Picks of the week
Reclaimed & Rewritten
A century after the Tulsa massacre, gal-dem shines a spotlight on the atrocity that destroyed the thriving black community of Greenwood. Host Clarkisha Kent has many a sharp intake of breath as she hears about how the district known as Black Wall Street wasn’t the utopian community it was meant to be. As the six-part podcast unfolds, it doesn’t hold back with uneasy truths – but it is about time they were told. Hannah Verdier
Strippers in the Attic
In series one, this podcast hosted by two strip club workers was a thoughtful, smart exploration of sex work which bubbled over with a vivacious hilarity. In season two, nothing seems to have changed, opening with a funny and very frank interview with Skins actor Megan Prescott, who followed up her TV role by trying her hand at stripping. Alexi Duggins
The Famous Sloping Pitch
Is football getting “a little bit more shit”? Nick Hancock and Chris England think so, hence this banter-packed podcast which offers a comic – and considered – take on the week’s news in the beautiful game. Its interviews with celebrity football fans are also impressively starry. Think Gary Lineker, Adrian Chiles and Jo Brand. AD
We Stay Looking
Insecure’s spin-off podcast Looking for LaToya spoofed true crime to the max and now its star investigative reporter Rose Cranberry is back with more cases. With her quota of six Black stories per year, Cranberry had better work fast to solve those mysteries, exposing the media and justice system’s inbuilt racism as she goes. HV
You’re Not My Mum
Stepmums have long had a bad rep – just ask Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty. But while it’s true that navigating stepfamily life isn’t always a fairytale, the joys of it need to be celebrated, too. In this candid new series, Katie Harrison reassuringly talks from a place of experience, while also speaking with experts. Hollie Richardson
Producer pick: Griefcast with Jimmy Carr
Chosen by Danielle Stephens
Often, when I listen to Griefcast, I’m hearing a celebrity that I know and love talk about someone close to them – who I know nothing about. But when Jimmy Carr recently spoke to Cariad Lloyd in her latest series of the podcast, the pair spent the first part of the show talking about Sean Lock, the comedian who died of cancer in August. Two comedians talking about a fellow comedian is bound to produce some laughs, but it was the compassion – and slight regret in Jimmy’s voice – that made it a lovely tribute.
More so than most of Lloyd’s guests, the conversation between her and Carr simply celebrates the ability to talk about grief, making it a must-listen for those who don’t have that opportunity in their day-to-day lives.
Talking points
Fans of those bits in podcasts where they ask you to leave them a review: rejoice! They’re about to get slightly longer, as Spotify has announced that they’re joining Apple in letting users rate pods out of five.
Why not try: Strangeland | Here Lies Me
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