Should I pack wellies? Just tell me whether I should pack wellies.
Anyway Glastonbury is around the corner, so let’s have a look at podcasts covering the festivals this summer. The unofficial Glastocast features interviews with the people who help put the festival together, with their most recent episode looking at what is going on at the Theatre and Circus area stages.
Many artists performing at Glastonbury have had interviews with popular podcasts. Lewis Capaldi chatted with Steven Bartlett on The Diary of A CEO and Loyle Carner was a guest on Out to Lunch with Jay Rayner and Cat Burns was on The Polyester Podcast. Meanwhile Becky Hill has her own podcast that I would recommend listening too, called The Art of Rave, exploring electronic music and culture.
The BBC are going to be all over Glastonbury this year (but you know that already.) As well as comprehensive TV coverage and live streams on BBC iPlayer, BBC Sounds has launched Back to Back Glastonbury, with artist interviews and music mixes on demand.
Even festivals that don’t exist are covered. There’s also The Line-Up with Shaun Keaveny, where guests talk about their fantasy festival.
NOTABLE NAMES ON PODCASTS THIS WEEK
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- Mark Kermode is on Joanna & The Maestro talking about his favourite soundtracks and composers. The Exorcist is bound to make an appearance.
- Maisie Chan joined Frank Cottrell-Boyce and Nadia Shireen on The Island of Brilliant!, a podcast that celebrates the best in kids books.
- Meanwhile bestselling author Isabel Allende is on Bookshelfie: Women’s Prize for Women’s Fiction podcast, talking about her books and philanthropy.
- Broadcaster Elizabeth Day is on Big Fish with Spencer Matthews, talking about how her podcast reshapes failure as being necessary for later success.
- Leading urologist Professor Hash Ahmed is on Cunningcast this week. Host Tony Robinson has been living with prostate cancer for over a decade, and to mark Men’s Health Week Ahmed talks about how to look out for it.
Here are our podcast picks for the week ahead
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News Agents USA – Before the hugely successful News Agents Podcast, Emily Maitlis and Jon Sopel hosted Americast, which explored US political news with the same mix of breezy conversation and insightful analysis.
Even though The News Agents podcast still dabbles in US politics whenever there’s a big story, they have now launched a new spin-off podcast that will solely focus on US stories, which is helpful as we head towards a divisive US election period. It will be available to listen first on Global Player on Tuesday evening and then available on your usual podcast provider on Wednesday.
History’s Secret Heroes – This new BBC Sounds series looks at WWII heroes that haven’t had the recognition that they deserved. There’s stories of prison breaks and spy networks, to a US ‘ghost army’ that used inflatable tanks and sound effects to fool the enemy and cover up real troop movements. These stories are narrated by Helena Bonham Carter, with all episodes available to listen to on BBC Sounds now.
Fall of Civilizations – A podcast by Paul Cooper, this series looks at the factors that led to the downfall of civilizations through history, using meticulous research and storytelling. Episodes can run more to more than three hours long (!!!), but episodes are only out every four months or so. It feels less like a typical podcast, and more like an audiobook, but all the better for it.
Unsung – Our final podcast recommendation this week highlights people from the sporting world who deserve greater recognition, from the ground managers who ensure that the pitch looks pristine before a match, to the snowmakers who ensure that the conditions for downhill skiing are meticulous. New episodes, which are presented by Alexis James, are out monthly.
