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There are some great podcasts in this week’s column, which either inspire, make you laugh, or provoke thought.
1. Origins with Cush Jumbo
Streaming platform: All streaming platforms
Genre: Society and culture
What are the three stories that made you who you are today? It’s a question British actress Cush Jumbo asks some of the biggest names in entertainment in her new Sony Music Entertainment-produced podcast, Origins.
The podcast launched with two brand new episodes with Bridgerton’s Golda Rosheuvel and Vogue’s editor-in-chief Anna Wintour. Quite a treat.
Before Wintour arrived on the 28th floor of the Sony Music skyscraper in New York City, The Good Wife star Jumbo admits that she was “very very nervous” to interview a woman who’s deemed an inspirational titan in the fashion industry.
But she does very well navigating such an insightful conversation about why Wintour loves to surround herself with inquisitive people, the influence her father had on her leadership style, getting fired from Harper’s Bazaar and why it’s important to remain connected to the world.
In the second episode with Rosheuvel, Jumbo talks to the actress who played Queen Charlotte in the period drama about discovering her sexuality whilst at drama school. It’s a very vulnerable and transparent episode, where they also establish the context of their friendship, the impact Bridgerton has had on Rosheuvel’s life, and her deep passion for acting.
Even the most successful people had to start from somewhere, and hearing more about it was such an honour.
(By Yolanthé Fawehinmi)
2. Empire City
Streaming platform: All streaming platforms
Genre: Crime
What do you think the police do? What are the foundations of law enforcement in America? These are some of the questions Peabody Award-winning journalist Chenjerai Kumanyika explores in his new Wondery and Crooked Media podcast Empire City.
30 years ago, Kumanyika got a call that his dad had just died, and suddenly the world felt less safe. He has a lot of pictures of him, including one he keeps on his desk but had never seen a video of him until more recently.
The footage he finds is from 1964, there’s no audio, and it’s black and white but surprisingly clear. Kumanyika’s dad, a tall 31-year-old black man, was wearing a black suit and skinny tie, moving and interacting with people. He’s alive.
But the more Kumanyika watches the video, he gets confused and angry that it’s surveillance footage shot by a counter-intelligence unit of the New York Police Department (NYPD).
Empire City is a new eight-part narrative series investigating the fascinating and largely invisible history of the NYPD. The storytelling is precise, thoughtful and honest. It’s critical history we should all take some time to learn more about.
(By Yolanthé Fawehinmi)
3. What Did You Do Yesterday?
Streaming platform: All streaming platforms
Genre: Comedy
The mundane can be remarkably amusing in the right hands, at least that’s the premise of What Did You Do Yesterday? where broadcaster Max Rushden and comedian David O’Doherty ask their guests exactly that in forensic detail from breakfast to bedtime.
The pair are fairly strict in heading off any anecdotes from previous days, and the guests for the first two episodes – comedians Elis James and Lou Sanders – play along by not arranging any eventful diary dates directly ahead of their recordings.
It’s a bit like listening in on a mad conversation with your new boyfriend and his mates. Brace yourself for in-jokes, random trivia and flights of fancy sparked by late-night laundry and how much you should chew your food. The numerologist selling a house to O’Doherty in the second episode was a high point.
(By Amy Crowther)
4. The Glitch
Streaming platform: All streaming platforms
Genre: Relationships and books
Audible’s new audio romance, The Glitch, from bestselling author Leeanne Slade, is a great one for people who prefer audiobooks over physical copies.
The Glitch follows Henry Dunne – played by British actor Sam Claflin – a workaholic with a reputation for keeping things casual, who has mistakenly agreed to hold a raucous party in his flat.
Little does he know that Grace Monroe – played by British actress Daisy Edgar-Jones – the ambitious and fiercely independent chef carrying out the catering for the party, is about to walk a tray of cream cheese appetisers straight into his chest and turn his world upside down.
The Glitch is for all the people who love love.
(By Yolanthé Fawehinmi)
Spotlight on…
5. The Social Work Community
Streaming platform: All streaming platforms
Genre: Family
Do we need more male social workers? It’s a question I haven’t necessarily thought about but it is an insightful way to launch season two of The Social Work Community Podcast.
In the first episode, careers editor at Community Care and host Sharmeen Ziauddin, speaks to social workers Curtis Powell and Jason Barnes about their experience in the sector, why they chose this career path and what they, as men, bring to the table.
The social work profession has traditionally been female-dominated. Recent figures show women make up about 80-85% of the workforce in the UK. So why are there so few men? Do we need more? Or does it not matter what gender you are?
“I think there’s a real gap… in terms of promoting what men can bring within social work organisations… Men can bring a diverse perspective, a different perspective, [and] can engage with families in a different kind of way. Role-modelling, for example,” Barnes says during the episode.
The rich conversation is out on Monday and a great listen for anyone already in the profession or thinking about making that leap.
(By Yolanthé Fawehinmi)
