Looking for podcast suggestions.

[blimix]

In the interest of using my time productively, I've switched from music to podcasts and audiobooks during my commute. (This so far hasn't distracted me from the road, but has occasionally made me forget to shop on the way home.) I have listened to all of "No Such Thing As A Fish" (except for the first two years, which are no longer free). I'd love some suggestions for a free, informative podcast to tide me over until I visit the library for the next audiobook I have lined up.

Meanwhile, I particularly recommend the following short stories from The Chronicles of Clovis by Saki: "Esmé," "Tobermory," "The Unrest-Cure," and "Mrs. Packletide's Tiger".

Comments

[eirias]

It sounds like you might not be looking for fiction podcasts? However, if I'm wrong about that, I loved the first two seasons of Alice Isn't Dead. I'm lukewarm on the rest of the Nightvale empire, but that story grabbed me.

I enjoyed, but was skeptical about the epistemological premise of, the first season of Serial. I haven't listened to the second season yet though I've heard it's also good.

What makes a good podcast for you? It's interesting to me to see what does and doesn't work in a newish art form. I say newish because some of these stories (the ones I like) are a lot like old school radio dramas. Though I guess there's less in the way of Foley artistry. Me, I can't stand the podcasts that are basically just some friends bullshitting about some topic in an unedited way, mostly because my brain just treats the speakers as loud people on a bus and I get nothing out of it. I like high production values and a sculpted story.

[eirias]

Graham recommends More Perfect. On mobile now so linking is a pain, but it should be googlable. It’s about the Supreme Court.

[blimix]

Thanks for the suggestions! I've listened to exactly one podcast so far, so I couldn't say what makes a good podcast for me. (I ignored them until I had a commute to fill.) With my now limited time, I'm valuing learning over entertainment. "No Such Thing as a Fish" is four of the researchers for the show "QI" ("Quite Interesting") discussing the four most interesting facts they've discovered that week, introducing lots of related facts that they subsequently researched, and being pretty funny in the process. There's some bullshitting, and just a couple of running gags. The whole thing seems semi-scripted and heavily edited, but it's still just four people sitting at a table talking, so I don't know whether it would count as the sort that you tune out. I've gotten plenty of laughs out of it, and have learned enough things that I occasionally have relevant facts from the show to introduce into conversations, or just things to think about. (For what it's worth, they've taken the show on tour, recording it with audiences all around the U.K. and parts of Austraila. It's pretty well received.)