5 new podcasts to listen to this week

There’s a podcast for everyone to listen to this week.

1. Move Over Mother Theresa

Streaming platform: All streaming platforms and YouTube

Genre: Culture and life

Move Over Mother Theresa is an interview podcast with ‘creators who give a s***’, co-created by Drop Dead Generous and Creative Ally.

In each episode, hosts Meera Kumar – also the producer – Tom Cledwyn and Phie McKenzie speak to creators who actively choose to work against systems, and build creative spaces that make things a little better.

These creators break down their creative process, share their strategies, and reveal the real-life ripple effects of their work.

In this week’s episode, slow fashion designer Lydia Bolton discusses how she chooses to challenge the systems that have normalised overproduction, waste and disposability.

Bolton discusses the idea of “building from the ground up”, why she has prioritised innovation in her design and what really goes into empowering a community to “mend and repair” their wardrobes.

If you are interested in conversations that will push you to revaluate how you choose to show up in the world as a human being, then add Move Over Mother Theresa to your podcast rotation.

(By Yolanthe Fawehinmi)

2. Paranormia

Streaming platform: All streaming platforms

Genre: True crime

Launched a little late for Halloween, Paranormia keeps the spirit of supernatural podcasts alive with a catalogue of true-crime events that have been touched by spooky suspicions.

Journalist and parapsychologist Elizabeth McCafferty is a compelling narrator, looking at how police and the public can be swayed by the mere suggestion of sinister unseen forces.

While the first two episodes focus on events in the United States, the third instalment takes us to Brighton for what McCafferty calls a “seance at the seaside”.

In 1994, a guilty verdict in a murder trial was overturned after it was discovered some of the jury used a ouija board to contact a victim while sequestered together in a hotel.

McCafferty has a rich and hypnotic voice that will lead you deeper into the mysteries, but this feels like a series of introductions to longer podcasts that could make more of McCafferty’s research and insight.

You may be left with more questions about the psychology of why we reach for ghostly clues in the face of tragedy. Like fingernails on a blackboard, Paranormia only scratches the surface.

(By Amy Crowther)

3. Defiant

Streaming platform: All streaming platforms

Genre: Life and sports

On April 20, 2007, whilst serving as a US Marine squad leader, Eric Morante and his team miraculously survived a bomb attack, which cost the amputee boxer his right leg.

When Morante returned home to Texas to begin his long road to recovery he also faced PTSD, an opioid addiction and loneliness.

In the fourth season of Stak’s Legacy podcast documentary series Defiant, host Nicky Anderson discusses some of the most intimate details from Morante’s life and journey.

Across six powerful episodes, listeners will find out everything from how Morante fell in love with boxing during his rehabilitation, to launching the National Amputee Boxing Association (NABA) with fellow veterans.

The podcast also looks into Morante’s long-term goal: bringing adaptive boxing to the Paralympics, and where things went wrong.

If you are looking for a bittersweet story that will challenge you to think bigger, then Defiant should be your next podcast listen.

(By Yolanthe Fawehinmi)

4. What A Day

Streaming platform: All streaming platforms and YouTube

Genre: News

What A Day is a daily podcast hosted by Jane Coaston, which has set out to be a guide to what truly matters

Through Coaston’s – and sometimes expert guests – in-depth reporting and analysis on the biggest stories shaping the day and tomorrow’s trends, episodes tend to provide a snapshot of American current affairs.

In Monday’s episode, Coaston is joined by Washington Post tech reporter Gerrit De Vynck to discuss why the Trump administration has decided to go all in on AI.

Coaston also speaks about other headlines, including Netflix buying Warner Bros Discovery for $72 billion and what rights babies born in the US have.

If you are trying to stay on top of current affairs across the pond, take 20 minutes to listen to What A Day every morning.

(By Yolanthe Fawehinmi)

Spotlight on…

5. CBeebies Parenting Download

Streaming platform: BBC Sounds

Genre: Parenting and family

CBeebies Parenting Download is a new weekly podcast where hosts Katie Thistleton and Guvna B unpack the week’s topical parenting stories, with real life experience and expert advice.

In the latest episode, the duo explore how parents can stay happy amidst the excitement and buzz that comes with Christmas.

They are joined by comedian, social media star and dad-of-three George Lewis, and parenting and child behaviour specialist San Mehra, who explain why children experience Christmas overwhelm and how empathy and planning can make all the difference.

But before Lewis and Mehra share their expert advice, the co-hosts catch up about how their week has been, Christmas decorations, how they are evolving into their own parents, and toddler meltdowns.

If you are a parent worried about how Christmas is going to be with your children, then tune into CBeebies Parenting Download to future-proof your festive fun.

(By Yolanthe Fawehinmi)