It’s intimate, it’s engaging, it’s a medium that feels somehow perfect for the confessional: podcasts and biopics are a really great fit. Perhaps that’s why this week’s two biggest releases are musical biographies of two megastars: Take That and Will Smith. The latter’s new series Class of ‘88 is supposed to be a look at one year in hip-hop’s history, but his back-and-forth with DJ pal Jazzy Jeff about scrapes involving an attempt to hack a plaster cast from Jeff’s broken leg with a butterknife are far and away the highlight. The easy banter between Take That’s remaining members also makes it clear why they’ve chosen to share their story in a medium that’s recently seen Paul McCartney launch into mini biographies for a number of his biggest hits.
As well as looking at Take That and Smith’s podcasts, we’ll be rounding up five of the finest ever spin-off podcasts (yes, S-Town is in there) and taking a look at the week’s other great shows. Special mention goes to Ghost Story, which is one of the wildest real-life tales we’ve come across in a long, long time. Enjoy.
Alexi Duggins
Deputy TV editor
Picks of the week
Take That: This Life
Global Player, episodes weekly
After 30 years in the business, Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen have a whole lot of stories – and the good news is they can remember most of them. After a matey ramble, three-fifths of Take That get down to recalling their first impressions of each other. For their loyal fans, this free-flowing chat about jacket potatoes, giving up their day jobs and their multiple comebacks will be as lovable as Barlow’s songs. Hannah Verdier
Class of ’88
Widely available, episodes weekly from Thursday
Will Smith hosts a look at the year he claims “changed hip-hop”: 1988. It’s part anecdote-packed autobiography of Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince, part rap history featuring interviews with acts such as Queen Latifah. At times it’s like listening to Smith reminiscing with his star-studded crew – but no worse for that. Alexi Duggins
Exposed: Cover-Up at Columbia University
Wondery, all episodes available
As the powerful podcast concludes, there are so many stories of how Dr Robert Hadden abused his patients for 20 years. Hearing how vulnerable women were treated so appallingly after putting trust in their gynaecologist is enough to induce anger, but the fact that Hadden was allowed to continue for so long is horrific. HV
Ghost Story
Widely available, episodes weekly
A paranormal investigation and a whodunnit, this wild series sees journalist Tristan Redman drawn into an investigation of his wife’s ancestors after it turns out that her great-grandmother may have haunted his childhood bedroom. It’s a colourful tale – not least as he reveals his in-laws to be the family of Downton Abbey’s Hugh Dancy, who agrees to narrate sections. AD
Slayers: A Buffyverse Story
Audible, episodes weekly
“Your look may be Sex Pistols, but your heart is Hall & Oates.” This much-anticipated Buffy podcast steps into a metaverse where Cordelia (Charisma Carpenter) is the only vampire slayer; James Marsters also reprises his role as Spike. Devotees who stanned the original series’ more underexposed characters will love this. HV
There’s a podcast for that
This week, Charlie Lindlar chooses five of the best spin-off podcasts, from a miniseries investigating the unsolved killings of British birds to a podcast on the clothing decisions we make and why.
S-Town
First came This American Life, which began broadcasting in 1995. Then, in 2014, there was Serial, an offshoot which is considered perhaps the greatest podcast of all time. And then in 2017 there was S-Town, a spin-off of a spin-off (if you like), in which the makers of Serial, at first, investigate an Alabama murder at the behest of listener John B McLemore. This series really gets going with an early plot twist, and continues to shock throughout its seven-episode run. “It’s hard to recall a more touching, devastating podcast,” ran the headline of the Guardian’s own review – six years on, that remains true.
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Today Explained, for Kids
“Our world, explained,” is the motto of Vox, and that tenet led to daily podcast Today, Explained, which demystifies the news agenda daily in tight 25-minute episodes. Adapted from that show is Today Explained, for Kids – which has provided just what you’d expect in two short seasons in 2020 and 2022. While the earlier episodes focused on the coronavirus pandemic and the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests may have lost some relevancy, latter episodes on evergreen subjects such as veganism and fossil fuels provide timely, accessible listens.
Killing the Skydancer
Released just this August, this miniseries from the Guardian’s own Science Weekly podcast explores the unsolved and illegal killings of Britain’s birds of prey on hunting grounds – and how it became so hard to identify and prosecute those who carried out the attacks. Guardian biodiversity reporter Phoebe Weston narrates the three gripping episodes, first telling the story of one harrier, Susie, whose three chicks were killed while being monitored by cameras. The twisting tale sees Weston investigate failed police efforts, meet those trying to protect birds in danger, and encounter the “surprising silence” around this tragic trend.
Leading
The Rest Is Politics has driven a career renaissance for former Labour spin doctor Alastair Campbell and exiled Tory minister Rory Stewart. Their podcast and its brand of “disagreeing agreeably” has won over millions of listeners – and they hope to do the same with Leading, a new spin-off in which the pair interview decision makers and seek to reach the heart of their lives, philosophies and keys to success. Few podcasts have the pull to interview Tony Blair, Gerry Adams and George Osborne in back-to-back weeks, let alone interestingly – so try this show if you want important insights from influential figures.
Articles of Interest
Born of the inspiring design podcast 99% Invisible, Articles of Interest eschews the range of its curious parent podcast, choosing instead to focus on the deeper meanings of what we wear. From the origins of paisley to the episode buggin’ out about the fact we still don’t have Cher Horowitz’s digital wardrobe from Clueless, this ingenious show will make you think again about the clothes you throw on daily, and what they say about you. Yes, it even delves into that eternal question: why are women so short-changed when it comes to pockets?
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