Podcasts have revolutionised the way I consume information, as well – at times – as how I impart information. Now, when I have a new favourite TV programme, I find a couple of fan podcasts to geek along with after the show; when I have a political issue I want to understand better, there are podcasts of people with lived experience telling their tales in a deep way.
Of course, there are other things I want to understand better where a quick Google search does the trick. The difference, frequently, is based on how much context and nuance you want in the answer you find.
On top of the added nuance, podcasts can feel like you’re listening into a conversation with friends or, sometimes even better, people you aspire to be like. They are relatively accessible to anyone with a smartphone and the vast, vast majority are free to download.
So, I’m going to give you some top tips, as a heavy podcast consumer, on which podcasts you need to be listening to if you are a feminist. And indeed if you are not. They’re not all overtly feminist publications but, if your outlook is intersectional, it is all relevant.
A few have not published episodes recently but their archives are available to download and get your teeth into.
- About Race with Reni Eddo-Lodge: The podcast About Race is an expansion of Reni Eddo-Lodge’s exceptional book, Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race. Together, the book and podcast look at racism frankly and openly and the podcast is well produced and essential listening
- She’s All Fat: This podcast looks at issues facing fat women from a humorous and intelligent angle. Listen in as the presenters discuss their own experiences and look at the wider picture of how fat people – women in particular – are treated and how this affects our lives. It is personal and it is political
- Abnormally Funny People: This podcast features a bunch of talented and hilarious comedians, all of whom are disabled. One member of the team, Lost Voice Guy, won Britain’s Got Talent last year. Guaranteed giggles, as well as a bit of consciousness raising in the picture
- Call Your Girlfriend: “A podcast for long-distance besties everywhere” is like listening in to your friends having a political chat. Aminatou and Ann talk about recent controversies and their own lives and mix it up to produce one of the longest-running feminist podcasts on the waves
- Disability Visibility: Alice Wong talks all things disability equality, advancing the visibility of awesome disabled people in the process
- Working Class History: A book I read once included the quote “Men make history because they write it” and, similarly, the history we are taught in schools does not incorporate working class history, except as occasional addendums. This podcast aims to remedy that, providing entertaining and fascinating insights into working class histories
- Queer Out Here: New to the podcast scene, Queer Out Here is a crowdsourced podcast that collates the sounds of the outdoors from a queer perspective. I found listening to my first episode a moving and almost meditative experience
- On the Rag: This popular podcast from New Zealand dissects feminist issues with wit and insight
- Standard Issue: When comedian Sarah Millican couldn’t find anything she wanted to read, she created Standard Issue magazine. Now an ‘audio zine’ rather than something to read, episodes contain a variety of content including my faves, the live episodes with an audience
- Uncover: The Village: It is important for marginalised communities to know and understand our own history, so check out this podcast based on the real-life murders of gay men in Toronto in the 1970s if you are ok with true crime
- The Struggle Bus: If you’ve ever needed an intersectional agony aunt to answer your letters and give you wise advice (that nearly always ends in “Oh, get therapy too”), then Struggle Bus is the podcast for you
- Queerly Beloved: A podcast from Vice, Queerly Beloved looks at unlikely but perfect queer relationships and the chosen families we surround ourselves with
- Strange Fruit: Jai and Doc look at Black gay lives and share the stories of those in those communities
- Thinking Allowed: Every week on BBC Radio 4, Laurie Taylor talks to sociologists and social scientists about their research and findings. There are always angles that are surprising and fascinating
- Susan Calman’s Mrs Brightside: Comedian Susan Calman talks to famous people about their own experiences of mental ill health for “a cheerful look at depression”.
- Made of Human: Another comedian, Danish Sofie Hagen, interviews interesting people, always with a view on intersectionality and inclusion.
Photo: Staffan Vilkans