Best podcasts of the week: How to solve the crisis in modern masculinity, with Rylan

Picks of the week

Educating Daisy
Audible, all episodes out now
Daisy May Cooper’s podcast is based on the fact that she hasn’t read a book since doing GCSE English. Celebrity guests bring a novel, extol its brilliance and hope to succeed in educating the host (pictured below). It’s a raucous, silly listen. Her guess at the subject of Tim Key’s choice, The Diary of a Nobody? “Curb Your Enthusiasm in Victorian times, where he’s complaining about shoe shines, penny farthings and the workhouses.” Not bad, actually. Alexi Duggins

Rylan: How to Be a Man
BBC Sounds, all episodes out now
Rylan completes his evolution from running joke to one of our finest broadcasters with a podcast that muses on masculinity. His first guest is Strictly winner Hamza Yassin, who talks about being broody and why the phrase “man up” should be ditched, as well as answering Rylan’s insightful question: “What animal is getting masculinity right?” Hannah Verdier

Believe in Magic
BBC Sounds, all episodes out now
From Jamie Bartlett (The Missing Cryptoqueen), here’s another thrilling, shocking series that peels back the seemingly endless layers of a scandal. This time it is about a teenager who died after setting up a celebrity-backed charity for ill children – but was she really battling the brain tumour she reportedly had? Hollie Richardson

White Smoke: America’s Chemsex Killer
Audible, all episodes out now
This gripping, grisly listen investigates Ed Buck, the US millionaire who lured vulnerable Black men to his apartment, gave them huge amounts of drugs and sexually abused them, which led to multiple deaths. It’s a troubling tale of how it took years to bring this well-connected Democrat political donor to justice – and an exploration of the phenomenon of chemsex. AD

The Foxes of Hydesville
Widely available, episodes weekly
“I invite you to live vicariously through my sins,” says Carey Mulligan, introducing her character Leah Fox in this new drama. The tale of sisters who claimed they could speak to the dead drops listeners straight into an atmospheric scene in 1848 when Fox was a spirited, witty piano teacher about to become embroiled in seances. HV

There’s a podcast for that

This week, Nyima Jobe chooses five of the best award-winning podcasts, from a trio of millennial relationship experts to a superlative show about the sport’s most inspiring heroes

Strict Scrutiny
Named best politics/opinion podcast at the Ambies (one of US podcasting’s top awards), Crooked Media’s Strict Scrutiny gives listeners the lowdown on the Supreme Court, from its cases to the culture of the now 234-year-old establishment. Created by law professors Leah Litman, Kate Shaw and Melissa Murray, it aims to demystify the judiciary, via trending legal cases and their implications for America. From Roe v Wade, to immigration rulings and civil rights, this podcast will open up your mind to the major issues affecting everyday life in America.

The Receipts
The Receipts is no stranger to awards, having been nominated for best sex and relationship podcast at the British Podcast Awards in 2019, and scooped best podcast at the UK’s Urban Music Awards in 2020. Hosts Audrey Indome, Tolani Shoneye and Milena Sanchez (pictured above) speak about any and everything, as they champion fellow women of colour and offer their trademark, unfiltered advice. Focusing on pop culture, sex and relationships, its outrageous dilemmas range from “I kissed my boyfriend’s dad” to “I’ve been hiding my plastic surgery”.

Outcast UK
Winner of best new podcast at last year’s British Podcast Awards, Outcast is a safe space for LGBTQ+ listeners, dissecting compelling stories affecting the community. Host Graeme Smith isn’t afraid of tackling oft-taboo topics, from navigating sex work as a gay man, to the experiences of queer people of colour and changing attitudes towards HIV, with guests such as the CEO of the Thames Valley Positive Support charity. As well as compelling debates, this is also a lighthearted podcast in many ways, and features an eclectic mix of guests, from 90s garage singer-songwriter Ultra Naté to the star of gay rugby drama In From The Side.

The Lead
If you cherish deep dives into sport and inspiring and emotional stories, The Lead is the show for you. Winner of best sports podcast at this year’s Ambies, the podcast is hosted by journalists Tiffany Oshinsky and Anders Kelto, with an expert guest on hand each episode. From the death of football giant Pelé to Marvin Gaye transforming the NBA, there are plenty of immersive tales in its back catalogue, which numbers over 800 episodes and counting.

RedHanded
Described by co-hosts Suruthi Bala and Hannah Maguire as an attempt to understand the extremes of human behaviour, RedHanded has picked up gold and silver for the Listeners’ Choice gong at the last two British Podcast Awards. The duo discuss horrifying murder cases past and present, from the Idaho college murders of 2022 to the peculiar influence of Rasputin, in a show that rises above the surfeit of true crime shows. The pair also recently launched another podcast, Filthy Ritual, about the strange case of a British shaman who stole thousands of pounds from her clients.

Why not try …

• Varied insights into the world’s least-populated continent in A Voyage to Antarctica.
  

• Meet the trailblazing Black film directors who changed the game in The Class of 1989.

• From Van Gogh and Gaugin to Oprah and er … Texas, famous feuds are in the spotlight in Fierce Rivalries.

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