Podcasts are still a relatively new venture for me. I mean,
back in 2011 I guest-starred on one that was associated with a now-defunct
website I was writing for. But until 2016, I didn’t pay very much attention.
The time and commitment involved just seemed like too much, and I didn’t want
to filter through all the crap to find the good stuff.
Still, around that time I had a number of recommendations
from friends, and I thought it was time to dip my toe in. Since then it’s been
quite the voyage of discovery – so while I don’t want to be that guy who’s
always telling you to check out podcasts, you might enjoy some of these if you
like this site.
If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably spent your share
of time watching or reading about bad movies, maybe even listening to a podcast
or two on the subject. That’s fun and all – but what if there was an equivalent
for bad books?
Well, I Don’t Even Own
a Television – or IDEOTV for short – steps up to fill that void in your
life. J. Williams Friedman and Chris Collision take you on a journey through
some of the best and worst trashy books on the market. I’ll freely admit that I
am not a particularly fussy reader; I certainly don’t always agree with their
takes, and I’ve personally enjoyed a bunch of the books featured. But both J
and Chris are very funny and very easy to listen to, and you do also hear about
some interesting books that you might not otherwise have come across.
As I’ve noted in some of my posts about reading, I collect
old books about the paranormal and the unexplained. But in day-to-day life, I
tend to think things need to be viewed a little more sceptically. And this is
where Ross & Carrie step in. Ross & Carrie are both former evangelical
Christians who are no longer members of the faith but have retained a
fascination with unusual beliefs. In their own words:
Welcome to Oh No, Ross
and Carrie!, the show where we don’t just report on fringe science,
spirituality, and claims of the paranormal, but take part ourselves. Follow us
as we join religions, undergo alternative treatments, seek out the paranormal,
and always find the humor in life’s biggest mysteries. We show up - so you
don’t have to.
In a stark contrast to many other pieces of skeptical media,
they largely avoid a snarky or condescending tone. They’ve been doing this in
one form or another since 2011, covering just about every fringe topic you
could think of – and yes, they have done
Scientology.
The second book-related podcast on here. Do you like extreme
metal, leftist politics, reading and crude humour? I sure as h*ck do. DEATH //
SENTENCE is the most recent entry to my regular listening, and indeed it seems
to be a fairly new podcast, apparently having debuted earlier this year. Hosted
by a British guy named Gareth and avant-garde writer Langdon Hickman,
they’re two very well-read guys who cover a lot of interesting ground.
As you might have
guessed from looking at this site over the years, I like collecting toys quite
a bit – so it’s only natural that I’d be pushing a podcast about toys on here.
Adam and Blake take you through the wild, whacky world of
collecting, along with all the fun and frustration that comes along with it. The show’s been
running since last year, and it’s really hit its stride. Highly recommended,
and both great about interacting with their fans on Twitter too.
Irish comedian/wrestling tragic Kefin Mahon and his life
partner Jo Graham talk through the basics of wrestling fandom. I came across
Kefin through an episode of the previously mentioned IDEOTV podcast, and
subsequently discovered he had been podcasting across a few different shows for
years.
Kefin and Jo do a fantastic job of making the
oft-impenetrable world of professional wrestling accessible to the wider
public. If you’ve ever thought about checking it out but weren’t sure where to
start, I can wholeheartedly recommend How2Wrestling a fantastic way to kick
things off. There’s also a great, welcoming Facebook group that’s grown as an
offshoot of the podcast too – Team Friendship.
