Welcome to The Great British Podcast Newsletter. Hope you had a good week.

This week marks a year since the Russian invasion of Ukraine. A number of podcasts have been marking the occasion, whilst also asking what could happen next?

Next Year in Moscow, from The Economist, provides the perspectives of ordinary Russians who are against their country invading a neighbour. A powerful listen narrated by Arkaday Ostrovsky, it perspectives from Russians you would hardly ever hear otherwise, due to the silencing of dissidents and the dominance of Russian propaganda. Talking about that morning when Russia launched its so-called ‘special military operation,’ Ostrovsky says: “It felt as though the country I was born in had been seized by a fascist regime. It had just become a fascist state.”

Ukrainecast has released several special episodes under the title ‘12 Months On’, including an episode on what possible options Putin has left. CNN’s Amanpour is in Kyiv this week, speaking to special experts and Zelensky’s advisors. There’s also Dan Snow’s History Hit, featuring an interview with Mike Martin from The Department of War Studies at King’s College London. He puts the war in a historical context.

NOTABLE NAMES ON PODCASTS THIS WEEK

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Here are our podcast picks for the week ahead

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Mug Shots with Michael CrickA new series by the journalist Michael Crick that profiles the influential and powerful figures within British society, by speaking to the people who know them. I’m recommending this series not only because of how comprehensively and detailed these profiles are (it really is rather good), but also because of the choice of the people they have so far chosen.

The first episode is on Paul Dacre. Although many would be outraged at his views and the agenda he set whilst Editor at the Daily Mail, there’s no denying the power and influence his paper was able to generate within politics and our society. 

Create The FutureA podcast for those who want to get into engineering, this podcast featuring new hosts Roma Agrawal and George Imafidon has lots of conversations about the difference that this industry can bring to society. Upcoming episodes will look at the future of design, sustainable neighbourhoods, solar panels, and design. There’s also an episode on the future of baking, featuring an interview with the engineering Bake Off wunderkid that is Andrew Smyth (he was the one that made a mechanised cog pie and made a bread basket that he later put on his head.)

Where To GoReturning this week for its fourth series, this fortnightly podcast presented by James Atkinson and Lucy Richards from the travel company DK Eyewitness features helpful recommendations on a number of global destinations.

The first episode is a deep dive into Sicily, which of course was the setting for The White Lotus, where they are joined by resident and expert Ros Belford, who has lived there for more than a decade. Upcoming episodes include Thessaloniki, Mexico, New Zealand, and a wildlife travel special for the UK.

The Rabbit Hole DetectivesOur last podcast recommendation this week is fronted by Charles Spencer, Dr. Cat Jarman, and the Reverend Richard Coles. Celebrating those rabbit holes you go into late at night on Wikipedia when you’ve found something relatively interesting, in each episode, they are tasked with finding out all they can on a particular subject and then coming up with as many facts or stories as they can about them. The joy of this podcast is that there are many occasions where the conversations go down an entirely different rabbit hole of conversation than the one intended.

Thanks so much for reading (and listening). 

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Categories: Weekly Picks