The BEST Podcasts

We’ve been doing this work from home thing for a few weeks now and I know that I’m rapidly approaching the end of my Netflix. If you’re like me and looking for something entertaining that you can listen to while baking your second loaf of bread then I’ve got a list for you! Some of these are more educational (but still very fun) whilst some of them are just pure entertainment. Though I must warn you, they’re all severely biased by my love of nerdy things and space, lots of space.

Educational

1. Ologies Podcast – Hosted by Dadward, sometimes known as Alie, each episode interviews  a different ologist about their research speciality. There’s something for everyone whether you’re interested in Somology (the study of sleep) or Zymology (the study of beer). Personally, I’d start right at the beginning with Volcanology because I love volcanoes but you can start wherever takes your fancy.
2. Sawbones: A Marital Tour of Misguided Medicine – This one is a little gross sometimes so I wouldn’t recommend listening while you eat your dinner. Dr. Syndee McElory and her husband Justin take you through all the ways we used to try to solve our medical problems. A lot of them were kinda gross but some of them were just plain weird!
3. Origin Stories – If you want to know more about our history as a species then the Leakey Foundation has all the info you need wrapped up in some short sound bites. They cover everything from how we started walking to the research that people are doing today.
4. Stuff You Should Know – I haven’t got round to listening to this one yet but I’m assured that it’s a goodun. Covering literally everything you could ever be curious about including an ever important episode on student loans!
5. This Podcast Will Kill You – This one seems kinda appropriate for the current situation. Two doctors of disease ecology, both called Erin, talk about a different disease in each episode, starting with the first historical records and finishing with what it’s up to today. Each episode also has a Quarantini and a Placeborita recipe of the disease for you to make, some of them look pretty grim but they’re still tasty!

Entertaining (Start at the beginning with all of these. There are story arcs that you won’t want to miss!)

1. Wooden Overcoats – Rudyard Funn and his sister Antigone run the only funeral home on the isle of Piffling Vale. At least they used to run the only funeral home. One of my favourite sitcoms that never fails to assume me, Wooden Overcoats combines the hilarious with the absurd and manages to be utterly gut-wrenching at times.
2. Wolf359 – This one reached the end of its story back in 2017 (sob) but that just means you can binge listen to it without having to wait for the next episode! The USS Hephaestus orbits the star Wolf 359 whilst its crew attempts to get along. After all with some like Doug Eiffel and his endless pop culture references who wouldn’t be entertained? No but seriously, the rest of his crew might find him more than a little annoying but what does he care when the stars can’t shut him up!
3. 36 Questions – So I’m not just a podcast fan but a musical fan too and when I found out this podcast combined the two? Well, it shot straight to the top of my favourites list. A couple work through their issues with the help of the 36 questions that brought them together. There are only three episodes so it’s pretty easy to listen to them in one sitting, not that I would know from experience!
4. EOS10 – Another space podcast! This one is about two slightly grumpy doctors, a slightly psychopathic nurse and a slightly less than normal space station. EOS10 is kinda what I imagined my life to be, if we had space travel, and aliens and I had a medical license. Anyway, if you want to live out your daydreams of living on a space station this one’s got you covered, though I will warn you, not everything has a totally happy ending.
5. The Penumbra Podcast – There are two storylines within this one and I can never pick my favourite. Juno Steel is a detective on Mars but he’s got more than a bit of his share of bad luck. Then there’s the Second Citadel and it’s constant fight against the monsters trying to destroy humans. Wait, who am I kidding? Second Citadel is my favourite but a good Juno Steel story has them jetting across the Martian skyline which makes me pretty jealous. I just really want to go to space.

Have I missed your favourite podcast? It’s probably been downloaded to my itunes but I haven’t started listening yet or maybe I’ve just missed one of the greats. Drop me an email and I’ll add it to the list (and play it during my next session of responding to emails!)