11 Podcasts To Listen To This Month

Give Me Strength

Bestselling author and personal trainer Alice Liveing interviews extraordinary people about the importance of building mental and physical resilience and how this can empower us to live happier, stronger lives – an important message during these turbulent times. The second season only launched earlier this year – with recent guests including Dame Kelly Holmes and Nicola Adams, expect a decent dose of girl power.

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Coronavirus Newscast

During these troubling times, we’re all looking for reliable sources of information to ensure we keep up with the latest developments, without the unnecessary scaremongering. This podcast from the BBC offers exactly that and has recently expanded its mandate to welcome special guests including Nigella Lawson, to give her at-home dining tips. Charli XCX is also on hand to offer her self-isolation advice, while Martin Lewis and Carol Vorderman drop in to answer all your personal finance questions. 

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F1 Beyond The Grid

Regular readers will know how much we love Netflix’s behind-the-scenes look at the world of Formula One, Drive To Survive, here at SL. If you’ve already binged the second season, turn your attention to this podcast, which brings you unique, personal conversations with some of the biggest names in the sport, from current superstar drivers to leading team bosses and legendary figures from history. It doesn’t matter whether you’re an avid F1 fan who never misses a race, or just keen to hear more about the human side of the industry, add this to your playlist, pronto. 

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Must Watch

 
Whether it’s the new Netflix series The English Game, the launch of Disney+ or the controversial Goop Lab series, think of TV critic Scott Bryan, journalist Hayley Campbell and BBC Radio 5 presenter Nihal Arthanayake as your weekly guide to the best (and worst) in new TV and streaming shows. With previews of the most talked about shows, and interviews with the stars behind them, Must Watch is available every Monday afternoon – the perfect way to start the week off. Got your own opinion? You can even have your say on the Must Watch blog. 

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Sleep Cove

Now with a Patreon account so its content remains free to access, tap into any of these guided sleep meditations to ensure you drift off peacefully. At a time when many of us might be struggling to sleep, choose from hypnosis, guided meditations and bedtime stories – all of which are designed to help you relax at bedtime. With dedicated sessions on letting go of events outside of your control, tuning into the healing power of nature and excerpts from Little Women and Gulliver’s Travels, there’s something to suit everyone, every night. 

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Thanks A Million 

Fresh off the back of her new collab with high-street fave Warehouse, we’re tuning into Angela Scanlon’s Thanks A Million for a timely reminder about the power of gratitude. Born out of Angela’s own tendency to ‘over-thank’ rather than be thankful, special guests including Dawn O’Porter, Pandora Sykes and Aisling Bea join the host weekly to tell her exactly what they’re thankful for. An uplifting listen right now.  

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The Big Steal

Having just launched in March, there are only five episodes to catch up on to understand one of the biggest thefts in history: the resources of the biggest country in the world, Russia, by its own government. It’s the story of two men, one a rising star in business and the head of Yukos – a huge oil company – Mikhail Khodorkovsky. The other is a former KGB officer who rose through the ranks to become President of Russia: Vladimir Putin. With very different ideals, the two were destined to clash, and there could only be one winner. Vladimir Putin put Khodorkovsky in jail for ten years, stealing his company and becoming the richest man in the world. Here, Gavin Esler tells the story and examines Russia’s journey from democracy to kleptocracy, as the Putin regime attempts to erode democracy across the globe.

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The Immaculate Deception

Reported and hosted by Jenny Kleeman, this show tells the story of fertility doctor Jan Karbaat, who was renowned for getting amazing results. Women who were desperate for children would visit him at his Rotterdam clinic and leave pregnant. But when the clinic closed, rumours began to circulate about the methods Karbaat had used to achieve his success. The children conceived at the clinic – the Karbaat Kids – began asking difficult questions about what happened to their mothers. What happened in Dr Karbaat’s clinic, by a doctor determined to create life by any means possible? Fans of Serial or My American Life will love this. 

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Women’s Prize For Fiction

With more time spent at home, many of us have turned our attention to that pile of books gathering dust beside our beds. So, what better time to catch up on all the info ahead of this year’s prestigious awards? Every fortnight, join Zing Tsjeng, editor at VICE, and guests including Dolly Alderton, Stanley Tucci and Scarlett Curtis as they celebrate the best fiction written by women. Listen as they discuss the diverse back-catalogue of Women’s Prize-winning books, explore the life-changing books that sit on other women’s bookshelves and talk about what the future holds for women writing today.  

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Unlocking Us

Launched earlier this year, this is your chance to join researcher and New York Times best-selling author Brené Brown as she unpacks and explores the ideas, stories, experiences, books, films and music that reflect the universal experiences of being human, from the bravest moments to the most brokenhearted. Fans of her awe-inspiring Netflix special The Call To Courage or her many books can expect further reflections on the magic and the messiness of what it means to be human, as Brené sits down with special guests to dissect the latest research and emotional insights. Powerful stuff.

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13 Minutes To The Moon

For those who loved the first season chronicling the first Moon landing with Apollo 11, the return of a highly-anticipated second season of 13 Minutes To The Moon will be welcome news. This time, presenter Kevin Fong takes listeners on a journey to discover the near disaster of Apollo 13 in 1970. After an oxygen tank in the service module failed two days into the mission, the spacecraft was forced to abort its journey to land on the moon. Mission controllers then got to work to bring the crew home alive, improvising new procedures so the spacecraft could support three men for four days. This is the extraordinary story, told by the people who flew it and, ultimately, saved it.
 
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