I don’t know about you, but listening to the radio on the way to work just about drives me crazy! The endless commercials, all too often obnoxious talk shows, and the same three songs on repeat are enough to make me loose my mind. Insert my new found love for podcasts. Like I’ve said many a time, I thoroughly enjoy learning new things, so listening to a new podcast during my commute fulfills just that. I’ve rounded up 8 of the best podcasts you need to add to your playlist!
In this first season, the show explores the disappearance of Tara Grinstead, a teacher in Georgia that went missing in 2005. In a similar style to Serial, they go through interviews, media spotlight, court audio and more. A second season is in the works as well. You can find more on their website.
You have very likely heard of S-Town as it just recently launched all episodes in one day. This is the story of a small town in Alabama, and the man who despises it. Quick disclaimer – this is certainly not indicative of every town in Alabama, or even every small town. You can find more on their website.
Sword and Scale convinces you the worst monsters are real by delving into all sorts of criminal and tragic events and exploring just what happened in those cases. While I am fascinated on the psychology of many of these episodes, some of the episodes can be quite graphic and I will often skip around on these if it’s something just a bit too horrific. You can find more on their website.
Harry Potter and the Sacred Text
Every now and then I like to take a break from these more intense podcasts with this fun and introspective podcast! Hosted by two Harvard Divinity grads, they take a chapter from each book in the series and read through it in light of a particular theme. It’s rather interesting! You can find more on their website.
Criminal has short stand alone episodes most of which are half an hour or even under which I love. It’s also far less gruesome than other true crime podcasts which is nice too. As the name suggests, any criminal activity is fair game here, so there is a broad range of topics that fall into this category. You can find more on their website.
This UK true crime podcast explores events within British history and also explores where the story is now in respect to the families of victims and the perpetrators themselves. You can find more on their website.
If you haven’t heard of Serial, I’d be shocked. There’s a reason it’s so popular – it’s truly that good. While season 1 far surpassed season 2 in capturing a larger audience season 2 was still quite captivating. I would certainly suggest starting with season 1 unless you are particularly interested in all things military – then season 2 is for you. You can find more on their website.
This show is my go to filler between seasons or when I am somehow all caught up on new episodes and have nothing to listen to. As the name suggests, episodes hover at 60 minutes and are based on riveting TED talks that cover some pretty fascinating topics like time, lies, the brain, happiness and so much more. Since each episode is stand alone, you can pick up whenever is good! You can find more on their website.
Have a favorite that isn’t on the list? Let me know below! I love getting new recommendations!
