning…it’s an ongoing story, set up like a radio show from the town of Nightvale, a town in the desert where “every conspiracy theory is true”. I can lose myself in it for hours!
    ~Caroline

  15. Timesuck is a fabulous podcast with random subjects, fascinating and super funny

  16. Oh Jenny, you’re not familiar with Welcome to Night Vale? It’s so your kind of jam. It’s dark, absurdist comedy. Or Box of Oddities? They talk about serial killers and ghosts and stuff.

    I also like

    The Adventure Zone (roleplayers, the Amnesty arc is a lot of fun)

    College Info Geek (they’re working on some kind of name change because they’re really more part of the general self-help and productivity space)

    Writing Excuses (geared towards sci-fi/fantasy/horror writers, also generally entertaining if you like those genres)

    Show Up with Natalie Norton (wholesome motivational stuff reminiscent of Brene Brown’s work)

    Sorting Hat Chats (a new one! They have their own philosophical kind of twist on the Harry Potter houses, and they Sort fictional characters from other stories–details of the system at sortinghatchats.wordpress.com, it’s a lot of fun)

    Draftsmen (a podcast for artists)

    Overdue (discussion about all those books you feel like you should have read by now, and sometimes really funny)

    Have fun!

  17. If you aren’t listening to Armchair Expert your life is not complete. Dax Shepherd and Monica Padman are everything.

  18. I listened to my first podcast yesterday (if you don’t count Radio Lab and This American Life) and loved it. These are podcasts the gf listens to, mostly in the educational side

    Ologies with Alie Ward – the one I listened to (sooooo good!)
    This podcast will kill you – about diseases
    Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend – uh, required for comedy writers!
    The weirdest thing I learned this week – editors of magazines find fun facts and talk about them.
    Medical mysteries
    Crime junkie (same as supernatural hosts)
    My favorite murder – yessssss (gf loves this)

  19. Ologies- science and humor in one place. The experts are super passionate about their fields and Alie asks all the important (read embarassing) questions
    Flash Forward – what if our pets could talk? A world without mosquitos sounds great right? Crime on the moon? This podcast look at the world through a different lense.

  20. If you read any of the Babysitters Club Books as a kid, I highly recommended The Babysitters Club Club podcast. It is weirdly hilarious- two 30something guys discussing each BSC book in a book club format.

  21. I can’t believe you didn’t list Everything Is Alive. It is the best podcast in so many ways. Funny and weird and heartwarming and thoughtful.

  22. Spooked podcast
    Fanatical Fics and where to find them (skip the first episode, it’s ‘eh’ and the second episode is ridiculous and amazing)

  23. I cannot recommend highly enough the BBC Sounds presentatioms of The Case of Charles Dexter Ward (s1) and the Whisperer in Darkness (s2). Yes they are based on Lovecraft stories, but within the frame of a modern true crime podcast. Season 1 starts with the presenters talking about this weird locked-room mystery they came across where a guy disappeared from a an institution, and then six months later his psychiatrist killed someone in England. Moving everything up to present day and recent past allows them to sidestep most of the super problematic aspects of Lovecraft’s work, it’s also an interesting deconstruction because most of the stories are written from the inside out, as the characters who are in the middle of things are learning horrible cosmic truths. This is outsiders looking in, and rather skeptical outsiders at that, being caught up in all of it. They are creepy but not really scary, and very creatively done with good voice actors and sound design

  24. My go to podcasts are

    Wine and crime
    History goes bump
    The untold hour
    Cults (by parcast)

  25. The Lucky Die (really adorable people do DND 5e) it is absorbing even if you gamed once 30 years ago, just because the people are good. The White Vault (scary audio drama with teeth). Wolf 359, now finished but lots of episodes to binge: daft, scary, emotional.This Podcast will Kill You: if you are CoVid avoidant binge the earlier episodes, great and gungy. The Left Right Game.

  26. Idiot of the week with Frangela or anything from the Sexy Liberal podcast network.

  27. Funny book podcasts – both about romance:
    Heaving Bosoms – listening to these 2 best friends giggle has, I’m pretty sure, mccade me their other best friend.
    Fated Mates

  28. I’ve never listened to a podcast before. In fact, you’re the first and only blog I read. I’m baking, writing and trying to do yardwork in between the rain. Then I whine about how sore I am. I’m trying to clean my house up. It’s a mess.

  29. Are there written transcripts of cool podcasts? I’ve never listened to a podcast, wouldn’t know where to find them, and anyway, people talk so slowly that I get bored listening to talking and tend to wander off. But I read fast! I’m sure I’d enjoy reading some of the transcripts, if they exist. Can anyone help? Thanks.

  30. I recently found the Wildly Inappropriate Poetry of Arthur Greenleaf Holmes. Find him at https://www.arthurgreenleafholmes.com/ or on Facebook at aghpoetry. He is quite timely, quite dirty in an adult vein. In other words he is the consummate cunning linguist.

  31. Why Won’t You Date Me- Nicole Byer is a treat
    Oh No Ross and Carrie- start with the Scientology ones, stay for the rest
    RedHanded- true crime, some laughs, incredible hosts
    You’re Wrong About- I’ve learned so much
    Sawbones- love any and all McElroys
    Las Culturistas- Bowen Yang can do no wrong

  32. NightMerica is a new podcast (they’ve only done 6 episodes) that’s pretty good. They pick a theme and then one host gives you a paranormal story and the other one gives a true crime story so it covers a lot of interests.

  33. That’s an absolutely amazing podcast called Friends at the Table, there’s six seasons on the main feed to listen to, plus they released the first season of their hilarious, weird and terrifying Bluff City for the lockdown

  34. How Did This Get Made is awesome! 3 actors (plus special guests) review mediocre movies. It is very well produced and very funny! You don’t have to have seen the movies to enjoy the commentary. The best part is the ‘Second Opinions’ part, where they read Amazon reviews of the movie aloud. Very entertaining and fun!

  35. The Bechdel Cast
    Mobituaries w/ Mo Rocca
    Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend
    Loner on Coyowolf Creek

  36. Check out critical role, campaign 2. It’s a d&d campaign the features voice actors. The story is amazing and it’ll give you lots to listen to! Find them at critrole.com!

  37. The Magnus Archives — really really creepy, with four seasons already posted, and the fifth and final just beginning.
    The White Vault — another very creepy one. I’m anxiously awaiting the next season.
    This Podcast Will Kill You — the two epidemiologist hosts, both named Erin, have fantastic episodes and bless them have been working hard to explain the novel coronavirus. Excellent, highly recommended.

  38. Watch The Crazy Haired Chef on YouTube. He’s an adorable 2nd grader who attends the school I work at (when we’re not distance learning.) Smiles!

  39. Ahh, Staying in with Emily and Kumail is SO GOOD!!!! Highly recommend, it’s been a real bright spot for me during all of this. It’s conversation and a great mix of funny, thoughtful, and tender.

  40. I don’t listen to podcasts (focus issues) but my son does and he highly recommends The Magnus Archives – English horror, kinda epistolary.

  41. Ologies! Alie Ward asks smart people stupid questions so you don’t have to.. the best!

  42. I love Ruth Bader Ginsbear in your window–very uncanny valley! Maybe that’s why MY neighbours had a giant plastic wolf in the middle of their lawn the other day!

  43. Oh wow! I also don’t watch podcasts but delicious peer pressure and now I have tangible, visual, WELL-TITLED options and perhaps I’ll step into the modern area and give it a go! Thanks to you all these commenters!

  44. The Savage Lovecast. I’m actually not that interested in sex or relationships in real life, so it’s weird that I have no idea what I’m going to do when I run out of back episodes in a couple weeks and need to make myself go for a run or do the dishes or brush my teeth or something…

  45. Last Podcast on the Left is hands down my favorite podcast. I’ve listened to almost every episode multiple times. It is a true crime comedy podcast that has made me pull over in my car because I was laughing so hard.

  46. I’m not as familiar with podcasts as I’d like BUT I rather enjoyed Alice Isn’t Dead. I only got through the first “season” but it’s done in such a way that the narrator is describing weird events as she’s trying to find her partner in a strange, horrifying world. I think you’d like it.

  47. Knock Once for Yes
    Real Life Ghost Stories
    Conspirators
    Unexplained
    The Poisoner’s Cabinet
    The Strange and Unusual
    Small Town Dicks
    The Box of Oddities
    Pleasing Terrors
    Once Upon a Crime
    Paranormal Mysteries
    It’s Haunted, What Now?
    Haunted Happenstance
    Forgotten Darkness
    Dear Murder Street

    There are more but, that should get you started.

    E

  48. MISSION TO ZYXX. Improv and stupid and silly and wonderful. And several seasons already, so you can binge.

  49. King Falls AM. Radio drama format. The happenings in a “small mountain town” with a lot of humor, heart, and supernatural shenanigans.

  50. Secret dinosaur cult is a must listen. Also if I’m feeling like being slightly educated it’s You’re dead to me for history and the curious cases of ruthorfoud and fry for science. If I’m listening with the kids it’s everything under the sun for science or myths and legends for stories. Not as good as lore but my kids find lore a bit too real!

  51. My fellow Chronic Illness Peep Brianne Benness (twitter @bennessb) has a podcast for chronic illness folx – No End In Sight – https://noendinsight.co/. I HIGHLY recommend it as educational and informational and also giving voices to those of us who are so often silenced because of our illnesses & disabilities!

  52. Hi Jenny – try We Need To Talk About Ghosts with Kevin Eustace. Kevin can always make me laugh, and there are a few genuinely scary stories that make a nice distraction from all this weirdness

  53. BLOODY MURDER & TRUE CRIME ISLAND!! Both are awesome true crime comedy podcasts!

  54. OK, it’s political, but what the hell isn’t political these days?
    The Professional Left Podcast with Driftglass and Blue Gal

  55. For pure fun try Nobody Listens to Paula Poundstone and Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me. I also like Levar Burton Reads.

  56. Jimmy Akin’s Mysterious World from the Star Quest Podcast Network. Bigfoot. UFOs. Aliens. Disappearances. Ghosts. And so much more. All looked at from a logical and unbiased view. Fascinating and easy listening.

  57. OK, I’ll try this under my old screen name and see if it works. It’s political, but what the hell isn’t political these days?
    The Professional Left Podcast with Driftglass and Blue Gal

  58. The Box of Oddities. They even talked about one of your books in one of the episodes made in self-isolation recently.

  59. Someone in my neighborhood has a cut-out of Rory in their window.
    I feel like that’s something we should do even after this is over so we can all find each other.

  60. Love Something True (deep dives into strange history) and Old Wives (discussing and deconstructing folklore with the hilarious hosts of a competitive fanfiction show called Shipwreck)! Hope you enjoy!

  61. I am loving Mobituaries with No Roca
    Stuff you missed in history class,
    Magic lessons with Elizabeth Gilbert,
    Freakanomics. And I’m adding so many of all these great suggestions. Between those and all the free plays and musicals, not to mention Netflix, et Al, I barely have time to do anything else!

  62. The Paranormal Podcast – with Jim Harold and ID10T – with Chris Hardwick and The Monday Morning Podcast with Bill Burr.

  63. Not podcasts, but a 3 book series by Karen Turkal. The Chronicles of Corvocadia – The Bonerunners, Corvids, Corvocadia.
    Fantasy fiction related to strange side effects of the bird flu. From Amazon: “A vivid nightmare. Two voices. The murder of her mother. All these things have Dia Swift disoriented and scared to death. Dia’s life had been routine. From being home schooled to traveling the globe, her first twenty-three years were ordinary. Everything is about to change. Suddenly, she finds herself in the middle of a woods, standing in front of an old cabin. Will Dia be able to unravel the mystery of what she is and stop the dangerous man that’s haunted her dream? The only living relative she has left is her Gram Spina. Gram Spina–who only hangs around long enough to speak in cryptic phrases and then disappears. Strange notes lead her to terrifying adventures of horror. Crows and a little piglet help her discover and develop powers she didn’t know existed, or did she? Outerbones, a Bone Triangle, and people called Corvids become the beginning of many mysteries of maiming, mayhem, and murder.”

  64. Drunk women solving crime. Exactly what it sounds like. Women getting drunk and solving crimes. Love these three women and their guests. Also Guilty Feminist. Deborah Frances-White is amaze balls.

  65. Meditative Story

    Jordan Harbinger Show

    Radiolab

    The Moth

    Twenty Thousand Hertz

    Authors Who Lead [interviews with published writers new and established]

    Sugar Calling

    LaVar Burton Reads

    Recode Decode

    Something You Should Know [fun tidbits audio magazine format]

    The Johnny Carson Show [appears to be on a hiatus but has a library]

    99% Invisible

  66. A couple of my favourites are already in the list
    – welcome to nightvale (reading this post reminded me that I stopped listening a few years ago, and should fo back to it
    – Ologies – sciency geekfest
    —— for other sciency stuff ….
    “ideas from the trenches” (CBC)a spin off of “Ideas” but “in the trenches” focuses on interviewing PhD candidates in every field.
    “Quirks and Quarks”(CBC) – very covid19 focused right now, but geeky science goodness has been playing weekly for over 40 years , so scroll back to last year if you want something more escapist.
    —“Best Science Medicine: BS without the BS” – canadian medical school professors, speaking mostly to doctors But I find most episodes fascinating. They dig into the statistics behind medical guidelines. Lots of “this is technically effective but …. and “everyone ‘knows’ ______ but does science back it up?”

    — more CBC (I have a type)
    -“Tapestry” is a sunday afternoon show that looks at all corners of religion, and can be beautifully inclusive. (Anglican priest who is also a druid, tattooed recovering addict with a soup kitchen ministry)
    – “Spark” (CBC) technology news and interviews.
    -“This is That” and “The Debaters” (CBC comedy) – satire and improv, but maybe a bit heavy on Canadian politics or inside jokes.

    One cool bit about CBC stuff is that the podcast is just the recording of radio broadcasts – so they’re really well produced and have decades of archives, so they often go back and say _____ is mainstream now, but here’s our interview from 5/10/30 years ago when it was brand new. (Internet, cell tphones, computers, genetic stuff)

    “ADHD reWired” is a lot of fun (maybe only if you have ADHD) … full disclosure, I listened for a couple of years before joining the paid coaching group that is advertised pretty much every episode. (But I finished it 2 years ago and Im still in touch with the people from my “class” … and I am considering doing the course again if I can get the timing to work.

  67. My all-time favourite podcast is no such thing as a fish hosted by the elves of the TV show QI.

  68. My current podcast list includes:
    Good Witches Bad Bitches
    Lore
    Cabinet of Curiosities
    Noble Blood
    Pleasing Terrors
    The Strange and Unusual
    Camp Monsters

  69. Wine, Women and Words is amazing (two women who discuss books and interview authors). I also love The How-To Heretic.

  70. Story corps – is very inspirational and will make you believe in the good in people.
    It has a wide variety of topics to choose from and i have never been disappointed

  71. I really like, in no particular order:
    Mueller She Wrote and The Daily Beans, both by the same group of female comedians, about the Mueller report and other investigations of the current administration/regime;
    My Favorite Murder;
    Flash Forward – exploring the ramifications of various science fiction scenarios;
    2 Girls 1 Podcast – interviewing people from interesting subcultures;
    This Podcast Will Kill You – diseases and poisons;
    Behind the Bastards – the worst people in history;
    Worst Year Ever – that would be 2020;
    Even More News – offshoot of the YT channel Some More News;
    Criminal, with Phoebe Judge;
    Atlanta Monster;
    Imaginary Worlds;
    Hope, Through History;
    Why Is This Happening – Chris Hayes of MSNBC going in depth on current events;
    Creature Feature – weird animals and animal facts;
    Happy Face – about a serial killer, featuring interviews with his daughter.
    Thanks, everyone, for sharing yours! A lot of these sound fascinating.

  72. No Such Thing as Fish
    The Drop Out – SOOOOOOO ADDICTING!!! The lady is cray cray!!!!
    Stuff You Should Know
    Gangster Capitalism

  73. Big fan of Astonishing Legends. They like to delve into the history, but they still leave a bit of paranormal spooky out there.

    Just got turned on to Mile-High Podcast. Haven’t actually checked ’em out, but they cover a lot of fun, creepy stuff that I’m totally into.

    Also, if you need a distraction, my friends and I have started doing watch parties where we all just sync up the movie, PM each other on Facebook, and start at the same time. The comments are golden. Might be a good thing to do. Last three Sundays we watched The Naked Gun Trilogy and today we watched Clue. Next week: The 5th Element.

  74. Highly recommend Nerdradio from the WRIF. “If you’ve been made fun of for it, we’re probably going to talk about it.”

  75. You already have all my favorite podcasts on your list, but…(Forgive me for sounding like a highschooler telling you about her totally chill garage band…) my sister and I attempted to launch a podcast about oversharing and the crazy things that happen when she’s out doing Rideshare….riiiiight before all of this happened. Best. Timing. Ever.
    It’s on hold for now, but there are three random and weird episodes available, if you’re interested.
    https://www.overshared.org/episodes

  76. I love recap podcasts. Buffering the Vampire Slayer, Veronica Mars Investigations, and the Attolian Archives (a niche but great chapter-by-chapter breakdown of the Queen’s Thief series by Megan Whalen Turner) are all currently on my list. I’m also working through the back catalog of Reply All, and The Dream.

  77. I have a list a mile long (I just keep getting further and further behind!), but one that always puts a smile on my face is Kind World. Just a short blurb of a podcast about people doing good things in the world. Good reminder of how most people are. 🙂

  78. I am a podcast addict. My favorites are True Crime Obsessed, And That’s Why We Drink, and Let’s Go to Court. They are all amazing!

  79. I feel like Magnus Archives would be right up your alley. It’s about a fictional archive that catalogs supernatural/mysterious cases. Each episode is 20-30 minutes and is the archivist making a record of another case. There are also background stories that happen in the archive as the series progresses. I’m only on S2 but I’ve loved it so far.

  80. I said god damn is an awesome murder podcast! Erin and Stacey are hilarious and so much fun to listen to! I highly recommend them!!

  81. I’m “essential” and still have to go to work at the office every day, but podcasts are always a great escape for me.

    Keep it Weird podcast – two women who talk about Everything!

    This podcast is haunted- yes, many creepy but they also cover tons of other subjects.

    Nightmare magazine

    The Moth

    Many if the ones you also enjoy….

    much love!

    Dawn

  82. If you need help getting to sleep, (and who doesn’t these days) , I highly recommend Nothing Much Happens, and Boring Books for Bedtime.
    Nothing Much Happens is magical! A very soothing voiced woman tells you bedtime stories for grown ups, with lots of detail but not much plot. It somehow tricks my anxious brain out of its endless spiraling and off to a walk in the woods or a day picking apples or watching snow fall while staying cozy and safe.
    Boring Books for Bedtime is a woman without much vocal inflection reading to you from a boring and usually historical book, like a very dated and esoteric scientific text or an 1800s Sears and Roebuck catalog or Mrs Beeton’s book of household management. It’s excellent for napping.

  83. My favorite lately is Small Town Dicks… true crime from small towns as told by the officers involved with the cases.

  84. -Staying In with Emily and Kumail. My favorite section is what weird thing made you cry this week.
    -Harry Potter and the Sacred Text
    -99% Invisible
    -Sawbones-a medical history podcast

  85. You’re Dead to Me- history lesson with an expert and a comedian. Topics range from Ancient Olympics to Josephine Baker.
    Anthropocene Reviewed- can be silly or amazing topic. I re-listen to ”The human capacity for awe” episode to renew my faith in humanity. The latest – “Humanity’s Temporal Range” is a masterpiece.
    Bande à Part- British fashion historians/ curators and friends Beatrice and Rebecca having a chat on the phone.
    Cautionary Tales w/ Tim Hartford who also does another favorite – 50 ThingsThat Changed the Modern Economy.
    No Such Thing as a Fish- British researchers for a quiz show share their favorite fact from the week.
    The Weirdest Thing I Learned this Week- American version of above with writers from Popular Science.
    Mythology- there are some truly disturbing myths in most cultures.
    The Last Bohemians- we’re weird and lots of others have been too and lived great and interesting lives.

  86. Expanded Perspectives
    Monsters Among Us
    Strange Familiars
    Night Time
    Death Sex & Money
    The Fall Line
    The Vanished
    Astonishing Legends
    Sasquatch Chronicles
    Bigfoot Eye Witness Radio
    Criminal
    Murder In Oregon
    Unexplained
    Counter Clock
    The Catch & Kill Podcast with Ronan Farrow
    Someone Knows Something
    Mysteries Abound
    Radio Rental
    What Trump Can Teach Us About Con Law
    Rumble with Michael Moore

  87. I’m in love with The Atomic Library–it’s still new-ish and there’s not a ton of episodes, but I’m really excited to see where they take the storyline as they get more comfortable as podcasters.

  88. If you like wierd wine and crime. Also my dad wrote a porno for laugh out loud fun.

  89. I have nada/nothing pod-wise; I am sorry, my focus is poor. Instead, I play word games obsessively to keep from thinking. If you want to mentally check out, try PuzzlyWords, ScrabbleGo, WordTornado, and for Apple users: Letterpress. I can list many more as my need to stop thinking is immense. Caveat: some of these games will make you more anxious than you were before you started.

  90. One Bad Mother podcast (parenting/life)
    Greatest Generation (Star Trek)
    Friends at the Table (fantastic actual play podcast with a diverse cast)

  91. The Missing Cryptoqueen, Bear Brook & Death in Ice Valley. True crime at its best.

  92. Binge and Purge the podcast – 2 comedians discuss each episode of sex and the city and add stories from their own lives

    Herstory with Shelby Stockton and Amy Claire – each episode highlights a woman in history

  93. Just found the BBC podcasts myself, finished listening to “Encounters with Victoria” (done by Lucy Worsley, who is always excellent for history documentaries), have now moved on to “The Hidden History of the Mantelpiece.” They seem to have every topic available. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p00f8z99

  94. Most of my favs are already listed. I also like:
    Linoleum Knife (film reviews)
    Risk, true tales boldly told
    Dumb People Town
    Small Town Murder (Love, love, love these guys! Our family favorite, but a bit sweary)
    Disgraceland (musicians that were involved in wild lifestyles)
    A Date with Dateline
    Truth & Justice w/ Bob Ruff
    Bob & Weave
    Hell & Gone
    Over the Road
    The Murder Squad
    Rivals (musical rivals. For example, Prince & Michael Jackson. Very interesting)
    Red handed
    Ear Hustle
    Spontaneanation (comedy interview & improv, no new episodes but back catalog is quite funny)

  95. I’ve really gotten into the Disgraceland podcast, which is all about musicians and how they’ve fucked up their lives.

  96. Recent discoveries: “Over the Road” and “Boomtown”. Never thought I’d be interested in stories about long-haul trucking in the US or the Texas oil industry (I’m European). But these podcasts tell their stories with so much compassion and the narrators have such interesting perspectives in both cases.

    And a while ago I listened to “No Feeling is final”, a project by an Australian woman documenting her struggle with mental illness. It was rough, but it touched me and even helped me somehow with my own struggles.

  97. Podcasts: Terrible Thanks for Asking, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, My Dad Wrote a Porno(Hilarious, not for children!) The Drop Out

  98. Happy to see Conan O’Brien needs a friebd already mentioned, but would like to recommend the following:

    Best Friends with Nicole Byer & Sasheer Zamata
    This Sounds Serious
    Book fight

  99. Within the Wires. It’s by the folks who created Night Vale and it’s a weird, somewhat alternate reality found footage kind of thing.

  100. Sword and Scale (don’t know why this isn’t mentioned already. Great true crime podcast… it’s on the explicit and gory side, but very addicting)
    Everything is Alive ( WONDERFUL! Very creative and funny and charming)
    Mobituaries (with Mo Rocca)
    Medical mysteries
    The Truth
    Phoebe Reads a Mystery

  101. Beach too Sandy, Water too Wet – A brother and sister team perform dramatic readings of 1-star reviews. It’s maximum ridiculosity, and it’s great!
    Cautionary Tales – In each episode, the host tells about a real life disaster or mishap, and breaks down what went wrong. Topics range from silly to serious, and he knows how to tell a story. Only 1 season, so I’m hoping there’ll be more.
    The Good Place (the one hosted by Marc Evan Jackson) – Discusses behind the scenes stuff with people connected to the show, and at the end Marc asks them, “What’s good?” It’s complete now because the series has ended, but the conversations are a breath of fresh air, and I think we all need to be reminded that we can still find good if we look for it.

  102. There’s No Such Thing as a Fish; Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me; the Guilty Feminist and 90 Day Cray Cray

  103. My two favorites: “The Wild” and “Clear and Vivid”. I occasionally listen to “Reply All”.

  104. I’m starting at the top of your list of podcasts. This is NOT the first time you may have saved my life! Love you. Deb Pottstown PA

    Sent from my iPhone

    >

  105. The Dork Forest podcast (with Jackie Kashian)
    The Jackie and Laurie Show podcast (with Jackie Kashian and Laurie Kilmartin)

  106. I have 3. I think I saw one of them was named already.
    1. Potterless – if you are a fan of Harry Potter and have read the books and seen the movies, this is a good one, but you have to start back at episode 1.
    2. Jenna & Julien Podcast – they’re just so easy and fun to listen to
    3. Generation Why – True crime. Mostly murders. So good and tons and tons and tons of back episodes. I love this podcast.

  107. Says Who? Podcast! The podcast that isn’t a podcast — it’s a coping strategy.

    It’s Dan Sinker and Maureen Johnson.

  108. If you like old radio shows and sometimes want to see people’s faces instead of just listening, we are doing something called “Isolation Radio Hour” at Theatre Charlotte. It’s one comedy and one drama/suspense episode each week performed by our local actors from their own homes. You can watch them on our Facebook page: Facebook.com/theatrecharlotte.

  109. I’ve recently discovered “I weigh” by Jameela jamil. Beautifully done – and honest.

    I used to listen to “my favorite murder”, but it started getting more about the two hosts chatting with each other and not about the murders….

    Also, I listen to “last podcast on the left” sometimes. A bit more loose in language and humor, but if you want a good serial killer / cult / weird and random shit kind of podcast, these guys are good. Not as funny as they think they are, but still, it scratches the itch for serial killer stuff. The back-log is really good.

  110. Ohohoh! I’ve also been listening to “Levar Burton reads”. Omg. This man. Never mind that it’s a bite out of my childhood when I watched reading rainbow, this guy is so calming and he is so into the short stories he reads. I actually relax so deeply listening to this!

  111. Ugh my next post was going to be about podcasts. But “e-learning” means I stare at a screen all day and don’t feel compelled to write. My Dad Wrote A Porno is my go to recommendation. The Office Ladies if you liked watching The Office. Beach too sandy, Water too wet is s sibling duo who dramatically read one star reviews. It lead me to the sister of the duo ‘s other paranormal/murder podcast And This is Why We Drink. https://possumscatsthingsgnawingatme.wordpress.com/2020/04/25/catnip-party/

  112. Not a podcast, because I’m crap at following instructions… Check out the Holderness family on Facebook. They are funny. They are going off the deep end since quarantine began (homemade wine in the slow cooker and bagpipes from trash bags), but we’re all a little mad here, aren’t we?

  113. Ologies, Let’s talk about myths baby, MFM (But you know that 😉), Let’s Not Meet, Two Girls One Ghost.

  114. My friend is one of the hosts of Martinis and Murder, which sounds right up your alley

  115. The Bright Sessions
    I think you’d really like it. It’s a fictional podcast. Each episode is a therapy session with a therapist and her atypical clients. It eventually turns into a bigger story. Very good!

  116. Dear Hank and John – a classic with John and Hank Green
    Delete This – Hank Green and his wife discuss Twitter and life
    Hannahalize This – Hannah Hart and Hannah Gelb talk about life
    99 Percent Invisible – Roman Mars has the most delicious voice
    Invisibilia – always makes you think
    Anthropecene Reviewed – John Green makes you cry usually
    No Such Thing as a Fish – random funny facts
    Everything is Alive – totally creative dead-on interviews with inanimate objects
    The Guilty Feminist – hilarious show with Deborah Frances White and various comics and guests. I’m a feminist but …
    An Acquired Taste – bethany and Kathleen talk about crazy stuff
    Sidedoor – a look at the backstory of things at the Smithsonian
    The Allusionist – a love of words
    Spirits – pair a drink with a talk about supernatural things
    The Hillarious World of Depression – interviews with celebs about their mental health journeys

  117. The Sanity Cast with John Fugelsang
    Idiot of the week, Frangelw
    Stephanie Miller Happy Hour Podcast

    Enjoy!

    Cyndi in Seattle

  118. I’m addicted to Creepy Caffeine. The Hosts are Whitney and Dani,Also Death in the Afternoon,With Caitlyn Doughty( she’s a mortician)and her friends

  119. It’s been mentioned already but I also recommend anything by “Ask a Mortician” Caitlin Doughty her videos and podcasts can be found at The Order of the Good Death.

  120. Ghosts in the Burbs.

    Listen from the beginning, you won’t be disappointed. Frequently found myself saying, “No…oh, no. Ahhhhh noooooo!!!” Makes you freaked out in the best way possible.

  121. For people who are fans of darker subject matter I would definitely recommend All Killa, No Filla – it’s about serial killers but presented by two great comedians. Which sounds like it could be disrespectful, but it never is. Just funny, sweary takes on murderers.

  122. My podcast is called “True North Nerds” that I do with my husband and two friends of ours. If you like nerdy things (movies, comics, books, toys) and want to keep up with the latest nerd news, give us a listen! We also do interviews with comic creators, authors, wrestlers, and whoever else will talk to us! We’re based out of Ontario Canada!

  123. Ologies!! It’s a science podcast by Alie Ward and I have learned things I never knew I needed to know! She interviews a scientist on their specific field each week. Once it was poop!! Yes, poop!! Another time, penguins!! Fear, bats, bees, disasters, coral, stress/PTSD, BREAD, butterflies, procrastinating….the science behind all of the Harry Potter spells!!! Yup for real!!!
    Alie is funny and asks the questions you just might have. Oh and if you are a Patreon, she will ask your questions. So, yeah… Ologies!!

  124. victoriocity, steampunk detective comedy in victorian even greater london.

  125. What Should I Read Next
    Art Curious
    The Lonely Palette
    A History of the World in 100 Objects
    Strong Sense of Place

  126. The Infinite Monkey Cage from BBC4
    Scientists paired with comedians discussing a different scientific topic each week. Gold.

  127. Marc Maron’s WTF podcast. Interviews with comedians, movie stars, musicians and others. He likes to get into their childhoods and how they got started in the business. Good stories and I love his ranty, crabby, curious nature.

  128. The Curators of Horror. One of the hosts is someone I watch on YouTube (she has a knitting podcast there, too). The premise of the podcast is that she and her husband/co-host get a friend to fill out a questionnaire about horror movies, and based on that they each recommend a movie to the friend, then they discuss it, and then at the end the friend tells them which movie scared them the most and which was the best curated pick. I don’t usually gravitate towards horror films, but I love Katie and Emrys as hosts, and the discussions are really funny. And it turns out I’ve seen some of the movies they discuss, so… maybe I do watch some horror?

  129. If you like mystery which unfolds slowly and EXQUISITE voice acting, try Passenger List from Radiotopia. https://www.radiotopia.fm/podcasts/passenger-list
    Here’s the synopsis: Atlantic Flight 702 has disappeared mid-flight between London and New York with 256 passengers on board. Kaitlin Le (Kelly Marie Tran), a college student whose twin brother vanished with the flight, is determined to uncover the truth. Starring Kelly Marie Tran, Colin Morgan, Rob Benedict and Patti LuPone.

  130. Snap Judgment (especially is you love This American Life – it’s like a hipper version)
    The New Yorker Fiction Podcast
    Pod Save America (not at all an escape from the news, rather an immersive dive into the news, but funny)

  131. 420 Day Fiancé – it’s an “elevated” discussion of the 90-Day Fiancé show. The spouse and I love listening to it while we make Legos!

  132. So you’re my first and only blog, and I’ve never experienced a podcast, and I don’t do any social media…. I know, I’m the weirdest of weird in this digital age. I use the internet for reference, a little bit of careful shopping, emails and texts. But I just don’t like the way social media companies collect, use, track and sell our personal data, and the way trolls and disinformation bots are weaponizing the internet. When I was in high school nobody had personal computers in high schools or colleges, a rare few had hard drives hooked up to old box tv style monitors with keyboards spending hours and hours trying to program a personal computer to draw a line, or maybe to draw a circle, which was a huge triumph! Within a decade it became an absolute necessity to own a computer in college. And we went from pay phones everywhere to cell phones we can’t live without and most people can’t stand to put down even for a meal with family or friends. Is it just me, or do people who remember the way we all interacted and the way the world was before the digital age, sort of miss it? I mean, I like being able to use digital technology to stay in touch with others and to get information, but I kind of miss everything else about the way things were before modern computers. I still love the smell and feel of books, and getting letters in the mail, and being in a cafe or restaurant where people talk to each other and nobody has their head down staring at their phones in silence. I find that if I do indulge in the internet once in a while the way other people use it regularly, I find myself falling down the rabbit hole like Alice In Wonderland, where everything is upside down and inside out, and when you finally wake up and escape from it, you’ve lost track of time, perspective and reality, and It feels like the internet is a gigantic time-swallowing Hieronymus Bosch painting.

  133. Last fall I put my aging lab to sleep and I don’t want to commit to a puppy until I can retire in a year and devote more time to it. Since then I’ve been getting my doggie fix following The Golden Ratio on Snapchat. During this ” unplanned ” retirement I’ve started following their podcast. GR Mom and GR Dad are sheltering in their Florida Keys home and do a weekly podcast about their family which includes 5 golden retrievers. Lots of doggie fun and no virus talk!! They also do a Murder in Paradise podcast about crimes in the Keys(surprisingly a lot of murders) which I enjoy also:) Arff!!

  134. I love love love “You’re Wrong About”. It was the first podcast that made me understand why people like podcasts.

  135. -This Might Get Weird with Mamrie Hart and Grace Helbig makes me laugh every time I listen to it. It’s just two girls talking about their lives but they are so funny!
    -My Dad wrote a Porno is also hysterical (though kind of embarrassing if other people hear it, and it’s NSFW)
    -Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard is a good one that I never think about and then get addicted to every time!
    -And I saw someone recommended Ask a Mortician… YES! And her book Smoke Gets in Your Eyes is fantastic!

  136. Some other podcasts are:
    * Medical Mysteries
    * Hollywood & Crime
    * Sight Unseen
    * Uncanny County
    * LeVar Burton Reads
    * The Truth

    Also, the National Cowboy Museum twitter account usually makes me smile or laugh. Start on the 3/17/2020 post.

  137. We Heart Hartnett is a movie review about Josh Hartnett films. If your really into A Song of Ice and Fire then I’m a big fan of Not A Cast and Girls Gone Canon. One is a chapter by chapter re-read of the series, and the latter is a break down of a specific characters chapters.

  138. Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week. It’s from Popular Science and there’s always something really bizarre and interesting.

  139. Swindled
    Behind the Bastards
    This Podcast Will Kill You
    Crime Junkie
    Kingslingers

  140. onbeing.org. I love them and they have saved me from disconnectedness more then once. Not crazy, but honest and inspirational, embracing human strength and human vulnerability. Listening I feel less alone and less crazy. Hope it helps you too.

  141. ‘This Might Get Weird’, podcast by Mamrie Hart & Grace Helbig, is almost as funny as you. They even have a ‘critter corner’!

  142. My inability to pay attention to auditory information means most podcasts are lost on me. But my friend, Josh and his husband, Clancy started a podcast called Nonplussed, a gay romp through Disney+. Each episode they recap a movie from Disney+ with plenty of film information and lots of snark. I usually laugh to point of embarrassment (if I’m in public).

  143. The High Low w/Pandora Sykes & Dolly Aterton – great social commentary, book reviews and interviews all told with an incredibly British “turn of phrase”.

    The Secret Room – people anonymously share some of the most interesting, and sometimes dark secrets of their lives.

    Who? Weekly – Thank you Samantha Irby for telling me about this “beach read” of a podcast

    Family Secrets/The Way We Live Now – author Dani Shapiro, who wrote Inheritance about her discovering her whole place in her family was not what she thought due to an Ancestry DNA test, talks to others who have had their own lives changed by “Family Secrets” and takes on the Coronavirus times with a daily quick chronicle of people’s stories during this time. Kind of a Humans of NY for this period. Emotional. Riveting. Yet, comforting.

    Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine. Fun medical history/mystery show.

    MoBituaries with Mo Rocca – great stories of odd history and things that have gone extinct.

    The Dream by Jane Marie – a wonderful look at MLMs and how they destroy so many lives

  144. In the latest episode of SWORD COAST: COAST 2 COAST, Tess takes a nap and everyone else visits an old friend–but first, they reflect on their journeys so far, and then they read some old books of “HALFLING LORE.”

    The link disappeared Dammit. This is a D&D podcast that is hilarious!!

  145. Potterless
    About someones journey to reading Harry Potter when they are older. Quite fun
    Medical mysteries
    Talks about rare diseases in an intresting way.

  146. Try 99% Invisible. My son says Roman Mars has a weird, creepy voice, but I like it. And his design stories are incredibly insteresting. Try starting with the story of how a Scandinavian landscape architect basically made the X games possible back in the 1930s.

  147. If you like Pretend Radio, you should check out Javier’s new podcast Criminal Conduct. It’s my favorite part about Mondays!!

  148. Writing/Business of Writing podcasts–
    Lesbians Who Write
    The Creative Penn
    Ask the Bards
    Ditch Diggers
    I love them all, and they all have a different take on the craft and business of writing.

  149. Welcome to Nightvale. Dark, funny, and there’s a floating cat. Thanks for making quarantine way more fun. <3

  150. I think it’s funny how people don’t have time for podcasts – like what do you do while driving? While talking a shower, cooking a meal, doing laundry, gardening….? Is there any activity that you can’t listen to a podcast? I don’t want to waste my time listening to random stuff on the radio.

    My favourites are:
    – BBC outlook: extraordinary personal stories
    – BBC The conversation: two women from different countries talk out a common topic, e.g. two women that became boxing champions, two women that were hurt by implants…
    – NPR rough translation: about “common” topics in unfamiliar territory.
    – and of course: Hamish and Andy, a former radio-duo that now do a hilarious podcast from Australia.

  151. You already listen to a tonne of podcasts that I do, but I would also add Ologies (this week it’s taxidermy, YOUR JAM!), Unladylike (feminist subjects in a fun way), Nerdette podcast (their Covid-19 stuff was real good, similar to Reply All’s call ins), 99% invisible, Scam Goddess, Dressed (fashion history), The Office Ladies (office recaps by two of the stars), and You’re Dead To Me (from BBC, a history quiz show). If you want a deeply compelling podcast, dark and fun, The Black Tapes is an X-files-esque series. For something true, try Tunnel 29 from BBC4, people tunneling beneath the Berlin wall during the war!

  152. I love SawBones- it’s a medical history podcast that in informative and funny.
    Also Behind the Bastards (take evildoers and delve into their history) , Dark Poutine (Canadian true crime/history), Science vs (they research all kinds of stuff and present it to you)

  153. Good For You – Whitney Cummings interviews comedians and others
    Conan O’Brien Needs A Friend
    Cinemaxxers – movie reviews, very original by a former actor, often filthy language & intro
    The Marc Germain Show -particularly with the episodes with co-host April Winchell, both formerly on AM talk radio in Los Angeles
    Off Camera with Sam Jones – long form , in-depth celebrity interviews
    The Ron Burgundy Podcast

  154. No Such Thing As a Fish is probably my favourite. It is by some of the researchers for QI, and it’s full of weird facts and the hosts are all really fun to listen to. I also adore My Dad Wrote a Porno (very NSFW). Both of those podcasts make me feel like I’m hanging out with super funny friends 🙂

  155. If you love My Favorite Murder -then you will LOVE red-handed! My new favorite!

  156. Also – If you like the dating game killer – you will like Fake Heiress.

  157. I listen to Neil Gaiman audio books and “Sleep with me” podcast to sleep. They are the people keeping me sane and from waking up every 20 minutes because of my fucking anxiety and insomnia.

  158. I started my romp through podcasts from the NPRone app
    I just recently hopped over to Stitcher – so I can get MORE stuff and stumbled onto “The Hilarious World of Depression”.
    A bunch more but my phone and tablet are more than 5 feet from me, so I will get to it later.

  159. I’m really enjoying “Staying In with Emily & Kumail” — highly recommend!

  160. Oh man, ready?

    10 Things that Scare Me
    Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend
    Dear Hank and John
    Griefcast
    Hannahlyze This
    Harry Potter and the Sacred Text
    Off the Menu
    Ologies – SO GOOD!!
    The Guilty Feminist

  161. Lore,
    The Good Place the podcast,
    Unlocking us
    This podcast will kill you (about epidemies so maybe not for everyone right now)
    The happiness lab
    The mortified podcast

  162. I’m so late replying, but did anyone mention Bananas? It’s a new one on the Exactly Right network. Two comedians I never heard of read weird news and they have guests–so far Kristen Schaal, Georgia Hardstark, Emily Gordon, and today’s was Karen Kilgariff. Very funny and distracting, perfect for “these times.”

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