10 Podcasts To Listen To This Month

Love Is A Crime

One of the wildest scandals in Hollywood history, in 1951 major Hollywood producer Walter Wanger (voice by Mad Men actor Jon Hamm) went to prison for shooting an agent he suspected was having an affair with Joan Bennett (Zooey Deschanel), Wanger’s actress wife. When the dust settled, Wanger was accepted back into Hollywood’s inner circle with open arms, while a puritanical panic virtually ended Bennett’s career and her family would never be the same. How did Joan – the youngest member of one of America’s most famous acting families, and one of the key femme fatales of 1940s film noir – end up paying a public price for her husband’s crimes? In this limited podcast series, Joan and Walter’s granddaughter Vanessa Hope and film historian/podcaster Karina Longworth tell the untold story of the film noir that played out in real life.

Episode Highlight: Private Worlds

Only the first two episodes of this brand-new show have been released, so there’s time to go right back to the beginning. Already a divorced mum while still in her teens, Joan becomes a movie actress out of financial necessity, but struggles to define herself as a star. Her life takes a turn when she falls in love with Walter – then an independent producer and champion of progressive politics who wants to change Hollywood from within. 

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Blind Landing

At the 2000 Summer Olympics, the greatest gymnasts in the world gathered in Sydney, Australia in pursuit of the ultimate prize: gold in the all-around final. But mid-way through the competition, something inexplicable happened that derailed the event – a mistake that changed the gymnasts' lives forever. Through original interviews with Olympic gymnasts, coaches and officials, Blind Landing reveals the untold true story of one of the biggest mistakes in Olympic history.

Episode Highlight: Episode 3

By this stage, it’s clear there’s a problem with the vaulting apparatus as the officials scramble to solve the problem before anything too disastrous happens. Their decision has major consequences for everyone in the arena – but no one more so than the frontrunner, Russia’s Svetlana Khorkina. With the vault set 5cm lower than it should have been, it caused many gymnasts, including Khorkina, to fall.

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Boots Taboo Talk

Hosted by friend of SL, Vogue Williams, this new podcast cuts through the jargon to provide real health and wellbeing advice in an accessible and entertaining way. Tackling all the taboo health and wellbeing questions you don’t want to, each episode will focus on one aspect of physical or mental health, providing personal insights as well as expert takeaways. 

Episode Highlight: Worry lines: what it’s like to have anxiety, with Jamie Laing

Featuring another SL fave, Jamie Laing, in this episode Vogue is looking at the all-too-prevalent issue of anxiety. The world’s mental health is not in a good way after a year of lockdown, health scares, grief, decimated public health services, and untold professional and personal upheaval. Even pre-pandemic, a whopping one in four people suffered from a mental health issue every year in England. Here, Jamie candidly discussed his experience of suffering from anxiety – including what it actually means in reality and what can be done about it.

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Celebrity Memoir Bookclub

If you love a celebrity memoir, New York comedians Claire Parker and Ashley Hamilton are reading them all – sorting good from bad, so you don't have to. From Tina Fey’s Bossypants to Busy Phillips’ This Will Only Hurt A Little, the duo offer a humorous take on the insights shared by some of Hollywood’s biggest names.

Episode Highlight: Kris Jenner Invented All Things Kardashian Part I & II

Coming highly recommended by SL’s own Sherri Andrew, this two-parter dives deep into the 2011 memoir released by the self-proclaimed ‘momager’. Responsible for creating one of America’s most famous families, Claire and Ashley give plenty of credit to the ‘genius’ Kris Jenner and dig into her life story so far – something they describe as a truly “wild ride”.

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Dr Death: Miracle Man 

Fans of this cult podcast will be glad to hear season three is now live. Paolo is a smart and handsome surgeon, renowned for performing surgeries that transform his patients’ lives. When television producer Benita covers him for a story, he’ll transform her life too, but not in the ways she expects. As Benita crosses professional lines to be with him, she learns how far Paolo will go to protect his secrets. And halfway around the world, four doctors at a prestigious medical institute make shocking discoveries of their own that call everything into question. 

Episode Highlight: Barcelona, My Love

People are starting to become suspicious of Paolo. With doctors investigating him in Sweden, Benita begins an investigation of her own. She knows where she needs to go for answers: to the one place Paolo never took her.

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Over The Influence

Presented by BBC broadcast journalist Sharon Hartley, Guinness World Record holder Freddie Bennett and podcast producer Ben Anderson, Over The Influence is the alcohol-free podcast documenting the honest conversation about how the hosts’ lives have changed since they went dry. The third season sees a raft of guests join Sharon, Freddie and Ben in the studio to share their own insights into what it means to lead a sober life. 

Episode Highlight: Davinia Taylor 13 Years Sober

Anyone who listened to our own podcast with Davinia Taylor will know she has some pretty ‘out there’ ideas when it comes to health and wellness. After giving up alcohol at the end of her 20s and following her mum’s death from breast cancer, Davinia started looking into the science to find out how her body worked. She did a hormone test and discovered that she was dopamine driven, and that her body could metabolise alcohol really well. But that doesn’t mean it didn’t affect her mental state. Now, by feeding her body the right things, she's feeding her mind the right things, all of which contributes to her maintaining her sobriety.

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Even the Rich: Back To Bennifer

Even the Rich sees co-hosts Brooke Siffrinn and Aricia Skidmore-Williams pull back the curtain and chat about the craziness that is celebrity. Telling the stories about some of the greatest family dynasties in history – from the Murdochs to the royals to Jay-Z and Beyoncé – we’ve been loving the latest mini-series on ‘Bennifer’. Nearly two decades on from their split, Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck are giving it another try. Together, Brooke and Aricia look at the relationship which caused a media storm – twice. 

Episode Highlight: How Do You Like Them Apples?

This mini-series is only a couple of episodes long, so it makes sense to start here. Before Gigli, Jersey Girl or Jenny From The Block, there was just Ben Affleck — a young actor with a difficult home life who wanted to be loved. When he finally meets the girl of his dreams, their supernova stardom threatens the very thing he’s been searching for all along. Don’t miss part two.

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Short History Of…

Fans of Dan Snow’s History Hit will love this. New from award-winning podcasters Noiser, each week the hosts of Short History Of… will transport you back in time to witness history's most incredible moments and remarkable people. From the Cuban Missile Crisis to pirates and gladiators, you can pick and choose any episode that piques your interest.

Episode Highlight: Blackbeard The Pirate

One you and the kids will love, the Short History Of Bleackbeard the Pirate tells the tale of one of the most notorious pirates of all time. The legend of Edward Thatch has spawned television shows, novels and major motion pictures, while stories abound of his wild eyes striking fear into enemy hearts, of the six pistols strapped to his chest, and of his arrival in battle with his jet-black beard set ablaze. But how much is fact and how much fiction? Listen to find out.

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Suspect

An apartment complex hosts a big Halloween party with themed rooms and costumed partygoers. By the end of the night one of the party’s hosts is murdered. And the partygoers are the main suspects: was it the guy in the devil mask, the one dressed as Jesus, the bank robber, the construction worker...? As a complex investigation winds its way through forensic evidence, witness testimony, DNA and even a psychic, the police zero in on one suspect. Hosts Matthew Shaer and Eric Benson return to the scene of the crime to uncover what happened and speak with everyone about a party that still haunts them a decade later. 

Episode Highlight: The Halloween Party

This show depends on context and detail in equal measure, so start with the first episode. The residents of the Valley View apartments organise a big costume party. Strangers come together. They argue and fight. They dance and drink. At times, the party veers out of control. And when they wake up the next morning, one resident is dead. Addictive listening.

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The Tidal Year

A podcast about the joy of swimming, writer and wild swimmer Freya Bromley uses this podcast to discover the human stories behind why we swim. Every week, she’s joined by a new guest who shares what water means to them and how it has transformed their lives. Emotional and inspiring if you’re looking for something to remind you of the beauty of the human spirit. 

Episode Highlight: Jessica J. Lee, Author of Turning

Author of Turning, Jessica J. Lee was 28 when she found herself heartbroken in Berlin while completing a PhD in Environmental History. In search of courage, she decided to swim 52 of the lakes around Berlin, no matter what the weather or season. Turning is a stunning memoir about that experience and in this episode, she and Freya look back on her adventure in Berlin, discuss how to make nature writing more inclusive and chat about connecting with new places through water. 

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