Podcast roundup: What I’m listening to this Summer

Having long ago swapped the tube for long walks, podcasts have taken up more prominence in my daily life than ever before. Since first tuning into a wacky philosophy podcast back in 2017, my library has expanded to include grisly true crime, reliable daily news and achingly sad interviews. Unbeknownst to them, myself and my podcast hosts have laughed, cried, cooked together, trudged along our daily lockdown walks and physically embodied this accurate meme on more than one occasion.

I expect this summer to be no different. And ahead of the British Podcast Awards in July, which our fantastic etiquette expert William Hanson will co-host (alongside his own podcast partner Jordan North of Help I Sexted My Boss), I’ve taken the opportunity to compile my own summer podcast listening list.

Music: DECODE (Spotify Music and Dissect)

As someone who has taken pains to recommend Dissect to virtually everyone I meet, I was thrilled to hear that it has launched a UK counterpart. Following the same formula as its American sister podcast, DECODE promises to take you “track by track, line by line and beat by beat” through iconic albums from UK artists. The first season is dedicated to the rapper Dave’s award-winning concept album Psychodrama, and it promises to be equally fulfilling for British music geeks.

Educational: In Bad Taste (Pixie Turner and Nikki Stamp)

In their myth-busting podcast, registered nutritionist Pixie Turner and cardiothoracic surgeon Nikki Stamp cast a critical eye over the biggest and boldest health documentaries on global streamers. Having finally built up the courage to watch What The Health, I’m looking forward to Pixie and Nikki’s dissemination of the show’s myriad of claims. Their newest season, out this Spring, focuses on That Sugar Film.

True crime: Welcome to Your Fantasy (Pineapple Street Studios and Gimlet)

We may not be so familiar with the story of the sensational exotic dancer club Chippendales here in the UK but – surprise – it’s a sordid one. Selling the promise of women’s liberation, the male exotic dancer club spread like wildfire through the United States in the 1980s. But the real story, of how an Indian immigrant and a children’s TV producer created a global phenomenon from one seedy LA nightclub, is riddled with drugs, corruption and murder. Basically all the best bits.

Food and drink: Comfort Eating with Grace Dent (The Guardian)

A concept that’s informed most people’s experience of lockdown, the premise of comfort eating is so delightful to me as a topic for a podcast. In each episode, food critic Grace Dent will chat to a guest about their favourite breakfasts, shameful snacks and go-to takeaways as a portal into their own lives, childhood memories and relationships. The first episode launched with It’s A Sin’s Russell T. Davies and I can’t wait to listen.

Interviews: Tea with Twiggy (Stripped Media)

Created last Spring, when a phone call with a friend was more valued than ever, Dame Twiggy’s delightful podcast promises intimate chats with her nearest and dearest friends from the glossy worlds of acting, directing, designing, art and much more. Over a cup of tea, Twiggy and her guests discuss their lives and memories made together. I’m looking forward to listening to the latest series featuring Harry Potter’s Zoë Wanamaker, actress Rita Wilson and inventor and entrepreneur Joy Mangano, with a cup of Yorkshire Tea.

Books: The Waterstones Podcast (Waterstones)

The Waterstones podcast promises exactly what you want it to: insight into award-winning and trailblazing books with the authors and editors who made them. Their latest episode interviewing Zakiya Delila Harris is painfully on hold for me until I read her much-anticipated literary thriller The Other Black Girl, but fans of The Vanishing Half, Cloud Atlas or The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy can make the most of the podcast’s Spring 2021 series.

Lorna Colwill is Northbank’s Broadcast and Brand Partnerships Agent. She is responsible for securing regular TV presenting slots for our clients as well as for our fast-growing creator business. She is also an expert in podcasting, and has brokered some high-profile deals for our clients in this area.