Flesh and Code (RedHanded/Wondery) - “Though I was thoroughly gripped, and I recommend the show, by the end I was left with the same feeling you get from doom-scrolling: always entertained but never enlightened. Stimulated, but queasy.”
13 Minutes Presents: The Space Shuttle (BBC World Service) - “This show is scholarly, rather than exciting, with great archive material (also used in 16 Sunsets) alongside new interviews. The space nerds will no doubt love having another space shuttle show; I’m not sure how much anyone else needs it.”
Dig It (Persephonica) - “For those of us without gardens (me), the chat of mulching and water butts isn’t always engaging, and hosting a huge party at home, or being given a vintage Renault 4 as a birthday present, could be seen as beyond many people’s lives.”

Fiona Sturges in the FT

The Water Road (ind.) - “These bite-sized episodes, which rarely exceed 10 minutes, are a terrific showcase for the sounds of canal life, from the narrowboat’s gentle chug to the gurgle of water tanks being filled to the clatter of locks being winched into place and emptied. Immersive and soothing, the podcast is perhaps the closest thing you’ll get to audio meditation without downloading an app of soporific soundscapes.”

Patricia Nicol in the Sunday Times

Shadow World: Grave Robbers (BBC Radio 4) - “How delightful that dogged, bloody-minded investigative journalism has made Sue Mitchell a star reporter in her sixties… This is a corker of a series, compellingly unfolding a true crime potentially happening all around us, one that robs legitimate heirs and HMRC. Mitchell is uncovering something important but she does so entertainingly.”

James Marriott in the Times

The Rest Is Politics US (Live at the Indigo O2) - “I confess to a certain bewilderment. I’ve never quite got the appeal of The Rest Is Politics US. Scaramucci, though clearly genial, strikes me as a bit of a blowhard. I’ve never felt Kay has much of shattering insight to say on US politics. Still, the fun of Trump-hating will never die. You may have thought the vein of political comedy based on remarking repeatedly on what a ludicrous man the president is with his orange hair and silly tan was exhausted half a decade ago. Not here.” ★★☆☆☆

Chris Bennion in the Daily Telegraph

Dig It (Persephonica) - “For most of the time, Dig It aspires to be little more than a cuppa and natter, an audio equivalent of those momentarily amusing little books you’d buy at the till in HMV with titles such as ‘The Little Book of Gin’ or ‘1001 Funny Dogs’. However, there’s no doubt that a cuppa and a natter with Ball and Whiley is a perfectly lovely thing. These are two pleasant, intelligent middle-aged women with stellar broadcasting careers, outstanding radio voices and inoffensively enviable lifestyles. Not every podcast has to change your life.”

Lucy White in the Irish Independent

The G Spot (ind.) - “‘Seeks to spread the good word of good sex and “tackle the taboo and celebrate the spicy.’”
Call Her Daddy (SiriusXM) - “It has become a looser celeb interview format, mixing in career insights. Such as the great primatologist and anthropologist Jane Goodall, who at 91 has much to teach us here about advocacy, hope and blazing a trail.”
Savage Lovecast (ind.) - “Its success lies in his non-judgment and frankness towards his agonised readers and listeners.”

Listings

Time released their 100 Best Podcasts of All Time

The Guardian’s Best Podcasts of the Week

The Guardian Weekly magazine’s Podcast of the Week

Mistresses (Mags/Audible)

In the Saturday Guardian magazine

AI & Us (ind.)

Plus a deep dive interview with podcaster Mel Robbins.

This week’s Radio Times is all about podcasts, with their 30 Best Podcasts to Listen to Right Now gracing the front cover and featuring interviews with Steve Coogan, Jonathan Goldstein and Mel Robbins amongst others. The regular listings also feature: