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The weather has been quite something these last couple of days, so let’s start this newsletter with some great weather related podcasts. 

If you’re interested in meteorology, The Met Office’s Mostly Weather podcast is a good place to start. Every couple of weeks host Clare Nasir explains some of the driving forces behind recent weather events and looks at notable climate events from our past. A recent episode looked at the geomagnetic storms, looking at how solar energy could affect satellites in the earth’s atmosphere. They also speak to the Met Office’s own ‘Space Weather Forecaster’, which is the coolest sounding job I’ve heard in a while.

Next up: For the Love of Weather, presented by meteorologists Gemma Plumb and Aisling Creevey. They speak to people who have a love for the weather so much that it is a core part of their current job or hobby. Yes, that includes weather forecasters and presenters, but also illustrators, surfers, mountain climbers and outdoor swimmers. 

Our final podcast recommendation The Climate Question looks at longer term trends and the issues we will face with our changing climate. Recent episodes looked at whether an overreliance on GDP has caused our current environmental woes, to whether we are relying too much on technology that hasn’t been invented yet to protect the future of the planet.

NOTABLE NAMES ON PODCASTS THIS WEEK

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The 1 in 5 Podcast: Leading A Life Without ChildrenPodcasts are great at connecting people going through a shared lived experience. This series is aimed at the one in five adults who do not have children of their own, either by choice or because of circumstance. It is presented by journalist and presenter Geeta Pendse, who started this series because of the shame that is caused because of this topic. “I have been wanting to create this show because I feel that the stories of those of us who don’t have kids of our own can be invisible or sidelined,” she says.

There are four episodes so far, tapping into issues around societal expectation to how to deal with the negative assumptions. “We are completely normal” says storytelling platform We are Childfree founder Zoe Noble. “We are just choosing a different path.”

Dua Lipa: At Your ServiceI mean, I hardly need to introduce Dua Lipa (ok fine I will, she is the singer behind every pop hit you have heard over the past couple of years.) She’s also just started her own podcast, but it is unlike nearly every other celebrity pop interview series that you may have heard over the last couple of years. Naturally inquisitive and well-researched, in each episode Dua goes deep with each guest into what makes them tick and the ethos and values that shape their career.

The first episode is with fashion icon Olivier Rousteing, the creative director of Balmain. Up and coming guests include Elton John and Vogue’s Editor-In-Chief Edward Enninful, OBE. By the way, this is the first podcast made by Persephonica, a new podcast production company from the same people behind Brexitcast and Americast. One to look out for. 

Shaun Keaveny’s Creative Cul-de-sac“Another podcast show? I can’t believe it!” Those words aren’t from me. They are from the ex-BBC 6 Music broadcaster Shaun Keaveny, who has just launched his second podcast in just over a year.

His previous series featured guests talking about their ideal music festival, filling the void of the lack of music festivals last summer. His new series features guests talking about the ideas they have had, the silly and the serious, that have been stashed on the Notes app on their phone, in a notepad in their office, or in the back of their head.

Shaun Keaveny is peak Shaun Keaveny here. “I always think of us as idea magpies, that we have got a butterfly net out and we are constantly on the lookout for things that we can fill this yawning gap of dead air that would be our show,” he said as he introduced Radio 1 Breakfast Show host and children’s author Greg James. Here Greg talks about how on radio ideas constantly come from your listeners and chats candidly about how embarrassed and anxious he thinks his younger self was, having Radio 1 at the age of 21. 

Let’s Get Frank Our final podcast suggestion has such a bizarre concept that you can’t help trying out a listen. Failing to find love after the age of 40, broadcaster and journalist Bibi Lynch has started a new podcast documenting her attempts to find a partner. The name of this podcast is called ‘Let’s Get Frank’ because she is only dating guys called Frank until she finds the one. Yep!

Not all of the podcasts are so abstract. Bibi is joined by dating coach Annabelle Knight, who drops useful dating advice that I found particularly useful. “The first thing you need to do when you go on a date is that you have to try and cast aside this idea that someone might be too good for you, because there is no one who is too good for you,” says Knight. “In fact, it might even be the other way round.”
That’s all from the Podcast Newsletter this week. We wouldn’t be here without the many, many suggestions that you recommend to us from all over the country. In the past three years we’ve had more than 1500 suggestions and counting. Please do keep them coming by filling in this form here. We would love to hear from you.

Categories: Weekly Picks