5 years ago, I quit tv and starting listening to lots and lots of podcasts. I haven’t stopped. Here’s a roundup of my favorite fiction & non-fiction podcasts in the last year!
Besides my ongoing favorites which carry over from my 2016 podcast roundup, I tend to look for great new shows in Storytelling and Fiction. This list has my top finds from the last year or so.
Great Non-Fiction Podcasts | ||
| Threshold | Storytelling, Environment | Season 1 about climate change will transport you. Each season has a new topic. Excellent reporting and sound. |
| Far From Home | Storytelling, Travel | The first season documents a trip via tiny car from UK to Mongolia. Live vicariously. |
| Documentary | Documentary 🙂 | A collection of BBC documentaries (1 or more episodes per topic) spanning everything from stories to people to trends to politics. Start with the 4-part Polyglot series. |
| Anthropocene Reviewed | Storytelling | Critique of truly random cultural things by writer John Green. His voice is soothing and his takes are fresh. |
Great Fiction Podcasts | ||
| EOS 10 | Space Opera, Comedy | Really funny writing, a great cast of characters played by excellent actors, odd relationships in space. J’Adore! |
| The Horror of Dolores Roach | Drama, Suspense | Best acting and production I had ever heard in a podcast up to that point. It set a new bar that people are rising to. A mesmerizing story. 1 season total. |
| The Shadows | Relationships | A beautifully produced, rule-breaking and somewhat provocative CBC podcast about the arc of a relationship. 1 season total. |
| Unwell | Small town, Mystery? | I have no idea where this meandering story is going but I like the ride. Suspense, unusual characters, and actors of color finally. |
| Sandra | Modern Suspense | About a woman hired to work as the person secretly behind an Alexa-like AI, beautifully produced and well written. Ending is a bit weak. 6 episodes total. |
| Ars Paradoxica | Sci-Fi, Time Travel | For true sci-fi fans only, this is a long and satisfying series. The story quality trumps the production budget. Listen through episode 4 (Bullet) before you decide – that’s considered the pivotal episode at which point the mind- and time-bending story really takes off. |
